For a few years now, we’ve seen more trades in the hockey world involving future considerations. It’s a method used by some teams, for example, to send certain contracts elsewhere without getting anything in return.
In the NHL, you can’t trade something for “nothing”. That’s why future considerations are used as a legal way of saying “nothing”.
Today, the Utica Comets (AHL) made a trade of this kind. The club sent Will MacKinnon to Cleveland in exchange for future considerations.
It was mainly a way to get rid of a player who was no longer useful.
However, what makes this rather special is that the GM in Utica is named Dan MacKinnon… and he’s Will’s father.
So, he traded his own son for… nothing.
The GM of the Utica Comets, Dan MacKinnon, traded his son Will MacKinnon for Future Considerations…
Trading your son for Future Considerations is DIABOLICAL
pic.twitter.com/wxYDB9mg8c
— B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) March 13, 2025
Of course, we can agree that this is a rather comedic situation. The atmosphere at the next family dinner might be… special.
MacKinnon is a 24-year-old defenseman with only four points in 42 games this season in Utica. He’s a depth defenseman in the AHL, which means his value isn’t enormous… but apparently, his father thought it was a good idea to send him elsewhere.
Maybe he thinks his son will get more ice time in Cleveland… but we can agree that it’s still peculiar to see a GM trade his son for absolutely nothing.
Meanwhile, let’s remember that if the NHL trade deadline was last Friday, it’s scheduled for tomorrow in the AHL. This means that AHL teams can still make moves… but players won’t be able to play in the NHL until the end of the season.
However, they can still play in the AHL as they please… and in MacKinnon’s case, who is closer to the ECHL than the NHL, the first point isn’t a problem.
If in Montreal, we were wondering what it would have been like if Kent Hughes had drafted his son Jack in 2022, the latter can probably be reassured: unlike Will MacKinnon, he can’t be traded by his father for mere future considerations.
But at least, it gives us a comedic situation in Utica.
– Logan Mailloux thinks he’s better defensively.
À ses premiers coups de patin à Laval, son jeu en territoire défensif relevait parfois de l’aventure périlleuse
https://t.co/V3zoXqPtTO
— TVA Sports (@TVASports) March 13, 2025
– Good listening.
INSIDER TRADING…
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– Do extensions get done for Palmieri, Donato?MORE: https://t.co/jkLtpMmHm2 pic.twitter.com/hTVOBm5epY
— TSN Hockey (@TSNHockey) March 13, 2025
– The CH season is already a success, says Stu Cowan.
My column on what has already been a successful season for the Canadiens, but Juraj Slafkovsky and his teammates still have sights set on the playoffs #Habs #HabsIO: https://t.co/LcOHcI93vK
— Stu Cowan (@StuCowan1) March 13, 2025
– Morgan Rielly, uncomfortable in Craig Berube’s system?
Craig Berube’s system has impacted the #LeafsForever both positively and negatively…@JeffMarek: “It’s really obvious that Morgan Rielly is really uncomfortable playing this style of defense”#thesickpodcast @MurphysLaw74 pic.twitter.com/jSeJPNDEFt
— The Sick Podcast – The Eye Test (@sickpodnhl) March 13, 2025
– One less distraction in Boston.
Il a compris des choses. https://t.co/0LVMlLpicD
— Passion MLB (@passion_mlb) March 13, 2025
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The Montreal Canadiens made multiple moves in NHL free agency to improve their roster. After making the playoffs but being eliminated in the first round by the Washington Capitals, the young core of players hope to improve in 2025-26. Still, the lynchpin of Carey Price’s contract could hinder future moves. The former fifth overall pick of the Montreal Canadiens is due $10.5 million this year. While he has not played since April 2022 due to a lingering knee issue, and it seems like Price’s career is over, he has still not officially announced retirement. This means his salary is on the books for the Canadiens in 2025-26. The team will need to play a waiting game with the Price contract overall. Price was the fifth overall pick of the Montreal Canadiens in the 2005 NHL Draft. He broke into the NHL in 2007-08 and quickly became a fixture for the Canadiens. After starting 41 games in his first full season, he would continue to be the primary starting goaltender for nearly a decade. He would play in 72 games in 2010-11, winning 38 times and breaking the franchise record for minutes played in a season. The goaltender would continue to break records for the team. In 2014-15, he broke the Canadiens’ record for wins in a season and save percentage. That year, he would win the Hart Memorial Trophy as the NHL MVP, and the Vezina Trophy as the top goaltender. Price is a seven-time All-Star, a member of the NHL Quarter-Century team, plus has won the Ted Lindsay Award and William M. Jennings Award in his career. Future Canadiens moves depend on Carey Price The Canadiens are currently $4.8 million over the cap for the 2025-26 season. Part of this is the $10.5 million cap hit of Price. Much of the future market for the Canadiens revolves around their former netminder. This will come to a head on September 1, when Price is due $5.5 million in a signing bonus. This takes away money from the available cap space for the team. While the goaltender is due just $2 million after that, with 60 percent covered by insurance, this is still a significant cap hit for the team. The reason September 1 is so valuable for the Canadiens is that they would eat the $5.5 million of cap hit, making the cap hit for another team just $5 million. This makes his contract much more manageable for a team willing to take it on. After paying the remaining $5 million, the contract expires at the end of the season. The waiting game comes into play there. The Canadiens have noted they do not want to use a roster spot for Price. While the team could use long-term IR money, this hinders future flexibility with the team over the cap. Long-term IR will allow them to be up to ten percent over the cap, but also not allow them to make major moves. With the timing of September 1, a team could take on the contract of Price with extra cap space, while getting something else in return. Meanwhile, it allows Montreal more financial flexibility. While Price’s career is over, his contract creates one more year of questions.
