Florida Panthers prospect Olof Glifford served as the backup goaltender in HV71’s 4-2 win over HockeyAllsvenskan side Djurgårdens IF in preseason action from Sweden.
NHL News
The Toronto Maple Leafs woke up a sleepy hockey world Wednesday by signing Auston Matthews to a contract extension that is set to make him the NHL’s highest-paid player when it kicks in at the start of the 2024-25 season.
Matthews inked a four-year, $53-million deal on Wednesday that will keep him with the club that selected him first overall at the 2016 NHL Entry Draft through the 2027-28 season.
At $13.25 million per season, the 2021-22 Hart Trophy-winner becomes the league’s highest paid player in terms of annual value, surpassing Nathan MacKinnon, who is averaging $12.6 million on his eight-year contract with the Colorado Avalanche.
Last season, Matthews produced 40 goals and 85 points and 11 more points (5G/6A) in the postseason as Toronto won a playoff series for the first time since 2004 before they were eliminated by the Panthers
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The New York Rangers wrapped its offseason business by signing restricted free agent forward Alexis Lafrenière to a two-year contract worth $4.65 million. Lafrenière scored 16 goals and set new-career highs with 23 assists and 39 points while playing in 81 regular season games last season. He went pointless in seven postseason games.
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The Tampa Bay Lighting inked veteran defenseman Darren Raddysh to a two-year, two-way contract extension. Raddysh, 27, put 51 points in 50 games with the AHL’s Syracuse Crunch last season. He also appeared in 17 regular season games and six postseason games with the Lightning.
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Woman’s World Championship Division 1A
In the final game of yesterday’s slate, host China used a three-goal first period to double-up Denmark 4-2 and moved to the top of the leaderboard with a perfect 3-0 record.
In today’s games, the Netherlands upped its record to 3-1 by pounding winless Norway (0-4) by a 6-3 count. Denmark evened its record at 2-2 with a 2-1 victory over Slovakia.
If China beats Austria (2-1) today they will clinch one of the top-two spots at the 1A tournament and earn promotion to the Top Division for the 2024 World Championship.