The Blues sign Ryan Suter, Flyers defenseman Jamie Drysdale resumes skating, former Predators captain Greg Johnson posthumously diagnosed with CTE, and more in today’s NHL Morning Coffee Headlines.
STLTODAY.COM: The Blues signed defenseman Ryan Suter to a one-year contract. Suter, 39, will earn a base salary of $775K but with bonuses could earn up to $3 million. He spent the past three seasons with the Dallas Stars.
St. Louis Blues sign Ryan Suter (NHL Images).
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Suter’s best seasons when he was among the league’s elite defensemen are behind him. He’ll be skating as a third-pairing blueliner in St. Louis.
DAILY FACEOFF: Suter’s signing leaves Tyson Barrie, Tony DeAngelo and Oliver Kylington as the top defensemen remaining in this summer’s unrestricted free-agent market. James van Riemsdyk, Daniel Sprong and Tyler Johnson are the top available forwards.
PHILLY HOCKEY NOW: Flyers defenseman Jamie Drysdale has resumed skating and claims to be back to 100 percent healthy following sports hernia surgery in April. The 22-year-old indicated he’d been hampered by the core muscle injury since the start of last season.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Drysdale was acquired from the Anaheim Ducks in January. He’ll be expected to play a key role on the Flyers’ blueline in 2024-25. When healthy, he’s projected to be a skillful, big-minute defenseman. Injuries have hampered Drysdale’s performance over the past two seasons.
TSN: Former Nashville Predators captain Greg Johnson was posthumously diagnosed with chronic traumatic encephalopathy, commonly known as CTE. The news was released by Johnson’s family and the Concussion Legacy Foundation in a joint statement on Wednesday, five years following his death by suicide
Johnson played 785 games with the Predators, Chicago Blackhawks, Pittsburgh Penguins and Detroit Red Wings.
According to public records, 17 of the 18 brains of deceased NHL players were found to have CTE. They include Ralph Backstrom, Henri Richard, Stan Mikita, Bob Probert, Steve Montador and Bob Murdoch. The NHL continues to deny the link between repeated head trauma and long-term neurological disorders, claiming that the evidence is not conclusive.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Don’t expect this news to change the league’s stance. Nevertheless, Johnson won’t be the last NHL player to receive this posthumous diagnosis. At some point, the NHL will face a reckoning on this issue. Meanwhile, they appear content to live in denial.
DAILY FACEOFF: Carl Hagelin is still adjusting to life away from the ice two years after a career-ending eye injury during a practice with the Washington Capitals, requiring 30 stitches to repair the left eyeball after being accidentally struck by a teammate’s stick.
Hagelin now requires sunglasses more often than not to cope with the challenges brought on by the injury. He remains grateful that the eyeball was saved. The former NHL winger works with the Minnesota Wild in player development and scouting.
COLORADO HOCKEY NOW: The Avalanche officially named former players Andrew Cogliano and Pavel Francouz to new positions within the organization. Cogliano was named Special Assistant to the General Manager while Francouz is a Goaltending Scout.
SPORTSNET: Alex Meruelo has reportedly signed all the necessary agreements and paperwork that officially terminates his rights to the Arizona Coyotes franchise.
NHL commissioner Gary Bettman last month announced Meruelo would no longer pursue a reactivation of the Coyotes after its hockey operations relocated to Utah. That decision was made after a bid to construct a new arena fell apart.
SPORTSNET: The popular salary-cap site CapFriendly shut down to the public on Wednesday. The Washington Capitals reached an agreement last month to purchase the site, which operated independently until the sale was officially confirmed on July 10.
THE PROVINCE: Patrick Johnston profiled PuckPedia and its creator Hart Levine. The site has been around since 2018 and has seen its traffic increase following the news of Cap Friendly’s sale.
The site does much of the same things as CapFriendly did. They relaunched its roster management tool last week. It also contains some things Cap Friendly lacked, like listing player agents and providing a pick-value calculator.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: CapFriendly was an invaluable tool for tracking team and player salary information. They were also helpful with any salary-cap questions I raised with them. I wish them the best of luck with their future endeavors.
I’ve linked to PuckPedia on my Rumors page for over two years, providing team and player links. They have done an excellent job compiling salary-cap information and fine-tuning their site. I highly recommend it as a reliable source.