NHL free agency officially begins Wednesday at noon ET, but it’s already been an absolutely wild hockey offseason.
With the salary cap only up $1 million from last season, teams were forced to make tough decisions such as:
Still, some potential free agents took themselves off the market by re-signing with their teams: Filip Forsberg (Predators), Kris Letang (Penguins) and Valery Nichushkin (Avalanche) among them.
The chaos of the offseason is just beginning. Here’s a guide to all 32 NHL teams, their free agents and what they should be doing when free agency officially begins.
Note: Advanced stats from Natural Stat Trick and Evolving Hockey. Cap and contract information from CapFriendly. Kristen Shilton covered the Atlantic and Central teams, while Greg Wyshynski previewed the Metro and Pacific clubs.
Go to Team:ANA | ORI | BOS | BUFCGY | CAR | CHI | COLCBJ | DAL | DET | EDMFLA | LA | MIN | MTLNSh | New Jersey | NYI | NYROTT | PHI | PIT | SJSEA | STL | tuberculosis | TORVAN | VGS | WSH | WPG
ATLANTIC DIVISION
Key Players Hitting UFA: F Patrice Bergeron Key Players Hitting RFA: F Jack Studnicka Cap Space: $2,383,333
What they need to do: The Bruins don’t want to rebuild. Therefore, they should be active buyers in free agency. But it’s not so polished for the Bruins.
The first problem is Boston’s tough injury situation. Brad Marchand (hip), Charlie McAvoy (shoulder) and Matt Grzelczyk (shoulder) underwent offseason surgeries with recoveries that will last at least the first few months of next season. General manager Don Swinney needs to address those lapses or Boston risks falling behind irrevocably early. That’s easier said than done given the second draft of just $2.3 million in cap space to work with and a key free agent — captain Patrice Bergeron — who is reportedly ready to re-sign a one-year contract. We also have Studnička – one of the club’s top prospects – to keep and potentially use more regularly in the squad.
Sweeney needs to create some cap flexibility, whether through trades or a contract buyout or two. Then it comes down to targeting the right players. Even with Bergeron back, Boston needs better play in the middle and in its bottom six. Can the Bruins do this on a shoestring budget? It’s possible. Unless Sweeney clears a lot of cap space, Boston won’t be in the mix for top-tier free agent forwards like Nazem Kadri, but someone like Max Domi or Victor Rask could be realistic.
Also, it’s hard to say what the Bruins will accomplish. A lot depends on how active Sweeney is in freeing up some flexibility.
Key Players Hitting UFA: NoneKey Players Hitting RFA: F Viktor Olofsson Cap: $32,204,166
What they should do: General manager Kevin Adams said at last week’s draft that his first priority was a new contract for Olofsson. He was also busy negotiating with Jacob Bryson’s camp to work out a deal that materialized into a two-year contract ($1.85 million per season) announced Sunday. Even after Adams settles things with Olofsson, there will be plenty of cap space on July 13.
Adams needs to invest some of that in goaltending. Craig Anderson recently re-signed to a one-year deal, but the 41-year-old is Buffalo’s only NHL goaltender under contract and can’t reasonably be expected to carry the load. The pickings are slim — and expensive — when it comes to free agent netminders, so Adams will have to work his magic early and fast. If a vacancy comes up there, Adams could also go the trade route.
Buffalo has some exciting young talent, including Alex Tuch, Peyton Krebs and Tage Thompson. Adams probably doesn’t need to add much to the front group. The Sabers defense really needs a boost. Buffalo has three blue-chip veterans hitting unrestricted agency, and at least one or two of those roles will need to be addressed. Could Adams be targeting Josh Manson or Nick Leddy? Or would he make a bigger swing and try for Ben Chiaro?
Adams needs to be strategic in his spending to some extent because those top six forwards will need new contracts soon. But strengthening Buffalo in net and in the backcourt is what Adams needs to do in free agency to put this team in position to take the next step in 2022-23.
Key players hitting UFA: NoneKey players hitting RFA: D Jake Walman, RW Filip Zadina, F Mitchell StephensCap space: $31,021,111
What they should do: General manager Steve Yzerman already checked a big box by trading for the rights to pending unrestricted free agent goaltender Ville Husso and subsequently signing him to a three-year, $14.25 million contract. This gives the Red Wings an excellent goaltending tandem of Huso and Alex Nedelkovic for the next few seasons.
