The Pittsburgh Penguins could be looking to move some of their players this offseason, specifically both Bryan Rust and Rickard Rakell, and with a little money left over, do the Los Angeles Kings make sense as a potential fit for Rakell?

The Kings would have to move money out, considering Rakell has a $5 million cap hit, and the Kings only have $2,668,833 in cap space, but Rakell’s ability to score and play solid hockey in the defensive zone makes him an enticing asset to try and move some money around for. 

Rakell, who is 32 years old, scored 35 goals and added 35 assists for 70 points through 81 games last season. His offensive importance can’t be denied, but that doesn’t mean he would be a good fit for the Kings.

Would Adding Him Make Sense?

In this situation, though, he could plug into the second line with ease. He could bolster the Kings’ top six and become one of their key scorers heading into the 2025-26 season. 

Realistically, adding him likely cancels out the questionable moves the Kings made this offseason and puts them into contention to make it out of the Western Conference, and gives them a real shot at making a push for a Stanley Cup. 

His ability to drive the play offensively while being able to complement any player he is a linemate with makes him someone the Kings should be all over.

Of course, one player doesn’t make a team, but he could be a perfect fit and the final piece to the puzzle that allows them to finally get over the hump.

Image Credit: © Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

3 PTO Options for the LA Kings Going Into the 2025-26 SeasonWith the NHL offseason coming to a close, the Los Angeles Kings still have some cap room to play with before training camp.  LA Kings’ AHL Affiliate Announces Extension For Prospect Defender Parker BergeThe Los Angeles Kings' American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Ontario Reign, has announced an extension for prospect defender Parker Berge. Alex Laferriere New Contract A Steal For The LA KingsImage Credit: © Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

It is fair to say that the 2024-25 season was a tough year for Chicago Blackhawks forward Lukas Reichel. The young winger did not have the breakout season he and the club had hoped for, as he recorded eight goals, 14 assists, 22 points, and a minus-16 rating in 70 games. This was after he had five goals and 16 points in 65 games with the Blackhawks in 2023-24.

Overall, with numbers like these, Reichel has yet to become the top-six forward that the Blackhawks expected him to be when they selected him with the 17th overall pick of the 2020 NHL Entry Draft. While this is the case, he should not be given up on yet. 

Sometimes it can take young players more time than expected to hit their full potential, and this very well could end up being the case for Reichel. At 23 years old, he is still plenty young enough to improve, and it would not be surprising in the slightest if he did in 2025-26 because of it. His skill and offensive upside are what led to him being a first-rounder, and it will be interesting to see if he can break out next season. 

Where New Blackhawks Should Fit In LineupIt is no secret that it has been a far quieter off-season this year for the Chicago Blackhawks compared to last year. While this is the case, the Blackhawks did make a few new additions, as they brought in Andre Burakovsky, Sam Lafferty, and Dominic Toninato.

Photo Credit: © Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images

With the Pittsburgh Penguins being far from a playoff-caliber team right now, plenty of hockey fans have speculated about the Metropolitan Division club potentially trading captain Sidney Crosby to give him the chance to play for a contender again. 

However, in the latest episode of 32 Thoughts: The Podcast, NHL insider Elliotte Friedman completely shut down the ongoing Crosby trade rumors. 

"He's going to start the year with the Penguins," Friedman said while chuckling. "I don't think there's any doubt about that. We got the preliminary media list, and it says 'Sidney Crosby, Penguins.' So, that one was a sign to me that, if anybody doubted that, he's not getting traded this summer. He's definitely not getting traded this summer."

With Crosby entering the first season of the two-year, $17.4 million contract extension he signed with the Penguins before the 2024-25 campaign, this update from Friedman is not surprising in the slightest. 

Crosby is now entering his 21st season with the Penguins in 2025-26 and will continue to be the face of the franchise. In 80 games this past season with Pittsburgh, he recorded 33 goals, 58 assists, and 91 points. 

Penguins New Forward Should Be Great FitThe Pittsburgh Penguins have made plenty of new additions to their roster this off-season. Among their free-agent signings was forward Justin Brazeau, as the Penguins signed him to a two-year, $3 million contract on July 1.

