NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – September 20, 2025
Sabres captain Rasmus Dahlin reveals his fiancée underwent a heart transplant, Oilers forward Leon Draisaitl hopes to be in the Selke Trophy conversation, and more in today’s NHL Morning Coffee Headlines.
THE BUFFALO NEWS: Sabres captain Rasmus Dahlin revealed that his fiancée, Carolina Matovac, underwent heart transplant surgery earlier this summer while the couple was on vacation in France.
Dahlin said Matovac suffered “major heart failure” requiring life-saving CPR. She was placed on life support “for weeks” before undergoing a heart transplant, and is currently recovering in Sweden.
Buffalo Sabres captain Rasmus Dahlin (NHL Images).
“I see my fiancée work hard every day, and that makes me very motivated,” Dahlin said. “I’m good right now.” He went on to thank the club and his teammates for their support, as well as the medical staff in France and Sweden who saved Matovac’s life.
Dahlin continues to train with his teammates in preparation for the upcoming 2025-26 season. He asked for privacy as Matovac continues her rehab in Sweden before joining him in Buffalo.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Best wishes to Dahlin and Matovac as she continues her recovery.
THE SCORE: Leon Draisaitl said he hopes to be in the running for the Frank J. Selke Trophy, which honors the NHL’s top defensive forward. The 29-year-old Edmonton Oilers center finished sixth among Selke voters last season, the highest finish of his career.
Draisaitl acknowledged there are aspects of his game that need improvement to win the Selke, but he also pointed out that there are parts of it that he does well. “Just looking to chip away at it and get even better,” he said.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Draisaitl is already among the league’s elite offensive forwards. Improving the defensive side of his game will not only make him a more well-rounded forward but also improve the Oilers’ chance of winning the Stanley Cup.
Draisaitl is drawing inspiration from Los Angeles Kings captain Anze Kopitar, who announced this week that the coming season will be his last. Kopitar is considered among the NHL’s top two-way forwards, winning the Selke Trophy twice in his long career.
NEW YORK POST: Adam Fox hopes to get his game back on track after struggling through the worst season of his career.
Winner of the James Norris Memorial Trophy in 2020-21, the 27-year-old Rangers defenseman is considered to be among the league’s best blueliners. However, he seemed a step slower in 2024-25 and was prone to losing ice battles. Those issues affected his performance with Team USA during the 4 Nations Face-Off, resulting in a reduction of his playing time during the tournament.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: A bounce-back effort by Fox will be crucial to the Rangers’ hopes of rebounding from last season’s disappointing effort. He’s projected to be paired with offseason acquisition Vladislav Gavrikov, who could be a steadying influence.
PITTSBURGH HOCKEY NOW: Penguins forward Kevin Hayes is expected to miss the start of the upcoming season after suffering an upper-body injury during the opening day of training camp. The injury occurred after being hit by defenseman Ryan Graves, sidelining him for at least one month.
DAILY FACEOFF: Utah Mammoth forward Alex Kerfoot is listed as week-to-week with a lower-body injury.
SAN JOSE HOCKEY NOW: Sharks center Macklin Celebrini missed practice during the second day of training camp due to an illness. However, it’s not considered serious and he should return soon.
TSN: Montreal Canadiens center Kirby Dach was absent from training camp on Friday, but is expected to play preseason games. The 24-year-old underwent his second knee surgery in February and is hoping to be ready for the start of the season next month.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: The Canadiens envisioned Dach as their second-line center when they acquired him three years ago, but knee injuries have hampered his development. Nevertheless, they intend to give him another opportunity to establish himself in that role.
OTTAWA SUN: Contract extension talks have begun between the Senators and center Shane Pinto. However, those discussions could be shelved if an agreement isn’t reached when they open their season next month. The 24-year-old Pinto is in the second season of a two-year deal with an average annual value of $3.75 million.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Pinto is slated to become a restricted free agent with arbitration rights next July. He’s indicated that he wants to focus on his play during the upcoming season and not have his contract situation become a distraction.
DAILY FACEOFF: Former Pittsburgh Penguins general manager Ray Shero is the 2025 winner of the Lester Patrick Trophy. The award is given to a person based on their outstanding contributions to hockey in the United States.
