The PTO decision can give a veteran an NHL contract without giving him a single shift when the season starts. Signing answers the employment question. The lineup card answers something harder: does the coach want this player on the ice tonight?
The 2026 tryout results show how far apart those answers can fall. Carson Soucy reached Columbusâs opening lineup. Nick Blankenburg secured a place on Torontoâs roster but appeared among its opening-game scratches. Other veterans earned contracts while preparing to start with an AHL affiliate.
Each outcome carries value, especially for a player who entered September without a regular deal. Yet the difference matters. Handling a penalty kill, waiting behind six defensemen, and reporting to the minors create three distinct paths through the same season.
For professional tryouts, the revealing moment comes after the signing announcement. Where does the player go next? Follow that move, and a familiar comeback story becomes a sharper account of how NHL teams fill vacancies, build their benches, and decide whom to trust.
Signing the Deal Doesnât Secure the Sweater
A camp invitation offers access without promising a job. PuckPediaâs explanation of professional tryouts makes that distinction clear: players can practice and participate in preseason games without securing a roster position. The invitation starts the competition rather than settling it.
Landing a regular contract changes the arrangement. Its wording, however, can encourage assumptions that the subsequent roster move does not support.
A two-way contract sets different salary rates for NHL and AHL service. It does not automatically send someone to the minors or remove the need to clear waivers. The Syracuse Crunchâs player guide separates those salary terms from waiver eligibility, which depends on factors including age, contract history, and NHL experience.
That distinction explains why professional tryouts can produce several legitimate versions of success. One player earns a contract and immediate shifts. Another stays on the NHL roster as a reserve. A third secures employment but begins with an affiliate.
The paperwork establishes what the team agreed to pay. The next roster decision shows where it intends to use the player.
Columbus Put Its Tryout Signing to Work
Carson Soucy Turned His Audition Into Opening-Night Minutes
Soucy arrived in Columbus with 441 NHL games behind him, including 76 with the Rangers and Islanders the previous season. NHLâs September status report detailed that background alongside his one-year, $1.15 million contract. Columbus had found an experienced defenseman it wanted to keep.
His preseason scoring did not provide the obvious selling point. Sportsnetâs September 29 report noted that Soucy finished two exhibition appearances without a point while averaging 16:25 of ice time. The Blue Jackets nevertheless found enough value in his audition to offer a regular deal.
General manager Don Waddell explained the appeal in the clubâs announcement. âHe has good size and strength,â Waddell said, describing Soucy as another steady veteran presence.
That assessment soon met a practical need. NHLâs opening-game preview against Buffalo listed Ivan Provorov, Dante Fabbro, and Damon Severson among Columbusâs injured defensemen. Their absences help explain the immediate opportunity, while Waddellâs endorsement explains why Soucy received it.
Once the games counted, Columbus gave him responsibility rather than a place at the end of the bench. The NHLâs official opening-game report credited Soucy with 20:15 overall, including 1:53 on the penalty kill.
Those minutes gave the signing a concrete meaning. Soucy had moved from competing for employment to helping protect his team when it played shorthanded.
For professional tryouts, that represents the clearest immediate breakthrough among these cases. He secured a contract, entered the lineup, and handled meaningful work. His first assignment already required more than proving he could survive camp.
Toronto Kept Blankenburg Behind Its Starting Six
Blankenburg brought recent NHL production to his Toronto audition. The Maple Leafsâ signing announcement paired his one-year contract with 24 points in 61 games for Nashville and Colorado. He entered camp with evidence that he could contribute at this level.
The agreement extended that opportunity. His inclusion on the leagueâs opening roster confirmed that Toronto would keep him close to the lineup.
Close did not mean inside it. NHLâs opening-game preview against Montreal listed Blankenburg as a scratch behind RiellyâRaddysh, McCabeâTanev, and Ekman-LarssonâStecher.
That result deserves a precise description: he won a roster place, with playing time still to earn.
For a reserve defenseman, the challenge shifts immediately. Camp offered regular chances to demonstrate value. Once the season begins, preparation must continue even when the coach chooses somebody else for the next game.
Practice can sharpen positioning and passing, but it cannot supply the rhythm of regular NHL shifts. A reserve must stay ready while waiting for an opportunity he does not control.
An additional defenseman gives the team another option. The player needs an opening to turn that option into a recurring role.
