The New York Rangers have agreed to terms with goaltender Spencer Martin on a two-year contract.

Martin was previously playing in the KHL with CSKA Moscow before his contract was bought out after 14 games.

The 30-year-old goaltender has played in 66 total NHL games for the Colorado Avalanche, Vancouver Canucks, Columbus Blue Jackets, and Carolina Hurricanes. 

In those 66 games, Martin recorded a 24-30-8 record, 3.56 goals against average, and .883 save percentage. 

The Rangers placed Martin on waivers upon signing him with the intention of sending him down to the Hartford Wolf pack of the American Hockey League if he goes unclaimed.

When the Ottawa Senators head for overtime, something they've done five times in their last six games, they have a fairly predictable plan for their blue line. First, they rotate Jake Sanderson and Thomas Chabot.

End of plan.

Sanderson and Chabot take alternating shifts until overtime ends, and unless they're needed in round 10 of the shootout, the other four guys' nights are done.

But when Chabot left the Dallas game with an injury on Monday night, the Senators had to turn off their overtime autopilot and come up with a new plan. Who would replace Chabot in the furious action of the 3-on-3? Would it be Jordan Spence, Artem Zub, Nick Jensen, or Tyler Kleven?

With his puck skill, skating speed, and point production, Spence is the player in that group who most resembles Chabot, and it's not even close. Then you might next think about Zub, who's more known for his defense, but has shown some offensive flash this season with 9 points.

But the Senators went with stay-at-home defenseman Tyler Kleven.

Kleven has zero goals and one assist in 15 games, and while he has done some good things this season, his levels of quickness, puck skill and creating offence aren't the reason he's in this league. And in the wide open spaces of NHL overtime, those are crucial virtues..

Head coach Travis Green was at his short-answering best after the game when asked why Kleven was seen as the best option to replace Chabot in OT.

Ottawa Senators Lose Defenseman Thomas Chabot To Injury On Tuesday NightChabot's injury exposes the Senators' lack of organizational depth on the left side.

"Just... Baumer went with him," Green said, referring to assistant coach Nolan Baumgartner, who looks after the defense.

Green could have just said, "That's what we decided to do," which would have been very much on brand. Instead, he decided to share or remind us that it's his assistant coach who makes that call.

So we're left to speculate, as we so often are, and this was probably a decision based on trust. Since Kleven's calling card is defense, Baumgartner chose the defenseman he felt he could most rely on, maybe not to win the game, but the one that's least likely to do something that might lose the game.

It could be that Baumgartner is still spooked by Spence's last-minute turnover against the Islanders last month, which cost the Senators at least one point in the standings. But if that were true, Spence wouldn't have been elevated to the second pairing.

Interestingly, with Kleven out there for the extra frame on Tuesday to provide defence and physicality, it was a major defensive breakdown that led to the winning goal, with Stars players being allowed to stand around freely in Ottawa's slot area. Kleven and Shane Pinto became the second and third goaltenders on the play, but in fairness, it was Dylan Cozens who contributed most to that defensive breakdown.

Dallas forward Jason Robertson took the puck behind Ottawa's net, and Kleven had him contained to the outside, but Cozens unwisely left his post in front to help Kleven. That left Miro Heiskanen all alone in front, which led to four straight shot attempts from the Stars. The Sens blocked the first three, and two were game-savers by Shane Pinto, but every rebound ended up perfectly on Dallas stick blades until Hintz put it away.

Looking ahead, if Chabot is out for any length of time, it will be interesting to see how the Sens handle things in their next overtime and if Kleven continues to be their plan B. My old co-host, John Rodenburg at Ottawa's TSN 1200 radio, put it perfectly, asking the question many Sens fans are asking today:

If Jordan Spence isn't built for 3-on-3 overtime, what is he built for?

Steve Warne
The Hockey News/Ottawa

Read more at The Hockey News Ottawa:

Staios On Linus Ullmark: ‘I Believe In Linus, The Team Believes In Linus.’
Four Takeaways From Senators 4-2 Victory Over Utah Sunday Night
Former Ottawa Senator GM Passes Away At Age 70
Ullmark: "There Are So Many Things I'd Like To Say To All The Doubters"

After a mostly successful (3-2-1) road trip, their longest of the 2025-26 season, the Chicago Blackhawks are home. At 8-5-3, Chicago will take on the 11-4-1 New Jersey Devils.

