NHL Rumor Mill – July 18, 2025
Check out the latest on Quinn Hughes, Mason McTavish and Jack Roslovic in today’s NHL Rumor Mill.
THE LATEST ON THE CANUCKS
NEW JERSEY HOCKEY NOW: James Nichols recently cited Vancouver Canucks defenseman Tyler Myers shot down speculation linking his teammate, Quinn Hughes, to the Devils.
Myers made the remarks during a recent appearance on the Cam and Strick Podcast. He was referring to rumors that arose after Jim Rutherford, the Canucks president of hockey operations, said that Hughes would one day like to play with his brothers Jack and Luke, both of whom play for the Devils. Rutherford quickly said that the Canucks would do all they could to keep Hughes in Vancouver.
Vancouver Canucks defenseman Quinn Hughes (NHL Images).
“He (Hughes) doesn’t like all that speculation and stuff,” Myers said. “He loves his brothers, loves his family, like everybody else, but he’s not going around the room saying he wants to play with his brothers. I know it’s a big, big story around the hockey world, but everyone makes it a lot more than it is.”
Nevertheless, Nichols wonders if Rutherford was trying to brace Canucks fans for an eventual trade of Hughes, perhaps already gauging the defenseman’s value in the trade market to reel in the best possible return.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Rutherford hasn’t said anything more about this. Whatever his intention, his comments generated turmoil for a team that had its fair share last season.
Hughes hasn’t spoken about it, but he will face questions from the Vancouver media when he reports to training camp in September.
CHEK-TV’s Rick Dhaliwal took note of the Vancouver Canucks trading forward Dakota Joshua to the Toronto Maple Leafs on Thursday. He noted that the Canucks are interested in unrestricted free agent forward Jack Roslovic and have had discussions with his representatives.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: The Leafs were also linked to Roslovic, but there’s no indication that their addition of Joshua means they’re no longer pursuing the UFA forward.
By shedding Joshua’s $3.25 million cap hit, the Canucks have $3.72 million in cap space to add to their roster. Dhaliwal speculates they could go the trade route if they fail to land what they want in the UFA market.
COULD MASON MCTAVISH RECEIVE AN OFFER SHEET?
THE ATHLETIC: Shayna Goldman believes there are still some suitable offer-sheet targets available this summer, starting with center Mason McTavish of the Anaheim Ducks.
Goldman acknowledged the Ducks have the salary-cap space to match any offer for McTavish. However, she suggested an expensive offer (“at least to the tune of $7.02 million”) might stump the Ducks.
The rebuilding Ducks don’t need the compensatory draft picks; they have a well-stocked prospect pipeline, and keeping McTavish makes the most sense after trading away Trevor Zegras to Philadelphia.
However, they might be unwilling to make an expensive commitment to McTavish. She suggested it might be worthwhile for a club like the Montreal Canadiens, Boston Bruins, Calgary Flames or Detroit Red Wings to take a chance.
SEKERES & PRICE: Daily Faceoff’s Jeff Marek wonders if McTavish might be available. If he is, teams in the market for a second-line center (like the Minnesota Wild, Montreal Canadiens or Vancouver Canucks) will line up for his services.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Ducks GM Pat Verbeek reportedly told rival teams not to waste their time with an offer sheet because of his club’s plentiful cap space. He also indicated in June that his focus this summer was on re-signing McTavish and goalie Lukas Dostal.
Dostal was re-signed on Thursday, which should encourage Ducks fans about the state of McTavish’s negotiations. However, Dostal filed for arbitration, which set a deadline for the Ducks to sign him. McTavish lacked arbitration rights, meaning an offer sheet would be his only leverage if negotiations stall with the Ducks.
It’s rumored that McTavish isn’t happy with his role or is growing weary of the constant losing since joining the Ducks. However, there has been nothing to confirm the speculation, which originated from hockey markets far from Anaheim.
Regarding Mason McTavish, Anaheim has the cap space to sign him and an offer sheet would have to be for a lot more than $7 million.
A) it saves them from negotiating with themselves.
B) it’s an easily matched amount
C)It’s at an amount that keeps McTavish tradeable to most any team interested.
0 they can easily match that
B) It’s a level that keeps him easily tradeable if they don’t want to keep him.
Fully agree. If, as Goldman suggests, Montreal, Boston, Detroit and Calgary may want to “take a chance” why wouldn’t Anaheim see it the same way?
And they have a LOT more in cap reserve ($22,488,812) even after signing Dostal, and although they do also have to re-up Helleson and Colangelo, there will still be plenty to do that as well.
Montreal, meanwhile, being currently over the cap by $4.5 mil, and with Boston having just $2 mil in reserve, neither could do it without shedding a big contract (even with the Habs having Price’s $10 mil ticketed for LTIR relief).