Pete Alonso is now the New York Mets' all-time home run king. With his opposite-field, two-run home run in the bottom of the third inning against the Atlanta Braves on Tuesday night, Alonso clubbed the 253rd and 254th home runs of his Mets career, moving him into sole possession of first place on the team's all-time list. He moved two home runs ahead of the previous record-holder, Darryl Strawberry, who hit 252 home runs with the team between the 1983 and 1990 seasons. Here is a look at his record-setting home run. Later in the bottom of the sixth inning, Alonso hit his 254th home run: Along with the all-time Mets home run lead, Alonso is also the Mets' single-season home run leader with 53 home runs during the 2019 season. Strawberry congratulated Alonso on breaking his record: His home runs on Tuesday were his 27th and 28th of the season. It is a big deal for Alonso because there was some doubt this past offseason about whether he would have a chance to set this record. Even though he was close, the uncertainty around his future, given his free-agent status, created a lot of questions about where he would play. Ultimately, the Mets re-signed him to a two-year, $54 million contract that includes an opt-out clause following the 2025 season. That opt-out will again create some uncertainty about his future, but it is pretty clear Alonso still has a lot of power left in his bat. Whether he returns to the Mets or goes somewhere else, he will remain the franchise's greatest home run hitter for the foreseeable future. He is now on top of the record books for the single season and career.
Oregon wide receiver Jurrion Dickey has struggled to live up to expectations in his first two seasons with the Ducks, and he is now in a terrible position heading into 2025 as well. Dickey has been suspended indefinitely by Oregon, head coach Dan Lanning announced on Tuesday. Lanning also suggested that Dickey may not play for the Ducks again. "We have two team rules; that’s respectful, be on time,” Lanning said, via James Crepea of The Oregonian. “There’s some pieces of that where I felt like he needed a break from us and we needed a break from that so we could focus on what’s in front of us right now. "Wishing him nothing but the best, as far as success and want to see him get back to where he can be a contributor somewhere; that might be here that might be somewhere else.” Dickey was a five-star recruit and rated as one of the top wide receivers in the country when he came out of Menlo-Atherton High School in Atherton, Calif., in 2023. He suffered an injury in his senior year in high school and redshirted as a freshman at Oregon. Dickey has two catches for 14 years during his time with the Ducks. Oregon went 13-1 in Lanning's third season with the program last season. The Ducks lost to eventual national champion Ohio State in the College Football Playoff quarterfinals.
In 2024, Green Bay Packers backup quarterback Malik Willis was suddenly given the keys to the offense under center after Jordan Love suffered an injury in Week 1’s loss to the Philadelphia Eagles in Brazil. Despite limited time with the Packers in the offseason, Willis managed to be a steady presence on the field, with Green Bay tailoring the offense for him. With Love reportedly undergoing a procedure on his left thumb, Willis filled in as the Packers’ QB1 during Thursday’s joint practice with the Indianapolis Colts. Willis appeared to make a good account of himself on the field, with Packers running back Josh Jacobs taking notice of the quarterback’s performance. “We know what Malik is and what we have in Malik,” Jacobs said, per Wes Hodkiewicz of the Packers’ website. Jacobs also shared his confidence in Willis’ NFL outlook. “He made a few throws today that was kinda like, ‘Wow.’ Just him being more comfortable and him being the leader, I think he’s naturally a guy that he puts in the work, so I think he’s going to succeed.” Will Jordan Love be ready for the Green Bay Packers’ 2025 NFL season opener? The Packers are less than a month away from kicking off their 2025 campaign, with a date with the Detroit Lions at Lambeau Field scheduled for September 7. Green Bay, however, doesn’t seem all that worried about Love’s availability for that contest. “We’ll get him back in plenty of time,” Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst said (h/t Rob Demovsky of ESPN). “I don’t foresee this affecting him long term at all.” As for the upcoming preseason clash with the Colts and the one after that versus the Seattle Seahawks, Love can be expected to sit out both contests, with Willis possibly getting some snaps.