Pominville traded back to Buffalo
As pleased as Jason Pominville was upon hearing he was returning to the Buffalo Sabres, it was nothing compared to the excitement of his son, Jayden.
“My little guy already has his [Sabres] jersey on right now,” Pominville said Friday, shortly after the former Sabres captain and defenseman Marco Scandella were acquired in a trade with Minnesota. “My little kid said, ‘ You’re going to have a chance to play with Jack Eichel.’ So he’s pumped.”
Traded to the Wild in April 2013 when Buffalo began a purge of veteran players, Pominville rejoins the rebuilding Sabres and a youth movement that includes Eichel, their star second-year center.
At 30, Pominville provides veteran leadership to an underachieving team that lacked accountability this past season. Scandella, meanwhile, fills an immediate need on a revamped defense that added Nathan Beaulieu ina trade two weeks ago.
The Wild addressed needs of their own by freeing up salary cap space and filling forward roles by acquiring speedy playmaker Tyler Ennis and adding a physical presence in Marcus Foligno.
“It just wasn’t realistic that we were going to be able to bring our team back as it was constituted at the end of last year and into next season,” Wild general manager Chuck Fletcher said. “I think we checked a few boxes with the trade today.”
The teams also swapped 2018 draft picks, with Minnesota picking up a third-round selection in exchange for a fourth-round pick in a trade struck a day before the NHL’s free-agency period opens.
Capitals
Dmitry Orlov developed into one of the Washington’s best defensemen this past season, and he’s being rewarded with a long-term, big-money contract. Washington re-signed Orlov to a $30.6 million, six-year deal that carries a $5.1 million salary-cap hit through the 2022-23 season. The substantial raise from his $2.57 million, one-year contract reflects the top-pairing role he has assumed on the blue line.
“His growth, we talked about a young player being patient, allowing him to grow, allowing him to make mistakes, allowing him to get to the next level,” coach Barry Trotz said. “And with a good plan and his work ethic and him buying into it, he’s turned himself into a pretty good player, a good piece for us, and he’s getting paid for it.”
Orlov, 25, from Russia, was the Capitals’ most improved player this past season. He had six goals, a career-high 27 assists and 33 points in 82 games after missing the entire 2014-15 season with a wrist injury.
Flyers
Philadelphia No. 2 overall pick Nolan Patrick had a second abdominal surgery prior to getting drafted and is expected to return to full activity in four to six weeks. General manager Ron Hextall announced the surgery a week after the Flyers selected Patrick in the draft. Patrick missed three months this past season with a similar injury.
Elsewhere
NHL teams took advantage of their final chance to buy out players this offseason. Among the players placed on unconditional waivers for buyout purposes were New Jersey Devils forwards Michael Cammalleri and Devante Smith-Pelly, Florida Panthers forward Jussi Jokinen, Boston Bruins forward Jimmy Hayes, Winnipeg Jets defenseman Mark Stuart and Calgary Flames forward Lance Bouma and defenseman Ryan Murphy.