A Russian league is completing a contract with Red Wings forward Jiri Hudler, according to an Associated Press report. The KHL registered Hudler?s two-year, $10M deal in Moscow on Thursday morning. The KHL previously filed Hudler?s contract July 9, but held off on the deal pending negotiations between the two leagues.

The Lightning have bought out the remaining three years of Vaclav Prospal's contract, making the Czech forward an unrestricted free agent, as reported by ESPN on Tuesday. Prospal was owed $3.5M for the next three years but with the buy-out the Lightning will face only a $1.17M cap hit for the next six years. Prospal was signed before current GM Brian Lawton took over and it's believed this move will free up money with which the Lightning will acquire another forward.

The Hurricanes are parting ways with the player who scored the goal that won them the Stanley Cup in 2006. The Hurricanes said Tuesday they have bought out the remaining year on the contract of defenseman Frantisek Kaberle, who would have made $2.2M. Kaberle will now collect almost $1.5M over the next two seasons, as reported by the Associated Press.

The Rangers are expected to walk away from whatever Nikolai Zherdev is awarded through arbitration, according to The New York Post. Zherdev is going to submit a case to make $4.5 million per season, but the Rangers are only willing to pay $3.25 million. If New York walks away from the ruling, Zherdev will become an unrestricted free agent.

The Yankees are hoping that the 2011 Winter Classic will be held at Yankee Stadium. Yankees COO Lonn Trost said Monday that the team hasn't received a promise from the NHL, "but we're still hoping that Jan. 1, 2011, will be our time." It's almost certain that the Rangers would be one of the participants if the 2011 Winter Classic was held at Yankee Stadium.

Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin hopes the Continental Hockey League will expand to include clubs in central and western Europe. Putin said that the KHL should expand beyond the former Soviet Union and "become a pan-European league," according to an Interfax news agency report. He says if that does happen, it would be "without any administrative domination" by Russia, meaning that Moscow would not seek to control the league.

Former NHL forward Keith Primeau has been named director of player development of the Las Vegas Wranglers of the East Coast Hockey League. Primeau also has the title of special assistant to the general manager. "I discovered I had a real passion for (coaching), but I missed the competition at the higher levels," Primeau told the Las Vegas Review-Journal. "This will reintroduce me to the game at the professional level and still (allow) me to follow through with the commitments I made prior."

Islanders coach Scott Gordon is expected to announce the hiring of Scott Allen as an assistant on Monday. Allen coached in the AHL for six of the past seven seasons, including the past two seasons as an assistant for the Quad City Flames.

John Tortorella says that the Rangers must improve their power play attack next season. "The power play starts with me," coach Tortorella told The New York Post. "It's on me to figure out how to make sure that the personnel on the power play succeeds; that falls on my shoulders." The Rangers' power play ranked 29th in the NHL last season. "We need a quarterback. I'm talking about someone who has poise and creativity, can pass and shoot and get the puck through. And he has to be able to settle things down," Tortorella continued. "There's no question point-play was our biggest weakness last year. We have to figure it out. We have to find out whether we have a quarterback here. Right now, I'm not sure, but I'm not ruling out [Wade] Redden and I'm not ruling out [Michal] Rozsival, either." Specifically, Tortorella singled out Wade Redden. "Wade has to be better; he knows it and I know it," Tortorella said. "We've talked a few times this summer about what I expect from him right from Day One of training camp. "He needs to take charge. I believe he has it in him. But if he can't, or doesn't, we'll take a look at other options, because we cannot have a power play this year like the one we had last year."

Daniel Alfredsson says that Dany Heatley could return to the team next season without issue after his recent trade demand. "I don't see coming back to the team as the big problem," Alfredsson told the Ottawa Citizen. "Obviously, the media and the fans will have a harder time with how everything has been dealt. It has become a very unfortunate situation for everybody involved." Heatley strangely demanded a trade during the Stanley Cup Finals, and has remained reclusive this summer.