Note to HHOF: Keep a light on up there for Oilers No. 97.

Meanwhile, Minnesota wizard Kirill Kaprizov led all goal scorers with nine. The Oilers’ Evan Bouchard led all blueliners for goals (six) and assists (nine), followed in total points by the Wild’s Quinn Hughes (13). Old pals, and former Bruins teammates, Linus Ullmark in Ottawa and Jeremy Swayman in Boston topped the goalies chart. Not a single surprise in that bunch.

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The more intriguing story lines in the early going continue to be three players yet to suit up this season — Connor Hellebuyck, Alexander Nikishin, and Simon Edvinsson — along with Dylan Larkin, who has pulled on a Red Wings uniform, albeit with his captain’s “C” removed from his shoulder. The front office in Detroit continues to ponder how best to handle its star center’s months-long trade request.

Hellebuyck, the stalwart Jets goalie, also waits for Winnipeg to fulfill his trade. Unlike Larkin, he chose not to report to training camp nearly five weeks ago, leading to an immediate suspension by the front office and a padlock on his pay (five years at an $8.5 million average). Both Hellebuyck and Larkin (five years at an $8.7M average) signed their names years earlier to no-trade contracts.

Rampant rumors in recent days had Hellebuyck, the former UMass Lowell stopper, considering a return to the Jets. That would be even more awkward than Larkin’s situation in Detroit. No doubt Hellebuyck’s teammates would express their appreciation, at least publicly. Privately, hockey is still hockey, with enough dignity left stitched into the game that teammates expect teammates — provided they are healthy — to help the team.

It’s a thinning ethos, but still in the air, thankfully.

Dylan Lark arrived at the weekend with 277 goals for the Red Wings since entering the league in 2015-16.Danielle Parhizkaran/Globe Staff

Larkin at least showed up for the team he wants to leave, knowing the unkind reception he would — and indeed did — receive from a very frustrated fan base.

The fans’ angry hammers would be sure to rain down with greater ferocity if Hellebuyck showed up to reclaim his sweater in Winnipeg. Stuck between a rock and a hard place? Absolutely, but he tossed the rock.

Also, Jets fans long ago grew tired of hearing Winnipeg holds down the No. 32 spot on players’ lists of “Most desirable NHL cities to play.” Getting spurned now by their star goalie has underscored the indignity.

Connor Hellebuyck won three Vezina Trophies in his 11 seasons in the NHL, all with the Jets.John Tlumacki/Globe Staff

Detroit’s Edvinsson and Carolina’s Nikishin, both young and talented defensemen, remain restricted free agents unable to come to contract terms. It’s an old-fashioned impasse.

Per multiple reports, Edvinsson has let it be known he would prefer being traded, which is a deft straddle over a “trade me” demand. Nikishin, who put his name on the Stanley Cup with the Hurricanes in June as a 24-year-old rookie, told management he wants outta there.

Both Edvinsson, 23, and Nikishin, 25, would fit as first-pairing blue liners on a majority of NHL rosters. They should come in around $9 million per annum or better, in light of the Canucks six weeks ago lavishing 20-year-old backliner Zeev Buium with an eight-year extension at an average $9.38 million. Buium had played in 76 regular-season games upon signing that deal.

The Red Wings and Hurricanes obviously don’t like the pay scale, but that’s the reality — and today’s $9 million could be closer to $11 million a year from now.

The ongoing question among Bruins fans is whether any of the disgruntled four could end up in Boston.

Answer: yes, excluding Hellebuyck, who is 33 years old (some six years Swayman’s senior), and really not an asset that makes sense to today’s Black and Gold roster. Injury can change that in a flash, as the Rangers found out last weekend with No. 1 netminder Igor Shesterkin lost for the season. But a Swayman-Hellebuyck tandem, at a combined $16.75 million cap hit, just isn’t on the menu.

Larkin makes great sense for the Bruins, as he would for all but a handful of clubs. Thus far, he has stated no reason to believe he would OK being dealt here, and he has the right of refusal — even if he has broken the alleged sanctity (apply eye roll here) of a no-trade deal. Larkin, with five consecutive 30-goal seasons, would fulfill the Bruins longstanding need for a No. 1 pivot. Paired with the equally-fleet JJ Peterka, with David Pastrnak riding on the right side? Potential magic.

Either Edvinsson or Nikishin could plug in seamlessly as long-term fixtures on the Boston backline. Both shoot from the left side, potentially offering the right-shooting Charlie McAvoy a young, high-profile partner.

