2023 NHL offseason thread

SpJo double, a team in Lake Tahoe owned by Tim Tebow.

https://www.echl.com/en/news/2023/7/echl-approves-expansion-membership-for-lake-tahoe

 

Why?



Because.

 

Per Sportnet today:

The Calgary Flames announced they will retire former goaltender Mikka Kiprusoff's No. 34 in a ceremony on March 2.
Kiprusoff, 46, played in Calgary for nine seasons before his retirement at the end of the 2012-13 season. He ended his career as the Flames' leader in wins (305), shutouts (41) and games played by a goaltender (576). He also retired as franchise leader in both goals against average (2.46) and save percentage (.913).
"It's the biggest honour you can get," the Turku, Finland native said Tuesday. "It feels great. It's unbelievable, I'm so happy."
Kiprusoff joins former Flames greats Jarome Iginla, Mike Vernon and Lanny MacDonald in the rafters at Scotiabank Saddledome, something the goaltender says is an "unreal feeling."
"I loved my time in Calgary," Kiprusoff said. "Hockey really means something here and I was proud to wear the Flaming C and call Calgary my home for nine years."

 

Per Associated Press:

The Seattle Kraken re-signed top defenseman Vince Dunn a four-year, $29.4 million contract Friday, locking up one of their core pieces coming off the best season of his career.

Dunn, 26, had a career-high 14 goals and 64 points in the regular season playing in the top defensive pairing for the Kraken. Teamed with veteran Adam Larsson, Dunn enjoyed the breakout season many expected when he was taken by Seattle during the expansion draft before its inaugural season.

Dunn was a restricted free agent and the long-term contract avoided an arbitration hearing. The contract will run through the 2026-27 season.

Dunn appeared in 81 games in the regular season, sitting out only once to rest before the playoffs. In the postseason, Dunn's production dipped as he managed one goal and six assists in Seattle's 14 playoff games. But he played more than 23 minutes per game in the postseason and was often called upon to try and slow down the top forward lines of Colorado and Dallas.

Dunn spent the first four seasons of his career in St. Louis and won a Stanley Cup with the Blues in 2019 at age 22. But he was a perfect target for Seattle after being exposed in the expansion draft as a foundational piece the Kraken could build around for the future.

Dunn is the third player from Seattle's expansion draft group to sign a multi-year deal with the franchise. Forward Jared McCann, who had a career-high 40 goals and 70 points this past season, signed a five-year, $25 million extension in March 2022 that will keep him under contract with Seattle through the 2026-27 season.

Seattle also signed defenseman Will Borgen to a two-year deal this offseason. Borgen was a restricted free agent as well.

 

End of an era.

 

Per Associated Press:

The Carolina Hurricanes signed star forward Sebastian Aho to a massive eight-year, $78-million contract extension, the team announced Wednesday.
The deal will go into effect for the 2024-25 NHL season. Aho will count $9.75 million against the salary cap from that point through 2032.
Aho gets a raise from the nearly $8.5 million he was making as Carolina's top center and most important all-around forward.
He'll remain — at least for now — the highest-paid player on the roster.

After entering the offseason with roughly $24 million in cap space, Carolina has been busy retooling its lineup around the edges of a strong core, which included bringing back key pieces.
The Hurricanes re-signed goaltenders Frederik Andersen and Antti Raanta, captain Jordan Staal and winger Jesper Fast and they made a free-agency splash with a two-year deal for defenseman Dmitry Orlov
and a three-year deal for forward Michael Bunting. Earlier this week, they brought back defenseman Tony DeAngelo after trading him to Philadelphia at the 2022 draft.

 

Can’t we just post the link?

 

Per Canadian Press:

The Ottawa Senators signed winger Vladimir Tarasenko to a one-year contract worth US$5 million on Thursday. The contract includes a full no-trade clause.
Tarasenko, 31, is a six-time 30-goal scorer in the NHL. Last season, Tarasenko had 18 goals and 32 assists in 69 games split between St. Louis and the New York Rangers. He added three goals and one assist with the Rangers in the playoffs.

 

Guess not.