Metro Rumor Rundown: Keeping Up With Division Rivals

While things are quiet on the Devils front, the rest of the Metropolitan Division is quite active.

With just two weeks remaining until the NHL Entry Draft and NHL free agency, things are going to start to pick up around the league in terms of rumors, trades, and signings. From now until July 1 (and of course, thereafter), I’ll be hard at work going in-depth on all things New Jersey Devils. From draft targets to trade targets and everything in between, I’ve got you covered to the best of my abilities.

That said, I wanted to thank each and every one of you for simply reading my content. It’s been a blast over the last four months or so, and I scarcely expected the support I’ve garnered so far. Reaching the Top 100 Rising Sports pages on Substack for the sixth time in such a short span of the publication's launch last week was such a great feeling. To continue this trend, I would appreciate more than anything else simply pressing the subscribe button below, giving you notifications the moment my work is published. As has always been the goal with this blog, it’s completely free of charge to do so; it simply helps me out with the algorithm. If you want to go a step even further, consider sharing this blog with friends, family, and every Devils fan you know! It means a ton — thank you!

While this is a Devils-centric blog, of course, it’s an important endeavor to keep tabs on the direct competition. The Metropolitan Division took shape as a surprisingly competitive group in 2024-25, with some unexpected steps forward from the Washington Capitals and Columbus Blue Jackets, steps backward by the Devils and New York Rangers, and expected competition levels from the New York Islanders and Carolina Hurricanes. With that in mind, the Metro division as a whole looks to be quite active in rumors from around the league — and as Devils fans, keeping up to date with what the direct competition is up to is of paramount importance.

That said, let’s talk shop about what other organizations have been doing:

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Carolina Hurricanes

As of right now, there aren’t a whole lot of rumors surrounding the Carolina Hurricanes — I would imagine there would be more if Carolina’s postseason exit wasn’t so recent. There’s certainly still some grief to get through for them. Still, there are a couple things of note.

Firstly, defenseman Dmitry Orlov is expected to go into the open market. I don’t think there was ever any expectation otherwise, but he’s destined for free agency now. There will be a ton of suitors, I’m sure, but the Hurricanes won’t be one of them, as per Pierre LeBrun.

Next up is Jesper Fast, who announced his retirement from professional hockey not too long ago. The third-line forward missed the entirety of the 2024-25 season after undergoing surgery for a neck injury he sustained at the end of the 2023-24 season.

Greg Wyshynski of ESPN reported that Hurricanes’ head coach Rod Brind’Amour would “love to have defenseman Brent Burns back next season.” I’m not sure how much stock to put into that quote in a vacuum — I’m sure head coaches say that about their players all the time. Still, it’s possible that he’s pushing for the veteran to get a short-term deal. Burns was a reliable presence on the back-end and an elite penalty killer, which made life easy for the Hurricanes’ coaching staff. Either way, I wouldn’t expect the 40-year-old to retire.

Beyond that, it has been a known fact that the Hurricanes are going to be an aggressive team this off-season. They were unable to get over the hump once again, and would probably like to add that superstar talent that they’ve been on the cusp of having for quite some time now. The tastes of Jake Guentzel and Mikko Rantanen can’t possibly sit well with GM Eric Tulsky, so I would be shocked if they weren’t players for Mitch Marner in free agency. According to Tulsky himself, he has free rein to use all the team’s salary cap if it means a more competitive window is opening.

Columbus Blue Jackets

For a team with so much cap space to work with, things are relatively quiet with the Columbus Blue Jackets.

The biggest elephant in the room is that they are expected to push hard for Marner’s services, perhaps even offering him a $14M+ contract. They have oodles of cap space, a need to further compete for the playoffs, and books that are otherwise pretty pristine, so this makes total sense.

The Blue Jackets are also exploring options with their goaltenders — Elvis Merzlikins has made an appearance on Frank Seravalli’s trade board and contract extension talks have allegedly begun with Daniil Tarasov. On the Merzlikins front, I’m honestly unsure of how they’re going to recoup any value at all — he has shown precisely nothing outside of occasional flashes of solid play for pretty much the duration of his NHL career. I can’t imagine they’re going to get a whole lot, if anything, in return. Tarasov, meanwhile, is reportedly looking at an extension, as per Daria Tuboltseva of RG. He has little leverage, too, considering his abysmal statistical profile, so I can’t imagine this will make any sort of dent in their cap. I do wonder if this means that Jet Greaves will finally get the long-term look he deserves, though.

