Latest NHL signings! Part VII

The Calgary Flames have signed forwards Garth Murray and Riley Armstrong. Terms of the the contracts were not disclosed.

The Montreal Canadiens have signed Mike Glumac and defenseman Alex Henry to one-year, two-way contracts.

The New York Rangers have signed forward Chris Chappell.

The Vancouver Canucks have signed defensemen Nolan Baumgartner and Lawrence Nycholat.

The Chicago Blackhawks have re-signed forward Jacob Dowell and goaltender Antti Niemi.

The Ottawa Senators have signed forward Martin St. Pierre to a one-year contract; signed right wing Erik Condra to an entry-level contract; signed goaltender Mike Brodeur to a one-year contract.

NHL and hockey rumors for July 29, 2008

The Florida Panthers have avoided arbitration with defenseman Jay Bouwmeester and has signed him to a one-year, $4.875 million contract. It's believed Bouwmeester wants to test the unrestricted free agent market next season, when he will be 25 years old. Brochu's take: When the Florida Panthers are out of the playoff run (it's a question of when, not if), expect Bouwmeester to be shopped aggressively. It would seem Bo has no intention of staying in Sunrise any longer.

The Atlanta Thrashers have signed forward Matt Siddall to a multi-year contract.

The Boston Bruins have signed forwards Nate Thompson and Martin St. Pierre to undisclosed contracts.

The Ottawa Senators have signed goaltender Jeff Glass to a one-year, two-way contract.

There are rumors that the Los Angeles Kings and Phoenix Coyotes are interested in unrestricted free agent forward Martin Gelinas.

The Tampa Bay Lightning are expected to announce the signing of the No. 1 overall pick in the 2008 NHL Entry Draft, Steven Stamkos, to a three-year, entry level contract on Tuesday.

Mariusz Czerkawski retires from hockey

Mariusz Czerkawski has decided to retire from hockey. The Polish forward played in 745 NHL games for the Edmonton Oilers, Boston Bruins, Toronto Maple Leafs, Montreal Canadiens and New York Islanders, totaling 215 goals and 220 assists. Czerkawski played the last two seasons for the Swiss Nationalliga A team Rapperswil-Jona Lakers, where he was the amongst the team leaders in points. Brochu's take: The "Polish Prince" was a decent scorer, both on and off the ice. Not only did he manage 20+ goals in 6 seasons, he managed to find time to marry (and divorce) ex-James Bond girl Izabella Scorupco. (The woman in the picture is his new wife, Miss Poland 2000). Source

The Chicago Blackhawks have traded forward Martin St. Pierre to the Boston Bruins for forward Pascal Pelletier.

Boston Bruins forward Glen Murray has passed waivers. It's rumored that he will be bought out as soon as possible.

Brochu's European rumor roundup:

Los Angeles Kings defenseman Kevin Dallman has left the organization and signed with KHL team Barys Astana in Kazakhstan.

Florida Panthers defenseman Magnus Johansson has signed a three-year contract with Swedish team Linkoping. He will be loaned to KHL team Atlant Mytischy for the first year. Source

Defenseman Tom Wandell has left the Dallas Stars organization and signed with SEL team Timra for the 2008-2009 season.

Montreal Canadiens defenseman Mathieu Biron will play with DEL team Frankfurt Lions for the 2008-2009 season. Source

European rumors update

Here's the latest rumours from Europe, which have been collected from various European sources in the past few days. This is the big version of Brochu's European round-up:

New York Rangers forward Jaromir Jagr has said that he would come to Russia to play his last years of the career. He said that he gave his "word" to play in Russia and wanted to play for Avangard Omsk, whose chairman stated that they would do everything they can to bring Jagr to Omsk. Jagr played for Avangard in the 2004-2005 lockout year. Source

Denik Sport (A Czech newspaper) reported that Columbus Blue Jacket forward David Vyborny is rumoured to have signed a contract with Sparta Praha of the Czech Extraliga. Vyborny has stated that Sparta and Swiss club Lugano are his preferred destinations if he returned overseas. Vyborny played for Sparta during the lockout and his father is currently the head coach. Thanks to vakfan over at Southern Bohemian Ho(c)ke(y)j for the link! Source

There are rumours that New York Islanders prospect Jesse Joensuu will leave his team Ässät in Finland and come to North America for the remainder of the season. Source

According to Swiss newspaper Giornale del Popolo, both Chicago Blackhawks forward Martin St. Pierre and Atlanta Thrashers minor-leaguer Jason Krog could be joining HC Lugano this season. Source

Swedish defensive prospect Lars Jonsson is rumored to be leaving the Philadelphia Phantoms (Flyers AHL affilate) and could sign with one of four SEL teams; Färjestad, Leksand, HV71 and Linköping. Source