NHL Player News

Friday, July 3

• 07/03/09 - 10:10AM ETTeemu Selanne : Will Retire After 2009-10 Season

  Selanne announced that the 2009-10 season will be his last in the NHL, TSN.ca reports.

  "The next season is without doubt my last. This time my decision will be kept," Selanne said. With free agency opening on Wednesday, the Ducks could be in the market to add Saku Koivu to the mix for Selanne's swan song. "The chemistry between us two has worked well on the national team. It would be interesting to see how our interacting would improve if we should play together on a daily basis," Selanne said.

• 07/03/09 - 10:04AM ETMikael Samuelsson : Signs with Vancouver

  Samuelsson signed a three-year deal with the Canucks on Friday, TSN.ca reports.

  Financial terms have not been disclosed at this time, but it will be interesting to see if the sniping right winger gets to skate with the Sedin twins in Vancouver. If things unfold that way, he could actually improve upon his production and make a push for something closer to 55-60 points with regular time on the power play as well.

Thursday, July 2

• 07/02/09 - 1:56PM ETRobert Scuderi : A King Now

  The Kings have come to an agreement on a four-year contract (reportedly worth $13.6 million) with Scuderi, the team's official site reports.

  Scuderi's name isn't prominent in fantasy circles, which is reflected by his 16-point, 18-PIM numbers in 2008-09. What he does offer the Kings is a steady shut-down defender that can help out on the penalty kill. Plus, he has the added credibility of being a key cog in the Penguins' recent Stanley Cup run.

• 07/02/09 - 11:22AM ETDany Heatley : Edmonton Deal Still in Play?

  The Heatley deal to the Oilers, though not dead, keeps changing, according to the Edmonton Journal.

  First Heatley declined to waive his no trade clause to go to Edmonton, now Ottawa wants more than the original package of Andrew Cogliano, Dustin Penner and Ladislav Smid since the Sens had to pay Heatley a $4 million bonus on Wednesday. Will the Oilers be willing to part with more talent and will Heatley agree to play in Edmonton? Best guess is this will take awhile longer as the Heatley camp will wait to see if another team that wasn't able to sign a high profile star on Wednesday steps up to the plate.

• 07/02/09 - 9:11AM ETNikolai Antropov : Atlanta-Bound

  Antropov signed a four-year, $16 million contract with Atlanta on Thursday, according to TSN.ca.

  Antropov was dealt to the Rangers at the trade deadline and notched 13 points in 18 games on Broadway. He can be penciled in for 50-plus points next season.

Wednesday, July 1

• 07/01/09 - 7:51PM ETMartin Havlat : Signs With Minnesota

  Havlat signed a six-year, $30 million contract with Minnesota, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports.

  The Wild needed a replacement for Marian Gaborik, who signed with the Rangers, and Havlat will try to fill the void. The Wild are also reportedly in pursuit of Saku Koivu.

• 07/01/09 - 6:03PM ETBrian Gionta : Gets Five-Year Deal with Montreal

  Gionta signed a five-year, $25 million deal with the Habs on Wednesday, TSN.ca reports.

  Montreal has spent cash on Wednesday like it won't be worth anything on Thursday. Gionta joins Michael Cammalleri, Jaroslav Spacek and Hal Gill as part of the new-look Canadiens. It's looking increasingly less likely that Alex Kovalev will have to go elsewhere barring a very significant reduction in pay. Gionta rejoins former teammate Scott Gomez north of the border.

• 07/01/09 - 5:38PM ETMarian Gaborik : Headed to Broadway

  Gaborik has signed a five-year, $37.5 million deal with the Rangers.

  Getting rid of Scott Gomez in a trade with Montreal earlier this week opened up enough room under the gap for a replacement big contract. When healthy, Gaborik is an elite offensive force on the wing, so this deal will ultimately be judged based on the number of games he suits up in for the Blueshirts over next half decade.

• 07/01/09 - 3:17PM ETPavel Kubina : Traded to Atlanta

  Kubina has been traded to Atlanta for Garnet Exelby and Colin Stuart, TSN.ca reports.

  With the $2 million that the Leafs are saving in cap space, Mike Komisarek has been signed away from the Habs. Kubina should man the point on the power play with Tobias Enstrom for the Thrashers this season.

• 07/01/09 - 3:03PM ETMichael Cammalleri : Inks Five-Year Deal with Habs

  Cammalleri signed a five-year, $30 million deal with the Habs on Wednesday, Habs Insideout reports.

  He's coming off of a huge 39-goal, 43-helper campaign in Calgary, while Montreal locks up the sniper through the 2013-14 season. Look for Cammy to pick up the scoring load following the expected departure of Alex Tanguay.

• 07/01/09 - 2:18PM ETHal Gill : Headed for Montreal

  Gill signed a two-year, $4.5 million deal with Montreal on Wednesday.

  He'll be part of the rebuilt blue line for the Habs, potentially joining fellow newcomer Jaroslav Spacek as the No. 2 defensive pairing. As per usual, his fantasy value is next to nothing in the majority of formats.

• 07/01/09 - 1:56PM ETIan Laperriere : Signs With Flyers

  Laperriere signed a three-year, $3.5 million deal with the Flyers on Wednesday.

