Claimed on waivers last season, McLeod skated in 25 games with the Rangers, notching two assists and 39 penalty minutes. He began the season with the Nashville Predators, where he chipped in two points across 23 games.
McLeod spent part of two seasons with the Predators after a 10-year run with the Colorado Avalanche that began in 2007.
The 34-year-old has appeared in 738 games, registering 71 goals, 55 assists, and 1,563 penalty minutes.
"I'm done playing hockey," he told Slovak newspaper Novy Cas back in May, as translated by NHL.com. "I have a contract with Chicago for the next three years, but I have to watch my health, and my body says the comeback is not possible."
He missed all of last season due to a progressive skin disorder and the side effects of the medication used to treat it.
Hossa still has three years remaining on his contract with a $5.275-million annual cap hit, though his actual salary is only $1 million for each season. Since he is unable to play, he will only cost the Coyotes $200,000 per year.
It's worth noting that Marian Hossa's contract is insured for 80% of it's value.
Meaning that the $1,000,000 in base salary that Hossa is due in each of the next 3 seasons will only cost the #Coyotes $200,000 pic.twitter.com/XLN1OlOKji
A move such as this isn't uncommon, especially for the Coyotes. Inactive contracts they've acquired in the past include Chris Pronger in 2015 as well as Pavel Datsyuk and Dave Bolland in 2016.
By taking on his deal, the Coyotes get an ultra-speedy 24-year-old winger in Hinostroza, and Oesterle, a 26-year-old blue-liner coming off a career year in which he averaged over 20 minutes per night in 55 games. They also move up two rounds in the 2019 draft.
The Blackhawks, meanwhile, gain leadership, some organizational depth, and most importantly, cap room.
By trading Hossa, Hinostroza & Oesterle off their roster, in exchange for Kruger off Arizona's roster, the #Blackhawks instantly save $4.65M in cap space with this deal.
We now show Chicago with roughly $8.55M in projected cap space based on a tentative roster of 18 (9F/6D/3G). pic.twitter.com/tMNtwPldGU
What general manager Stan Bowman does with this newfound cap space remains to be seen.
Kruger won two Stanley Cups with the Blackhawks in 2013 and 2015 but was an ineffective fourth-line center with the Carolina Hurricanes last season. He was traded to Arizona on May 3 but didn't see an NHL game. He has one year left on his deal with a $2.775-million cap hit.
Entwistle was the Coyotes' third-round pick in 2017. The right winger collected 38 points in 49 games last year with the OHL's Hamilton Bulldogs.
Maletta, 23, is coming off a rough season in which he tallied just five assists in 29 AHL contests.
Campbell, 30, has 42 NHL games under his belt but will likely be looked upon to provide leadership for Chicago's AHL team.
Teams and players can continue to negotiate up until their scheduled hearing. Last year, only one arbitration case - involving Vegas Golden Knights defenseman Nate Schmidt - went through with a hearing, where he was awarded a two-year, $4.5-million agreement.
Nazem Kadri first donned a Maple Leafs jersey on a stage at the Bell Centre in Montreal when he was drafted seventh overall by the club in 2009. Now, almost a decade later, John Tavares - his friend, former London Knights teammate, and longtime Leafs fan - will be joining Kadri in Toronto.
Kadri was drafted at one of the lowest points in the Maple Leafs' illustrious history. The team failed to reach the postseason in seven consecutive seasons from 2005-12. Finally cracking the playoff picture in 2012-13, Toronto suffered the most heartbreaking of exits in an epic Game 7 collapse against the Boston Bruins in the first round. The Leafs didn't return to the playoffs again for another four years.
Over the past nine seasons, Kadri, the longest-serving current Leaf, has witnessed restructuring and a total rebuild within the Maple Leafs organization, which he says helped land the biggest free agent in recent history.
"I don't think a player like (Tavares) would have wanted to sign in Toronto eight, nine years ago," Kadri said to the Toronto Sun's Terry Koshan. "That's the culture we have been trying to rebuild, is trying to acquire those free agents and try to make Toronto a destination where players want to come and win. Johnny realized something special we had here and I think he made the right choice."
The buzz of adding one of the league's top centers brought restored faith to an organization that spent years trying to become a consistent Stanley Cup contender. Even though the addition of Tavares knocks Kadri down to a third-line role, his focus remains on bringing a championship to Toronto.
"You know what, winning is the most important to me." Kadri shared. "I don't care where I play, I don't care what role I play."
Few teams will be able to match Toronto's depth at center this upcoming season, sporting a trio threatening enough that Vegas oddsmakers favor the Leafs for the 2019 Stanley Cup.
Cory Schneider continues to recover from offseason hip surgery, and there are no assurances he'll be ready to go when the season kicks off in October.
The New Jersey Devils netminder underwent hip surgery in early May and was given a five-month recovery period, meaning his return to the ice will cut it close with the start of the regular-season schedule.
