The Golden Knights have signed Brayden McNabb to a four-year extension worth $10M ($2.5M AAV).
NHL Hockey Player News
The Maple Leafs have signed Josh Leivo to a one-year deal worth $925K.
The Blue Jackets signed Cam Atkinson to a seven-year extension worth $41.125M ($5.875M AAV).
Atkinson’s extension include a no-trade or no-move clause in the first two years of the deal and a limited no-trade after that. Atkinson had a breakout campaign in 2016-17 but has struggled early-on in 2017-18, collecting just four goals and two assists (six points) in 15 games. Regardless of the slow start, Atkinson is locked into a large role in the Blue Jackets offence and is now signed there through the 2024-25 season.
Signing
The Maple Leafs agreed to terms with Roman Polak on a one-year deal worth $1.1M.
Polak appeared in 75 games with the Maple Leafs last season, posting just 11 points (4G / 7A) and averaging 17:55 TOI/GM—including a team-high 2:54 TOI/GM on the penalty kill. The Maple Leafs have been leaning heavily on Ron Hainsey and Nikita Zaitsev on the PK, so Polak has likely been signed to ease that burden on those two.
The Red Wings signed Andreas Athanasiou to a one-year deal worth $1.3875 million.
The Panthers have signed Michael Matheson to an eight-year deal worth $39M ($4.875M AAV).
Matheson, 23, was the No.23 pick in 2012 and has become a big part of the Panthers’ blueline, averaging over 21 minutes per game last year and through the first two games of this season. He has some offensive ability to his game and should be able to top his 17 points (7G / 10A) from last season.
The Golden Knights have signed Brandon Pirri to a one-year deal worth $650K.
Pirri has proven to be a quality goal-scorer throughout his career, but hasn’t really been put in opportunities to succeed in recent years. Pirri had 22 goals in 49 games with the Panthers in 2014-15 and is coming off of a season where he tallied eight goals and 10 assists (18 points) in 60 contests with the Rangers.
The Senators have signed Mark Borowiecki to a two-year extension worth $2.4M ($1.2M AAV).
Borowiecki, 28, does not being a lot of fantasy value to the table unless you are in a hits league. In 2016-17. Borowiceki led the league in hits (364) last season, but had just one goal and two assists.
The Wild signed Daniel Winnik to a one-year deal worth $660K.
Winnik is expected to make his Wild debut on Thursday after earning a contract on a PTO during training camp. Winnik is coming off of a year in which he had 12 goals and 13 assists (25 points) in 72 games with the Capitals. Look for him to skate with Matt Cullen and Tyler Ennis on the Wild fourth line in his debut.
The Capitals have signed Alex Chiasson to a one-year deal worth $660K.
Chiasson, 27, spent last year in Calgary after two years in Ottawa and had 12 goals and 12 assists (24 points) in 81 games. Chiasson will make his Capitals debut on the third line while Tom Wilson is suspended.
Signing
The Blackhawks have signed Cody Franson to a one-year contract.
The Blackhawks had to wait until they moved Marian Hossa to LTIR to announce the deal, but they bring Franson to join a mostly inexperienced blueline. Franson spent the last two seasons with the Sabres, where he had five goals and 19 assists (24 points) per 82 games, but missed a combined 37 games. His value will hinge on how much power-play time he gets in Chicago.
The Jets have signed Nikolaj Ehlers to a seven-year deal worth $42 million ($6.0M AAV).
Ehlers is entering the final year of a three-year deal, so this new deal won’t kick in until 2018-19 and it runs through the 2024-25 season. The 21-year-old is coming off of a great sophomore campaign, having collected 25 goals and 39 assists (64 points) in 82 games. Ehlers is positioned for another great year as he’s poised to start the season with Patrik Laine and Bryan Little.
The Sabres signed Jack Eichel to an eight-year extension worth $80 million ($10.0M AAV).
Eichel is entering the final year of his entry-level contract, so this extension will kick in for the 2018-19 season and run through the 2025-26 campaign—he will be 29-years-old. Eichel is hoping for a better start to 2017-18 after last year got derailed by an injury before the first game. Upon his return to the Buffalo lineup, Eichel was 10th in the NHL in points and is pegged as one of the biggest breakout candidates coming into this season.