The Blackhawks have won three games in a row. They haven't won four in a row since winning five in a row back during the 2022-23 season.  

Coming off a home loss in overtime, New Jersey is headed on a long road trip of their own, starting in The Windy City. 

Number One Picks

This game will feature a lot of high-end talent. Three of the last nine first overall picks will participate in this game. New Jersey Devils captain Nico Hischier is the oldest, as he was the first overall pick of the 2017 NHL Draft. Of course, that draft took place at the United Center. 

Two years later, New Jersey selected Jack Hughes with the first overall pick of the 2019 NHL Draft. Since then, both of them have become catalysts for a winning organization. 

In 2023, the Chicago Blackhawks selected Connor Bedard first overall. Like both Hughes and Hischier, it took a while for Bedard's offensive flair to take off, but we are seeing all three of them dominate games in 2025. 

There are also a couple of second overall picks participating in the game. New Jersey selected Simon Nemec second in 2022, while Chicago took Artyom Levshunov second in 2024. Both of them are now starting to realize their NHL potential as the games go on. 

Scouting New Jersey

Gritsyuk - Hughes - Mercer

Meier - Hischier - Bratt

Palat - Glass - Noesen

Cotter - Glendening - MacEwen

Siegenthaler - Nemec

Dillon - Hughes

Cholowski - White

Markstrom

New Jersey is making some changes to their top six. Arseny Griitsyuk is moving up to play with Jack Hughes. Jesper Bratt, however, who scores at a point per game pace these days, is swapping lines with Dawson Mercer. They are expecting that to open up more offense in the top six. 

Ondrej Palat is a nice veteran, but he is a step behind where he was as a member of the Tampa Bay Lightning. Now, on the third line, he is in a much more fitting spot for what he brings to the table in 2025. 

On defense, New Jersey is dealing with a fair amount of injuries. That includes Dougie Hamilton, who has been a star in the NHL for years. There is a lot of youth on this blue line, but the Blackhawks must be wary of Simon Nemec and Luke Hughes, who can make big-time plays at a moment's notice. 

Jacob Markstrom will start in the net for the New Jersey Devils. Markstrom has had a rough start to the year, being outplayed by his backup, Jake Allen, but every game is one in which he could go back to his former Vezina-nominee form. Traffic in front, smart shot selection, and a hard forecheck will be Chicago's key to beating him early and often. 

Chicago's Projected Lines, Defense Pairs, & Starting Goalie

Bertuzzi - Bedard - Burakovsky

Teravainen - Greene - Mikheyev

Moore - Donato - 

Dach - Foligno - Lafferty

Vlasic - Rinzel

Grzelcyk - Murphy

Kaiser - Levshunov

Crevier

Knight

This lineup is in flux going into the matchup. For one, Jason Dickinson and Frank Nazar are still missing due to their injuries and will not play. 

Andre Burakovsky is a game-time decision. The Blackhawks needed an extra forward in case the answer is no, so they called up Landon Slaggert. If Burakovsky can't go, Slaggert will fit into that forward group somehow.

Connor Bedard is sure to see a lot of ice with the way this is shaking out. He is on an eight-game point streak, so expect him to come out flying, looking to make it nine in a row. 

On defense, they will be dressing seven once again. All seven of them have mostly played well in every game that they go with this strategy. 

In goal, Spencer Knight is the expected starter. Knight, so far this season, has been one of the best goalies in the NHL. Their confidence to start him in multiple consecutive games is showing. 

How To Watch

The Blackhawks vs Devils match is a national game in the United States. It will be the second game of a doubleheader on TNT. The puck will drop at 8:52 CT. 

Visit The Hockey News Chicago Blackhawks team site to stay updated on the latest news, game-day coverage, player features, and more.

For action-packed issues, access to the entire magazine archive and a free issue, subscribe to The Hockey News at THN.com/free. Get the latest news and trending stories by subscribing to our newsletter here. And share your thoughts by commenting below the article on THN.com or creating your own post in our community forum.

The Colorado Avalanche had a lot to do last offseason after another disappointing round one elimination from the Dallas Stars. Brock Nelson is a pending unrestricted free agent, and they may have very little cap space to sign him. So the day before the 2025 NHL Entry Draft, the Avalanche sent Charlie Coyle and Miles Wood to the Columbus Blue Jackets in exchange for Gavin Brindley, a 2025 third-round pick, and a 2027 conditional second-round pick.