And Calgary still has Zary to sign, leaving Detroit as really the only one of the four she names with any viable chance of enticing him with an offer-sheet.
In fact, both Pittsburgh and Carolina also have the cap space to offer-sheet McTavish.
Also. The kid is a turd of a human.
I’ll put it this way. You could probably have a world junior trial every year with a group of four or five of them.
Anaheim can keep this one.
So, too, does San Jose. Here’s the cap situation for the 17 teams with no RFAs left to re-up:
San Jose $19,740,832 – 22 (13F 7D 2G)
Pittsburgh $13,053,571 – 23 (13F 8D 2G)
Detroit $12,086,628 – 23 (14F 7D 2G)
Carolina $10,644,291 – 23 (14F 7D 2G)
Utah – $6,682,143 – 23 (13F 7D 3G)
Ottawa $4,294,286 – 22 – (13F 7D 2G)
Washington $4,125,000 – 23 (13F 8D 2G)
Colorado $4,123,333 – 21 (12F 7D 2G)
Vancouver $3,270,000 – 21 (13F 7D 2G)
Boston $2,081,667 – 23 (14F 7D 2G)
Tampa $1,180,001 – 23 (15F 6D 2G)
Dallas $1,085,084 – 22 (13F 7D 2G)
NY Rangers $777,976 – 23 (13F 8D 2G)
St. Louis $625,150 – 23 (14F 7D 2G)
Philadelphia – $370,238 – 22 (11F 8D 3G)
Edmonton $225,834 – 23 (14F 7D 2G)
Florida OVER CAP BY $3,725,000 – 23 (14F 7D 2G)
Have you watched much of Zary, George?
Boy oh boy.
Just wait until he puts it all together. He might not become a superstar, but he’s gonna be an impact player for certain.
The Flames should lock him up like they did with Coronato, before he breaks out.
Such a good deal.
Not a whole lot, Shoreorrpark – against Ottawa a couple of times, and Toronto & Montreal – but what I have seen I was impressed.
I agree … they don’t want to be farting around with a bridge deal here … get him locked up at an amount they both can live with.
Anaheim just signed another of their RFAs – RD Drew Helleson for 2 years at $1.1 mil per, leaving them with $21,388,812 in cap reserve and a committed roster of 21 (11F 7D 3G), with C Mason McTavish and RW/C Sam Colangelo left to re-up.
Colangelo won’t cost much more than $1 mil, which gives them approx $20 mil in the bank.
Dark G, what’s your source for what is otherwise slander on McTavish?
I originally posted this under the News section, but carried it over here since it was more relevant to the McTavish rumors.
I read one reporter comment the other day that McT’s camp is probably using Coronato’s deal in Calgary as a comp. Coronato got 7 for $45.5M. And McT plays a harder position, had a better season, and has had a better career so far overall, so that Coronato deal is probably the minimum.
Coronato getting $6.5M per year is an overpay betting on his future potential. Will be interesting to see if what term and $ McT now gets.
As I mentioned in morning coffee I know Ducks have buckets O’Cap to match; but I’m surprised no OS has come his way
Strapping 2 C on the rise
Would be a difference maker for a few teams
To be fair; it’s possible he HAS received an offer; but it does not become a formal (and public) ” offer sheet” until he accepts it
I believe the following still own their own 1st, 2nd, 3rd in ‘26 that would bd required as compensation:
Bruins, Flames, Hawks, Wings, Kings, Habs, Preds, , Devils, Flyers, Krakken, Mammoth, and Pens
Of those; CURRENTLY (trades could still be made to free up for others) with enough space:
Flames, Hawks, Wings,Preds, Krakken, and Pens
Ducks (MacTavish) and Wild (Rossi) are in disagreement with their young centers. Maybe a match there? Wild might need to throw in a pick there. But it might be an interesting swap for both teams there
I keep the bigger mctavish 6.2 210lbs over Rossi 5.9 180lbs. Not sure throwing an draft pick would do it.
and VAN trading Joshua to free up space for Roslovic ? talk about a downgrade. Sure Roslovic scored 20+ G for CAR but otherwise he has had a middling career. Just ask Larry Brooks (NY Post) of his feelings for Roslovic after his short NYR career (23-24 season). It would be a bonehead move by Rutherford to trade a heart and soul player for a 1-dimensional player who doesn’t always show up to play.
guess that what happens when you trade your heart and soul center (JTM) for an injury riddled young center who is one more hit away from ending his NHL career, making more desperate moves
there is ZERO reason for the Canucks to not trade Quinn NOW to the NJD
Mercer, Nemec+ a 1st and?Maybe aa 3way trade with Hamilton going someplace he prefers and VAN gets an asset there?
