NHL Rumors: Sharks, Oilers, Blues, Canucks – The Hockey Writers – NHL Rumors

In today’s NHL rumor roundup, Joe Pavelski considered returning to the San Jose Sharks before announcing his retirement. How close was he to a contract? And how close are the Edmonton Oilers to hiring a new general manager? In St. Louis, Torey Krug could miss the entire 2024-25 season with pre-arthritis changes in his left ankle. Finally, the Vancouver Canucks re-signed Arturs Silovs. Is he now the backup to Thatcher Demko?

Pavelski spoke to sharks before retiring

According to Pavelski himself, there was talk of bringing back the popular former captain to mentor 2024 No. 1 overall pick Macklin Celebrini and 2023 No. 4 overall pick Will Smith in San Jose. “I’ve talked to (Sharks GM Mike Grier) a little bit. It seems like they’re hitting a turning point with some of their draft picks and some of the guys they brought in,” Pavelski told Scott Laughlin of SiriusXM NHL Network Radio. Pavelski ultimately declined, but added, “Just 13 great years in San Jose. (It’s) a special place. It’ll always be where we started. There’ll always be a part of me there.”

While Pavelski is technically a UFA, he confirmed Tuesday that he has not changed his plan to retire in early June and that he will not return to the NHL next season.

Oilers interview GM candidates

When asked if there was a plan to hire a new general manager in Edmonton before the end of July, Sports 1440 host Jason Gregor replied, “Yeah. Interviews are ongoing. I suspect they’ll name a GM within the next two weeks.” CEO and acting GM Jeff Jackson does not want to be a full-time GM and it’s not clear who he’s looking for in the role.

There has been talk of Stan Bowman being on the Oilers’ radar, but that is not a sure thing and the organization has no indication that they have even interviewed Bowman for the position.

Torey Krug could miss the 2024-25 season

The St. Louis Blues announced Tuesday that Torey Krug has developed pre-arthritic changes in his left ankle and could miss the entire season if surgery is required. Krug will be out indefinitely, according to GM and President of Hockey Operations Doug Armstrong. If Krug requires surgery, he will likely be out for the entire 2024-25 regular season. The team will re-evaluate his status in 6-8 weeks.

Related: Jets News & Rumors: Heinola, Barlow & Prospect Rankings

Krug, 33, is in the fifth year of his seven-year, $45.5 million contract, which carries an annual cap hit of $6.5 million. He is expected to become an unrestricted free agent after the 2026-27 season.

Canucks expect newly signed Silovs to take reserve role

The Vancouver Canucks have signed RFA goaltender Arturs Silovs to a two-year contract, the team announced Tuesday. Silovs will make $850,000 per season, according to Frank Seravalli of the Daily Faceoff. At 23, Silovs has limited regular-season experience, with nine starts for Vancouver over the past two seasons, an .898 SV% and a 2.62 GAA, but still a 6-2-1 record. That said, the Canucks expect him to be their backup next season.

There was speculation that the Canucks would add another goalie to compete with Silovs for the backup role in training camp, but so far the Canucks have not signed anyone else who could compete for the job. Silovs is currently projected to slot behind Thatcher Demko on the depth chart. As a result, Silovs is expected to play several more games than he did last year.

His role in Abbotsford will be filled by former Golden Knight Jiří Patera, whom the Canucks signed as a UFA earlier this month.

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