Photo Credit: © Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

Detroit Red Wings general manager Steve Yzerman has managed to re-stock prospect pool that had been nearly completely barren upon his arrival back to the franchise in April 2019. 

Not only has Yzerman been known for his savvy drafting, but also willingness to take flyers on players who went un-drafted. 

One such player is goaltender Michal Postava, who was recently inked to a two-year, entry-level contract by the Red Wings and now represents the latest intriguing figure in Detroit's goalie prospect pool which already includes Sebastian Cossa and Trey Augustine. 

UPDATE: The #RedWings have signed goaltender Michal Postava to a two-year, entry-level contract. pic.twitter.com/G8DFWZ0Z8t

— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) June 11, 2025

Postava, who originally hails from Valasske Mezirici, Czechia, understandably has an affinity for Czech-born goaltenders. 

Bookmark The Hockey News Detroit Red Wings team site to stay connected to the latest news, game-day coverage, and player features. 

“I’m a big fan of all the Czech goalies who played in the NHL,” Postava said as originally reported by Bob Duff of Detroit Hockey Now. “(Dominik) Hasek was among the first ones I watched. Petr Mrazek is one of them, as well as a lot of other guys.”

Hasek spent three separate stints during his Hall of Fame NHL career with the Red Wings, the first and third of which resulted in him lifting the Stanley Cup and shortly announcing his retirement from the NHL afterward. 

Mrazek has now played two stints with Detroit, the second of which lasted only a few months after being re-acquired from the Chicago Blackhawks in March. In late June, the Red Wings traded him to the Anaheim Ducks as part of the deal to acquire John Gibson. 

Before Mrazek's trade to the Ducks, he briefly spent some time with Postava at the Red Wings' annual Development Camp at Little Caesars Arena. 

"Yeah, we were talking maybe three days before he got traded,” Postava said. “So he was welcoming me and telling me to be proud and try hard every day.”

Not only is it a prideful thing to be signed by an NHL club, but Postava would love to be Detroit's next great Czech goaltender. 

"I’m enjoying every moment, and I’m proud to be a part of this organization," he said.

“There have always been a lot of Czechs here, and they are still active in the organization," he continued. "Plus, it’s a big club from the Original Six. It’s a huge opportunity for me." 

Speaking of Czechs who are still in the organization, former Red Wings defenseman Jiri Fischer, who had his career come to a frightening end in November 2005 with a near-fatal cardiac event at Joe Louis Arena, currently serves as Detroit's Director of Player Evaluation and gave Postava the inside scoop. 

“I talked to Jiri Fisher, and he was telling me like, everywhere what happens and everything that was done here,” Postava said. “He helped me a lot to get here.”

Postava played in 42 games last season for HC Kometa Brno in the Czech Extraliga, and amassed a record of 23-18-0 with an impressive .921 save percentage and three shutouts. 

He'll be a participant in Training Camp for the Red Wings next month, and could see playing time in the American Hockey League with the Grand Rapids Griffins. 

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One of the strongest parts of the Montreal Canadiens' roster is their blueline. It is no secret that they have a ton of depth on their blueline, and they only improved it this off-season by bringing in Noah Dobson from the New York Islanders. 

However, with the Canadiens having so many NHL defensemen and promising prospect blueliners in their system, they are starting to create some chatter in the rumor mill. 

In a recent episode of The Sick Podcast, Sportsnet's Eric Engels argued that "there's a good chance" that one of Mike Matheson, Arber Xhekaj, or Jayden Struble may no longer be with the Canadiens by next off-season to make room for prospect defensemen like David Reinbacher and Adam Engstrom.

"Between those three guys, right, you have Matheson, Struble, Xhekaj," Engels said. "There's a good chance that between now and this time next year, one of those guys is not here... We know David Reinbacher is a big part of the future for the Canadiens... It's pretty vital to their plans to become a perennial contender that he starts to get some NHL games under his belt."

When looking at this list of players, Matheson stands out as the most notable. The 31-year-old has been a major part of the Canadiens' blueline since his arrival, but is also a pending unrestricted free agent (UFA). Meanwhile, there would also be some risk in moving on from Xhekaj or Struble, as they are young defensemen with good upside. 

