NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – July 8, 2025
Oilers winger Zach Hyman could miss the start of this season, the Hurricanes considered an offer sheet for Evan Bouchard, Matias Maccelli hopes to rebound with the Maple Leafs, and more in today’s NHL Morning Coffee Headlines.
SPORTSNET: Edmonton Oilers winger Zach Hyman is hoping his fractured wrist won’t keep him out of the lineup when the 2025-26 regular season begins in October.
Hyman, 33, suffered the playoff-ending injury during Game 4 of the Western Conference Final against the Dallas Stars. He is still wearing a cast from the surgery on his wrist.
Edmonton Oilers winger Zach Hyman (NHL Images).
The Oilers forward said he doesn’t have a timeline for the completion of his recovery, but didn’t rule out the possibility of missing the start of the regular season.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Hyman’s absence from the Stanley Cup Final contributed to the Oilers being beaten by the Florida Panthers for the second straight year.
EDMONTON JOURNAL: Kurt Leavins cited Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman claiming that the Carolina Hurricanes were a factor in the Oilers signing Evan Bouchard to a four-year, $42-million contract extension last month.
Friedman claimed the threat of an offer sheet from the Hurricanes spurred the Oilers to move quickly on re-signing Bouchard. Leavins sees this as proof of what other teams (especially an elite club like the Hurricanes) think of the puck-moving Edmonton blueliner, who often faces criticism from Oilers fans for his defensive miscues.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Losing Bouchard to the Hurricanes through an offer sheet, nearly a year after the St. Louis Blues signed away Dylan Holloway and Philip Broberg, would’ve left Oilers management facing a firestorm of criticism. Re-signing him is also critical to their hopes of convincing franchise player Connor McDavid to sign an extension before his free-agent eligibility next July.
TORONTO SUN: Matias Maccelli is hoping to regain his scoring touch with the Maple Leafs. The 24-year-old winger was acquired from the Utah Mammoth last month. Maccelli tallied a career-high 57 points in 2023-24, but his production dropped to 18 points in 55 games last season, making him a frequent healthy scratch over the second half of the schedule.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Leafs management is also hoping Maccelli can bounce back. They’re trying to replace the offense of playmaking winger Mitch Marner, who was traded to the Vegas Golden Knights last week.
DAILY FACEOFF: Speaking of the Mammoth, they signed Jack McBain to a five-year contract with an average annual value (AAV) of $4.25 million.
McBain is a physical forward who plays center or left wing. In a statement following the signing, Mammoth general manager Bill Armstrong praised the 25-year-old forward’s versatility, toughness and competitiveness.
This signing comes a day after the Mammoth had filed to take McBain to salary arbitration.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: McBain fills the third-line center position with the Mammoth. His play is comparable to a young Nick Bjugstad.
PHILLY HOCKEY NOW: The Flyers signed defenseman Cam York to a five-year contract with an AAV of $5.15 million. Despite some inconsistency in his play, the 25-year-old York plays big minutes skating alongside Travis Sanheim on the Flyers’ top defense pairing. Given the club’s limited depth on the left side of their blueline, re-signing York was critical.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: It’s hoped that the stability of a new long-term contract and the presence of Rick Tocchet as the Flyers’ new head coach can improve York’s performance going forward.
SPORTSNET: Gavin McKenna is reportedly planning to play for Penn State University for the 2025-26 season.
The presumed top prospect in the 2026 NHL Draft, the 17-year-old winger spent last season with the Medicine Hat Tigers of the Western Hockey League, netting 129 points in 56 games. The Tigers were the WHL champions, and McKenna was named the CHL’s Player of the Year for 2024-25.
DETROIT HOCKEY NOW: The Red Wings hired former NHL goaltender Michael Leighton as their new goalie coach. Now 44, Leighton spent 10 seasons with the Chicago Blackhawks, Nashville Predators, Carolina Hurricanes and Philadelphia Flyers from 2002-03 to 2016-17. For the past three years, he served as goaltending coach for the OHL’s Windsor Spitfires.
NHL.COM: The Dallas Stars named Toby Petersen as head coach of their AHL affiliate, the Texas Stars. From 2000-01 to 2012-13, Petersen spent nine seasons as an NHL forward with the Stars, Pittsburgh Penguins and Edmonton Oilers. Over the past two years, he served as a skills coach for the Colorado Avalanche.
TAMPA BAY TIMES: The Lightning named Jeff Tambellini as their new assistant general manager. He spent the past three seasons as player development director for the Seattle Kraken. Tambellini is also a former NHL player, having spent six seasons with the Los Angeles Kings, New York Islanders, and Vancouver Canucks from 2005-06 to 2010-11.
Speaking of the Lightning, two-time Stanley Cup champion Tyler Johnson announced his retirement after 13 NHL seasons. The 35-year-old is calling it a career after battling injuries in recent years.
