logo
Canucks lose Pius Suter for $8 million contract from Western Conference rival

Canucks lose Pius Suter for $8 million contract from Western Conference rival

Yahoo6 hours ago
There was some doubt all along as to whether the Vancouver Canucks could keep Pius Suter.
Turns out, they couldn't.
It took until late in day two of free agency, but Suter has reached a two-year, $8 million deal with the St. Louis Blues that will pay him $4 million per year, according to The Athletic's Chris Johnston.
Advertisement
MORE: Oilers and Connor McDavid haven't reached a deal yet
The Swiss forward Suter turned 29 in May, and he's coming off a season with the best shooting percentage of his career.
He probably doesn't have a ton of upside, given that a stat like that points to some statistical regression.
But he also came in below his projected contract value, so maybe that was baked into negotiations.
MORE: Wild's Kirill Kaprizov chasing a record contract
Before the 46-point season, Suter had between 24-36 points in each of his first four NHL seasons.
The Blues will surely be happy to get a secondary scoring forward.
Advertisement
But the Canucks shouldn't feel too bad about losing him, either.
MORE NHL NEWS:
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

'That is football': Mauricio Pochettino lauds Guatemala fans, challenges U.S. soccer culture after Gold Cup win
'That is football': Mauricio Pochettino lauds Guatemala fans, challenges U.S. soccer culture after Gold Cup win

Yahoo

time32 minutes ago

  • Yahoo

'That is football': Mauricio Pochettino lauds Guatemala fans, challenges U.S. soccer culture after Gold Cup win