The Canucks are nowhere near contention imho
I only wish, as a fellow Devils fan, that Quinn wears black and red this coming season
but coming off a year where the Canucks team management chose Pettersson over Miller which divided their locker room, and basically got nothing for Miller, I think there is a hesitancy to trade their franchise player. I think they wait through this season, to see how it goes, and trade Quinn at the deadline if the season doesn’t improve.
Vancouver should go into at least a retool. Except for their first rounder this year they have basically nothing in the pipeline coming through3
@mikep
i guess but VAN 4 best offensive players all have injury histories….plus Demko’s own injuries
get a ransom for Quinn.
Demko missed half of the season 2 out of the last 3 seasons.
Chytil is one hit away from never playing again.
Boeser seems to have overcome his injury seasons?
EP41 is who he is.
Quinn is an elite player who will continue to be the focus of other teams and he is the same size as Jack…
Chase Stillman cant score in the AHL….terrible trade.
Good thing the Sutter brothers all didn’t want to play on the same team.
McTavish could be traded but I seriously doubt it. They would not let him walk through offer sheet. They are strong arming him just like Point M.Tkachuk and others after their entry levels. Short term $7.5. If he continues his trajectory will land the big deal after that
I think term might be the biggest issue with the McT negotiations.
He wont be UFA eligible for another 4 years. Wonder if he wants to keep his deal to 4 years max and Anaheim wants to go 6 or 7 years.
I hate the Dostal contract. Not for him….not for the ducks. I think its fair for them both
I hate it for the market they just set.
Skinner has similar stats, of similar age. Been to two cup finals. Out duelled nearly every play off goalie he faced except Bobrovsky who seems to be everyone’s kryptonite of late lol. It is going to be tough to sell Skinner on less than what Dostal is getting imo. To my eyes…Dostal is better. But making the argument in a contract negotiation is going to be tough lol.
And that sucks. I was accepting of an 3 or 4 year ext at 5M per season. I think any hope of that number got drop kicked out the window last night.
But the Oilers are also in a pickle as while they may like to upgrade they may simply have no choice but go all in with Skinner. And I not sure how I feel about that.
One thing that is undeniable, though, is that Skinner has had the benefit of a Helluva lot better overall team in front of him than has Dostal. And you can be sure that will be raised as a counter-argument.
Excellent move by the Leafs getting Joshua. A bit overpaid, but I like the player.
I like that move a lot for Toronto. A 3rd line guy who will get 15+ goals and 250+ hits and he can jump to 2nd line to add a spark now and then.
I’m surprised Van gave him away for only a 4th rounder.
Van got back little for Dakota and Silvos….
their GM’s trade history in not good…..
I agree. Good player. Plays a heavy game. Not hesitant to protect his teammates. Decent skill set and skating abilities. Slight overpay on his contract, but he has time to make it look like a a bargain.
Joshua is the kind of guy you want on your team for sure.
I’m super curious to see how the Leafs do this year, with the cap $ spread out vs on an star player – Marner. Which is what a lot of Leaf fans wanted.
Basically Joshua ($3.25), Maccelli ($3.425) & Roy($3.0) + what they do with the remaining $2.325M saved in cap space vs the $12M for Marner.
They will bring more size and physical play than they did. Scoring might take a dip, but not a sure thing either. If you believe physical play wins in the playoffs, it should help when it matters most.
As a B’s fan, and the fact we have the Leafs 1st rounder in the next draft, I know what I’m rooting for!
But I actually don’t know how this goes. Should be interesting.
Ray who you eyeing to get at 32nd overall? 🤣
With the thee additions the leafs made, combined they will surpass Mariners point production but not his ice time. That’s harder to replace than the points.
You can’t help think how these additions are right up Obe and Sr’s type of guys/team. Very interesting not only because they are now over 23 nhl players Brad and Craig still not done making the team become exactly like one would expect considering the reputation they both share.
Ray I’m hoping they keep that extra cash for the TDL. It’ll give them a chance to see how things are jelling, accrue some more cap space. They still have to decide what to do with Kampf and Jancrok. It’s good to have a few cards to play down the road
Yep Yogi. That’s the same rationale I put forward to those who were regarding Staios’ intention not to “spend to the cap” as an indication that Ottawa was going back to the “cheap days.”
Bryan Murray – with the advent of the cap – always took the approach of leaving what he termed “some wiggle room” to help facilitate mid-season transactions.
As matters now stand, and barring further moves, none of NYR ($777,976), St. Louis ($625,150), Philadelphia ($370,238) or Edmonton ($225,834) have a whole lot of such room. Not to mention Montreal, Vegas and Florida each being well over the cap, and even the application of LTIR relief won’t give them much wiggle room – if any.
But in the Leafs’ case, it sure looks like Robertson has one foot out the door – likely for picks/prospects since they won’t want to take significant cap back, because any retention of him now will wipe out their reserve.
