NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – August 20, 2025

by | Aug 20, 2025

NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – August 20, 2025

The 2025 preseason schedule was released, the Red Wings will retire Sergei Fedorov’s No. 91, USA Hockey lists the 44 players invited to their 2026 Winter Olympics orientation camp, and more in today’s NHL Morning Coffee Headlines.

NHL.COM: The league announced its 2026-26 preseason schedule. The 15-day, 104-game slate begins on Saturday, Sept. 20, and runs through Saturday, Oct. 4.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Click the link above for the complete preseason schedule.

DETROIT HOCKEY NOW: The Red Wings will retire Sergei Fedorov’s No. 91 as part of their centennial season celebrations. The ceremony will take place on Jan. 12, 2026, before Detroit’s game against the Carolina Hurricanes at Little Caesars Arena.

Hall-of-Famer Sergei Fedorov. (NHL.com).

Red Wings governor and CEO Chris Ilitch released a statement on Tuesday announcing the club’s plan to honor Fedorov, who was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2015. “His exceptional skill, relentless drive, and last impact, playing a pivotal role in bringing three Stanley Cup championships to Detroit, make him the perfect embodiment of the qualities deserving of our franchise’s most prestigious honor.”

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Fedorov was among the greatest players in Red Wings history, spending 13 of his 18 NHL seasons in Detroit from 1990-91 to 2002-03. He won the Selke Trophy twice and is the last Red Wing to win the Hart Trophy and the Ted Lindsay Award.

Fedorov sits fourth among the Red Wings’ franchise leaders with 400 goals. He’s also sixth with 954 points and seventh with 554 assists.

Interestingly, the Wings chose a home game against Carolina to honor Fedorov. As a restricted free agent in 1997, he staged a contract holdout before signing with the Hurricanes in 1998, a deal that the Wings were forced to match. This changed the relationship between the gifted two-way forward and Wings management, ultimately leading to his departure as an unrestricted free agent in 2003.

USA HOCKEY: Unveiled the 44 players who will attend their 2026 Winter Olympics orientation camp.

The notable stars include goaltenders Connor Hellebuyck, Jake Oettinger and Jeremy Swayman, defensemen Quinn and Luke Hughes, Zach Werenski, Charlie McAvoy, Jaccob Slavin, Brock Faber, Adam Fox and Jake Sanderson, and forwards Auston Matthews, Matthew and Brady Tkachuk, Jack Hughes, Kyle Connor, Jack Eichel, Patrick Kane, J.T. Miller, Clayton Keller, Tage Thompson and Cole Caufield.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Follow the link above for the complete list. Like Canada’s orientation camp, most of the USA players who participated in February’s 4 Nations Face Off are part of this camp and will likely be part of their Olympic roster.

ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH: The Blues have signed forward Milan Lucic to a professional tryout offer (PTO).

Lucic, 37, has not played in the NHL since Oct. 2023 with the Boston Bruins. He played only four games that season until he was sidelined by an ankle injury and placed on indefinite leave following a charge of assault and battery against a family member. The charge was dropped when his wife declined to testify against him.

A rugged power forward with the Bruins earlier in his career, Lucic was seeing fourth-line minutes during his last full season in 2022-23 with the Calgary Flames. He hasn’t had more than 23 points in a season since 2017-18.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: The Athletic’s Jeremy Rutherford pointed out that Lucic will be jockeying for a roster spot with Mathieu Joseph (28 years old) and Alexandre Texier (25), who are considerably younger and faster. If he plays well enough but fails to earn a roster spot with the Blues, he could draw the interest of another NHL team.

COLORADO HOCKEY NOW: cited PuckPedia indicating the Avalanche could sign unrestricted free agent forward Victor Olofsson to a one-year contract. The deal has not been officially announced.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Olofsson scored 20-or-more goals three times in six seasons with the Buffalo Sabres from 2018-19 to 2023-24. He had 15 goals and 29 points in 56 games with the Vegas Golden Knights last season.

THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH: The Blue Jackets have signed Brendan Smith to a PTO contract. A 14-season NHL veteran, the 36-year-old defenseman played a depth role with the Dallas Stars last season, collecting six points in 32 games.










NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – July 15, 2025

by | Jul 15, 2025

NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – July 15, 2025

The 2025-26 season-opener is released, the Sabres avoid arbitration with Bowen Byram, an ownership group led by Mario Lemieux is interested in buying the Penguins, and more in today’s NHL Morning Coffee Headlines.

