Now that Labor Day has passed, you can feel hockey in the air. NHL training camps will begin in a couple of weeks, and then, before you know it, there will be some preseason games, and the Opening Week is just over a month away for all teams. What a time of year.
Teams are going to begin to put the final touches on their training camp rosters, which will include some players on a PTO. There are some players who are still looking for a job for the upcoming season, and one of those players is former Boston Bruins defenseman Matt Grzelcyk. It is pretty surprising that he has yet to find a team to sign him, either to a PTO or a contract.
Former Boston Bruins defenseman Matt Grzelcyk remains unsigned ahead of training camp
Last summer, the Bruins made the decision to let Grzelcyk walk in free agency, and he signed a one-year deal with the Pittsburgh Penguins. He played in all 82 games for Pittsburgh, which wasn't always the case in Boston, where injuries were a big part of his time there.
He registered a career-high 39 assists with one goal and played on the Penguins' power play. It is a bit head-scratching that he remains unsigned going into the 2025-26 season after the year he had with the Penguins. You can't tell me that some teams are not looking for a left-shot defenseman who is a very good puck-moving blueliner. Grzelcyk's agent spoke to ESPN over the summer about him not being signed after the rush of free agency in early July.
"Sometimes, it's not the worst thing to do. It's a little bit uneasy at times, but when you sit down and you can see exactly what teams have now," said agent Peter Fish. "When you wait a little bit and can say, 'Well, this is definitely going to be a good spot for me.'"
It's hard to believe that Grzelcyk will go unsigned once camps open in a few months, but I guess anything is possible. The former Boston University Terrier is one of the top remaining free agents as camps approach, but for how long?