Not only that George where do you play him. He’s more of a sniper than play maker, so he either plays with Tavares or the press box. Unless Robertson shows up at camp 4 inches taller and 40 lbs heavier, he either makes the team as a top 6 forward or on a bus out of town.
I read an article that said the the Panthers 3rd line or Marchand, Lundell and Luostarinen dominated the Leafs and were basically the difference in the series, with the top 2 lines of each team playing to a saw off.
The 3 combined for 20 pts and +17 in 7 games.
Enter Roy, Joshua and Maccelli.
I would love to see the Bruins trade for MacTavish. Anaheim has an interesting management situation. It’s one thing to load up on draft picks, then draft talent, but now these talented players all want to see meaningful ice time or they get frustrated. I don’t think Anaheim would want just draft picks, they would want players but put together a team as well as to mentor the young bucks. That is a different management skill that tearing down the walls and acquiring picks and drafting talent.
Speaking of Boston, I love the team but really don’t like their writers. I just read an article dissing Sweeney on the 2016 draft when he took Frederic rather than Jordan Kyrou. Well hindsight is always 20/20 isn’t it, as their plenty of “misses” in that first round, and the article says nothing about Sweeney’s decision to draft MacAvoy for in that same draft year. Some writers should be dragged over the coals for their biases.
Lindsay, McTavish got enough ice time over 76gp to pop 22g 30a 52pts – averaging 16:52 per game.
Austin Matthews was only on the ice on average for 3 more minutes per game – and McTavish ain’t no Matthews. Yet.
He has no beef in that regard.
McTavish as well as other young stars are climate’s to being 1st line players through their careers. They mostly understand that you need to learn the ropes and develop the pro-game, but after they feel they have done that, they expect big roles. McTavish is seeing 3rd line duty for some time now on a team that is not winning and he is getting antsy. There are likely many others in the same boat on teams that have stock piled draft picks over the last few years. You can argue that a third line role is nothing to sneeze at, but we are also talking about a player that is several years into his NHL career, on a loosing team where theoretically there should be plenty of opportunity, and yet is seems to be hemmed in by players with existing contracts and other young guns. Loosing can get tiring quite fast too.
Lindsay, they might have to make a choice between McTavish and Terry in a year or 2, as I’m think Carlsson isn’t going anywhere. Or move one to the wing.
Good problem to have, both are valuable assets.
McTavish gets plenty of PP time so can’t complain about that. The ANA PP sucks by the way, 11.76%. Yikes. If that isn’t the worst in the NHL has to be close. Maybe a PP QB is needed?
Terry for Byrum +! Guessing BUF might be on his NT list. They could move McTavish for him though. Risky trade that won’t happen, but said it anyway.
Fair enough in general terms … but where does McTavish say this for public consumption … or is it just a guess. As Lyle says – likely originating in areas far from Anaheim.
Lindsay look up Sweeneys 2015 draft for the reason Sweeney gets roasted.Mcavoy was drafted right where central scouting had him rated. 14th.
Sr, I don’t see why Sweeney gets the brunt of the blame for 2015. Only one of the three that were picked was an honest reach. DeBrusk and Zboril were thought to be mid first rounders in many mock drafts. Sweeney had just become the GM before the draft, so most of the blame should fall on the scouting dept. Was it a terrible draft for Boston? Yes. You could also say that Arizona, NJ, Florida and Dallas all whiffed in that draft as well. Did they have three back to back to back pick? No, but Barzal, Connor and Chabot were all still there for them too. Like they say about hindsight…….. and EVERY team is guitly of it.
Winnipeg just locked up Vilardi for 5 years @ $7.5 mil per.
They are now down to $10,548,810 in cap reserve with 21 committed to (12F 7D 2G), leaving only one RFA to re-up – LD Dylan Samberg 6’ 4” 215lbs 60gp 6g 14a 20pts (FFA);
The other RFA shown at Puckpedia, Rasmus Kupari, has signed in a European league, with the Jets still holding his NHL rights.
Bosbrn 32,if the 2015 draft should be blamed for that draft,they should all have been fired immediately. His purging of the roster last year was because he should have traded some of them years before instead of all at once.For years .He fell in love with his roster and he waited to long to blow it up.With a perfect time to give young players a legitimate shot to make the big club,he signed spare parts 4th line playersthat will block their opportunities. It is easy to see he’s trying to piecemeal a roster to keep scores down and hope Swayman earns the contract he was given. By the way ,what was that buffoon Neeley doing while all of this was going on?
They were busy putting up 100+ pt seasons and breaking records. Even went to the finals.
Excellent front office in Boston.
What Shoreorrpark said. Kind of a mic drop, to be honest!