Four former Erie Otters among players who sign deals during NHL free agency period

Three former Erie Otters players and a former Otters coach were reasons area hockey fans had a definitive rooting interest during last month's Stanley Cup Final.

The Edmonton Oilers’ bid to win that best-of-seven series, plus rally from a 3-0 deficit, concluded when the Florida Panthers defeated them 2-1 in their decisive game.

Edmonton, which claimed five Cup championships between 1984 and 1990, reached the Final with Kris Knoblauch behind the bench. Knoblauch, whose last season in Erie was coaching its 2016-17 team that won the OHL’s Robertson Cup, was hired by the Oilers after a 3-9-1 start to their 2023-24 season.

Florida gained its first NHL title even though Edmonton’s Connor McDavid was voted the Conn Smythe Trophy recipient as the postseason’s most valuable player. McDavid played for Erie over the last decade, as did fellow Oilers Connor Brown and Warren Foegele .

Knoblauch is expected back as Edmonton’s coach next season. McDavid and Brown also are likely returnees.

Foegele won’t. The Los Angeles Kings signed the 28-year-old left winger to a three-year contract during Monday’s first day of NHL free agency.

The deal was worth $10.8 million, according to a cbssports.com article.

The 2024-25 season will be Foegele’s eighth in the league. He spent the last three with Edmonton and the previous four with the Carolina Hurricanes, which chose him during the third round of the 2014 NHL draft.

Foegele, who played in each of the Oilers’ 82 regular-season games this past season, totaled 20 goals and 21 assists. He added three goals and five assists during their latest playoff run.

More: Edmonton Oilers' Connor McDavid joins list of Stanley Cup playoff MVPs on losing team

Onward with Edmonton

Brown, unlike Foegele, opted to return to the Oilers on a one-year, $1 million contract according to nhl.com . The right winger, 30, will skate for them come his 10th season in the league.

Brown originally signed with the league’s northernmost franchise after one year with the Washington Capitals. He totaled four goals and eight assists over 71 games, plus two goals and four assists throughout the playoffs.

The Toronto Maple Leafs selected Brown during the sixth round of the 2012 NHL draft. He also skated for the Ottawa Senators between his time with Toronto and Washington.

More: Chicago Blackhawks take Erie Otters defenseman Ty Henry during the 2024 NHL draft

Raddysh brother on the move

While Brown is a former Capital, Taylor Raddysh became a current one Monday.

Raddysh, who played for the Otters from 2014-18, signed a one-year, $1 million contract according to PuckPedia.com. Besides Alex Ovechkin, who needs 42 goals to surpass Wayne Gretzky’s 894 as the league’s all-time leader, the right winger also joins a Washington roster that includes former Otter Dylan Strome as a center.

Raddysh, 26, was limited to five goals and nine assists over 73 games for the 2023-24 Blackhawks. He officially departed Chicago two days after it drafted current Erie defenseman Ty Henry.

Darren Raddysh, Taylor’s older brother and another former Otter, skated for the Tampa Bay Lightning this past season.

Hodgson headed to Ottawa

A fourth former Otter will continue his hockey career with a new employer.

The Ottawa Senators signed Hayden Hodgson to a one-year, two-way contract on Tuesday. The right winger spent last season with the Ontario (California) Reign, the Kings’ American Hockey League affiliate.

Hodgson, 28, will make $775,000 if he cracks Ottawa’s roster this fall. If not, he’ll skate for Senators’ AHL affiliate in Belleville, Ontario.

Hodgson played for Erie from 2012-14. He also competed for the OHL’s Sarnia Sting and Saginaw Spirit before he became a professional in 2017.

Although Hodgson’s hockey resume is sprinkled with various minor league stops, he did experience a seven-game cameo over two seasons with the Philadelphia Flyers. The Windsor, Ontario, native recorded his lone NHL goal late in their 2021-22 team.

Contact Mike Copper at mcopper@timesnews.com . Follow him on X @ETNcopper.

This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: Four former Erie Otters among players who sign deals during NHL free agency period