The Flames have signed Tanner Glass to a one-year deal worth $650K.
Glass signs on with the Flames to be a depth forward after a solid training camp. The 33-year-old winger offers nothing in terms of fantasy value, having picked up just 69 points (24G / 45A) in 511 career NHL games.
The Blue Jackets signed Josh Anderson to a three-year contract worth $5.55M ($1.85M AAV).
Anderson held out of training camp as an unsigned RFA, but gets a contract one-day before the start of the NHL season. The 23-year-old is coming off of 17-goal, 12-assist season and will look to carve out a larger role this season. Missing training camp will put Anderson behind the 8-ball and likely force him to start the season in the bottom-6.
Signing
The Flames have signed Jaromir Jagr to a one-year deal worth $1.0M.
After a summer of hilarious Tweets and patiently waiting, Jagr has signed on with the Flames two days prior to the start of the season. The 45-year-old veteran appeared in all 82 games last season, posting 16 goals and 30 assists (46 points) with the Florida Panthers. Jagr will likely play be limited to a bottom-6 role to start, but could work his way up the depth chart in a hurry.
The Senators have signed Craig Anderson to a two-year extension worth $9.5M ($4.75M AAV).
Anderson was entering the final year of a three-year deal but is now signed through the 2019-20 season. Anderson is coming off of a tough off-the-ice season, but played spectacularly in his 40 starts, going 25-11-4 with a 2.28 GAA, .926 SV% and five shutouts. As long as everything goes well, Anderson should get back to 50-plus starts and could approach 30 wins, making him a solid No.2 fantasy option.
Signing
The Wild signed Mikko Koivu to a two-year extension worth $11.0M ($5.5M AAV).
Koivu was heading into the final year of his seven-year contract that carries a $6.75M cap-hit, but the Wild inked the 34-year-old to a deal that will take him through the 2019-20 season. The Wild captain had 18 goals and 40 assists (58 points) in 80 games last season and is tied for 30th in the NHL in assists (113) and tied for 45th in points (162) while only missing four games over the last three seasons.
The Bruins have signed David Pastrnak to a six-year deal worth $40M ($6.67M AAV).
Pastrnak was back in the Czech Republic and was gearing up to skate with a team there if he didn’t get a new deal in Boston. GM Don Sweeney held his ground and got a good deal for both sides and now one of their top offensive weapons will report to training camp. Coming off of a 70-point (34G / 36A) campaign, the 21-year-old enters 2017-18 with huge expectations. Look for him to be a point-per-game player.
The Jets have signed Bryan Little to a six-year extension worth $31.746M ($5.291M AAV).
Little was entering the final year of a five-year deal with a $4.7M AAV, so the 29-year-old centre gets a bit of a raise starting in 2018-19. Little has been a strong playmaker for the Jets, but has had some concerns over the years, missing 60 games over the last three seasons. If he can stay on the ice, Little has 25-goal, 40-assist upside.
NHL Free Agents: Best Available Players in 2025
Once the dust settles on the Stanley Cup Final, the NHL offseason officially commences as the latest wave of free agents hit the market as teams and players alike reevaluate their current situation and plot their next steps toward success.
With a plethora of talent up for grabs every summer, Stanley Cup contenders can be formed as well as broken up through free agency. With NHL signings going down at a breakneck pace throughout the opening days of free agency, we’ll keep you in the loop with our 2025 NHL free agency tracker. You can find all of the latest NHL signings of the free agency period as players switch teams, sign extensions, and change the outlook of the league with a single decision.
Whether you’re a diehard fan of your favourite team and are looking to stay up to date with every move made by the front office, or are an avid daily fantasy sports bettor that wants to prep for their wagers, our NHL free agency tracker is the best destination for all your free agent market news.
Types of Free Agent Markets
Each NHL free agent holds their own unique distinction when signing with a team. These distinctions are made based on a number of factors including age, NHL experience, as well as their current contract situation. NHL free agents are divided by restricted and unrestricted free agents, with each classification of player holding varying rights, including how teams are able to offer them contracts, and the results of receiving an offer.
