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The Calgary Flames plan to keep Rasmus Andersson
Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic: Calgary Flames GM Craig Conroy tells every team that calls and asks about defenseman Rasmus Andersson, that he doesn’t plan on trading him. The Flames believe they will be able to extend him this offseason or they’ll trade him in the offseason if they can’t work out a deal. Teams will likely keep trying this week. It would take a huge offer to get them to move him, and they don’t plan on being sellers.
Likely nothing big for the Washington Capitals
Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic: It’s doubtful that the Washington Capitals will add a big piece by Friday, but they’ll likely be looking to add a depth forward, a bottom-six guy.
The Capitals may want to make sure they have a roster spot for Ryan Leonard if they sign him after his NCAA season.
The asking price for Rasmus Ristolainen is…
Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic: To get into serious talks with the Philadelphia Flyers about defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen, it’ll take a first-round pick plus another asset. He’s got two years left at $5.1 million.
Potential Vegas Golden Knights trade targets
Danny Webster of The Las Vegas Review-Journal: Vegas Golden Knights GM Kelly McCrimmon said over a week ago that they don’t plan on being big spenders ahead of the deadline. As you know with Vegas, that can always change.
Given their past spending, the Golden Knights don’t have a lot of assets. They’ve given up their next two first-round picks, but they have an extra third and sixth this year. They’d have to get something real good to include Trevor Connelly, Mathieu Cataford or Carl Lindbom.
Potential target tiers
Likely – Brandon Tanev (Kraken), Joel Armia (Canadiens), and Ryan Donato (Blackhawks).
Never say never – Brock Nelson (Islanders), Mikko Rantanen (Hurricanes), and Brad Marchand (Bruins).
Absolutely not – John Gibson (Ducks)
More must-reads:
- Martin Necas' big extension with Avalanche another blow to 2026 NHL free agency
- Three NHL coaches in danger of a midseason firing
- The 'NFL passer rating leaders' quiz
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Martin Necas' big extension with Avalanche another blow to 2026 NHL free agency
NHL fans should start preparing themselves for a very slow, boring summer of player movement during the 2026 offseason. Mostly because there are not going to be any significant free agents of relevance remaining to be signed. Another potential free agent was removed from the list on Thursday when the Colorado Avalanche re-signed forward Martin Necas to an eight-year contract extension. The team did not announce the financial terms of the deal, but it is reportedly worth a total of $92 million, with a salary-cap number of $11.5 million per season. It is an expensive extension, but Necas has been a great fit in Colorado since arriving in last year's Mikko Rantanen trade. The bigger story from a leaguewide perspective, however, is just how thin it leaves this year's potential crop of free agents. Every major potential NHL free agent has already re-signed It was only a few weeks ago that the 2026 free-agent class was loaded with potential stars. Connor McDavid (Edmonton Oilers), Kirill Kaprizov (Minnesota Wild), Kyle Connor (Winnipeg Jets) and Jack Eichel (Vegas Golden Knights) were all entering the final year of their contracts, and in the cases of McDavid and Kaprizov negotiations were going slow. But one-by-one, each player started to sign new deals with their current team. Necas is the latest. With those five players all signed, the best current potential free agents include New York Rangers forward Artemi Panarin, Buffalo Sabres forward Alex Tuch, Utah Mammoth forward Nick Schmaltz and Florida Panthers goalie Sergei Bobrovsky. It is not an overly impressive list of players. Panarin is still a big name, but he is going to be 35 years old when next season begins. He has also showed signs of slowing down. Tuch and Schmaltz are good players, but they are not stars and seem more likely to be the type of free agents who sign contracts that do not age well. Bobrovsky is a future Hall of Fame goalie, but like Panarin, he is closer to the end of his career than his prime. All of that is going to lead to a pretty slow and boring offseason of player movement when it comes to unrestricted free agency. That is one of the trade-offs that has come with the rapidly increasing salary cap. Teams always do everything they can to keep their best players. Now they all have the salary-cap space to easily keep them.
Cowboys WR George Pickens has telling response to question about contract
George Pickens is having an outstanding first season with the Dallas Cowboys, and the career-best pace has come at a time when he is preparing for potential free agency. Is it possible the star wide receiver could sign an extension before he gets to that point? Pickens says that is up to his boss. Pickens, who was drafted in the second round by the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2022, is in the final season of his rookie contract. He was asked on Thursday if he would consider signing a new deal with the Cowboys before he becomes a free agent after the season. He had a noteworthy response. "That’s kinda up to what (Jerry Jones) wants to do. All I can do is perform at my best," Pickens said. George Pickens has earned No. 1 wideout money Pickens has 685 receiving yards through the first eight weeks of the season, which ranks third in the NFL. His six touchdown catches are already the most of his four-year career. CeeDee Lamb missed several games this season with an ankle injury, and Pickens showed during that time that he is more than capable of being the featured wideout in a quality offense. That should go a long way toward setting his market, whether he re-signs with the Cowboys or becomes a free agent. With Lamb making an average of $34M per year, the Cowboys probably cannot afford to keep Pickens. For now, the 24-year-old is at least giving off the impression that he is open to the possibility. He also suggested recently that money is not the most important thing to him with his next contract, which could keep Dallas in the running.
