NHL Rumor Mill – August 10, 2026
Check out the latest on the Ducks and Stars in today’s NHL Rumor Mill.
NHL.COM: How Leo Carlsson’s new contract will affect the Anaheim Ducks is among the big questions facing the club this season.
Carlsson signed a five-year offer sheet with the Philadelphia Flyers last month worth an average annual value of $18 million. The Ducks matched the offer, but it was far more expensive than what they had been prepared to pay.
Anaheim Ducks winger Cutter Gauthier (NHL Images).
The most immediate effect will be on the cost of signing restricted free agent Cutter Gauthier. Like Carlsson, the 21-year-old winger is coming off his entry-level contract. Unlike Carlsson, he’s ineligible to sign an offer sheet.
After matching the Carlsson offer, Ducks general manager Pat Verbeek said the intent was to get Gauthier signed. However, he acknowledged he had work to do to fit everyone within their salary-cap space for this season.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: The Ducks have just over $9 million in cap space for this season. It’s rumored Gauthier could seek as much as $15 million. Verbeek will attempt to get him signed for less than that, but he could still end up having to make a cost-cutting trade or two at some point during this season to free up enough cap room.
The Ducks could get some relief by placing sidelined winger Troy Terry ($7 million AAV) on long-term injury reserve before their regular-season schedule begins next month. However, they’ll have to free up room to become cap-compliant once Terry returns from hip surgery later this year.
Veteran forwards Alex Killorn ($6.5 million) and Frank Vatrano ($4.57 million) have been rumored as trade candidates.
NHL.COM: Jason Robertson’s future is among the three big questions facing the Dallas Stars this season.
Robertson signed a one-year, $12 million contract for this season. The 27-year-old Stars winger is slated to become an unrestricted free agent next July.
The two sides can open contract talks on Jan. 1.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Robertson was the subject of trade rumors stretching back to last summer. Stars GM Jim Nill maintained his club wanted to keep the high-scoring winger in the fold, while Robertson insisted he wanted to stay with the Stars.
Nevertheless, the Stars had a deal in place to trade Robertson to the Seattle Kraken in late June, but the deal fell through when he declined to sign a contract extension.
The one-year deal buys time for both sides. It gives Robertson another season to prove his worth, while giving the Stars another opportunity to negotiate with him knowing they’ll have more salary cap flexibility with which to sign him.
If I were the bruins I would send Gauthier an offer sheet. What an addition that guy would be. Bruins would be a tough team to play with this guy in the lineup.
John, Gauthier is ineligible to be offer-sheeted. Even though he’s an RFA coming off his ELC, he does not have the required NHL service time.
Doggone it George if it’s coming from you or Lyle I got to believe it. Oh well unless the ducks trade some of their personel I cannot see them making room for Gauthier. Then it’s open season. Open to the highest bidder.
Sweeney needed a number one center and a top 4 defenseman and of course got neither so getting Gauthier is also not going to happen. The Bruins last
year had some success with their young players and wasted money this off-season on “depth” players with the exception of Peterka. Now they think they can be a good team with no further veterans while the rest of the Division has improved . This town won’t put up for a rebuild nor should they.
Would it surprise anybody if Kurt Overhardt was pushing for a 1 year contract, treating it like an RFA arbitration ( which it isn’t) making him an RFA with arbitration rights and more importantly able to get an offer sheet.
Bext year the cap rises by $9.5M and another $12.75M is freed by Kreider and Killorn becoming UFA.
Might be his strategy, but that doesn’t mean Verbeek has to say yes. He still has some negotiating leverage. Look how fast the perception that Yzerman/Detroit were boxed in with Larkin’s trade demand.
Wouldn’t it be something if Verbeek traded Gautier to Philly; Here, smart guy, you started this.
LJ,
Brière traded Gauthier to Anaheim because Gauthier didn’t want to sign in Philly. I don’t see Brière taking him back. Plus, it’s Brière who placed Verbeek in that jam with the $18M offer to Carlsson. Brière must be laughing up his sleeve. I don’t see these two teams trade with each other soon.
Fair enough, Pat. But I was being facetious.
You got me there, LJ.
Larkin and Edvinsson for Gauthier and the 2027 Wing 2nd
Cutter is then traded to NYI for Barzal and Romanov
Those are the main assets of the trades, but may require some other minor assets, for sure!
Johnny z I thought you were one of the other few Red Wings fans that read Spector’s page? Giving up Larkin and Edvinsson and getting back Romanov and Barzal is a huge step backwards! Maybe Larkin and ASL for Cutter, but since I doubt he’d re-up we’d have to flip him. Hopefully for a better return, though. Barzal is on the decline and out of the age range where we might be back in contention.
Is it too late to buy out Killorn? He turns 37 next month and has a cap hit over 6m. Can save over 4m
Once Seguin’s 9.85 million comes off the books, there will be plenty of money for Robertson… Just watch, Seguin will have a solid bounceback year and Jim Nill will get him to sign for 2million in 2027-28.