Nevertheless, it will be very interesting to see if the Canadiens end up moving on from a defenseman between now and next off-season. 

Canadiens' Blueline Ranked Among NHL's BestIt is no secret that the Montreal Canadiens have a strong defensive group. They only improved upon this off-season, too, as they acquired star blueliner Noah Dobson from the New York Islanders last month.

Photo Credit: © Marc DesRosiers-Imagn Images

The Buffalo Sabres' schedule has been out for some time now, and it's always fun to examine the Sabres' opponents by breaking down their showdowns against each of the NHL's 31 other teams.

We here at THN.com's Sabres site have been analyzing Buffalo's opponents in the Eastern Conference, but today, we're shifting our focus to the first (alphabetical) team in the highly-competitive Central Division -- the Chicago Blackhawks. who have struggled in the post-Jonathan Toews/Patrick Kane Era. Will this season be any different for Chicago? And does that mean the Blackhawks will beat the Sabres in their games this year? Read on to find out.

BUFFALO SABRES VS. CHICAGO BLACKHAWKS

NEW BLACKHAWKS PLAYERS: Andre Burakovsky, LW; Sam Lafferty, C; Dominic Toninato, C 

2024-25 SERIES: Sabres 2-0-0, Blackhawks 0-2-0

2025-26 GAMES AGAINST EACH OTHER:  November 21 at Buffalo; April 13 at Chicago 

CAN THE SABRES BEAT THIS TEAM?  To be blunt -- the Sabres throttled the Blackhawks in their two games this past year, and there's no good reason Buffalo can't beat Chicago in their two games this coming season.

Chicago made some peripheral moves at forward this summer, landing Burakovsky from Seattle, acquiring Lafferty in a trade with the Sabres, and signing depth center Toninato away from the Winnipeg Jets. That's all they did, and given how terrible Chicago looked last year, Hawks management should've done much more than that to be a letigimate Stanley Cup playoff contender.

The Blackhawks also hired a new coach in former Detroit Red Wings bench boss Jeff Blashill, but even the greatest coach of all-time would have trouble turning this Hawks team into a world-beater. The Hawks almost certainly are going to miss the playoffs once again this season, and the Sabres would have to count losses to Chicago as huge disappointments.

Know Your Enemy, Sabres Metropolitan Edition: How Will Buffalo Fare Against High-Octane Washington Capitals?The Buffalo Sabres want nothing more than to qualify for the 2025-26 Stanley Cup playoffs. Ending Buffalo's 14-year drought without any playoff games is a gigantic stain on the organization, but there's no assurace the Sabres will be able to vault over many solid teams and grab a playoff berth.

The two games between Buffalo and the Blackhawks come at opposite ends of the year -- the first game coming six weeks into the season, and the final game coming as the Sabres' second-last game of the year. By that point, the Hawks should be well out of the playoff race -- and at that point, the Sabres could be in a massive battle for a playoff spot that could be decided by one or two standings points.

If Buffalo does lose out on a playoff berth by a couple of points or less, and they failed to take advantage of their games against the Blackhawks, Sabres fans could point to their lack of success against Chicago as a turning point in their season.

That said, it's not like the Hawks are totally bereft of talent. They've got budding star center Connor Bedard as their crown jewel, and their young talents on defense could take major competitive steps forward. If they can at least improve their goaltending, they might have enough talent to surprise some people.

Know Your Enemy, Sabres Metropolitan Edition: Should Buffalo Dominate Showdowns Against Lowly Penguins Next Year?The Buffalo Sabres know their schedule for the 2025-26 campaign, and if Buffalo hopes to end their Stanley Cup playoff drought after 14 years, they're going to need to make the most of every rivalry they have in the league. And that includes the Pittsburgh Penguins -- the team that is the latest Metropolitan Division rival for the Sabres in THN.com's Sabres site rankings of all Buffalo's Eastern Conference's rivals.

Still, all things considered, there's no legitimate excuse for the Sabres to lose when they play the Blackhawks. Buffalo has more depth, in all areas, than Chicago has.

The NHL always has games where lesser teams beat better teams, so the Sabres have to be careful. But they've got two games against the Blackhawks to make count against their bottom line, and if they blow those games, their destiny may be out of their hands.