The Vancouver Canucks signed defenseman Derrick Pouliot to a one-year, one-way, $1.1-million contract, the team announced Tuesday.

Pouliot was a restricted free agent but did not receive a qualifying offer before Monday's 5 p.m. deadline, which gave him unrestricted status and freed him to sign with any team on July 1.

The Canucks likely non-tendered him in fear that an arbitrator would reward him with more than $1.1 million.

A former eighth overall pick of the Pittsburgh Penguins in 2012, the 24-year-old collected 22 points in 71 games with the Canucks this past season.

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Wayne Gretzky isn't part of the Hockey Hall of Fame selection committee, but if he were, it sure sounds like commissioner Gary Bettman's induction would have gotten his stamp of approval.

"What makes the game of hockey so wonderful is the fans, the players, the coaches, the cities that back their teams, the global growth of hockey, the ever-expanding growth of our game in North America and, of course, the competitive balance we are fortunate to have in our league," Gretzky told Dan Rosen of NHL.com on Tuesday when the 2018 class was announced.

"The commissioner's vision to give every club a chance to win the Stanley Cup has made our game stronger. His leadership and love for hockey is very evident. And hockey has become more entertaining year after year, thanks in part to his passion for the game."

Named commissioner in 1993, the NHL has seen massive gains throughout Bettman's tenure, particularly expansion from 24 to 31 teams, largely in the southern United States. The Anaheim Ducks, Nashville Predators, and Vegas Golden Knights are among the success stories.

Under Bettman, the NHL has also secured cost certainty, introducing a salary cap to begin the 2005-06 season, and boosted league revenues more than tenfold. The average player salary has climbed to more than $3 million a year. However, he's also presided over three lockouts, including one that wiped out the entire 2004-05 season.

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NHL commissioner Gary Bettman is going to be a Hockey Hall of Famer, and not everybody is thrilled about that.

Even before his November induction was officially revealed Tuesday, people were already cracking wise, while others were legitimately questioning it.

Once it was confirmed, the discourse continued, and let's just say it was largely critical.

Some did come to Bettman's defense.

Finally, the circumstances of the announcement itself seemed rather apropos.

And scene.

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The Hockey Hall of Fame class of 2018 was announced Tuesday, headlined by New Jersey Devils icon Martin Brodeur.

Martin St. Louis, Alexander Yakushev, and Jayna Hefford were also chosen in the player category. Willie O'Ree - the NHL's first black player - and commissioner Gary Bettman were elected as builders.

Brodeur was a first-ballot lock. The goaltender ranks first all time in wins (691) and shutouts (105) to go along with three Stanley Cups, four Vezina Trophies, five William M. Jennings Trophies, a Calder Trophy, and two Olympic gold medals. He owns a career save percentage of .912, and led the league in wins in nine different seasons throughout his time with New Jersey.

St. Louis, meanwhile, was one of the most prolific scorers of his era, accruing 391 goals and 642 assists in 1,134 career contests. The undrafted, undersized winger won the Art Ross Trophy twice, the Hart Trophy once, and the Lady Byng Trophy three times. He lifted the Stanley Cup in 2004 and won Olympic gold in 2014.

Hefford represented Canada internationally on numerous occasions, capturing an incredible four consecutive Olympic gold medals and scoring the winning goal in 2002. Yakushev has a polished international resume as well, having won gold for the Soviet Union in 1972 and 1976.

O'Ree broke the NHL's color barrier on January 18, 1958 with the Boston Bruins. The 82-year-old appeared in just 45 NHL games, but his legacy and his continued work as an ambassador for the league has finally earned official recognition by the Hall of Fame.

Lastly, Bettman got the nod in his 25th year as commissioner. Since he took over in 1993, the league has expanded from 24 to 31 teams. While he's received his fair share of criticism for - among other things - his push to expand the game in the southern United States, there's no denying his efforts to grow interest in non-traditional markets have benefited the NHL.

All six members will officially be inducted in November.

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The Tampa Bay Lightning signed forward J.T. Miller to a five-year contract worth $26.25 million, the team announced Tuesday.

The deal includes a limited no-trade clause that doesn't kick in until its second year, according to The Athletic's Joe Smith.

Signing Miller, Tampa Bay's most prominent restricted free agent, leaves the team with a projected $5.3 million in available cap space, according to CapFriendly.

