JotCast | PHR Live Chat: 10/1/25

PHR Live Chat: 10/1/25

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Josh Erickson

1:37

Hello, all. Take the next 15-20 minutes to fill the queue with questions, I'll start answering near the top of the hour

1:38

Or maybe a bit sooner than normal, would love to get a little more than an hour to answer questions with all of the recent activity!

BB-STC

1:54

How much will Kaprizov's contract handicap the Wild's salary cap in signing free agents? Chances the wild can win a cup in the next 9 years?

Josh Erickson

2:00

Let's get started here! I know there's sticker shock. It will fade, quickly. The context of the past few years simply isn't the context of today with clear, projectable, aggressive salary cap growth.

Even after signing Kap, the Wild have over $23MM in space for 2026-27 to fill seven roster spots. That's a good spot to be in. The problem is that they have two high-profile UFAs in Gustavsson and Zuccarello. The former will cost, at a minimum, $7.5MM annually to retain.

They won't have any trouble keeping the people they need/want to keep, which has been a problem in recent years. Big-name external additions might be difficult in the next summer or two but, after that, Kaprizov's deal will be in line with the impact names like McDavid and MacKinnon have on their teams' cap situations. With the young names they have coming up, Minnesota strikes me as being in the top-10 in terms of consistent Cup contenders.

Too Many Pens

2:01

Most of the Pens roster seems like trade bait, at what point are there TOO MANY folks to deal?

Josh Erickson

2:04

I'm not really sure. Having that many names allows you the luxury to wait until the best offer comes in and gives you the flexibility to drive the market up. Of course, that's just in theory. The market has to respond. That hasn't happened yet, otherwise someone would have been out the door. Most of the Pens' lower-tier pending UFAs don't have any trade value anyway, so benching/waiving them to make room for younger players doesn't have much effect. I wouldn't be impatient.

waivers

2:04

Preds need offense and claimed Jost. Would Suzuki have been better based on track record for creating scoring chances ?

Josh Erickson

2:07

Wouldn't read too much into it at all. The Predators didn't really have an experienced 13th forward type in the system to stash in a press box role. He's an upgrade over names they've already cut like Jake Lucchini, and I think that was the intention here – not to have him in their everyday lineup.

Sam

2:09

Who is a sleeper prospect this year for the Blues? I’m guessing Aleksanteri Kaskimaki hits a couple NHL ice sheets this year. Any sleeper prospects in general? Thanks Josh.

Josh Erickson

2:11

He'd be the name I'm watching as well. No one else jumps out to me a ton, at least not for this season (and I'm going to guess you wouldn't include a first-round pick in the "sleeper" category).

The Red Wings have really liked Emmitt Finnie in camp. 2023 pick, seventh-rounder. He's shot up out of nowhere in the past few weeks.

trade

2:11

Why would Utah send Ingram to Oilers for essentially nothing ?

Josh Erickson

2:12

No one wanted him for free on waivers at his current cap hit. The organization was committed to finding him a fresh start. The $800K they're retaining in the trade to Edmonton is exactly what it would have cost them to bury him in the AHL with Tucson.

DStars

2:12

Which borderline roster player do you think has helped their case the most during training camp and pre season play?

Josh Erickson

2:14

For Dallas? It's Justin Hryckowian by a significant margin. He's made a big play here to get a look in a top-nine role to start the year with Jamie Benn out for a few weeks.

Magnus

2:14

Do you think that Panthers try to sign a new C, with Barkov out?

Josh Erickson

2:16

Not sign, no. There aren't a ton of great options out there, unless they want Evgeny Kuznetsov for depth. Taking depth swings isn't the name of Bill Zito's game, though. Once they figure out their financial situation by determining how much LTIR relief they get (which now depends on whether they rule Barkov out for the regular season and playoffs), they'll pony up for a bigger name.

In the interim, I have a feeling Anton Lundell will get that top-line/matchup C look. If you've got high picks and they're banging on the door, this is the time to let them in.

DStars

2:16

what would be your 1-8 central division standings predictions?

Josh Erickson

2:18

1 - Avalanche
2 - Stars
3 - Wild
4 - Mammoth
5 - Jets
6 - Blues
7 - Predators
8 - Blackhawks

Give me both Utah and Winnipeg in the playoffs as wild cards.

Blue seats

2:18

with kaprizov, eichel and probably mcdavid offnthe board what is a realistic fa signing for rangers, and who leaves?

Josh Erickson

2:20

As I've said for a while, I'm not convinced Panarin is staying. I think there will be younger options out there who are smarter investments. I would also pencil Kyle Connor off the board for now, I think that one's going to get done. Someone who I'm not as sure about is Adrian Kempe, who would be a better fit for a similar price. I wonder if Utah lets Nick Schmaltz walk out the door to make room for the wave of Caleb Desnoyers and Tij Iginla that's likely coming to their top nine in 2026-27.

possible deal

2:20

It was reported offers for Reichel may only be a mid to late round pick (which Chicago doesn't need). Do you think they would pursue that or just wait and keep him for now ?

Josh Erickson

2:21

It comes down to whether they've already made up their mind about having him on the opening night roster. If they don't think he's worth using a roster spot on, then he needs to hit waivers. If he's hitting waivers, there's enough interest that he'd get claimed and be lost for nothing. If the choice is a marginal return or no return, you take the marginal return.