NHL.COM: The 2025-26 regular season will kick off with a triple-header starting Tuesday, Oct. 7.

The first game of the season features the Florida Panthers raising their 2024-25 Stanley Cup banner at home as they host the Chicago Blackhawks.

The second game sees the New York Rangers hosting the Pittsburgh Penguins, and the evening concludes with the Colorado Avalanche visiting the Los Angeles Kings.

The full regular-season schedule will be released on Wednesday, July 16.

THE BUFFALO NEWS: The Sabres avoided arbitration with defenseman Bowen Byram as the two sides agreed to a two-year contract worth an average annual value of $6.25 million.

Buffalo Sabres defenseman Bowen Byram (NHL Images).

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Byram, 24, will be eligible for unrestricted free-agent status at the end of this contract. He was the subject of frequent trade speculation since last season. The Sabres could still move him, but for now, he’s part of their plans for this season.

The signing leaves the Sabres with over $7.3 million in cap space. Restricted free agents Devon Levi and Conor Timmins remain unsigned, with the latter awaiting the date for his arbitration hearing.

THE ATHLETIC: Josh Yohe reports that a group led by former NHL owner and superstar Mario Lemieux remains very interested in purchasing the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Lemieux spent his entire 17-season NHL career with the Penguins. He co-owned the club from 1999 to 2021.

Fenway Sports Group (FSG) released a statement earlier this year indicating they have no interest in selling the Penguins. Nevertheless, the Lemieux group is considering its financial options and avenues to regain control of the club at some point.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Yohe’s source also stated that the Lemieux group expects the NHL will add two expansion teams over the next several years, resulting in a significant windfall for the existing 32 clubs.

FLORIDA HOCKEY NOW: As the 2024-25 Panthers have their names engraved on the Stanley Cup (many for the second straight year), columnist Alan Greenberg reflected on his 17 seasons covering the team, and how far they’ve come from the first 12 years that he followed them.

During that period, they were among the league’s bottom feeders. Ownership didn’t provide the funds to add top free-agent talent, and the franchise was generally not a desirable place to play. The arena was less than half full for most games, media coverage was scarce, and there were rumors of relocating the franchise to Quebec City.

Things began to turn around when the Viola family took over in 2013. Former general manager Dale Tallon drafted core players like Aleksander Barkov and Aaron Ekblad, and signed goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky. Bill Zito, Tallon’s successor, built up the franchise by acquiring notable players like Matthew Tkachuk, Sam Reinhart, Sam Bennett, Carter Verhaeghe and Gustav Forsling, and hiring head coach Paul Maurice.

Today, the Panthers sell out their home arena, receive more local and national coverage, and merchandise sales are booming. The players form a close-knit group, fostering a positive atmosphere within the team.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: From 1993-94 to 2019-20, the Panthers reached the playoffs six times over those 26 years. Since 2020-21, they’ve been a perennial playoff team, reaching the Stanley Cup Final three straight times and winning back-to-back championships since 2023-24.

The rise of the Panthers is primarily attributed to Zito’s appointment as general manager. In five years, he built upon the foundation left by Tallon, turning a laughingstock into a dominant franchise poised to become the first true Stanley Cup dynasty (three consecutive championships) since the 1980-82 New York Islanders.

THE ATHLETIC’s Kevin Kurz reports Philadelphia Flyers winger Tyson Foerster continues to rehab an injured tendon near his elbow. He will undergo an MRI next week to check on the infection that developed following the injury.

The Flyers hope Foerster will be ready to start the season, but plenty of uncertainty remains.

THE WINNIPEG SUN: The Jets avoided arbitration with RFA forward Morgan Barron, signing him to a two-year contract with an AAV of $1.85 million.

Negotiations continue between Jets management and winger Gabriel Vilardi and defenseman Dylan Samberg. Like Barron, they filed for salary arbitration on July 5.

NYI HOCKEY NOW: The Islanders signed forward Victor Eklund to a three-year entry-level contract. Eklund was chosen 16th overall in last month’s NHL Draft and was one of three first-rounders by the Isles.

SPORTSNET: The Edmonton Oilers have shifted Paul Coffey from an assistant coach to an advisory role in the front office. They added Paul McFarland as power-play coach, Peter Aubry as their goaltending coach, and Connor Allen as a skills development coach.