In today’s NHL rumors rundown, Andrew Cogliano has announced his retirement. Meanwhile, the Toronto Maple Leafs have to make decisions on Mitch Marner and Mark Giordano but have elected to move on from Ilya Samsonov. The Vancouver Canucks have given Ilya Mikheyev’s agent permission to seek a trade and the Minnesota Wild are shopping Filip Gustavsson. Finally, is Evander Kane going to play Game 6 for the Edmonton Oilers?
Cogliano Retiring from the NHL
Forward Andrew Cogliano announced his retirement after 1,294 NHL regular season games. Cogliano is joining the Avs front office to assist with player development, pro and amateur scouting, as well as their AHL club. It was an amazing career for Cogliano, who played games with Edmonton, Anaheim, Dallas, San Jose, and Colorado. It was in Colorado where he won the Stanley Cup in 2022.
Cogliano released the following statement through the team:
The game of hockey has given me and my family so much and I am grateful for every moment. I am blessed to have played for so long with some great organizations and amazing teammates. I will miss being with the guys in the dressing room and battling for each other on the ice every night but it’s time to move on. Thank you to everyone I ever played with, played for and all the great fans for all of their support. I am excited to start my new chapter in the front office.
Latest on Maple Leafs Rumors
Paul Bissonnette of the Spittin Chiclets podcast is hearing the Maple Leafs could be working on a Mitch Marner extension. If the Maple Leafs extend Mitch Marner for eight years, the hope is they can get him at $10 million per season or less. Ideally, they could trade him for a substantial return, but the worry in Toronto is that the trade turns into another Nazem Kadri situation where the team loses the trade and Marner goes on to win somewhere else.
Meanwhile, Mark Giordano could enter unrestricted free agency soon. The veteran defenseman, coming off his second full season with the Maple Leafs, struggled with injuries and was a healthy scratch throughout Toronto’s first-round loss to the Bruins. Despite these setbacks, the 2019 Norris Trophy winner has no plans to retire and aims to return for his age-41 season, according to his agent Rich Winter, as reported by Kevin McGran of the Toronto Star. Giordano, eyeing a potential 19th NHL season, may continue playing beyond that. Winter stated, “Mark has decided to play for a few more years. He’s been advised: Don’t quit until they make you.”
The article notes:
Winter wouldn’t discuss the status of any contract talks with the Leafs, who own his bargaining rights until June 30. Giordano is among 10 pending unrestricted free agents general manager Brad Treliving must deal with, along with four restricted free agents.
source – ‘Maple Leafs notebook: Giordano’s NHL future, moving on from Samsonov, Bertuzzi extension talks’ – Kevin McGran – The Toronto Star – 06/20/2024
McGran also notes that a source told the Star the team has “moved on” from goalie Ilya Samsonov, who is looking for a long-term deal. The Leafs need a tandem partner for Joseph Woll and Laurent Brossoit has been a name linked to the Leafs in recent weeks.
Canucks Give Mikheyev’s Agent Permission to Seek Trade
Rick Dhaliwal from “Donnie and Dhali” reports that the Canucks have allowed Ilya Mikheyev’s agent to explore trade options with other teams in the league. Mikheyev has a cap hit of $4.75 million per season for the next two years and a 12-team no-trade clause.
Related: Today in Hockey History: June 21
Mikheyev’s representation, Dan Milstein of Gold Star Sports Management, is also in the midst of negotiating a contract extension for Nikita Zadorov.
The Wild will enter next season with three goalies: Marc-André Fleury in his final campaign and top prospect Jesper Wallstedt ready for more NHL starts. According to Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff, the team is “open for business” and listening to trade offers for Filip Gustavsson, who appears to be the odd man out.
Gustavsson, 26, signed a three-year, $11.25 million deal last summer after a breakout 2022-23 season with a .931 SV%. However, a poor start to 2023-24 saw his performance decline, with his SV% dropping to .899 and goals saved above expected falling to -4.8 from 24.2.
Kane is a Game-Time Decision for the Oilers
Edmonton Oilers head coach Kris Knoblauch said Evander Kane has looked better and is a game-time decision for Game 6. Kane skated with Sam Gagner and Sam Carrick at practice yesterday. That would hint he’s not going to play tonight. However, the narrative seems to have shifted a touch Friday morning with Kane more of a possibility than even 24 hours ago.