In the current order, that would move Hampus Lindholm to a No. 2 pairing with Will Borgen. It also would force general manager Don Sweeney to move out an existing defenseman. Only McAvoy, 28, and Lindholm, 32, are carefully trade protected. Lindholm next summer will join Nikita Zadorov and Borgen as having only partial trade protection.

All big-name fish, for sure, but it’s worth remembering the stealth Sweeney, forever tightlipped on the subject of trades, twice outbid the market for the perceived prize catch of the day.

The most recent example was in March 2022, when he secured Lindholm, then 28, from the Ducks. Anaheim, fearing it would lose Lindholm to free agency that July, dealt him for Urho Vaakanainen, John Moore, and three draft picks, including a late first-rounder (Nathan Gaucher) that June. Lindholm quickly signed an eight-year extension at $6.5 million per annum.

Four years earlier, Sweeney beat the street by acquiring Rick Nash from the Rangers ahead of the trade deadline. It meant surrendering five assets, including Ryan Lindgren and a late first-round pick that June (Jacob-Bernard Docker). Nash suffered a number of concussions over the years prior to the trade and one more hit to the noggin soon after his arrival on Causeway Street led to his retirement that summer.

Boston 02/18/2026 The Boston Bruins held practice at the Warrior Ice Arena on Thursday. Michael Eyssimont during a drill. John Tlumacki/Boston GlobeJohn Tlumacki/Globe Staff

AWAITING A CALL

AHL Providence pair hopes to level up

Mikey Eyssimont and Henri Jokiharju departed Providence late Friday morning with their destination known: back-to-back games in Hershey, Penn., where the Capitals’ AHL franchise is located.

In the larger picture, the two NHL veterans have a different, unknown destination in mind: an NHL city, be that Boston or elsewhere.

“I want to play meaningful NHL hockey,” said a confident Eyssimont, prior to the six-hour bus ride to Hershey. “That’s the main thing for me. I believe I can help a team win. And until that opportunity comes, I am going to continue to do the work I’ve been doing, stay confident and professional, and my NHL opportunity will come again.”

Eyssimont and Jokiharju, who have combined for 729 NHL games, went unclaimed when waived by the Bruins prior to the regular season. Boston opted to work young prospects into the order, with Matt Potiras and James Hagens ahead of Eyssimont, 30, up front, and Frederic Brunet ahead of Jokiharju, 27, on the back end.

When asked by a Globe reporter Thursday if they have requested trades, both politely declined to comment.

“It’s just, you know, if you ask most people that question, they’ll go in one direction,” mused Jokiharju. “But I’m just not [going to] comment — I’m just gonna stay out of trouble.”

“I’m not focused on anything but my game and playing,” said Eyssimont. “I respect the organization, prepare and play, that’s all I focus on.”

Eyssimont connected for a hat trick in a win last weekend, making him the hottest hand in a Providence lineup that struggled mightily for offense in the early going. Trent Whitfield, installed as the club’s new head coach over the summer, has been impressed by both players’ attitudes and contributions.

“They both came down with great attitudes, both real positive,” said Whitfield, who had a brief run in Boston during his long playing career, the vast majority of it spent in the AHL. “They’re like all hockey players, they just want to play, get their games in a good spot.”

Eyssimont signed as a free agent with Boston in July 2025 and is on an expiring contract that guarantees him $1.45 million this season. Jokiharju, acquired via trade with Buffalo, is in the second season of a three-year pact that guarantees an average of $3 million. There should be a fit for both elsewhere, though Jokiharju’s substantially higher pay point in theory makes him more difficult to deal.

Eyssimont played for the US team that won the gold medal, backed by Swayman, in the IIHF World Championship in 2025, weeks before he signed with the Bruins. Jokiharju played for Team Finland in this year’s Winter Olympics. Both can add value and depth to an NHL roster.

Jokiharju has not been in the minor pros (AHL Rockford) since his days as a 19-year-old prospect with the Blackhawks in the autumn of 2018. Eyssimont turned pro with the Kings organization in the spring of 2018 after three years at St. Cloud State. Demoted to AHL Manitoba by the Jets in 2022-23, he played nine games there before he was selected off waivers by the Sharks, and soon after traded to the Lightning for Vladislav Namestnikov.

“It was a similar circumstance,” said Eyssimont, reflecting on his demotion by the Jets. “It was numbers a little bit, but in the same sense, my goals then and my goal now is to play NHL hockey. I believe I can contribute.’

The move to San Jose, he noted, turned out to be, “The start of my full-time NHL career.”

ETC.

Family and friends of Jay Leach, hockey lifer extraordinaire, gathered earlier this month at The Inn on Main in Wolfeboro, N.H., for a life celebration of a coach whose long career in the game touched hundreds, if not thousands, of others.

