Deen’s Daily: Another Avs Preseason Win; McTavish Signs; Kuznetsov Decision Coming?

The Avalanche made several more roster cuts after yet another preseason victory. Also, a notable UFA might be closing in on a decision, a defenseman in the Central Division signed an extension, and one of the remaining RFA’s has finally agreed to terms on a long-term extension.

All that and more on this edition of Deen’s Daily — September 28.

Colorado Hockey Now

Three preseason games, three wins. The results in preseason don’t matter, but the way these games have looked has been promising. The Avs are still mostly healthy and have now seen every key piece of their roster dress in a game (aside from the three injuries).

Brent Burns made his debut and played a team-high 21:21. And my favorite story from camp thus far has been the play of Gavin Brindley. He scored his third goal in two games and is giving the coaching staff every reason to keep him on the roster for opening night.

My colleague Colleen Flynn had more from Ball Arena following what was a mostly unentertaining game.

READ MORE: Avs Preseason Win Over Stars Was Useful, Not Exciting

Also, the team made eight more roster cuts following the game. And that included Tristen Nielsen, who scored an empty netter and had a game-high nine hits.

It was also the end of NHL camp for Ivan Ivan following a two-assist performance.

The full list of cuts is below.

READ MORE: Avalanche Make 8 More Roster Cuts Following Preseason Win

Around The NHL

Cam Fowler Signs: The Blues locked up a key veteran on their blueline, signing Fowler to a three-year extension a year out from unrestricted free agency. After getting traded from Anaheim, Fowler produced at a 64-point clip when you combine both his regular season and playoffs in St. Louis and extrapolate it over 82 games. And his contract is coming in at only $6.1 million per year.

Ducks Take Care of Business: We’ve talked a lot about Luke Hughes, Luke Evangelista, and Mason McTavish in recent weeks. The trio were the last remaining RFA’s without a contract. But now it’s down to the Luke’s.

McTavish signed a six year, $7 million AAV contract with Anaheim on Saturday and will join the team with just over a week remaining of preseason.

Kuznetsov Decision Coming?: A recent report has linked Evgeni Kuznetsov to both the Panthers and Maple Leafs. For Florida, it would be a decent depth center to add to the roster following the tough loss of their captain Aleksander Barkov for the entire 2025-26 season. And for the Leafs, he can give them help in the top nine as a centerman alongside Auston Matthews and John Tavares.

Pittsburgh Hockey Now: The Marc-Andre Fleury preseason return was so much fun. I’m not sure if this type of retirement PTO is going to become more common, but it was definitely unique and suited him well.

His legacy in Pittsburgh and around the NHL in general was celebrated.

Detroit Hockey Now: The Red Wings need more accountability if they’re going to qualify for the playoffs this year.

Florida Hockey Now: What the Panthers did at practice to offset the loss of Barkov.