While there has been a predictable heavy decline in the number of NHL contracts handed out in recent days, that doesn’t mean there haven’t been signing elsewhere.  Here is a roundup of recent moves involving NHL affiliates or former players.

• The Toronto Marlies, affiliate of the Maple Leafs, recently announced that they’ve signed goaltender Kenneth Appleby, forwards Sawyer Boulton, Sam Stevens, Matt Copponi, and Ross Mitton, along with defensemen Matt Anderson and Ben Meehan. Boulton received a two-year deal while the other six landed one-year pacts.  Appleby is the only one who has seen NHL action, a total of four games where he has a 2.08 GAA and a .921 SV% but has primarily played in the ECHL in recent years.
• While not yet announced by the Marlies, Gold Star Hockey’s Dan Milstein revealed (Twitter link) that they’ve signed Maple Leafs draft pick Timofei Obvintsev to a one-year AHL deal. The goaltender was a fifth-round pick back in 2024 and has played rather sparingly since then, playing in just six VHL games last season and 11 MHL contests in 2024-25.  Obvintsev seems likely to spend a good chunk of the upcoming year in the ECHL to get some game action in over being a third-stringer behind Artur Akhtyamov and newcomer Samuel Hlavaj.
• The AHL’s Laval Rocket, affiliate of the Canadiens, announced the signings of defensemen Jacob Dion and Kale McCallum along with forward Alexander Legkov to one-year, two-way deals. Dion primarily played in the ECHL last season while McCallum recently wrapped his NCAA career at Providence College.  Legkov, meanwhile, had 93 points in the FPHL.
• Former Buffalo winger Nicholas Baptiste is continuing his career in France as Rouen announced (Twitter link) that they’ve signed him to a one-year deal. The 30-year-old has 47 career NHL contests under his belt but has bounced around in recent years.  This will be Baptiste’s sixth different league since the 2023-24 campaign.