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NHL Notebook: The end of Hockey Night in Canada on CBC, Leafs make a trade, and much more
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Photo credit: © Eric Hartline-Imagn Images
Tyson Cole
Jun 16, 2026, 19:06 EDT
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Welcome back to NHL Notebook — the series here at CanucksArmy where we deliver you news and notes from around the National Hockey League — oftentimes through a Vancouver Canucks-tinted lens!
The 2026 Stanley Cup has been awarded, and news around the entire NHL has started to pick up. We have four news bits to discuss today. Let’s get into it.

Sportsnet and CBC split for Hockey Night in Canada

Sportsnet PR shared a joint statement on behalf of them and CBC. The statement reads:
“After a successful 12-year partnership, Sportsnet and CBC today announced the public broadcaster will no longer carry NHL broadcasts after the current season as it moves forward with a new sports programming strategy following the unprecedented success of the Milano/Cortina Olympic Games. Watching hockey on Saturday night is a time-honoured tradition for Canadians, and Sportsnet is privileged to continue delivering that tradition. This has been a terrific partnership, and both parties look forward to continued opportunities to collaborate in the future.”
To be clear, this is not an end to Hockey Night in Canada. It will still be streamed on Sportsnet, but will no longer be shown on CBC.
Growing up as a hockey fan in Canada, Hockey Night in Canada was a staple each and every Saturday night in the Cole household. Watching Don Cherry and Ron McLean on Coach’s Corner is a core memory for many around the country. Canucks fans will always remember Cherry and his repeated mispronunciations of Kevin Bieksa’s (Bieskas) name. And in a full-circle moment, Bieksa is now on the Hockey Night in Canada broadcast.
We will see how different Hockey Night in Canada is next season.

Maple Leafs and Flyers swing a trade

Newly-appointed John Chayka makes his first move as Toronto Maple Leafs GM, sending goaltender Joseph Woll and defenceman Simon Benoit to the Philadelphia Flyers in exchange for Samuel Ersson, Emil Andrae, and a 2026 third-round pick (85th overall).
The Woll-for-Erszon swap is questionable for the Maple Leafs. Woll hasn’t been the most durable goaltender, but he’s still had far better career numbers. He has a career 2.94 goals against average and a .906 save percentage, compared to Ersson’s 3.01 goals against average and .884 save percentage. Cap-wise, Woll is making an affordable $3.67 million per season, while Ersson needs a new deal. The age difference between the two is just one year, with Woll being the elder.
Looking at the backend part of this deal, Simon Benoit was found money for the Maple Leafs over the last three seasons. The defensive defenceman logged consistent 17 minutes over his three years in Toronto, finishing as a plus-player in two of the last three seasons. Emil Andrae was a highly-regarded prospect, with the Flyers selecting him in the second round (54th overall) of the 2020 NHL Draft. However, the 5’9″ offensive defenceman just hasn’t found his game at the NHL level, scoring just three goals and 20 points in 107 games.
At least the Maple Leafs got a third-round pick, but the move just seemed to downgrade them in two positions, and that pick is all the value they have to show for it…a third-round pick in a not-so-deep draft class at that! Not a great first move from Chayka.

Predators acquire Colton from Avalanche

Exactly two weeks on the job with the Nashville Predators, new GM Chris MacFarland made a deal with his former team, acquiring forward Ross Colton and goaltender Isak Posch in exchange for goaltender Magnus Chrona, a 2026 third-round pick (74th overall), and Colorado’s 2027 third-round pick.
Colton found himself on the outside looking in, heading into the postseason, not drawing into the lineup until Game 3 of the opening series against the Los Angeles Kings. He did not play much when he was in the lineup, averaging just 9:40 minutes per game, but still managed decent production, scoring two goals and five points in 11 games.
With the Colton subtraction, the Avalanche open up $4 million in salary, bringing them to just shy of $7 million of available cap space. Currently, the Avalanche have 10 forwards and four defencemen signed for next season. They will look to re-sign restricted free agent forwards Jack Drury (RFA) and Zakhar Bardakov (RFA), as well as round out their bottom-pairing defencemen, with Brent Burns (UFA), Brett Kulak (UFA), Jack Ahcan (UFA), and Nick Blankenburg (UFA) all looking for new contracts.
Interesting to note that the Avalanche acquired their own third-round pick back in the move. Remember this trade if we see the Avalanche throw out an offer sheet this offseason.
For Nashville, they had cap space burning a hole in their pocket. Even after the move, the Predators have over $23 million in cap space, with few roster holes to fill. They have enough bodies up front; the problem is the quality of players in the system. The Predators have intriguing prospects, such as Matthew Wood, Vitali Pinchuk, Joakim Kemell, and Brady Martin, but they just haven’t fully developed into the players they’re projected to be yet.
So, acquiring a player like Colton, who can slide into the middle six and help the young player progress, is a low-risk move for the Predators. And with one year remaining on his contract, Nashville can move him for another asset at the deadline if they’re on the outside looking in of the playoff picture.

John Carlson to test the free agent market

It appears to be a short two-month stint for the Anaheim Ducks and their big-ticket trade deadline acquisition, as defenceman John Carlson will be testing the open market on July 1, according to TSN’s Pierre LeBrun.
It was a fun swing for Anaheim. The Ducks shocked the hockey world when they acquired long-tenured Washington Capitals defenceman John Carlson in exchange for a 2026 first-round pick (18th overall) and a 2027 third-round pick.
Carlson appeared in 16 regular season games for the Ducks, scoring four goals and 14 points in 24:11 minutes of ice time. The right-shot defenceman helped bolster the Ducks’ power play, so much so that they went 50% (8/16) in their opening round series against the Edmonton Oilers.
The American defenceman wants to move back out East to be closer to family. Four teams I could see as a potential fit for the 36-year-old offensive defenceman? The Boston Bruins, Ottawa Senators, Philadelphia Flyers, and Tampa Bay Lightning.

Golden Knights moving on from Tortorella

After going a perfect 7-0-1 in the regular season, following that with a 14-8 postseason record and a Stanley Cup final berth, the Golden Knights have decided not to retain head coach John Tortorella.
While most of the hockey world is somewhat surprised to see the head coach who just took his team to the Stanley Cup final not brought back, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman cleared the air regarding the situation:
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As Tortorella said before the Cup Final, his contract expires June 30. He still wants to coach Vegas had indicated they wanted him for the rest of the season and had a plan for next year. We will see if that plan is Ryan Craig — current AHL Henderson head coach, former Golden Show more

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Vegas Golden Knights General Manager Kelly McCrimmon has announced John Tortorella will not return to the team's coaching staff following the 2025-26 season. Press release ➡️ vgk.io/PFZWP

Graphic that says THANK YOU TORTS with two photos of John Tortorella coaching with the Golden Knights
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While he may not be returning to Vegas, Tortorella proved he can still coach a Championship-contending team in this league. Currently, there are just two head coaching vacancies: the Edmonton Oilers and Toronto Maple Leafs. If he is not scooped up by one of these teams, we’ll see if he’s high on a team’s board for another mid-season coaching hire, as he was this year with Vegas.
This was a long one today. Appreciate you all reading to this point. The offseason is just getting started. And if there are going to be more newsy days like this, buckle up, hockey fans, we’re in for a busy summer.
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