  The salary isn't bad, but we're not entirely sure why the Flyers felt compelled to give him three years at age 35. If you're looking for penalty minutes with a little bit of offense for your fantasy squad, Laperriere is your guy. Over the last three seasons, he's averaged 145 penalty minutes and 22 points for Colorado.

• 07/01/09 - 1:43PM ETScott Clemmensen : Inks Deal With Florida

  Clemmensen has signed a three-year, $3.6 million deal with Florida, the Miami Herald reports.

  He parlayed a nice season with New Jersey into some long-term security with Florida. Tomas Vokoun will be the No. 1 goalie for the Panthers, but Clemmensen may see 25-30 starts depending on injuries and Vokoun's level of play. All in all, it's more playing time than he ever would have received behind a healthy Marty Brodeur in New Jersey.

• 07/01/09 - 1:25PM ETErik Cole : Stays With Carolina

  Cole signed a two-year deal to return to the Hurricanes on Wednesday, the Raleigh News & Observer reports.

  He's expected to receive $2.8 million this season and $3 million in 2010-11. Given how poorly his time in Edmonton went, the decision to stay in Carolina makes a great deal of sense after he picked up 15 points (2 G, 13 A) over 17 regular season games there to close out the 2008-09 campaign.

• 07/01/09 - 1:20PM ETNikolai Khabibulin : Oilers Go Get Him

  Khabibulin signed a four-year, $15 million deal with Edmonton on Wednesday, TSN.ca reports.

  The Oilers get a solid veteran option to lock down their goaltending situation, while the Bulin Wall gets another sizable paycheck. Edmonton doesn't have anything close to the talent that Khabibulin had in front of him in Chicago, so don't expect a repeat of his 25-8-7 record (40 starts). If things go well for him with the Oilers, Khabibulin could threaten the 30-win mark provided that he's healthy enough to make 55-60 starts, but that's essentially a best-case scenario for him.

• 07/01/09 - 1:01PM ETJaroslav Spacek : Joins Habs' Blue Line

  Spacek has signed a three-year, $11.5 million contract with the Habs.

  The contract is a touch on the pricey side, but Spacek is coming off of a nice run in Buffalo. He matched his career high with 45 points (8 G, 37 A) in 80 games last season, while Spacek profiles as a potential second-pairing option for Montreal with an opportunity to occasionally work on the top power-play unit with Andrei Markov.

• 07/01/09 - 12:45PM ETBrian Boucher : Provides Netminding Depth in Philly

  Boucher has signed two-year, $1.85 million deal with the Flyers, TSN.ca reports.

  He'll back up Ray Emery for his former club, with the potential to see significant playing time (30-35 starts?) if Razor's return to the NHL doesn't go as planned. The Flyers appear to be taking a pretty significant risk with their goaltending situation this season, but at least Boucher fits the bill as a stable veteran fallback option.

• 07/01/09 - 12:28PM ETScott Niedermayer : Back With Ducks

  Niedermayer signed a one-year, $6 million deal to return to the Ducks, ESPN.com reports.

  Not much surprise here, as it wasn't believed that Niedermayer was going to seriously consider playing elsewhere this season. The Anaheim blue line will have a different look without Chris Pronger this season, so Niedermayer will once again be asked to help carry the mail on the power play after tallying 32 of his 59 points with the man advantage last season.

• 07/01/09 - 12:22PM ETMike Knuble : Joins Caps

  Knuble signed a two-year, $5.6 million deal with the Caps on Wednesday, Comcast SportsNet reports.

  With the money they're saving following Sergei Fedorov's departure, the Caps strike by signing a gritty, offensively capable veteran. Knuble is a lock for another 20-goal campaign, but he could hit the 30-mark again depending on where he skates in Washington.

• 07/01/09 - 11:41AM ETMarian Hossa : Gets 12-Year Deal with Chicago

  Hossa has signed a 12-year deal with Chicago, the Associated Press reports.

  It's believed to be worth something in the neighborhood of $62 million, so the salary-cap hit will fall into the $5.2-million range. The Hawks also plucked Tomas Kopecky from the Red Wings on Wednesday afternoon, while significantly bolstering their chances to unseat Detroit atop the Central Division and Western Conference. If Chicago believes that Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane will take Henrik Zetterberg and Pavel Datsyuk long-term deals, the Hawks could be in position to set up a dynasty of their own.

• 07/01/09 - 11:13AM ETCraig Anderson : Getting Chance to Start with Avs

  Anderson has signed a two-year deal with the Avalanche, the Denver Post reports.

  He played pretty well as the caddy to Tomas Vokoun on an inconsistent Florida club in 2008-09. Anderson had a 15-7-5 record with a .924 save percentage, while he'll get every opportunity to lay claim to the No. 1 job in Colorado during training camp with Peter Budaj retained for the backup spot.

• 07/01/09 - 8:40AM ETHenrik Sedin : Twins Re-Sign With Vancouver

  Sedin (along with his twin Daniel) has signed a five-year contact (averaging $6.1 million a season) to stay in Vancouver, TSN.ca reports.

  Sedin, who had a career-high 22 goals en route to an 82-point season in 2008-09, was thought to be seeking (along with his brother) a 12-year, $63 million deal, so the Canucks came out of this pretty good, ensuring top line stability for the next five years in the process.