ST. LOUIS — The question was about chance creation. But Mauricio Pochettino wanted to talk about soccer culture. He was speaking after his U.S. men's national team beat Guatemala 2-1 here in a Gold Cup semifinal. But of all the things he witnessed Wednesday, what apparently impressed Pochettino the most was 'the fans of Guatemala … Unbelievable,' he said. Advertisement And then he spoke for two minutes and 40 seconds straight, from the heart, about what he hoped U.S. soccer would learn from the experience. From the passion that filled Energizer Park immediately when gates opened at 4:30 p.m. From the chants that rang and the flags that rippled and 'the energy that translates' to the field, as Pochettino said. It inspired Guatemalan players, who on paper were overmatched, but on Wednesday put a mighty scare into the USMNT. After they came up just short, 'I saw a player of Guatemala crying,' Pochettino said. He congratulated that player, then used him as an example 20 minutes later. 'That,' he said, 'is the way that we need to feel.' Advertisement 'And our fans need to feel the same,' he continued. 'It's not to come here to enjoy all the spectacle, and if you lose, nothing happens. … Things happen.' The thrill of victory and the agony of defeat for Guatemala and its many supporters Wednesday in St. Louis. (Photo by John Dorton/ISI Photos/USSF/Getty Images) (John Dorton/ISI Photos/USSF via Getty Images) Pochettino is from Argentina. 'In Argentina, it's not the same if we lose. The consequences are massive,' he explained. They're significant as well in Spain, France and England, where he spent 30 years as a player and coach before taking charge of the USMNT last fall. 'Win or lose, it's not the same. It's not the same. It's a lot of consequence,' he reiterated at his postmatch press conference. His stateside move, in this sense, has clearly been a culture shock. He has inherited players who, he seemingly feels, do not have the same level of life-or-death desire that gets ingrained in kids throughout South and Central America. Advertisement In many countries, 'you play [to] survive. You play for food. You play for pride,' Pochettino said. 'You play for many things. It's not to go and enjoy, and go home, and laugh, and that's it. 'The moment that we — now, this roster — start to live in this way, I think we have big room to improve.' He hasn't explicitly said that his players go home and laugh after wins. But many grew up in a country, the U.S., where soccer is not played to survive, to escape poverty, to change a family's life; it typically begins as a recreational pursuit, often in middle-class suburbs. It becomes something more as talented kids join academies, and then turn pro, of course; there is a level of 'desperation,' though — a word Pochettino has used — that is socially ingrained elsewhere but not here. And it's reinforced, if not mandated, by fans. Fans who demand everything by giving everything. Fans who buzz around a stadium at 10 a.m., then fill it at 6 p.m., and stand for 90 minutes, and chant: 'Sí se puede!' Yes we can! Advertisement 'I think the fans gave to you, to Guatemala, an unbelievable energy,' Pochettino said. USMNT's Diego Luna celebrates a goal in front of a majority of Guatemala fans Wednesday in St. Louis. (Photo by Bill Barrett/ISI Photos/USSF/Getty Images) (Bill Barrett/ISI Photos/USSF via Getty Images) Veteran defender Tim Ream agreed: 'It spurred them on to push and fight.' 'That is football,' Pochettino said, and then he repeated the line twice more. 'That is football. That is football.' That 'connection between the fans and the team,' he said, 'that is the connection that we [would] like to see in the World Cup. That connection that makes you fly.' In his time atop the USMNT, instead, he has seen several half-empty stadiums. And even when full, the environments are relatively laid-back, inorganic or tame. The apathy surrounding the team has likely opened his eyes, and sometimes seems difficult for him to fathom. Advertisement What he hadn't yet experienced, though, until Wednesday, was a true road game at home. 'It was like [playing] in Guatemala,' Pochettino said. 'It was an atmosphere that we didn't expect,' he added. And it clearly had an impact on the game. 'You can't understate what a partisan crowd can do to young minds, guys who haven't experienced it,' Ream said. 'Sometimes, the pressure comes, the fans feel like they're on top of you, the noise is deafening, and you kinda lose it a little bit.' As a few players pointed out, Pochettino should have expected it. It's a reality in the United States, where there are millions of people with ties to soccer-mad countries in Latin America. Advertisement 'We're a country full of immigrants. It was kind of expected for tonight,' defender Chris Richards said. 'It's beautiful to see how much respect they have, but also how much support they have.' When told that Pochettino was surprised, Richards said: 'I think Mauricio kinda being a little bit newer to the U.S., I think he wasn't quite ready for it.' Ream indicated that some younger players were taken aback, too. He and others called it an ideal 'learning experience' for Sunday's final against Mexico in Houston. 'This game tonight would be like a little brother to the U.S.-Mexico game,' Richards said. They'll go into Sunday better equipped, mentally. Advertisement Pochettino, though, wasn't thinking about how his team would handle that atmosphere. He was dreaming of replicating Guatemala's passion, and its impact on players, in the team that he coaches. 'If you see the big teams or countries [play games], it's not playing,' Pochettino said. 'Today, do you think that was a sport, two teams playing, and doing a spectacle? No. You play for something more. You play for emotion. You play [to], be happy, be sad.' That is what he wants here. It's a dynamic, of course, that takes decades to develop, and might never develop in a nation of unmatched wealth and unparalleled opportunity in other sports and fields. But how can it start? 'I think winning helps. But I also think guys like [midfielder] Diego Luna help. I also think guys like [midfielder] Malik Tillman help,' Ream said. And 'fighting and togetherness' help. 'Doing that fosters that connection with the fans — with the diehards, with the casuals, with everybody. And as long as we continue to do that, that culture grows. The feelings grow. And the connections grow.'

NHL free agency continues as Nikolaj Ehlers ponders landing spot
NHL free agency continues as Nikolaj Ehlers ponders landing spot