The 25-year-old was acquired by the Lightning at the trade deadline from the New York Rangers along with defenseman Ryan McDonagh. In 19 games after heading south, Miller recorded 18 points and added eight more in 15 postseason contests.

The extension comes one day after it was reported the Lightning would meet with John Tavares, and could significantly lower the club's chances of luring the superstar without a corresponding move to clear cap space.

While a decision on Miller was among Tampa Bay's top priorities this summer, the front office is far from being clear of potential salary-cap headaches, as Nikita Kucherov will need a new deal and Andrei Vasilevskiy is eligible for an extension after the 2018-19 season.

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The 2018 NHL Draft lacked the fireworks everybody anticipated, but the Montreal Canadiens were reportedly close to providing quite a spark.

The Habs, who selected Finnish pivot Jesperi Kotkaniemi with the No. 3 pick, had a deal in place with the New York Islanders and Buffalo Sabres to send captain Max Pacioretty to Long Island for a first-round pick, then flip it to the Sabres in exchange for Ryan O'Reilly, according to Sportsnet's Eric Engels.

Sabres general manager Jason Botterill was asking for the third overall pick, which wasn't an option for the Canadiens, so Habs boss Marc Bergevin turned to the Isles, who held both the 11th and 12th overall picks. It's unclear what other pieces may have been involved, but once prospects Oliver Wahlstrom and Noah Dobson fell down the board to New York, the Islanders turned down the deal, adds Engels.

Both Pacioretty and O'Reilly have been rumored to be on the trading block this offseason, and would conceivably fit well in a role with their hypothetical new organizations.

Oh, what could have been.

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Alex Burrows' tenure with the Ottawa Senators is apparently nearing its end.

The club placed the veteran forward on unconditional waivers for the purpose of a buyout Tuesday, according to Sportsnet's Chris Johnston.

Even if the Senators buy him out, they won't be completely off the hook.

The 37-year-old has one year left on the two-year, $5-million contract he signed with Ottawa in late February 2017, one day after the Senators acquired him from the Vancouver Canucks for prospect Jonathan Dahlen.

Burrows chipped in 11 points in 20 regular-season games after the trade and five more points in the Senators' unexpectedly deep playoff run last spring. This season, he managed only six goals and eight assists in 71 games.

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The Pittsburgh Penguins agreed to a four-year deal with forward Bryan Rust that carries an average annual value of $3.5 million, the club announced Tuesday.

Rust was a pending restricted free agent.

He collected 13 goals and 38 points in 69 regular-season games this season, piling up 20 points in his final 31 contests. He added three goals in 12 postseason games.

Rust was a member of both of the Penguins' Stanley Cup-winning squads in 2016 and 2017, and has scored 10 goals in 18 career playoff elimination games.

The 26-year-old has spent parts of four seasons at the NHL level with the Penguins, who made him a third-round pick in 2010.

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The Washington Capitals and unrestricted free agent Devante Smith-Pelly are still having dialogue regarding a new deal after the club didn't extend the winger a qualifying offer on Monday, Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic reports.

The NHL's deadline to qualify restricted free agents struck Monday at 5 p.m. ET, and Smith-Pelly's name is among the top to hit the open market.

After having the second year of his contract bought out by the New Jersey Devils, Smith-Pelly joined the Capitals on a one-year, $650,000 deal last July. The 26-year-old winger recorded 16 points in 75 regular games with Washington, but boosted his value with seven goals in the playoffs, including three in the Stanley Cup Final to help the club secure its first championship.

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Oliver Wahlstrom is known for having a great shot, and now he's aiming it squarely at a crosstown rival of the team that selected him in the draft.

The promising forward had a message for a certain club that passed on him Friday night.

"The New York Rangers made a mistake there," Wahlstrom told the New York Post's Brett Cyrgalis at the New York Islanders development camp Tuesday morning.

Wahlstrom wasn't taken by the Rangers at No. 9 overall, as they opted for Russian winger Vitali Kravtsov with the first of their two first-round choices, and the Islanders chose Wahlstrom two picks later with the first of their two consecutive selections.

The Islanders host the Rangers on Nov. 15 in their first meeting of the 2018-19 season, and the two clubs will face off again six days later at Madison Square Garden.

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