Thatcher Demko worked out on the ice on his own before the start of Canucks' training camp on Thursday. However, he did not participate with his teammates afterward during main camp and would not offer a timetable for his return.

The positive from all this is that Demko did not appear to look the part of an injured goalie in his training, but I am not a doctor or even a goaltending specialist. Demko also sounded certain that he was headed in the right direction with significant progress over the last 2-3 weeks, and he even sounded optimistic about a full recovery soon.

Demko also revealed that this particular injury is unique, which would explain why a timeline isn't possible. If we have nothing to compare it to, then we don't really know when Demko will start the season. With all of this still so very unclear, avoid reaching for Demko in drafts and be prepared to start the season without him if he's already on your roster. Demko has an ADP of 55 at Yahoo, which is a bit too high for my liking. In fact, he should be drafted outside of the top 10 goalies until we become more clear about a return date.  

For now, playoff hero Arturs Silovs should be drafted in most leagues, while Jiri Patera is projected to be his backup. The Canucks are reportedly still interested in signing free agent goalie Kevin Lankinen, who at minimum would be a backup and could even push Silovs for starts while Demko is out.

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The Red Wings finally took care of business with Moritz Seider, signing him to a seven-year contract with an AAV of $8.55 million. Seider reportedly took one year less to be slightly lower than Dylan Larkin for AAV. The $8.7 million AAV in Larkin's contract seems to be the benchmark that the Red Wings had set internally.

Seider is the Red Wings' most important defenseman and a cornerstone player on their team, as he has demonstrated that he can do it all. Seider finished second in the league in hits and blocks (424 HIT+BKS) in 2023-24, and he has been the only player since 2010 to finish with both 200 hits and 200 blocks in a season. Add that to his ability to reach 40 points in each of his three seasons, and you have an ideal defenseman for roto leagues.

The offseason departure of Shayne Gostisbehere could result in Seider regaining the top power play again for the Red Wings, as he dipped below 50% of his team's available power-play minutes in 2023-24. Offseason free agent signing Erik Gustafsson might be more of a true power-play specialist than Seider, but he has been a healthy scratch risk throughout his career due to his defensive play. Seider, meanwhile, has not missed a game in his three NHL seasons, and now we don't have to worry about a contract holdout breaking that streak.

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Jeremy Swayman won't report to training camp until a contract is agreed upon. Bruins GM Don Sweeney said he believes that they'll have a contract done by the December 1 deadline for RFAs to be able to play in 2024-25. Aiming for December 1? That sounds like the two sides are still far apart, although he might be subscribing to the "under promise but over deliver" theory. Still, that isn't reassuming for anyone who drafted Swayman early now that he has the starter job all to himself.

I don't think I'd downgrade Swayman as far as I would Demko, because one phone call is all that is needed to end this stalemate. As appealing as Swayman might be, I'd suggest drafting him outside of the top 5 at the moment.

Suddenly, Joonas Korpisalo is a possible late-round draft option or preseason waiver-wire pickup. Korpisalo wasn't expected to play a whole lot backing up Swayman, but he is the most experienced option the Bruins have in camp and the most likely starter should Swayman miss regular-season games. His one season in Ottawa was less than outstanding, but he has the potential to show better numbers with the Bruins. Once Swayman returns, Korpisalo has the potential to be one of the better backups and a possible streamer.

Brandon Bussi has been a top-searched player on Frozen Tools recently, and for good reason. Bussi has spent the past two seasons in the AHL, posting solid numbers for the Providence Bruins. He's already 26 years of age, which might seem too old to be a prospect, but goalies generally need more time to cook in the AHL before they're NHL ready. Korpisalo has been inconsistent in the past, so Bussi could easily challenge for starts if the Swayman situation extends into the regular season.

Along with Swayman, Cole Perfetti and Dawson Mercer are the other prominent RFAs still without a contract. Fantasy teams will need to take into consideration the possibility that they might miss games or at least need a longer runway to be ready for the NHL season.

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In case you missed it, James van Riemsdyk signed a one-year, $900,000 contract with the Columbus Blue Jackets. The move was likely necessitated by the recent tragic passing of Johnny Gaudreau; otherwise, van Riemsdyk was probably looking at signing a PTO somewhere.

JVR isn't the effective fantasy option that he once was, as he has finished with around a 40-point pace in each of the last three seasons. He should add some value to Columbus's power play, as 12 of his 38 points in 2023-24 came on the man advantage. Only two players on the Jackets' roster last season (Gaudreau and Kirill Marchenko) registered more power-play points than that, although there are no assurances that JVR would play on the top unit. Regardless, I wouldn't draft van Riemsdyk in anything but the deepest of leagues.

Since he is on a one-year contract, van Riemsdyk is also a candidate to be flipped at the deadline for some futures, assuming that the Jackets are out of the playoff race by then.

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Brett Pesce is considered week-to-week following offseason surgery on his lower leg. Pesce was signed by the Devils in the offseason after spending his entire career with the Hurricanes. The Devils are already dealing with multiple injuries on their blueline, as neither Pesce nor Luke Hughes (shoulder) are able to participate at training camp and could miss the start of the season.

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Kyle Okposo announced his retirement on Thursday after 17 NHL seasons. Okposo played over 1000 games mostly with the Islanders and Sabres, but he finished his career on the highest of high notes by winning a Stanley Cup with the Panthers. His best season came in 2013-14, when he finished with a career-best 27 goals and 69 points with the Islanders. I also had the pleasure of watching him get drafted live back in 2006 (7^th overall) in Vancouver, which I just realized happened nearly two decades ago. All the best to Okposo in retirement.

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52-year-old Jaromir Jagr is finally expected to play in his final season of professional hockey in the Czech league. Those of us who are around that age probably can't imagine being a professional athlete this long, with the only real hockey comparison being Gordie Howe. Should Jagr finally retire at the end of the season, he will be eligible for the Hall of Fame in… 2028. That's a long wait for a player drafted in 1990. Good that he'll finally get in. He deserves it.

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