Below, we take a deep dive into each type of NHL free agent so you can get a thorough understanding of each free agent market type, how they are able to sign with teams, and the possible outcomes from each offseason acquisition.
Restricted Free Agents
A restricted NHL free agent (RFA) is a player that is either under the age of 27 or has been in the NHL for less than seven seasons. Teams hold a form of protection over their restricted free agents, providing them with a sort of insurance if their RFA decides to sign with a new team.
While restricted free agents are technically eligible to sign a new contract with different teams, the process can become messy if a team other than their original squad makes them an offer and they accept. Restricted free agents are only able to sign a standard NHL contract with the team that currently owns the players rights, all other squads must submit an offer sheet if they want to lure away a player from their team. If an offer sheet is made to an RFA, the team who holds the players rights will be left with the option to either match the offer made to their player, or allow the player to sign with the team that made the offer sheet, in return receiving draft compensation depending on the value of the contract offered.
Qualifying Offers
In order for a team to retain a player’s rights heading into the free agency period, they must make a qualifying offer to the player. These offers are in the form of a one-year contract, with the amount offered being formulated depending on the value of their previous contract.
For any player who was on a deal worth $660,000 or less, the qualifying offer they receive must be worth 110% the amount of their previous season’s salary. For a player making between $660,000 and $1,000,000, they must be offered 105% their previous seasons salary. Finally, if a player was making more than $1 million in their previous year of duty, their team must offer them 100% of their previous season’s salary.
These offers are not final and players are eligible to receive greater or lesser valued contracts from the team that holds their rights once free agency begins. Players who reject qualifying offers remain restricted free agents.
Non-Qualified RFAs
If a team decides to not submit a qualifying offer to a restricted free agent on their roster, all non-qualified RFAs instantly become free agents and are welcome to sign contracts with any team come July 1st.
Unrestricted Free Agents
The other form of NHL free agent is the unrestricted free agent (UFA). UFAs have the right to sign their next deal with any team without restriction, as long as the offer they sign complies with league salary cap mandates and rules. Unrestricted free agents are truly what can shake up the free agent market, with many of the leagues top stars entering into the offseason as UFAs.
There are multiple forms of unrestricted free agents, each with their own unique classifications, but don’t necessarily affect the potential value of the contracts offered to them in the offseason. Below are two of the most common UFAs.
Group 3 UFAs
Common among NHL veterans, Group 3 comprises players entering free agency that are 27 or older, or have played in the NHL for more than seven accrued seasons. An accrued season is defined as a season in which a player has suited up for action on an NHL roster in at least 40 games (30 for goalies). Any player that fits this criteria will become an unrestricted free agent once their contract expires in the following offseason.
Group 6 UFAs
Another way that players can become an unrestricted free agent is by being 25 years of age or older and to have played three or more professional hockey seasons under an NHL contract (AHL, ECHL, Europe), but played in less than 80 NHL games (28 for goalies) in their career. Often, Group 6 unrestricted free agents are developing players that, for one reason or another, have not had the chance to crack into an NHL lineup, but still possess experience as a high-level player. There is no difference in the rights of Group 3 and Group 6 unrestricted free agents, but typically the latter will receive smaller contracts, both in terms of value as well as in duration.
Undrafted UFAs
The final way that a player may enter into free agency as an unrestricted free agent is by going undrafted in their three years of draft eligibility. If a player is not selected by an NHL franchise through the draft they are still eligible to crack into a final roster as a free agent.
NHL Free Agency FAQs
Who are the top NHL free agents in 2025?
Some of the top NHL free agents available this summer are Mitch Marner, Mikko Rantanen, Aaron Ekblad, Nikolaj Ehlers, John Tavares, Brock Boeser, Brad Marchand and Linus Ullmark.
This offseason will bring a stacked crop of free agents to the market that will shape the landscape of the 2025-26 NHL season. Not only will the final landing spots for each of the top 2025 NHL free agents shake up the framework of the league, but will also have major implications on the upcoming fantasy hockey season. Be sure to stay in the know in regard to the latest free agency updates with our NHL player news.
What time does free agency start?
On July 1st, 2025, at 12 PM EST, the 2025 NHL free agency period officially opens. While some players will have all but signed the dotted line up to this point, nothing can become official until noon on Canada Day.