Blankenburgâs outcome shows why professional tryouts resist a simple pass-or-fail verdict. Toronto committed to employing him and carrying him. The opening lineup left the next part of his case unfinished.
Three Veterans Landed Contracts and Headed to the AHL
Alex Nylander Secured a Deal but Missed Calgaryâs Opening Roster
Nylander entered Calgaryâs camp with a recent offensive record worth examining. The Flames noted in their signing announcement that he had produced 53 points in 65 AHL games before securing a one-year, two-way deal.
Those numbers gave his audition a different emphasis from Soucyâs. Nylander had demonstrated minor-league scoring. Calgaryâs final camp decisions would determine where he could build on it.
The answer emerged through the waiver process. NHLâs Swedish-language coverage confirmed that Nylander cleared waivers and would begin with the Calgary Wranglers.
His tryout produced employment and another route toward NHL games. It did not produce an opening-night NHL roster place.
That leaves a demanding task ahead. A productive AHL season can strengthen his case, but the next NHL opportunity will also depend on the role Calgary needs to fill.
Nathan Bastian and Tyson Jost Signed Deals but Missed NHL Rosters
Bastian came to Florida after a seven-point, 36-game season with Dallas. The Panthers announced a one-year, two-way agreement, keeping another NHL opportunity within reach.
Floridaâs final camp decisions then established his starting point. The clubâs opening roster release assigned him to Charlotte. His contract secured work, while the assignment placed the next stage of that work with the affiliate.
Jost faced a similar destination after returning to a familiar organization. Nashville announced his one-year, two-way deal following a 16-point, 69-game season. Recent NHL usage gave the Predators a substantial record to evaluate alongside his camp performance.
It did not carry over automatically into the new lineup. Reporting carried by Yardbarker confirmed that Jost cleared waivers on September 29, and Nashville announced his Milwaukee assignment that day.
For both forwards, professional tryouts preserved paid work without preserving an immediate NHL role. Their affiliate assignments created the next challenge: turn available minutes into a reason for the parent club to call.
The distinction does not diminish the contract. It identifies the opportunity the player actually earned.
Septemberâs Signings Must Earn Their Next NHL Shift
Opening night provides an initial answer about professional tryouts. The season will ask harder questions.
A reserve defenseman can enter the lineup when an injury creates space. An assigned forward can make himself difficult to overlook. Someone who immediately earns regular shifts must keep delivering once opponents have meaningful game film to study.
Each route demands different work.
For the reserve, readiness must survive the frustration of waiting. Practice offers repetitions, but only games provide the opportunity to show that preparation holds up against NHL pressure.
For the veteran in the AHL, the next audition unfolds through actual shifts. Winning a contested puck, supporting a breakout, or recovering after a turnover can matter alongside scoring. The eventual NHL vacancy may require a specific role rather than another offensive option.
For the immediate lineup addition, responsibility brings exposure. Every difficult retrieval, successful clearance, and missed assignment gives the coaching staff another reason to expand or reduce his workload.
That makes the PTO decision more revealing than a list of signings. A contract can restart a careerâs momentum while leaving the player several steps from the job he wants.
The fairest assessment recognizes what he earned, then follows what happens next. When another NHL place opens, will the team reach for the veteran it just signedâor decide that somebody else offers the better answer?
READ MORE: Shot-Blocking Efficiency: The NHL Defensemen Putting Their Bodies on the Line During the Preseason
FAQs
Q1. What is a PTO in the NHL?
A. A professional tryout lets a player practice and play preseason games with a team. It does not guarantee a contract or roster place.
Q2. Does a two-way contract automatically send a player to the AHL?
A. No. A two-way contract sets different NHL and AHL salary rates. It does not determine the playerâs assignment or waiver eligibility.
Q3. Which player in this article earned opening-night NHL minutes?
A. Carson Soucy entered Columbusâs opening lineup. He played 20:15, including 1:53 on the penalty kill.
Q4. Did Nick Blankenburg make Torontoâs opening roster?
A. Yes. Toronto kept Blankenburg on its roster, but the opening-game preview listed him as a scratch.
Q5. Where did Alex Nylander, Nathan Bastian and Tyson Jost start?
A. Nylander headed to the Calgary Wranglers, Bastian to Charlotte and Jost to Milwaukee. All three earned contracts before beginning with AHL affiliates.