Aaron Portzline of The Athletic has reported that there are some extension talks with defenseman Ivan Provorov. While Provorov is likely looking for a long-term deal, Portzline noted that Blue Jackets GM Don Waddell is eyeing a short-term extension instead, even if it means a higher AAV. In his article, Portzline also noted that forward Justin Danforth switched agents, and though his preference is to remain with the club, he could very well test free agency if contract talks go awry.

In minor news (pun intended), Blue Jackets’ top prospect Cayden Lindstrom committed to playing for Michigan State and will no longer be playing in the WHL. I personally believe that he’s probably NHL-ready now, but the Blue Jackets clearly aren’t in a rush to get him into the big leagues.

New York Islanders

The New York Islanders have been quite busy from a front office perspective in recent weeks, hiring a new GM (Mathieu Darche) and two new assistant coaches (Ray Bennett and Bob Boughner). Darche was previously the Director of Hockey Operations for the Tampa Bay Lightning from 2019 until now, winning two cups during his tenure there. Bennett previously served as an assistant with the Colorado Avalanche and has been in that role with several teams over the last 24 years. Boughner, meanwhile, has head coaching experience (five seasons in total) but most recently spent time as an associate for the Detroit Red Wings.

While some believed one, or both, would have gotten moved this off-season, Darche told centers Bo Horvat and Mat Barzal that they were going to remain with the club for at least next season. Horvat would have immediately been one of the top center targets available, and Barzal would have garnered a ton of looks (though I never thought he would be made available). When combining that with extensions to forward Kyle Palmieri (two years, $4.75 million) and defenseman Adam Boqvist (one year, $850,000), perhaps it will be a lower-event off-season than expected for the Islanders.

They also hold the first-overall pick, and it has been reported through multiple outlets that they prefer defenseman Matthew Schaefer at that position. Me, personally? I’d have drafted Michael Misa at that spot eleven times out of ten based on talent, projected impact, and need, but it seems as though the Islanders will opt for the blueliner instead.

New York Rangers

The New York Rangers made headlines this morning when it was reported that the Rangers traded veteran forward Chris Kreider and a fourth-round pick for a third-rounder and middling prospect Casey Terrance. There has been a ton of pushback from what I’ve seen from fans around the league, citing that GM Chris Drury has wriggled his way out of several “bad” contracts now (Jacob Trouba, Barclay Goodrow), and while I would agree on the other two, I think Kreider’s value as a legitimately useful player is being diminished here. He had a down year, to be sure, but has generally been one of the Rangers’ better playdrivers and goal scorers otherwise for the duration of his career. For a Ducks team with pressure on them to start competing for the postseason, this is a very savvy move, especially at that price. For the Rangers, it will be satisfying watching Kreider return to form when all they got was pennies on the dollar.

In other news, two other names made Seravalli’s trade board: K’Andre Miller and Carson Soucy. Miller, an expiring RFA, makes no sense to me on behalf of New York. He’s young, smooth-skating, and has very good underlying impacts for the most part. It feels like a cop out to blame him for defensive deficiencies in the lineup, which is what is being done. From a cap perspective, I understand the need to move on, but it feels like there are other, better ways to alleviate some financial pressure. Finding a trade partner for Soucy is certainly one of those ways. The veteran has moved around quite a bit, and apparently, he is a prime candidate to do so again.

Larry Brooks has also reported that Alexis Lafreniere’s name has also been put out there in trade discussions. The former first-overall selection hasn’t quite lived up to the $7.4M AAV contract he owns, but it still feels premature to give up on him this early into his career. We all saw what happened once Kaapo Kakko left the Rangers.

There is also some speculation that, once Kreider is moved, Mika Zibanejad may be more willing to waive his no-movement clause. The two of them have been described as “best friends.” Brooks has reported that he believes this is unlikely, though.

Finally, there are the coaching changes that have gone down for the Rangers. After firing head coach Peter Laviolette, they promptly replaced him with Mike Sullivan, former long-tenured Pittsburgh Penguins coach. Added to his staff are associates David Quinn, making a return to the Rangers, and Joe Sacco, longtime Bruins assistant and interim head coach. This is a bit scary as a Devils fan, as Sullivan has been one of the best coaches in the game for quite a long time. Quinn and Sacco are fine hires too, in my opinion. If they weren’t making so many poor decisions on a personnel front, I’d be a little worried.

Philadelphia Flyers

The Philadelphia Flyers recently extended two of their young centers: Tyson Foerster (two years, $3.75 million AAV) and Noah Coates (four years, $4 million AAV). They also extended three prospects in Helge Grans, Rodrigo Abols, and Oscar Eklind.

