NHL Player News

Petersen signed a one-year, $775,000 contract with the Wild on Wednesday, per Michael Russo of The Athletic.

Petersen had a 3.14 GAA and an .885 save percentage across 31 regular-season appearances with AHL Lehigh Valley in 2024-25. Although he signed a one-way contract, the 30-year-old still has a tough battle ahead of him for the backup role in Minnesota behind Filip Gustavsson. The 22-year-old Jesper Wallstedt will also be fighting for the No. 2 spot during training camp and is favored to win the job. If Petersen loses that battle, he will probably be the first goaltender summoned in the event of an injury, though Petersen would have to clear waivers before he can be sent to the minors.

Primeau has signed a one-year, $775,000 contract with the Hurricanes, the team announced Tuesday.

Primeau was a restricted free agent when he was acquired by Carolina from Montreal on Monday in exchange for a 2026 seventh-round pick. The 25-year-old dominated with AHL Laval during the 2024-25 regular season, posting a 21-2-3 record, 1.92 GAA and .927 save percentage across 26 appearances. The Hurricanes are likely to open the season with Frederik Andersen and Pyotr Kochetkov as their NHL goaltenders, but Primeau should be the first netminder promoted in the event of an injury.

Tomkins signed a two-year, two-way contract with the Oilers on Tuesday, PuckPedia reports.

Tomkins figures to just be organizational depth for the Oilers, and he'll likely start this coming season in the AHL. The 31-year-old posted a 12-10-5 record with a 2.55 GAA and a .907 save percentage in 26 regular-season outings with AHL Syracuse in 2024-25.

Vanecek signed a one-year, $1.5 million contract with the Mammoth on Tuesday, Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet reports.

Vanecek spent parts of last season with both the Sharks and the Panthers, playing 25 regular-season games in the NHL between the two, but he didn't have a save percentage above .900 for either team. The 29-year-old joins an already established goaltending duo in Karel Vejmelka and Connor Ingram to compete for playing time with, so don't be surprised if he begins this coming season in the minor leagues.

Nedeljkovic was traded to the Sharks from the Penguins on Tuesday in exchange for a 2028 third-round pick.

Nedeljkovic figures to step in as the No. 2 option behind Yaroslav Askarov heading into the 2025-26 campaign -- though Askarov is far from a lock for the starting job after going 4-6-2 with a 3.10 GAA in his 13 NHL appearances last year. For his part, Nedeljkovic comes in having gone 14-15-5 with an .894 save percentage and one shutout in 38 outings with Pittsburgh in 2024-25.

Lyon inked a two-year, $3 million contract with Buffalo on Tuesday.

Lyon put up decent numbers in Detroit last season, going 14-9-1 with a 2.81 GAA, .896 save percentage and one shutout in 30 regular-season outings. The problem for Lyon was the crowded goalie room with the Red Wings, a situation that won't be much different in Buffalo, as Devon Levi is pushing to be a full-time NHL option.

General manager Mathieu Darche relayed that Varlamov's rehab from knee surgery in December is going well, Andrew Gross of Newsday reports Tuesday.

Varlamov appeared in just 10 games with the Islanders last season, posting a 3-4-3 record, .889 save percentage and 2.89 GAA. New York signed David Rittich to a one-year contract Tuesday, so even if Varlamov is ready for the 2025-26 campaign, he now has some competition for the backup gig to Ilya Sorokin.

Murray signed a one-year, $1 million contract with Seattle on Tuesday.

Murray posted a 10-5-4 record with a 1.72 GAA and a .934 save percentage across 21 outings with AHL Toronto in 2024-25. The 31-year-old netminder only appeared in three regular-season contests with AHL Toronto in 2023-24 due to bilateral hip surgery. Murray might start the 2025-26 campaign in the minors because Joey Daccord and Philipp Grubauer are ahead of him on the Seattle depth chart.

Forsberg inked a two-year, $4.5 million contract with Los Angeles on Tuesday.

Forsberg will enter training camp with a shot at unseating Pheonix Copley as the No. 2 option behind Darcy Kuemper. With the Senators last season, the 32-year-old Forsberg played in 30 games, posting an 11-12-3 record, career-best 2.72 GAA and three shutouts. Forsberg should see similar usage in 2025-26, limiting his fantasy value as long as Kuemper stays healthy.

Fanti signed a one-year, two-way contract with the Lightning on Tuesday.

Fanti has yet to make his NHL debut and seems unlikely to do so this season either, as the Bolts are firmly cemented at the No. 1 and 2 spots on the NHL roster. In fact, Brandon Halverson projects as the first-choice call-up should the Lightning need to bring somebody up from the minors.