The NHL regular season is almost here, but the league’s news cycle is already moving at midseason speed. David Pastrnak is officially the new captain of the Boston Bruins, Connor Hellebuyck remains at the centre of one of the NHL’s biggest unresolved trade situations, and Kirill Marchenko continues to generate interest around the league.
And that is only the beginning.
Saturday’s final-heavy preseason schedule produced 14 games and 78 goals, including a Connor McDavid goal in Edmonton, two Luke Evangelista goals for New Jersey, a Chris Kreider goal in Montreal, and a strong Macklin Celebrini performance for San Jose.
For fans searching for the latest NHL News and NHL Rumors and NHL Scores, Sunday is providing a useful snapshot of where things stand just before opening night: contenders are trimming rosters, injuries are becoming increasingly important, and several potential blockbuster trades remain unresolved.
NHL News and NHL Rumors: Pastrnak Leads a Busy Sunday
The biggest confirmed development Sunday came out of Boston.
The Bruins named David Pastrnak their 28th captain, filling a position that had been vacant since Brad Marchand was traded to Florida in March 2025. Pastrnak has spent his entire NHL career with Boston and enters the season with 933 career points, including 420 goals. He also has four consecutive 100-point seasons.
From my perspective, this feels less like Boston changing its leadership structure and more like officially acknowledging what has already happened inside the organization. Pastrnak is now the face of this era of Bruins hockey, and putting the “C” on him eliminates any uncertainty about whose team this is moving forward.
There were important injury developments as well.
Mathew Barzal will travel with the Islanders to Toronto and has not been ruled out for Wednesday’s opener. Barzal missed training camp after aggravating a previous injury and is not expected to skate again until Wednesday morning. Buffalo, meanwhile, suddenly has questions in goal after Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen left Saturday’s preseason finale with a lower-body issue. Alex Lyon is also dealing with an upper-body injury. Minnesota defenseman Brock Faber continues to be evaluated after being struck in the head by a puck Friday.
Montreal defenseman Mike Matheson was also fined $5,000, the maximum allowable under the CBA, for roughing Ottawa forward Ridly Greig during Saturday’s Canadiens-Senators game.
NHL Trade Rumors: Hellebuyck, Marchenko and Dach Stay in Focus
The Connor Hellebuyck situation still has the potential to reshape the NHL goalie market.
Hellebuyck publicly requested a trade and was subsequently suspended by Winnipeg after failing to report to training camp. He carries an $8.5 million cap hit through 2030-31, including a full no-movement clause for 2026-27.
Sportsnet’s Nick Kypreos recently reported that Buffalo, Utah and San Jose are among the teams monitoring Hellebuyck. Elliotte Friedman separately said the Sharks and Jets have discussed the possibility, describing San Jose as having at least “kicked tires” on the situation.
That does not mean a deal is imminent. Hellebuyck controls his destination, Winnipeg still has to receive enough value to justify moving a franchise goalie, and acquiring teams have to absorb a large long-term contract.
Using the NHL’s $104 million 2026-27 ceiling, Hellebuyck’s $8.5 million cap charge consumes approximately 8.17% of an entire team’s salary cap before accounting for any salary moving back to Winnipeg.
NHLTradeRumor.com Trade Value Index — Connor Hellebuyck: 78/100. This is my proprietary estimate rather than a reported Winnipeg asking price. His elite résumé and five seasons of contract control remain enormously valuable, but age, the no-movement clause, the size of his cap hit and Winnipeg’s reduced negotiating leverage pull the number down.
Kirill Marchenko is another name worth watching. Kypreos reported that Toronto, Edmonton and Montreal appear positioned to pursue the Columbus winger, while Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman has also connected Montreal, the Islanders, Toronto, Boston, Seattle and others to the situation. Marchenko is a pending RFA with arbitration rights and does not have trade protection, which gives Columbus considerably more flexibility than Winnipeg has with Hellebuyck.
Then there is Kirby Dach. Frank Seravalli reported Friday that Edmonton and Calgary have been monitoring Dach and that multiple teams were believed to have offered Montreal a second-round pick during the summer. Montreal reportedly wanted immediate roster help rather than simply accepting another future asset.
My read is that Dach is the most interesting secondary domino here. If Montreal seriously pursues Marchenko, Scheifele or another established forward, Dach becomes an obvious salary and roster piece to discuss. That is analysis, however—not confirmation that Montreal has decided to trade him.
NHL Scores From Saturday, September 26
Saturday featured 14 preseason games, including two simultaneous Montreal-Ottawa split-squad matchups. Carolina and Utah recorded the two shutouts, while Carolina and Los Angeles shared the night’s highest offensive output with six goals each. All results below have been checked against the NHL’s official Sept. 26 roundup.
NHL Scores — September 26, 2026
Preseason scores, standout performances and key notes from Saturday.
Jackson Blake recorded a goal and two assists, while Brandon Bussi stopped all 22 shots for Carolina’s shutout.
Sidney Crosby scored his first goal of the preseason. Buffalo goalie Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen exited with a lower-body issue.
Mats Zuccarello produced a goal and two assists in his Kings preseason debut, while Alex Turcotte scored twice and added an assist.
Andrew Cristall had a goal and an assist as Washington pulled away after Philadelphia opened the scoring.
Karel Vejmelka stopped all 25 shots. Jack McBain and Logan Cooley supplied Utah’s goals.
Tampa Bay forced overtime with Benjamin Rautiainen’s third-period power-play goal before winning in the shootout.
Spencer Knight made 29 saves, while Anton Frondell, Ian Cole and Roman Kantserov scored for Chicago.
Jet Greaves stopped 31 shots and Charlie Coyle and Valeri Nichushkin each recorded a goal and an assist.
Jake DeBrusk finished with a goal and two assists as Vancouver rallied for its first win of the preseason.
William Eklund scored the third-period power-play winner after Montreal erased Ottawa’s earlier two-goal advantage.
Chris Kreider scored his first Canadiens goal and Juraj Slafkovsky collected a goal and two assists in the split-squad victory.
Luke Evangelista scored twice as New Jersey completed its preseason with a 3-0-1 record.
Connor McDavid and Kasperi Kapanen each recorded a goal and an assist as Edmonton finished preseason 4-0-0.
Macklin Celebrini and Mason Marchment each had a goal and an assist, Michael Misa scored, and Yaroslav Askarov made 28 saves.
What Saturday’s NHL Scores Actually Tell Us
Preseason results have to be treated carefully, but there were a few performances I would carry forward.
Edmonton finishing 4-0-0 is less important than seeing McDavid, Hyman, Nugent-Hopkins and Kapanen generate offense before the games count. San Jose getting goals from Celebrini and Michael Misa is another encouraging sign because its young offensive core is beginning to move from “future potential” toward actual NHL production.
New Jersey is intriguing for a different reason. Evangelista scoring twice Saturday after arriving in the offseason gives the Devils another legitimate offensive option around Jack Hughes. The Devils went 3-0-1 during preseason, and that top-nine depth could matter far more over 84 games than any individual exhibition result.
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