I don’t believe he can be, Slick62. The NHL contract buyout window for this off-season closed back on June 30. Also, I don’t think a team can utilize a second buyout if they don’t have a player who went through salary arbitration, and since the Ducks didn’t have any arbitration cases there’s no accepted mechanism provided by the CBA to buy out the remaining year of his contract.
At least, that’s how I understand that convoluted crap.
Oh well. I Guess they’re going to have to play the ltir game. Ducks could do what Dallas did and just give Gauthier a reasonable 1 year deal with promise of a better extension next year.
Ya Ducks are in a bit of a pickle.
IMO you do what you need to to get through this season and start the process of building to a contender again.
Move a vet forward, whichever one you can.
Sign a 1 year deal with Cutter if that is all that is available to you.
Try and find some D depth.
Likely would want to save some $$ to target Martone when eligible for an offer sheet just to repay the favor, but doesn’t look to be in the cards with Senneke needing a new deal starting in 2 years.
If I was Martone or Michkov, I would be keeping the OS option open before signing anything as it may be coming. Personally I hope it does, from whatever team. Not so high that Philly doesn’t match, but painful.
Ray, adjusting their roster in such a way to ensure they have the $$$ AND picks to pave the way to offer-sheet Michkov and/or Martone would take some deft, tricky maneuvering since Michkov doesn’t become eligible until July 1, 2027 and Martone until July 1, 2028. But I’m sure some other teams besides Anaheim are keeping those possibilities in mind.
Maybe there is a deal to trade Cutter to the Kracken. They would certainly pay him!
You know, THAT is becoming the most likely trade partner if they do go that route.
They have the cap. for sure, and are ranked in the top 3rd of prospects from as high as 5th to 13th, depending upon the source, with players like RD Chase Reid, C/W Berkly Catton, C Jake O’Brien and others with high projections. I’m sure they’d include Shane Wright somewhere in the deal as well.
Well Cutter forced the trade out of Philly by refusing to sign, so if he doesn’t want to go to Seattle, would he try to do that again?
I sure as heck don’t know.
MGT needs to start forcing the issue a little more IMO. They have plenty of leverage in certain situations, just need to start using it. They are losing too much control. Not the Carlsson OS, they had to react. But they do with Gauthier.
Not suggesting they be unreasonable, but sooner or later a player is going to need to sit for a while without a contract.
Which is exactly what I would do in Detroit with Larkin if a good return doesn’t materialize from the 4 teams he gave.
To Ducks:Schneider, Cuylle and a 1st
To NYR: Gauthier.
That’s actually a pretty good proposal.
Not a bad trade proposal.
Like Leo the Ducks have to keep Cutter
A one year might be the short term answer ..
$9 and change Followed by a 7 year big bucks no whammy
The only thing in relation to term Is to be up at the same time
Vatrano has to go whatever it takes
Yes! And extend Cutter before the season ends!
Putting Vatrano on waivers in the faint hope that someone puts in a claim is highly unlikely. Who would want a player whose production has declined steadily over the past 3 seasons, turns 33 in March, is coming off a 50gp season, fractured a shoulder in December, so had just 5g 4a 9 pts, has been a constant minus in recent seasons, and costs $4.5 mil off the cap with 2 seasons to run?
And even after he has cleared waivers and can be assigned to the AHL, his AAV of $4,571,189, which runs through to the end of 2027-28, all the Ducks would free up in cap space is #1,150,000 (a CBA formula that adds the NHL minimum salary of $775,000 to $375,000), meaning their cap would still be hit with $3,421,189 as dead space for each of the next 2 seasons.
A trade where the Ducks withheld 50% ($2,285,594) would be marginally better, but it would probably take more sweeteners than just that.
Vatrano also has that (now illegal, I believe) deferred salary structure in his contract. Per PuckPedia: “3 million per year is deferred salary to be paid out at 900K per year for 10 years beginning in 2035.” That may make him even harder to move.
Still no word on Fantilli getting closer to signing an extension with Columbus, eh!?!
Good luck with all the players who are receiving or want 18% -20% of the cap. Good on you but don’t cry when your team does not have the depth to win a Stanley Cup. I think Anaheim is further away from winning now with the Carlsson contract and probably soon to be Gauthier contract. I can envision these players realizing and the end of their 5 year terms that you can’t build a team without leaving some $$ for the rest of the team.
If I was going to give a player that money it would be on the D who plays more and has a greater impact on the game.
I wonder if Crosby would give up his 3 cups for some extra zero’s in his bank account.
Will McDavid really ask for 20% of the cap? He is running out of time to win a cup. I think he will take a home town discount regardless of who plays for until he wins the cup.
If I’m McDavid, I go to Montreal on a $12M deal and have the time of my life over the next 5 years winning cups.
Ha! Betcha if it were this season he would pick the Canes!
In fact Larkin should include the Canes on his trade list.
Larkin and Eddy for Stankovin, Kikiskin and a 1st and Unger-Soram.
I pass. Stankoven was a major reason why they won. Why would they trade him for someone who has never won.
I had previously proposed a McDavid trade to the Habs comprising of something like: Kapanen, Hage, Newhook, Reinbacher or Pickford, a 2027 1st and a conditional 2028 1st (conditional that McDavid resigns long term)