Beyond that, they have been tied to a few players in rumors.

Firstly is Maxim Shabanov, a young KHLer who I have written on as an overseas target for the Devils. The 24-year-old has elite puck skills, strong skating ability, and is a dual-threat shooter and playmaker. The only downside is his 5’8 frame. While it was initially reported that Shabanov was practically already a Flyer, his agent denied the reports and said that they are waiting until post-NHL draft to make that decision, as they will then know where teams stand. This was music to my ears, as I’m still outwardly hoping the Devils are interested, though in my heart of hearts I know that his size is a deterrent for GM Tom Fitzgerald.

The Flyers have also been tied to Stars’ forward Mason Marchment, as per Daily Faceoff’s Anthony Di Marco. The 6’5 winger is sure to generate a ton of interest league-wide, as the Stars aim to deal with the consequences of their self-inflicted cap crunch. For whatever reason, they’re shopping Jason Robertson, too, with the intention of doling out an extension to expiring UFA Mikael Granlund. As an aside, the Stars have disaster off-season written all over them.

Finally, the Flyers are one of the five teams reported to have major interest in acquiring Wild center Marco Rossi, as per James Murphy of RG. While the more serious suitor seems to be the Vancouver Canucks at this moment, a division rival potentially acquiring a 23-year-old center capable of 90+ points a season is a frightening thought.

Pittsburgh Penguins

The Pittsburgh Penguins have been one of the more rumored organizations thus far into the not-quite-offseason. They’re one of the few true sellers in this market at this time.

On Seravalli’s trade board is Erik Karlsson, who, while he isn’t quite the multi-Norris-level defenseman he once was, is still a serviceable blueliner. I will admit, though, that it’s going to be incredibly difficult to move his full eight-digit contract.

The Penguins are also reportedly players for Marco Rossi, which would be a smart move for a team entering a rebuild. They have also allegedly discussed trading up in the draft. They currently hold the 11th overall selection.

They had coaching changes of their own, of course relieving Sullivan of his duties not too long ago. In his stead is first-time head coach Dan Muse. One of the youngest coaches r in the league, he has previously specialized in developing young talent — he’s going to be a good fit for the Penguins during this stage. Joining him will be associate coach Mike Velucci.

Expect veteran defenseman Kris Letang to have his time on ice reduced moving forward, likely moving to a third-pair role, as per Josh Yohe of The Athletic. While still an NHL-caliber defenseman, he dropped the quality of his play significantly and will be in a diminished role because of it. It’s also a step forward for a team looking to get much younger.

According to David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period, the Penguins and Canadiens are dueling for the services of Vegas Golden Knights’ defenseman Nicolas Hague. The 26-year-old is on the outside looking in for playing time and is an expiring RFA. His play is solid, but it likely won’t mean much on a middling Penguins team.

Finally, one of the Penguins’ top prospects, Vasily Ponomarev, ventured to the KHL instead of continuing his path to NHL regularity. He signed a three-year contract with Avangard Omsk, which means that, unless the Penguins extend a qualifying offer to the once-near-point-per-game AHL player with legitimate middle-six upside, he will become a free agent. If the Penguins do extend that qualifying offer, his rights remain with the organization.

Washington Capitals

Things are very quiet surrounding the Capitals, too.

Just a few days ago, TJ Oshie expectedly retired from professional hockey after sustaining a chronic back injury that left him on LTIR for the duration of the 2024-25 season. The 38-year-old logged 695 points in 1010 career games, most of which came with Washington.

The only other thing of note with the Capitals is that they are expected to extend a couple of their expiring UFAs. Anthony Beauvillier is apparently the least likely to hit the open market, according to DC Backcheck’s Sammi Silber. Andrew Mangiapane and Taylor Raddysh are a coin-flip, while Lars Eller is almost surely heading for free agency.

Otherwise, it’s apparently going to be a quiet off-season for the Capitals, who overhauled most of their roster a year or so ago.

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As I mentioned earlier, there seems to be a bit of an arms race in the Metropolitan Division, which, given the complexion of the teams, shouldn’t come as a surprise. The Hurricanes are in perhaps the best position in the league for Stanley Cup aspirations, and the Blue Jackets are aiming big as well, though making the playoffs to begin with would be a huge win for them. The Flyers and Penguins are in rebuild mode, and the Rangers and Islanders are both heading for retools. That leaves the Capitals, who are destined for regression regardless of whatever they do.