Warriors castoff has a career night against his old team
The Golden State Warriors traded away Ryan Rollins in 2023 after one season and 12 games with the team. Thursday night, Rollins showed the Warriors what they missed out on. With Giannis Antetokounmpo out with an injury, Rollins scored a career-high 32 points and dished out eight assists as the Milwaukee Bucks beat the Warriors, 120-110. Rollins went 5-for-7 from three-point range, tying his career best, and went 13-for-21 overall. In the last four minutes after the Warriors got within points, Rollins had eight points and an assists. Oh, and he outscored Stephen Curry, 32-27. Warriors gave up on Ryan Rollins after one season Golden State traded up to draft Rollins with the No. 44 pick in the 2022 draft, believing that the then-19-year-old guard from Toledo could help it reload their championship roster, which was getting up in age. But Rollins missed Summer League due to a foot injury, then suffered a season-ending Jones fracture. After the season, the Warriors sent Rollins and fellow 2022 draftee Patrick Baldwin, Jr. to the Washington Wizards along with Jordan Poole. In exchange, they got 38-year-old Chris Paul, a serious reversal in the team's earlier youth movement. Rollins was included in the deal to help the Warriors dump Poole's contract, which spanned four more seasons, and to ditch his own guaranteed deal. After a troubled partial season in Washington, the Wizards waived Rollins and he caught on with the Bucks in February 2024. Ryan Rollins' huge night showed the 23-year-old's improvement One game after Rollins had a career-high 25 points against the New York Knicks, he set another career high, this time without Antetokounmpo there to score 37 points and take up the defense's attention. Even with a great defensive player like Jimmy Butler on him, Rollins delivered in the clutch. Rollins has gone 9-for-11 from three-point range in his last two games, but it doesn't feel like a fluke. Last year he shot 40.8% on threes and hit 80% of his free throws, a strong indicator Rollins can truly shoot the ball. He also had 12 steals in his first four games, and while he didn't have a takeaway Thursday night, Rollins has more steals than turnovers (10) on the season and an excellent assist-to-turnover ratio of 5-to-2. Last season, Rollins was a solid reserve, averaging 6.2 points and 1.9 assists while starting 19 games. But with Damian Lillard suffering an Achilles tear and then being waived by the Bucks, Rollins got an opportunity, and got an even bigger one when Kevin Porter, Jr. sprained his ankle in the season opener. Rollins looks like he's going to have a serious future in the NBA. Unfortunately for the Warriors, that future won't be with them.
'TNF' takeaways: Lamar Jackson dazzles in return as Ravens humiliate Dolphins
The Baltimore Ravens dominated the Miami Dolphins in a 28-6 rout on "Thursday Night Football" as quarterback Lamar Jackson shined in his return from injury. Here are four takeaways from the first NFL game of Week 9: Lamar Jackson returns in style You would never know that Jackson had not played since Week 4 judging by his incredible performance on Thursday night. He wasted no time getting started with this fourth-down strike to tight end Mark Andrews in the opening quarter and capped his four-TD night with a nine-yard connection to wide receiver Rashod Bateman late in the third quarter. His 18 total TD passes against the Dolphins are the second-most all-time in five games vs. one opponent, only behind George Blanda's 21 against the New York Titans. After going 18-of-23 for 204 yards and four TDs, Jackson now has 14 passing TDs and only one interception in five games. If he stays healthy, this Ravens team will be difficult to slow down in the second half of the season. Mike McDaniel's seat keeps getting hotter It keeps getting worse for the Dolphins head coach after Thursday's latest dud. Miami had 332 yards of offense, but went 0-for-3 in the red zone and committed three turnovers, including a brutal one in their own territory in the first quarter. During a pregame segment on Prime Video, NFL Network insider Ian Rapoport was asked what McDaniel's future looks like in Miami and said his job status is "firmly up in the air." While he said he did not "see anything imminent" from owner Stephen Ross, it will come down to how the players respond going forward. Although he signed an extension prior to last season and is under contract through 2028, a 2-7 record and another blowout loss is doing nothing to help McDaniel's case at the moment. Kyle Hamilton spearheads strong defensive performance from Ravens The Ravens entered the night allowing the third-most points per game (30 PPG), but Thursday night was a much different story. The All-Pro safety Hamilton may have not had the most tackles on the team, but his impact was certainly felt with six total tackles and one tackle for loss. He was more impressive than the stats show, especially at creating pressure on Dolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa and keeping Miami from having any success between the tackles. In the first quarter alone, Hamilton did not even line up as a safety in his first 15 snaps and still only gave up one yard rushing on four carries, opposed to 31 yards on three carries away from him, per Next Gen Stats. For a team that has struggled defensively, they need more of what they got on Thursday night if they are going to claw their way back into the AFC North conversation. Don't count the Ravens out yet It was not that long ago that Baltimore was 1-5 and staring at a wasted season. After back-to-back wins, an improving 3-5 record and a sloppy AFC North in which the Pittsburgh Steelers (4-3) are the only team above .500, the Ravens are firmly in the hunt. In fact, FanDuel currently lists them as the favorites (-145) to win the division as of Thursday night. The defense still needs to prove itself against stiffer competition, but if Jackson continues to ball out, the Ravens could complete a remarkable turnaround and mix up the AFC playoff picture.
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