Shero passed away in April at age 62. He served as an assistant GM with the Nashville Predators and Ottawa Senators. He went on to become the GM of the Penguins from 2006 to 2014, building the team that won the Stanley Cup in 2009.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: A well-deserved posthumous honor for Shero, who also drafted several players (Jake Guentzel, Matt Murray, Bryan Rust, and Olli Maatta) who went on to play key roles in the Penguins’ two Stanley Cup titles in 2016 and 2017.
Carry-overs from a couple of topics of the past 2 days:
Matt Larkin – Daily Faceoff on Pittsburgh’s fate this season: “Every 21 years, the Penguins franchise decays and starts over, building around a generational talent selected first overall in the NHL Draft. It was Mario Lemieux in 1984, it was Crosby in 2005, and it shall be Gavin McKenna in 2026. The Pens will lean into the tank, sell off some veterans at the Deadline, finish as a bottom-three team in the NHL and win the Draft Lottery. Just as Crosby lived with Lemieux as a rookie, McKenna can apprentice with Crosby next season, and winter 2027 is when the Crosby trade talk will reach its true fever pitch.”
Utah drops out of the “Carter Hart Market” with few – if any – preferred U.S. markets left
https://www.msn.com/en-ca/sports/nhl/carter-hart-s-market-shrinks-as-another-suitor-drops-out/ar-AA1MVSe1
RIP Ray
Congrats to him posthumously on the Lester Patrick Award
Re: “ Penguins forward Kevin Hayes is expected to miss the start of the upcoming season after suffering an upper-body injury during the opening day of training camp.“
I was hoping to hear something like
“Penguins forward Kevin Hayes is expected to play the entire season in Wilkes-Barre Scranton”
Pens can ill afford another season with the likes of Hayes and Accairi on the 23 man roster taking up spots that are much more deserved/merited/beneficial by younger, faster, stronger, better players already in the organization
Down the Center should be Sid,/Gino/Fabbri/Novak with the odd call up of Hallander or Koppanen or Broz
Similarly on D:
Tanger/Pickering
EK/Wotherspoon
Brunicke/Aleksieyev
7th: one of Aho OR Harding OR Jones
Meaning Graves, Clifton, Shea need to play in WBS
From Spector’s yesterday:
“Dubas indicated that the message to the veteran players is that the younger players are coming and will get every opportunity to make the roster. The veterans know what the expectation is if they want to retain their jobs. If a younger player earns a roster spot, Dubas will deal with the fallout regardless of the veteran’s salary.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: In other words, Dubas will trade or demote the veteran to make room for the younger player.”
As I posted yesterday; I have almost zero confidence in Dubas doing the right thing as promised above
If he does then all of Hayes, Accairi, Graves, Clifton, Shea play in WBS.
Dubas’ history however leads to the probability (that all 5 of those will be in the 23 ) being much much higher than “at least 1 of those playing in WBS”
Dubas inclined similarly (best players on team regardless of $ or veteran status) and didn’t even come close to implementing that
Dubas also indicated he’s not tanking . Mark these words; playing just 4 of Hayes, Accairi, Graves, Clifton, Shea actually is literally gearing towards tanking
“Dubas also indicated he’s not tanking” … he actually stated that in a Hockey PDOcast interview that it does not enter his mindset and is not what the team is actively doing. Big surprise! Absolutely NO GM, coach or player will ever come right out and say that the team is tanking as that would result in an immediate and serious suspension if not outright barring from the game. What the Hell did you expect him to say?
He didn’t HAVE to mention that he wasn’t deliberately tanking. As you pointed out… A public no no to say that (they ARE tanking)
He shouldn’t have even mentioned it,
If asked, he can say of course not
But, he shouldn’t come out and just say it
It’s him almost laying the groundwork FOR tanking by doing nothing (i.e. no changes; i.e. playing Hayes AND Accairi AND Geaves AND Clifton AND Shea)
Playing those players IS by definition tanking (filling out a roster that assures lowest possible standings all else equal)
BUT by doing NOTHING (that’s playing those 5); when we finish bottom 3 he can say “see, I didn’t tank because I didn’t make any changes” ( “nudge nudge wink wink, a nods as good as a wink to a blind bat”
I think Adam Fox played hurt much of last year. He didn t look like the same player especially in physical battles.Granted this was a small sample but that was eye test.
My God! What a terrifying ordeal for both Dahlins’ partner and himself. I hope she recovers to lead a long healthy life.
Agree totally … that had to be traumatic as it can get.