LGD

2:22

Hughes’ grade for the team? Feels like the Devils are ones that caved

Josh Erickson

2:24

We're definitely at the beginning of a market reset across the board. If this deal had been signed at the start of the summer, I would have given it a B-. I thought the low $8MM range was where he should land on a long-term deal. $9MM isn't a huge bump from there, and it's what will soon be for the maximum extension length... I would be more inclined to bump it up to a B or B+. Not a steal, but an acceptable deal that needed to be done.

Now the cap-clearing begins. They're almost $4MM over. Temporary LTIRs for Kovacevic and Noesen could get them compliant to start the season as-is, but they need to make a move in the next few weeks.

Dblek

2:25

With Pickering and Brunicke playing well for Pitt, should or does Ryan Graves make the line up?

Josh Erickson

2:27

I don't think the question is whether Graves makes the lineup; it's whether he's on the roster at all. There's no question in my mind that he's been passed over and, at best, is Pittsburgh's seventh defenseman right now. Pickering will be in the lineup. I'd argue Caleb Jones, Ryan Shea, and Parker Wotherspoon are all better options for the other lefty slots than Graves, cap hit notwithstanding. Cap space isn't a concern for them, so the question is if they'd rather stash him in the press box or in the AHL after clearing waivers.

Mark

2:27

How far away are the Bruins from being a contender again? Should they trade away Swayman, Pastrnak, and/or McAvoy and set their sights on the 2030 playoffs?

Josh Erickson

2:29

James Hagens was a great draft pick and accelerates any retooling timeline they may have had in place back in April/May, but only slightly. I don't think they need to trade away those assets to land more quality draft picks. Their offensive depth is bad enough as it is, and they should be slated for another top-10 selection in a great 2026 draft. There's still a fleeting chance, if they play their development cards right, that they can be playoff contenders again with all three of those core names in the fold. Trust in Boston's player development is not something I have, though.

Blargh

2:29

What are the chances the Kraken start with 3 goalies? If they go with 2, will Grubauer or Murray get waived?

Josh Erickson

2:32

Both hit waivers last season and cleared, and Murray is actually making more this year ($1MM) than he did last year with the Leafs ($875K). I see no benefit to rostering three goalies when Joey Daccord is going to hit 55 starts this year anyway. There's no risk of a claim, so you go with performance upside. Grubauer was at least close to league-average in 2023-24, so I'd argue for keeping him and hope he's able to at least churn out a save percentage in the .890s again.

Dan

2:32

Who have been some of the biggest training camp surprises?

Josh Erickson

2:34

Braeden Cootes has really impressed the Canucks to the point where we're likely seeing him on opening night. Yes, he's a first-round pick, but he was a mid-teens guy in a slightly below-average class. That should absolutely be considered a surprise. There's Emmitt Finnie in Detroit as well, a 2023 seventh-rounder, who I mentioned earlier. He's been getting a lot of reps with Dylan Larkin and Lucas Raymond as the Wings look for a suitable left winger with them. Elmer Söderblom was a short-lived experiment. We'll see over the next few days if Finnie was just a placeholder for James van Riemsdyk, who's missed a lot of camp on personal leave but is back now, or if he's got a real shot at a spot.

RocktheRed

2:36

Who is making the finals Caps spots and do you think they will lose clay stephenson and vinicent iorio on waivers?

Josh Erickson

2:39

I'm not going to lie to you, this is how I figured out Vincent Iorio was no longer waiver-exempt. That surprised me, although that's the risk you run by signing guys to their entry-level contracts so early (I also thought he was a 2022 draftee, not a 2021). His development in Hershey has been pretty stagnant, though, so I wouldn't worry too much. Even if he's lost, it's not a huge needle-mover for them long-term. They've got so many quality defenders locked up with Cole Hutson still on the way.

I do think Stevenson gets lost. That one's quite concerning as they'd only have three goalies under NHL contract if they do, so a corresponding UFA signing or trade would be coming in short order. As for the forward jobs, I'm still led to believe that it's Leonard, Miroshnichenko, Lapierre, and Milano – that's what I held going into camp, and I don't think much has moved in the past couple of weeks.

Jaxteller

2:39

Let's assume Barkov is out the whole year including playoffs - how much do you think that hurts the Cats chance at a 3-peat?

Josh Erickson

2:41

I mean, it's a significant gash. At present, I think his loss alone is enough to downgrade them from "Cup contenders" to "playoff contenders."

It's the Panthers, though. Do we really think they won't find a way to acquire one of Pittsburgh's top-six forwards and ride off into the sunset?

gmm8811

2:41

Top 3 picks for Calder?

Josh Erickson

2:43

I love Ivan Demidov, I feel like that's been made clear in the past couple of years in these sessions, haha. I will also be admitting that I've been absolutely blown away by Matthew Schaefer in camp so far. He'd be my preseason No. 1, followed by Demidov at No. 2... and give me Alexander Nikishin at No. 3. Lot of really intriguing rookie defensemen this year!

Wind Surfer

2:43

The Ducks are loaded at D. Gudas and Trouba are both UFA this summer. What’s the likelihood both are moved at the deadline?

Josh Erickson

2:45

The likelihood that both are moved is near zero. The Ducks have been abundantly clear that their goal is to make the playoffs this season. Unless they're bottom-five by the time the deadline rolls around, that's not the move they're going to make. Now, if they're on the fringe and it's not looking good, I could see one getting moved if there's significant interest. I don't think they're still in the stage of their rebuild where they're shipping out pending UFAs for whatever they can get anymore.

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