“It was a wonderful event for a guy who was just larger-than-life, funny, always full of energy,” noted former Bruins defenseman Bob Beers, who played three years at the University of Maine during Leach’s days coaching the Black Bears. “Fun to be around, made everyone feel good, and worked hard as an assistant coach.”

Leach, who grew up in a Lexington family enthralled with hockey, died Sept. 30 after a long struggle with dementia. He was 75.

Beers recalled Leach as a sincere, caring mentor who taught him a great deal about the game, some points of which Beers continues to convey today as the longstanding radio color commentator on Bruins’ broadcasts.

“He was a great sounding board,” recalled Beers, 59, who graduated from Maine in the spring of 1989 and turned pro with the Bruins. “If things weren’t going well, you could go to him. … You’re in college, still young, trying to get better and sometimes you need allies. That was Jay.”

One of Jay’s brothers, Steve, enjoyed a long NHL playing career, including five years as a Bruins forward. Another brother, Mark, has been a decades-long scout for a number of NHL teams, including the Red Wings, Stars, and Maple Leafs.

Jay Leach coached for some 35 years, in both the college and pro game, beginning in the mid-1980s as an assistant at Merrimack and finishing as Maine’s associate coach, 2014-17.

Fraser Minten beat Flyers goalie Dan Vladar for one of the Bruins’ five goals in an Oct. 10 win at TD Garden.John Tlumacki/Globe Staff

Betting around the Flyers is that Rick Tocchet will remain the bench boss for the foreseeable future, despite their historically rancid start (0-6-3 into the weekend). Tocchet, who looks flummoxed behind the bench and during postgame pressers, has a lot of goodwill stored in the corner office with two important pals, GM Danny Briere and president of hockey operations Keith Jones. But there is always the risk of ownership getting fed up, which could put the heat on all three. The Flyers looked lost in space, particulary in the neutral zone, in their Oct. 10 visit to Causeway Street … In a century-plus, only four NHL teams ever went winless in the opening nine games and then qualified for the playoffs: Pittsburgh (1927-28), Los Angeles (1984-85), San Jose (1993-94), and Calgary (1995-96). Mercy … I’ve seen enough of Macklin Celebrini in two-plus NHL seasons to know he’s a bona fide star, and the Sharks have little choice but to make him the centerpiece of all marketing endeavors. But captain? Mere months after his 20th birthday? Granted, it’s not your faithful puck chronicler’s NHL, but there needs to be more seasoning in the guy who wears the “C.” Ditto for Connor Bedard, the Blackhawks’ newly minted captain, who turned 21 over the summer. Sure, two franchises that are scraping back to relevance. But that’s all the more reason not to throw them the car keys … Last Saturday night in Montreal, with the Red Wings in town, the Canadiens homies were chanting, “We want Larkin! We want Larkin!” I mean, did you ever? … McAvoy and Swayman will be on the Garden ice Nov. 19, albeit with the surface covered for the 25th rendition of the Sports Museum’s annual “Tradition” fundraising extravaganza. The Bruins duo is part of a distinguished honorees’ list that includes Andre Tippett (Patriots), Dana Barros (Celtics), Jim Calhoun (Northeastern, UConn basketball), and the Fleet’s Megan Keller, Aerin Frankel, and Haley Winn. It is always a fun night, full of good food and storytelling — with all proceeds to benefit the museum and its charitable endeavors, including the impactful Boston vs. Bullies. For more information and tickets: sportsmuseum.org or 617-480-4257 … Late in the week, ex-Providence College winger Trevor Connelly, a Golden Knights rookie, had 5 points, second only to Chicago’s Anton Frondell (1-5–6) on the NHL rookie scoring list. Connelly is a 6-foot-1-inch left winger who grew up in Texas and has been skating third line with Tomas Hertl and Raphael Lavoie. He played for AHL Henderson last season under Ryan Craig, who was promoted to the Vegas bench boss job in the aftermath of last season’s late move to replace Bruce Cassidy with interim John Tortorella … Former Bruin goalies Reggie Lemelin and Andy Moog will be together again Oct. 31 for an autograph session at Phil Castinetti’s Sportsworld in Saugus. They were the tandem for the rollicking ’88 run to the Cup Final that included finally dumping the Canadiens in the postseason for the first time since 1943. Cue the picture of a triumphant, Quebec-born Lemelin leaving the net after the series-clinching 4-1 win at Montreal in Game 5. It ended a string of 18 straight playoff series losses to the hated Habs. Maybe the two guys who helped shoo those Forum ghosts should be together every Halloween?

Kevin Paul Dupont can be reached at kevin.dupont@globe.com.