What looked in the eyes of many like a quick cap dump, freeing over $7.5 million in cap space for a team looking to get deeper without giving up much, has turned out even better for the Avalanche and the way Brindley has been playing recently.

🗣️ Gavin Brindley

On the heels of his first career OT winner, the Avalanche Rookie signed a two-year extension this morning.#GoAvsGo | Powered By: https://t.co/O7RJKwUgbNpic.twitter.com/07oNOue9m3

— Guerilla Sports (@guerillasports) November 11, 2025

The Blue Jackets had additional draft picks and, combined with the prospect pool they have been building over the past couple of years, it was more about acquiring players of the caliber that Coyle and Wood can bring to their team. The third-round pick turned into Francesco Dell’Elce, a more offensive-style, left-shot defenseman from the University of Massachusetts, who has great skating for his age and a strong shot. His playmaking is solid, able to make great stretch-pass plays and use his skating to blow right by them if they give him too much space, but back to Brindley.

Drafted in the 2023 NHL Entry Draft in the second round out of the University of Michigan, who just finished with a season where he scored 25 goals and 28 assists for 53 points, leading his team in points and ahead of other notable prospects like Rutger McGroarty (Penguins), Frank Nazar (Blackhawks).

Heading into the draft, EliteProspects said this about Brindley;

“Brindley is a high-motor player who excels on the defensive side of the puck. He’s a tenacious forechecker and reliable in defensive zone coverage. He’s always in motion, always attacking lanes, bouncing around defenders to find them, especially on the power play. He anticipates plays ahead of time and moves to support them. -EliteProspects 2023 NHL Draft Guide”

He struggled in his first professional year with the Cleveland Monsters in the AHL, scoring six goals and 11 assists for 17 points. At the same time, other notable Blue Jackets outscored him, like Denton Mateychuk and Luca Del Bel Belluz. Though the Jackets, after last season's run, were in the market to bolster their depth, get more physical, and surround their growing prospects with veterans, the Avalanche were happy to do so and came out on top in the deal.

The Avalanche offloaded two contracts that, while deemed reasonable at the time of their acquisition, couldn't stay on the team due to their performance and cap implications.

They also get a young 21-year-old prospect who's looking to make a name for himself in a new system, and he's done just that. Many, including myself, didn't think he was going to mysteriously breakout and make the top six. Still, he shows flashes of top-six potential in his skating and puck-handling, as seen in his game against the Vancouver Canucks and in securing his first career overtime winner. It is his physicality that also fits in the bottom-six, along with his aggressive puck style.

GAVIN BRINDLEY IS YOUR OT HERO!! 😱

The @Avalanche win it in @Energizer overtime! pic.twitter.com/mfWQpTNCd4

— NHL (@NHL) November 10, 2025

In part of filling in for injured Joel Kiviranta and Logan O’Conner, Brindley has been excellent for the Avalanche and the role he fills for them. Despite just three goals and two assists for five points in 15 games, the effort and grinder mentality he brings with Parker Kelly and Zahkar Bardakov on the fourth line has been precisely what the Avalanche could expect from him in his early career.

This is just the style of effort and production that not only keeps him on the team for longer, as he just signed a two-year extension through the 2027-28 season. $850K two-way contract for 2026-27, $900K one-way for 2027-28. It also reminds people that there is still more room to grow and develop as the years come.

Avalanche Ink Gavin Brindley to Two-Year ExtensionThe young phenom will stay in Colorado for at least a while longer.

This is a player who can help the team win now by being productive and reliable in a bottom-six role, who has the opportunity in the seasons to come to grow and work his way into a middle/top-six role as players get older, traded, or not re-signed because they have his talents to fill higher in the lines.

For action-packed issues, access to the entire magazine archive and a free issue, subscribe to The Hockey News at THN.com/free. Get the latest news and trending stories by subscribing to our newsletter here. And share your thoughts by commenting below the article on THN.com or creating your own post in our community forum.

Mackinnon Three-Point Night Help Avalanche End Ducks Seven Game Win StreakMacKinnon's three-point night, including Landeskog's first goal of the season, helped the Avalanche take down the red-hot Ducks coming into Denver