CLAUDE GIROUX

There are plenty of players who are being overrated by fantasy managers according to their average draft position. Hughes has compiled 146 of his 165 career points via assists since he transitioned to the NHL. He will continue to rack up points, but fantasy managers looking for help in other categories will be found wanting. Bennett currently sits with an average pick of 142, which ranks him ahead of some pivots with much better upside. Fantasy managers clearly expect big things from the first-overall pick from the 2021 NHL Draft because his average pick rate currently sits at 111.8.

New York Rangers President and General Manager Chris Drury announced Wednesday, July 13, 2022, that the team has agreed to terms with forward Vincent Trocheck on a seven-year contract. (AP Photo/John Minchillo, File) (John Minchillo)Claude Giroux is set to enjoy a homecoming in Ottawa, the Washington Capitals landed Stanley Cup-winning goaltender Darcy Kuemper and the New York Rangers made a major splash by signing versatile center Vincent Trocheck as NHL free agency opened with a rush on Wednesday. Kuemper left a championship team in Colorado to sign a $26.25 million, five-year contract with the Capitals, who are reshuffling their goaltending this offseason. Trocheck signed a $39.375 seven-year contract in a move made by the Rangers to replace Andrew Copp, who signed a $28.125 million, five-year contract with Detroit. Besides Kuemper, the offseason-long goalie carousel continued spinning with Jack Campbell leaving Toronto to sign a five-year, $25 million contract with Edmonton.

Giroux has signed a $19.5 million, three-year contract with the Ottawa Senators, according to a person with knowledge of the move. The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity Wednesday, July 13, 2022, because the deal had not been announced. The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the deal had not been announced. “I wouldn’t sign here if I didn’t think we had a chance to win the Cup,” Giroux told Canada’s TSN. Olofsson, who turns 26 next week, was a restricted free agent and scored 20 goals and a career-best 49 points last season.

The Columbus Blue Jackets landed the biggest prize on the opening day of NHL free agency by signing Johnny Gaudreau to a $68.25 million seven-year contract.

Avalanche Parade Hockey Colorado Avalanche right wing Valeri Nichushkin lifts the Stanley Cup during a rally outside the City/County Building for the NHL hockey champions after a parade through the streets of downtown Denver, Thursday, June 30, 2022. “Too early to tell.”He's also right that it's too early to tell exactly what NHL free agency will look like when it begins Wednesday. “We’ve got some time,” Avalanche general manager Joe Sakic said about discussions with several pending free agents. Some teams can't afford to wait until Wednesday to make moves because they need to clear salary cap space before then. ___Follow AP Hockey Writer Stephen Whyno on Twitter at https://twitter.com/SWhyno___More AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/NHL and https://twitter.com/AP_SportsCopyright 2022 The Associated Press.

Executives around the NHL expect plenty of movement before free agency opens Wednesday.

While Julien BriseBois knows exactly how confident he is about the possibility of re-signing playoff performer Ondrej Palat and veteran defenseman Jan Rutta, he's not saying. "Still working on that," the two-time Stanley Cup-winning general manager of the Tampa Bay Lightning said. Colorado, which beat Tampa Bay in the Cup Final, is looking to sign postseason standout Valeri Nichushkin among a group of potential free agents, and others such as Calgary MVP candidate Johnny Gaudreau, Pittsburgh center Evgeni Malkin and Florida trade deadline pickup Claude Giroux could all get new deals to stay rather than hitting the open market.

There will be a Presidents’ Trophy banner hanging over the Florida Panthers’ home ice next season.

The New York Rangers will play the Carolina Hurricanes in the second round of the NHL playoffs.

(AP Photo/Alex Brandon) (Alex Brandon)WASHINGTON — (AP) — When the Florida Panthers faced their first real adversity of the season trailing their playoff series against the Washington Capitals, players held a meeting to set things straight. “We held each other accountable, worked really hard for each other and for the guy next to you. Initial nerves at home early in the series faded when Florida started to feel the pressure. Then the Panthers started to look and play like themselves and moved on to face the winner of the series between the back-to-back Stanley Cup champion Tampa Bay Lightning and Toronto Maple Leafs. No team scored as many goals as the Panthers during the regular season — a rate of 4.11 a game not seen since Mario Lemieux's Pittsburgh Penguins.

The Florida Panthers found what made them the NHL's best regular-season team just in time to win the franchise's first playoff series in 26 years.

