NHL Free Agency Articles - Page 16

The Toronto Maple Leafs made a trio of impact signings on the opening day of free agency to bolster their team’s defense. Their first move was trading for the rights to Chris Tanev at the draft, who they feel is the key to decreasing their opponent’s scoring chances. It took longer than expected, but the […]

After a mostly unsuccessful run as the Arizona Coyotes — the franchise made just one Stanley Cup Playoff appearance in 10 tries after shedding the Phoenix label — professional hockey will now head to Salt Lake City in 2024-25 and beyond. And Utah HC general manager Bill Armstrong got the green light from new owner […]

The Los Angeles Kings made an extremely bold trade last summer. The Kings traded for Pierre-Luc Dubois in a deal with the Winnipeg Jets. This trade included an eight-year contract extension, as well. However, that trade blew up in their face. And, ultimately, Los Angeles dumped Dubois onto the Washington Capitals this summer. Making big […]

The Anaheim Ducks had a less-than-ideal season in 2023-24. After a surprisingly good start to the season, the Ducks fell apart. Trevor Zegras dealt with injuries for most of the season. And they sold at the NHL Trade Deadline when they sent Adam Henrique to the Edmonton Oilers. Entering NHL Free Agency, though, Anaheim had […]

The Edmonton Oilers came within a single win of the Stanley Cup. In fact, they came within two goals of winning it all in 2024. Unfortunately, they lost to the Florida Panthers in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final. The heartbreaking loss didn’t deter them, though, as they entered NHL Free Agency looking to […]

The San Jose Sharks had a terrible 2023-24 season, but things are starting to look up. The Sharks drafted Macklin Celebrini with the first overall pick in the 2024 NHL Draft. And he has signed his entry-level contract, foregoing a return to Boston University. He won’t be the only top prospect heading to San Jose […]

The Winnipeg Jets had a very impressive 2023-24 season. After signing Mark Scheifele and Connor Hellebuyck to matching contracts, they made the Stanley Cup Playoffs in 2024. They did so with one of the best goaltending and defensive units in the league during the regular season. In the first round, they matched up with the […]

The Minnesota Wild received a huge performance from rookie defenseman Brock Faber in 2023-24. He emerged as a legitimate top-pairing defenseman and received a similar deployment to the league’s elite rearguards. On Monday, the Wild signed Faber to a massive eight-year contract extension that kicks in on July 1, 2025. As a result, the Minnesota […]

The San Jose Sharks were just terrible in 2023-24 — there’s no sugar coating it. Without a single star player anywhere on the roster, the squad was doomed to mediocrity in the fifth year of the rebuild. The Sharks were one of the best teams of the 2000s to not win a Stanley Cup, and […]

The Ottawa Senators are trying to get back into the Stanley Cup Playoffs in 2025. They came close in 2023, but ultimately fell short. In 2024, they took a step back and weren’t all that close to the playoff hunt. After moves such as trading for Linus Ullmark and signing David Perron in NHL Free […]

The Pittsburgh Penguins fell short of their ultimate goal of playoff hockey in 2023-24. Moves made in the offseason — such as the Erik Karlsson trade and Tristan Jarry contract extension — failed to move the needle. As a result, Pittsburgh is facing a dilemma of sorts with NHL Free Agency in the rearview mirror. […]

The Philadelphia Flyers made a huge move late in NHL Free Agency. The Flyers signed star Travis Konecny to an eight-year contract extension that kicks in during the 2025-26 season. Konecny will make $70 million through the life of this contract. And the Philadelphia star couldn’t be happier to have this deal completed. Konecny spoke […]

The New York Rangers made a trade with the Pittsburgh Penguins at the beginning of NHL Free Agency. New York acquired veteran winger Reilly Smith from the Penguins in exchange for two draft picks. Smith brings a lot to the Rangers that could help them win a Stanley Cup. And star winger Chris Kreider is […]

The Nashville Predators have already made a ton of moves. They welcomed Steven Stamkos to town after he signed a big four-year contract. Nashville also brought in Jonathan Marchessault on a five-year contract and Brady Skjei on a seven-year contract. Their summer shopping is largely done. But there could be a move or two to […]

Veteran forward Vladimir Tarasenko signed with the Detroit Red Wings in NHL Free Agency. It represents the fourth team he’ll play for in a little over a year after being traded from the St. Louis Blues. Tarasenko went to the New York Rangers in that deal around the 2023 NHL Trade Deadline. After that, he […]

The Minnesota Wild fell short of playoff expectations in 2023-24. Minnesota did make the 2023 postseason after an incredible regular season. However, they were no match for the Dallas Stars as Dallas defeated them in the first round. In 2023-24, the Wild were well out of the playoff race even after firing head coach Dean […]

The Philadelphia Flyers nearly made the Stanley Cup Playoffs in 2023-24. Unfortunately, a late-season collapse prevented them from claiming the spot they held for most of the season. Still, there are a lot of positives for the Flyers to take away from this season. One positive is the continued emergence of forward Travis Konecny. Konecny […]

Many never believed that Steven Stamkos would ever leave the Tampa Bay Lightning. Head coach Jon Cooper certainly wanted him to return to Tampa Bay, as did the fans. However, Stamkos signed with the Nashville Predators in NHL Free Agency. This is not the first time a long-time star left the organization. In fact, it […]

The Carolina Hurricanes have seen a lot of roster turnover this offseason. Players such as Brady Skjei and Brett Pesce found new homes in NHL Free Agency. And they brought in names like Sean Walker and Shayne Gostisbehere to replace them. It’ll certainly be interesting to see how this turnover affects Carolina in 2024-25. But […]