The Devils' first game comes Oct. 6 against the Edmonton Oilers, but it will be hosted in Sweden as part of the NHL Global Series.
"Whether it's September or October, we are not going to rush Cory," Devils general manager Ray Shero told Mike Morreale of NHL.com. "We have Keith Kinkaid, and that's why we re-signed Eddie Lack.
"(Schneider) played through (the injury), but at the end of the year it was something he had to have done. Unfortunately, it's a common injury with goalies nowadays. It was affecting other parts of his game. Hopefully everything is taken care of and put in the rearview mirror when he does return."
A nagging groin injury - coupled with impressive play from backup Kinkaid - limited Schneider to just 40 appearances last season, in which he posted a 17-16-6 showing and a .907 save percentage.
Kinkaid then got the start in the postseason against the Tampa Bay Lightning before Schneider stepped in for Game 2. In the playoffs, Schneider's play was much more formidable, as he finished with a 1.78 goals-against average and an incredible .950 save rate across four games.
Schneider, 32, is signed through the next four seasons at a $6-million cap hit.
The club signed goaltender Connor Hellebuyck to a new six-year, $37-million contract, the team announced Thursday.
Hellebuyck is coming off a breakout season in which he went 44-11-9 with a .924 save percentage, a 2.36 goals-against average, and six shutouts. He showed incredible durability during his first full year as a No. 1, as he played more minutes than any other netminder. His efforts were good enough to finish second in Vezina Trophy voting.
At 25 years old, this contract will carry Hellebuyck right through the prime of his career at a reasonable salary, considering he'll only be the NHL's sixth-highest paid goalie next season.
The 26-year-old spent last season with the KHL's Bratislava Slovan, netting four goals and seven assists in 44 games. He last appeared in the NHL in 2016-17 with the Anaheim Ducks but was limited to just one game due to concussion symptoms.
The Ducks bought out the final three years of Despres' contract in June 2017.
A native of Laval, Quebec, Despres was selected in the first round of the 2009 draft by the Pittsburgh Penguins.
OAKVILLE, Ont. — Taylor Hall finally got a taste. Now he wants the full course.
This spring, the eventual MVP winner and his 93 points dragged the New Jersey Devils into the NHL playoffs for the first time in five years. The experience lasted just five games, however, as the Devils were bounced by the Tampa Bay Lightning in unceremonious fashion.
Following seven playoff-free seasons with both the Edmonton Oilers and the Devils, Hall finds himself in unfamiliar territory. He's happy in red and black, but hungry for more.
"Definitely a successful season, but at the same time I watched playoff hockey for a month and a half before the Cup was handed out," Hall said Wednesday before teeing off at the NHLPA’s annual charity golf tournament. "We're a long way from where we want to be, but I think it was a great first step."
Despite the playoff berth, the Devils have been quiet this summer. General manager Ray Shero hasn’t acquired anybody of significance via free agency or trade; he also let a number of veteran players walk, with forwards Brian Gibbons (Anaheim), Michael Grabner (Arizona), and Patrick Maroon (St. Louis), as well as defenseman John Moore (Boston), all signing elsewhere.
"We’re going to have to find a way to make up for that," the 26-year-old said. "Those are guys that played key roles on our team, whether they were (picked up) at the trade deadline or just guys who came into (training) camp and surprised and made a huge difference for us."
Hall, whose 26-game point streak, career-high 39 goals, and 1.2 points per game helped him claim the 2018 Hart Trophy, laughed when he was asked about the potential of Shero using the club's salary cap space ($23 million in 2018-19) to add talent sooner than later.
"I just sit here like you guys …" he told a scrum of reporters. "I’d love to see us add a couple more pieces, but at the end of the day that’s not my job. My job’s to come into camp as healthy as possible, as committed as possible, and just worry about that."
While the Devils' depth chart remains unfilled, the team has Nico Hischier, the 2017 first-overall pick. Hall lauded the Swiss centre at the NHL awards, and heaped more praise onto him on Wednesday.
"If he was playing in Toronto, or a big market that would have a lot more spotlight, I think that he’d have a bigger name, a lot more recognition, certainly a lot more Calder votes than he had," Hall said of Hischier, who finished seventh in rookie-of-the-year voting.
"He had 50 points (52) as a centerman as an 18-year-old and, us playing on a line together, we played the top lines each and every night. I'm proud to be his teammate, I'm proud to be on a line with him, and I’m really looking forward to seeing the evolution of him, how he can improve next year."
The Devils vastly improved in 2017-18. Playing a speed game under coach John Hynes, they jumped from a winning percentage of .427 in 2016-17 to .591. It's an appetizing start, a jolt to the franchise's internal and external expectations.
"It's hard to get out of the basement. It's hard to get out of the basement and make the playoffs," Hall said, emphasizing the leap. "Now, I think the hardest step is going from making the playoffs to being a team that can challenge for the Cup. I'm really looking forward to trying to do that."