Johnson began his NHL career with the Lightning, spending nine seasons with them from 2012-13 to 2020-21. He spent three seasons with the Chicago Blackhawks and played briefly for the Boston Bruins last season. Johnson finishes with 433 points in 747 regular-season games and 65 points in 116 playoff contests.
TSN: NHL journeyman forward Zac Dalpe has retired. From 2010-11 to 2022-23, the 35-year-old spent 12 seasons in the NHL with the Carolina Hurricanes, Vancouver Canucks, Buffalo Sabres, Minnesota Wild, Columbus Blue Jackets and Florida Panthers, mostly spent bouncing between those respective clubs and their AHL affiliates. He had 32 points in 168 regular-season games and one goal in 16 playoff games.
We are…!
Barring other roster adjustments, the Oilers currently sit with 23 players committed to for next season and just $175,834 in cap reserve.
So, if Hyman is not ready to start the season, as it stands now, in order for Bowman to be able to call up one of his ELCs from the minors, Hyman and his $5.5 mil cap hit will be designated for LTIR.
George, other roster adjustments are possible, I think they are still exploring trades. We’ll see what happens.
If no other changes, have to think they would put Hyman on LTIR after the season starts so they can accrue the cap savings.
Put a guy like Savoie, who doesn’t have to clear waivers, on the AHL roster to start and put him back on the NHL roster as soon as Hyman goes on LTIR. Assuming Savoie earns a spot out of camp. Methinks they give him every opportunity with the big club in the top 6.
It would be big for them if he can produce and be responsible away from the puck.
Ray, why not take advantage of it for as long as they can? They’ll be doing it to varying degrees in Vegas, Montreal, Dallas and probably Florida.
Heck, even St. Louis and Philadelphia will probably need to do something as each has virtually no cap space, while Vancouver and NYR are reduced to 1 bottom line ELC.
I think the reason to do it after season starts is for when they come back George. Hyman sounds like he might miss some time, but won’t be for the season.
I’m not a capologist, but the way I understand it is if they are on LTIR at start of the season, you can’t accrue the the cap $ savings from putting Hyman on LTIR. If they go on after the season starts, like day 1, you can. And really who cares if your roster is 22 vs 23 as you can only dress 20 players.
Hyman makes $5.5M, if he misses the first 20% of the season the Oilers accrue $1.1M in cap space to use at the deadline. And that number will be prorated based on games left for the player you acquire. So like a $4M player for a quarter of the season.
If someone more informed than me, like Lyle, can confirm that is correct, then we’ll know.
Anyone catch the video of former NHLer Nick Tarnasky golfing this weekend?
Classic example of F around and find out.
Just watched it SOP, thanks for the heads up. Life lessons eh?
He actually took it easy on him early when he tossed him in the pond, which was hilarious, and the twit kept coming for more after what looked like him going sideways to start it. Tarnasky was calm and clinical, only actually hit him a few times, but every one was a clean shot, hard and on target.
Lesson is don’t fight a guy who’s job it is to fight guys.
We had that once in a beer league game over Xmas back in the day. Buddie’s kid was suspended in the old IHL, was home, and wanted some ice time so he came out with us. Sh*t happens on the ice, he was playing peace maker and holding back the dickhead. Even warned him a few times. The guy kept coming, punched him 3 or 4 times on the button, and the guys face was a bloody mess. Again, calm and clinical and it lasted only a few seconds.
Turns out the guy he pounded was a cop, which freaked him out a bit, but nothing ever came of it.
Guys often go through the we think we’re tough phase, I did, found out too. All part of growing up I guess.
Lol. I got dropped by a guy who had a cup of coffee with the Rags a couple of decades back.After I got up he asked me if wanted more. I honestly didn’t even want the first four.
Yep SOP, seemed more common back then? Or maybe not? It’s not like I’m out and about to see it these days.
LOL. In my younger days I enjoyed a good tussle. Now I can barely tussle with the toilet seat!
George, DraftKings is showing that the toilet seat is slightly favored to win.
LOL – I’d bet on it!
“Hold me back, guys, hold me back! Guys? Guys?”
What is with the young hockey prospects and Penn State? McKenna just signed a letter of intent to play there. Is NIL money finally being distributed to players.Pegula s name is all over there and he must be reaching into his pockets!
The Sabres owner is a Penn State Alumuns and has poured the money he does not spend for the Sabres into the Penn State program
OS threat by Canes; or not; getting Bouchard under contract was a proper move
Cap about to have very big jumps; contract was fair
Re Leafs/Macelli/Marner.
He’s definitely in no way a replacement of Marner’s numbers. First he has to get back to his numbers from a couple of years ago and then he might approach 60% of Marner’s numbers
2 1/2 drive to see McKenna play; just might do that.
Would love him here; but very very low odds and it means tanking this year; NOT good