The Maple Leafs again held an early lead on the Panthers but failed to hold onto it. On April 5 in their last visit, Toronto led Florida 5-1 in the second period but ended up losing 7-6 in overtime. Saturday night, the Panthers fell behind 2-0 after the first period but were able to come back. NOTES: The Maple Leafs welcomed star center Auston Matthews back to the lineup after he missed three games with an undisclosed injury. The Maple Leafs’ previous best was 105 in 2017-18; the Panthers’ was 103 in 2015-16.

Brandon Montour scored 2:26 into overtime and the NHL-leading Florida Panthers extended their winning streak to a franchise-record 13 games by beating the Toronto Maple Leafs 3-2 on Saturday night.

Marc-Andre Fleury may have been the biggest winner at the NHL trade deadline.

Waddell's Carolina Hurricanes are among the many contenders with limited salary cap space that could wait until much closer to the trade deadline Monday to stockpile before the stretch run to the playoffs. “Between the cap, between the cost — all those things, the standings — it adds up,” Edmonton general manager Ken Holland said. “For the most part, it usually happens the last day or two by the deadline. That's great for drama at the end of April but not so good for the prospect of intense trade chatter. Things will boil down to Monday.”___Follow AP Hockey Writer Stephen Whyno on Twitter at https://twitter.com/SWhyno___More AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/NHL and https://twitter.com/AP_SportsCopyright 2022 The Associated Press.

The combination of jumbled standings in the Western Conference and a flat salary cap has stalled much of the trade market around the NHL.

Sidney Crosby scored his 500th goal and Pittsburgh teammate Kris Letang capped a late rally to send the Penguins past the Philadelphia Flyers 5-4 in overtime.

NHL All Star Game Hockey Metropolitan Division's Evgeny Kuznetsov, of the Washington Capitals, left, celebrates with Claude Giroux, of the Philadelphia Flyers, during the first period of the NHL All-Star hockey game final against the Central Division Saturday, Feb. 5, 2022, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Rick Scuteri) (Rick Scuteri)LAS VEGAS — (AP) — Philadelphia captain Claude Giroux scored three goals and the Metropolitan Division beat the Central Division 5-3 on Saturday in the final 3-on-3 match to win the NHL All-Star Game. He also picked up the $1 million check shared among the winning team as the captain of the Metropolitan squad. Hughes scored two goals for the Metropolitan team in its 6-4 win over the Pacific in the first semifinal. Wilson's goal was the second-fastest to begin an All-Star Game under any format, topped only by Rick Nash's 12-second goal in 2009.

Philadelphia captain Claude Giroux scored three goals and the Metropolitan Division beat the Central Division 5-3 in the final 3-on-3 match of the NHL All-Star Game.

Scott Laughton scored 2:22 into overtime, Cam Atkinson had a pair of goals in regulation and assisted on the winner, and the Philadelphia Flyers snapped a franchise-record 13-game losing streak with a 4-3 victory over the Los Angeles Kings.

David Pastrnak scored a hat trick, Tuukka Rask made 24 saves in his return from hip surgery and the Boston Bruins beat the Philadelphia Flyers 3-2.

Washington star Alexander Ovechkin and high-scoring Edmonton teammates Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl headline the rosters for the NHL All-Star Weekend announced Thursday.

The Pittsburgh Penguins won their 10th straight game with a 6-2 victory over the Philadelphia Flyers.

Avalanche Flyers Hockey Colorado Avalanche's Nazem Kadri celebrates after scoring a goal during the third period of an NHL hockey game against the Philadelphia Flyers, Monday, Dec. 6, 2021, in Philadelphia. Mike Yeo took over as interim coach of the Flyers, but they didn't fare any better following the shakeup. Philadelphia entered with just nine goals in 67 chances on the man-advantage before scoring a pair in the high-scoring opening period. Flyers: Winger Joel Farabee (left shoulder) missed his third straight game. … C Derick Brassard (hip) was sidelined for the sixth straight game.

Erik Johnson had a goal and an assist, and the Colorado Avalanche beat Philadelphia 7-5 to hand the Flyers their ninth straight loss just hours after they fired coach Alain Vigneault.

The Flyers were spurred by a replenished lineup in which four players returned after spending two weeks in the NHL’s COVID-19 protocol. They included Scott Laughton, who scored a breakaway goal to make it 3-0 late in the second period. Elliott improved to 5-1 this season and upped his career record to 15-2-2 with four shutouts against the Sabres, including a 40-save outing in a 3-0 win on Jan. 19. Elliott chalked up his dominance to opening his career with Ottawa, Buffalo’s traditional Atlantic Division rival. The Sabres dropped to 2-6-1 in their past nine and played their second game without captain Jack Eichel, listed as day to day with a lower body injury.