Yahoo

timean hour ago

  • Yahoo

NHL free agency continues as Nikolaj Ehlers ponders landing spot

NHL general managers continued to round out rosters as free agency ticked through its second day. One decent-sized catch and a solid defenceman remain up for grabs. Slick winger Nikolaj Ehlers still sat unsigned and on the market as of late Wednesday night, while blueliner Dmitry Orlov is also still without a home for the 2025-26 season. Advertisement Ehlers spent a decade with the Winnipeg Jets, but appears set to move on. Orlov just completed his 13th NHL campaign, and second with the Carolina Hurricanes. Deals made on Day 2 of free agency included centre Pius Suter signing a two-year, US$8.25-million pact with the St. Louis Blues after putting up 46 points in 81 games with the Vancouver Canucks last season. Mason Appleton — a now-former teammate of Ehlers in the Manitoba capital — signed with the Detroit Red Wings on a two-year deal worth $5.8 million. The Vegas Golden Knights extended defenceman Kaedan Korczak to a four-year, $13-million contract through the 2029-30 season. Blueliner Jeremy Davies also signed a two-year deal in Sin City. Advertisement The New Jersey Devils re-upped with centre Cody Glass on a two-year, $5-million contract after acquiring him from Pittsburgh in March. The Penguins inked winger Anthony Mantha for one season at $2.5 million. The New York Islanders signed restricted free agent forward Emil Heineman, who was acquired in a recent trade with the Montreal Canadiens for defenceman Noah Dobson, to a two-year contract with a reported value of $2.2 million. Sought-after Kontinental Hockey League free agent Maxim Shabanov, a 24-year-old Russian forward, also signed a one-year deal on Long Island. Detroit and hulking six-foot-eight RFA winger Elmer Soderblom agreed on a two-year, $2.5-million contract. Advertisement GMs for Canadian teams added plenty of depth Wednesday. The Jets signed veteran winger Gustav Nyquist to a one-year deal worth $3.25 million. Winnipeg also added five players to identical one-year, two-way contracts worth $775,000 in the NHL, including former Canucks winger Phil Di Giuseppe. The Ottawa Senators inked six players, including forward Arthur Kaliyev, on a one-year, two-way contract. The Canucks signed defenceman Pierre-Olivier Joseph to a one-year contract for next season's league minimum of $775,000. The Edmonton Oilers added journeyman forward Curtis Lazar for the same dollar amount and term. Advertisement The Toronto Maple Leafs, who said goodbye to star winger Mitch Marner in a sign-and-trade deal with the Vegas Golden Knights on Tuesday, also agreed to a one-year contract worth $775,000 with forward Vinni Lettieri. The last remaining big name is Ehlers. The 29-year-old selected ninth overall at the 2014 draft put up 225 goals and 295 assists for 520 points in 674 regular-season games with the Jets. He added 21 points (nine goals, 12 assists) in 45 playoff contests. The six-foot, 172-pound Dane has topped 60 points four times in his career despite averaging just 16 minutes 26 seconds of ice time and often only seeing time on Winnipeg's second power-play unit. This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 2, 2025. The Canadian Press

NHL News: Devils Lose Forward To Oilers
NHL News: Devils Lose Forward To Oilers

Yahoo

timean hour ago

  • Yahoo

NHL News: Devils Lose Forward To Oilers

Curtis Lazar's time with the New Jersey Devils has officially come to an end. The Edmonton Oilers have announced that they have signed Lazar to a one-year, $775,000 contract for the 2025-26 season. It is not necessarily surprising to see Lazar heading elsewhere. Devils general manager Tom Fitzgerald was honest following the team's early playoff exit that changes to the team's roster would be coming. Following this, Lazar was among the Devils from last season to become an unrestricted free agent (UFA), and he is now heading to Edmonton because of it. Advertisement Lazar, 30, posted two goals, five points, 107 hits, and a minus-6 rating in 48 games this past season with the Devils. In 123 games over three seasons in New Jersey, he had nine goals, 30 points, 300 hits, and a plus-3 rating. Lazar will now look to earn himself a spot in the Oilers' bottom six with a strong training camp. Overall, this is a low-risk move for Edmonton, and it will be intriguing to see how much of an impact Lazar makes with the Oilers from here. Devils Make Smart Move Signing Veteran Winger Devils Make Smart Move Signing Veteran Winger The New Jersey Devils are bringing in a veteran forward to their roster. Photo Credit: © Ed Mulholland-Imagn Images

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store