2 Connected
Detroit’s main area of need now is defense. Veterans Danny DeKeyser and Mark Staal are both pending UFAs, and if they move on elsewhere, Yzerman will be looking at different depth players for the back end, with Jake Wollman potentially playing a bigger role if he stays in the fold. You could see Yzerman going with someone like Will Butcher or Olli Maata, or maybe Ian Cole. These are capable second or third pair of defenders who can support and provide stability to the team’s top defensive talents like Moritz Seider. And they could be signed to relatively cheap, short-term contracts to rebuild the Red Wings.
Likewise, there is room for Detroit to increase its forward depth with some experienced names like Bryan Rust or Calle Jarnkrok. They are strong two-way players who can set an example for some of Detroit’s young players with enough offensive talent to make consistent contributions.
Although the Red Wings are still charting their new course — under new head coach Derek Lalonde to boot — it’s all about staying low-key in free agency.
Key players hitting UFAs: F. Claude Giroux, F. Mason Marchment, D. Ben Chiarot. Key Players Hitting RFA: G. Jonas Johansson Cap: $774,166
What they should do: Florida went all-in at last season’s trade deadline, acquiring Giroux and Chiarot. Will any of them stay with the team after this gamble doesn’t pay off with expected playoff success? It doesn’t seem likely given what each player could bring elsewhere and the Panthers’ relatively limited cap space.
Marchment’s return would be a win for Florida. He is coming off the best season of his career (47 points in 54 games) and has been among the Panthers’ most reliable forwards throughout the campaign.
General manager Bill Zito will be looking to target more depth up front for the Panthers after it failed the team during the playoffs. When Florida’s big guns weren’t firing, the Presidents Trophy winners couldn’t muster anything. This cannot be repeated. Pending UFAs like Andre Burakowski and Max Domi have scoring ability and some upside, another factor Florida lacks.
Given the Panthers’ cap constraints, a player like Kasperi Kapanen could make sense as something of a reclamation project, perhaps a short-term deal for a player with great potential to bounce back from a down season.
Florida had too much time to think about how a great regular season came up short in the spring. Zito’s best bet is building from a playoff standpoint. That is, acquiring free agents who will prevent past obstacles to success from resurfacing.
Key players hitting UFA: NoneKey players hitting RFA: F Kirby Dach, F Rem Pitlick, F Michael Pezzetta, D Kale Clague, G Samuel MontembeaultCap space: $1,173,334
What they need to do: Montreal can’t do much without improving their cap situation. On the other hand, general manager Kent Hughes has already made some moves in trades for Dach (who needs a new contract) and Yevgeny Dadonov.
The Canadiens have more pending RFAs to seriously consider keeping than most teams. That will limit what Montreal is able to do in the coming days. There’s always a chance Hughes could orchestrate a deal that frees up some cap space, but in their current state, the Canadiens’ focus will more likely be on retaining their own talent.
If Hughes can do that, Montreal won’t have any glaring holes to fill. There is some concern on the back end (the Jeff Petry trade rumors persist), and adding a player on a league-minimum veteran contract wouldn’t be the worst thing.
Now, if Hughes makes a flashier deal for Petrie or Josh Anderson, it will obviously change Montreal’s approach to the free agent market. If the Canadiens believe first overall draft pick Juraj Slafkowski can have an immediate impact, that gives Hughes more room to work with in terms of a potential move forward.
What Montreal needs to do is partly what it has already done: be strategic in making early trades and support from within. What happens next, at least at this point, is gravy.
Key players hitting UFA: F Chris TierneyKey players hitting RFA: F Josh Norris, F Matthew Joseph, D Victor Mete, D Erik Branstrom Cap: $23,869,286
What they should do: General manager Pierre Dorion gutted his roster early in the NHL draft and added Alex DeBrincat, a veritable offensive dynamo, to the Senators’ roster via a trade with Chicago. It was quite the free agency and it positions Ottawa well for what’s to come.
Dorion can now turn his attention to signing Claude Giroud. Or at least it should if some of the rumors that Giroux is interested in playing for the Senators are true. Adding Giroud would be the best free agent addition Dorion could make. The former Flyers captain is still a strong offensive talent who would immediately improve Ottawa’s top 6. He’s a high-character leader, and if he picks the Senators, it would do a lot for the overall confidence of a team that’s been struggling for some good mojo in recent years.
A general area of focus for Ottawa is its defense and potential stay-at-home skaters in addition to Thomas Chabot and Jake Sanderson. Josh Manson or Ian Cole could fill this role well.
There is real excitement surrounding the Senators following the acquisition of DeBrincat. And given that DeBrincat is only signed…
Add Comment