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NHL News: Flyers’ Rasmus Ristolainen available for trade, Blue Jackets sign Zamula, and more
Philadelphia Flyers Rasmus Ristolainen
Photo credit: Kyle Ross-Imagn Images
Ryley Delaney
Jan 6, 2026, 21:00 ESTUpdated: Jan 6, 2026, 20:24 EST
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A right-shot defenceman could be available ahead of the March 6 trade deadline.
On Tuesday, Daily Faceoff’s Anthony Di Marco reported that Philadelphia Flyers’ defenceman Rasmus Ristolainen could be available before the trade deadline, albeit the Flyers aren’t actively shopping him.
Ahead of Tuesday’s slate of games, the Flyers occupy the first wild card spot and are just five points back for the Metropolitan Division lead with two games in hand. This isn’t the first time the Flyers have sniffed a playoff spot in the past three seasons, as they occupied a spot in April of 2024.
That said, Ristolainen would net the Flyers a sizable haul, as a prospective deal would be similar to the Ben Chiarot deal from four years ago. This season, the right-shot defenceman has played just nine games, picking up two assists in the process. Last season, the Turku, Finland native scored four goals and 19 points in 63 games.
Ristolainen has reached the 40-point plateau four times in his career, doing so with the Sabres from the 2015-16 season until 2018-19, but has transformed into a steady, defensively sound top-four defenceman the past few years.
Additionally, the 6’4” defenceman has a cap hit of $5.1 million on a contract that doesn’t end until after the 2026-27 season. He, along with Rasmus Andersson, could be the top options for right-shot defencemen on the market ahead of March’s trade deadline.
The Oilers could be a team that has interest in Ristolainen, as the team had been loosely linked to the blue liner ahead of last season’s trade deadline.
This news came a day after it was reported that the Flyers have extended Christian Dvorak.

Egor Zamula signs with Blue Jackets

Another move recently involving the Flyers saw them acquire Philip Tomasino from the Pittsburgh Penguins for Egor Zamula. Well, the Penguins waived Zamula, with the Columbus Blue Jackets signing him on Tuesday afternoon.
Zamula, 25, went undrafted and eventually signed with the Flyers in 2018. He made his debut during the pandemic-impacted 2020-21 season, playing two games. The following season, the left-shot defenceman played 10 games, then another 14 games in 2022-23, where he picked up his first four National Hockey League points.
In 2023-24, the Russian defenceman became a regular, scoring five goals and 21 points in 66 games with the Flyers. He was often in their lineup in 2024-25 as well, scoring three goals and 15 points in 63 games in 63 games.
Zamula’s 2025-26 season has been bumpy, playing just 13 games with the Flyers where he had an assist in 13 games. After the trade, Zamula reportedly didn’t report to the Penguins’ American Hockey League team, the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, before being terminated.

World Juniors wrap up

On Monday evening, the 2026 World Juniors concluded, as Team Sweden defeated Team Czechia by a score of 4-2 to take home their first gold medal since 2012, their second gold medal since 1991. Had Czechia won, they would’ve won their first  gold medal since the 2001 tournament, but will settle for their second silver medal in tournament history, the fourth consecutive year they’ve medaled at the tournament.
It was a disappointing tournament for Team Canada, as they fell 6-4 to Czechia in the semifinal game. They needed a win against Team Finland on Monday to take home the bronze medal, doing just that in a 6-3 victory, thanks to strong performances from Michael Hage and Gavin McKenna. Former Edmonton Oilers’ prospect, Sam O’Reilly, had two goals in that game as he was named as one of Team Canada’s top three players.
As for current Oiler prospects, David Lewandowski played in his second consecutive tournament with Team Germany, as they managed to avoid relegation thanks to an 8-4 victory over Team Denmark on Friday. He’ll be eligible to return in next year’s tournament, which happens to take place in Edmonton (and Red Deer).
The Oilers’ other prospect in the tournament, Asher Barnett, played in all five of Team America’s games, as the hosts were defeated in the quarterfinals thanks to 4-3 overtime loss to Team Finland. It’s the third consecutive game between the two teams that saw the score finish 4-3 in overtime, with the Americans winning the gold medal in the 2025 tournament over Finland. Barnett is also eligible to return to the tournament next year.
Ryley Delaney is a Nation Network writer for Oilersnation, FlamesNation, and Blue Jays Nation. Follow her on Twitter @Ryley__Delaney.

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