NHL Player News

Gard will join Michigan State University starting with the 2027-28 campaign, Jackie Spiegel of The Philadelphia Inquirer reports Thursday.

Gard is expected to remain with WHL Seattle next season before making the jump to the collegiate ranks. With the Thunderbirds this last season, the 2025 second-round pick notched 11 goals and 12 helpers in 32 regular-season tilts. Unless the 19-year-old center's offensive game improves drastically, he likely will spend a couple of seasons with the Spartans before getting a shot at the NHL.

Kampf and a 2027 third-round pick were acquired by the Sabres from the Capitals on Wednesday in exchange for Alex Tuch.

The Sabres will have a brief exclusive negotiating window with Kampf if they so desire. He is eligible for unrestricted free agency at the beginning of July. The 31-year-old had six points in 40 outings between the Canucks and Capitals in 2025-26. Kampf projects as a bottom-six forward at best, regardless of whether he signs with Buffalo or heads elsewhere.

Svechkov was traded along with Zachary L'Heureux to Colorado from Nashville on Wednesday in exchange for Jack Drury, Chase Bradley and a 2029 third-round pick.

Svechkov recorded four goals, 17 points, 22 PIM and 60 hits in 70 regular-season outings with Nashville in 2025-26. The 23-year-old probably isn't going to get anything better than a bottom-six role as part of Colorado's strong forward corps.

Drury was traded along with Chase Bradley and a 2029 third-round pick to Nashville from Colorado on Wednesday in exchange for Fedor Svechkov and Zachary L'Heureux, per Pierre LeBrun of TSN.

Drury had 10 goals, 27 points, 31 PIM and 46 hits in 82 regular-season appearances with the Avalanche in 2025-26. The 26-year-old is likely to center either the third or fourth line in Nashville.

Gastrin, Connor McMichael, and a 2026 first-round pick were traded to the Blues from the Capitals in exchange for Jordan Kyrou on Tuesday.

Gastrin was selected 37th overall in 2025, but he'll be on the move to a new organization less than a year later. The Swedish forward had 24 points in 39 regular-season games with MoDo in HockeyAllsvenskan, the second-tier Swedish league, in 2025-26. Gastrin also appeared in one playoff game with AHL Hershey. It's not yet clear whether Gastrin will spend 2026-27 with AHL Springfield or if he'll be loaned back to a European team.

St. Louis obtained McMichael, Milton Gastrin and the No.16th overall pick in the 2026 NHL Entry Draft from Washington on Tuesday in exchange for Jordan Kyrou.

McMichael notched 14 goals, 46 points and 142 shots on net across 78 regular-season appearances with the Capitals in 2025-26. He will probably slot into a middle-six role and see power-play time with the Blues during the 2026-27 campaign.

Kyrou (knee) was traded to the Capitals from St. Louis on Tuesday in exchange for Connor McMichael, Milton Gastrin and the 16th overall pick in the 2026 NHL Draft.

After Kyrou was one of the names that headlined rumors at the 2026 trade deadline, he'll head to the nation's capital to play for Washington. The 28-year-old winger has put together a strong career thus far, scoring 168 goals and totaling 378 points across 488 regular-season games with the St. Louis Blues. While he took a small step back in production during the 2025-26 campaign with 46 points in 72 outings, he also averaged just 15:44 of ice time, which was his lowest level since 2020-21. It wouldn't be surprising for Washington to give him responsibilities more in line with his average of 17:56 across three regular seasons from 2022-23 through 2024-25. Despite needing a knee surgery in April, he's a prime bounce-back candidate for the upcoming season.

McMann signed a six-year, $34.5 million contract with the Kraken on Sunday, per Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet.

McMann was traded to Seattle from Toronto on the day of the 2026 trade deadline, and the 30-year-old made a good impression on the team he's locked in with for the foreseeable future. The 30-year-old forward potted 10 goals in just 18 games with the Kraken, a team that was in need of scoring help. In total, McMann registered 29 goals, 46 points, 183 shots and 165 hits over 78 games between the Kraken and Maple Leafs in 2025-26. The Alberta native will probably start the 2026-27 season in a middle-six role, but McMann is capable of playing up and down the lineup.

Dickinson signed a five-year, $20 million contract with Edmonton on Sunday.

Dickinson had seven goals, 17 points, 73 shots on net, 50 blocked shots and 85 hits across 64 regular-season appearances between Edmonton and Chicago in 2025-26. He also had two goals and one assist in four playoff outings for the Oilers. During the 2026-27 campaign, Dickinson will probably occupy a bottom-six role and see plenty of time on the penalty kill.

Toews announced Friday that he's ending his playing career.

Toews will go down as one of the greatest captains in the history of the Blackhawks. He had 372 goals, 883 points, 60 PIM and 629 hits in 1,067 career regular-season outings with Chicago, but more importantly, he led the Blackhawks to three Stanley Cup championships. Toews was especially critical during his first Cup win in 2010. He earned the Conn Smythe Trophy after scoring seven goals and 29 points in 22 playoff outings that year. However, Toews didn't play at all in the NHL in 2023-24 and 2024-25 because of health issues stemming from his battle with COVID. Despite missing those two years, he was able to revive his career by joining the Jets for 2025-26 and recording 11 goals, 29 points, 38 PIM and 17 hits in 82 regular-season appearances. After successfully playing one campaign in his hometown of Winnipeg, Toews is now hanging up his skates at the age of 38 on his own terms.