The Montreal Canadiens were largely quiet in NHL Free Agency this summer. This isn’t entirely shocking as they are still a little ways away from competing for the Stanley Cup Playoffs again. Additionally, with only $9 million in cap space, there isn’t a ton they could have done. That said, they did make a splash […]

The Chicago Blackhawks had an active NHL Free Agency this summer. Their most notable moves included signing Tyler Bertuzzi to a five-year contract on July 1. Additionally, the Blackhawks reunited with Teuvo Teravainen after trading him to the Carolina Hurricanes nearly 10 years ago. Chicago set out to make their roster deeper and more competitive. […]

The Nashville Predators made a major statement in NHL Free Agency this summer. One of their major moves was to sign Steven Stamkos to a huge four-year contract once the market opened on July 1. Stamkos spent the last 16 years with the Tampa Bay Lightning, but he was allowed to test the market after […]

The Detroit Red Wings recently signed Joe Veleno to a two-year contract extension. Since this move avoided arbitration, they received a 48-hour buyout window recently. This allows them to clear additional cap space this offseason as they try to sign Lucas Raymond and Moritz Seider to contract extensions. However, there are some Red Wings trade […]

The Buffalo Sabres didn’t live up to their lofty expectations during the 2023-24 season. However, goaltender Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen emerged as a source of hope despite the down year overall. Buffalo inked an offseason acquisition to a contract on Wednesday. After that, though, they rewarded their young goaltender after his emergence over the last season. The […]

The Nashville Predators spent big in NHL Free Agency this summer. Steven Stamkos and Jonathan Marchessault signed with the Predators in free agency, and that alone would have been a big deal. However, they also signed the best defenseman on the market in Brady Skjei. For current Nashville forward Ryan O’Reilly, free agency could not […]

The Vancouver Canucks made an intriguing move late in NHL Free Agency this summer. The Canucks signed Daniel Sprong to a one-year contract after the veteran forward spent weeks on the open market. Sprong joins his third team in as many years. He spent the last two seasons with the Seattle Kraken and Detroit Red […]

The Washington Capitals made the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs. However, it still feels as if their season was an utter disappointment. They could not overcome their offensive woes in the postseason. And while Alex Ovechkin had a great second half, he was very inconsistent. The Capitals set out to fix their uses in a massive […]

The Detroit Red Wings have had an interesting offseason, and they still have things left to do in NHL Free Agency. Detroit needs to sign franchise cornerstones Moritz Seider and Lucas Raymond to contracts at some point this offseason. Those should get done at some point, but they aren’t the only restricted free agents in […]

The Vancouver Canucks had an active NHL Free Agency period when the market opened on July 1. The Canucks signed Jake DeBrusk to a seven-year contract while adding depth such as Danton Heinen and Derek Forbort. However, they weren’t done with their activity once July 1 came and went. They recently signed forward Daniel Sprong […]

The Colorado Avalanche wanted to bounce back from a disappointing exit from the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs. And to some extent, they did. Colorado finished third in the Central Division behind the Winnipeg Jets and Dallas Stars. They went on to defeat the Jets in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, as well. However, they could not […]

The Anaheim Ducks started the 2023-24 season rather well. However, everything quickly came crashing down for this young team. And by the end of the season, they didn’t come close to the Stanley Cup Playoffs. The Ducks headed into NHL Free Agency with more than enough money and roster space to make some moves. And […]

The Pittsburgh Penguins were extremely active in NHL Free Agency a year ago. New general manager Kyle Dubas made it clear he wanted this team to remain competitive. He had no reservations about giving big contracts to veterans, which he believed would make them a better hockey team. The only issue is that the Penguins […]

The Nashville Predators won NHL Free Agency this summer. They signed Steven Stamkos and Jonathan Marchessault in a move to give more firepower to their top-six. And they brought in defenseman Brady Skjei to partner with captain Roman Josi on the backend. These moves certainly make them better, but there could be more moves on […]

The Dallas Stars have one of the most talented teams in the entire NHL. And they proved their worth in the Stanley Cup Playoffs this year. However, they unfortunately ran into the same result they did in 2023. The Stars lost in the Western Conference Finals in six games this year and watched as their […]

The St. Louis Blues put in a late challenge for a spot in the Stanley Cup Playoffs last season. They struggled to begin the year, and even fired head coach Craig Berube after a loss to the Detroit Red Wings before the calendar flipped. But they responded well to interim coach Drew Bannister and challenged […]

The Los Angeles Kings drew the Edmonton Oilers in the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the third straight season. And once again, they could not overcome Connor McDavid and Edmonton’s offensive attack. The Oilers defeated Los Angeles in five games as they went on to make the 2024 Stanley Cup Final. As a result, Los Angeles […]

Veteran defenseman Matt Grzelcyk can trace a lot of career moments to the city of Pittsburgh. The Boston Bruins drafted him in 2012 when the NHL Draft took place in the city. He debuted at PPG Paints Arena in 2016 before scoring his first career goal in that same building in 2017. Now, he will […]

The New Jersey Devils were among the favorites to contend for the Stanley Cup at the beginning of the 2023-24 season. Unfortunately, they didn’t come close to living up to those expectations. They struggled for large stretches of the season and ultimately missed the playoffs entirely. After 2024 NHL Free Agency, though, there is hope […]

The New York Rangers came close to the Stanley Cup Final once again in 2024. New York hoped to go on a deep playoff run when they hired Peter Laviolette as head coach last summer. Now, they are looking to finally get over the hump and actually make the Stanley Cup Final in 2025. They […]