10 unrestricted free agents with something to prove in 2024 playoffs

Credit: Feb 17, 2024; Vancouver, British Columbia, CAN; Vancouver Canucks forward Elias Lindholm (23) skates during warm up prior to a game against the Winnipeg Jets at Rogers Arena. Mandatory Credit: Bob Frid-USA TODAY Sports

NHL players earn most of their money in the regular season. It offers an 82-game sample size, or something close to it depending on health. So most unrestricted free agents secure their contracts primarily based on what they do in the regular season.

But sometimes, the playoffs can change a player’s value in the crucial months leading up to July 1. A good player can be great in the postseason and earn himself extra money and term. A star can no-show when it matters most and leave a bad taste in his team’s mouth heading into free agency. Sometimes a struggling player, or someone who missed a bunch of the regular season due to injury, can salvage his value with a heroic postseason turn.

Which pending 2024 UFAs have the most on the line in the Stanley Cup playoffs this spring?

The answer is not simply “all of them.” Sam Reinhart, for instance, is getting P.A.I.D. no matter what coming off a 57-goal campaign. Future Hall of Famer Steven Stamkos has very little to prove ahead of his next contract. Same goes for reigning Conn Smythe Trophy winner Jonathan Marchessault, who also just delivered a career-best 41 goals in the regular season.

So which free agents truly have a chance to alter their values this postseason? Consider these names, listed alphabetically.

Jake DeBrusk, Boston Bruins

After Boston’s win in Game 3 against the Toronto Maple Leafs Wednesday, Charlie McAvoy summarized how DeBrusk’s teammates feel about him, calling him a gifted goal scorer. He’s shown it in flashes throughout his career, but he’s also never topped 27 tallies in a season due to his maddening inconsistency. DeBrusk typically shows up in the post-season, however. His speed and net-crashing ability translate well there. He has 25 goals in 76 career playoff games, including three already this spring. DeBrusk is wrapping up a two-year deal at a $4 million AAV, signed two years ago, and he arguably hasn’t earned a raise on that figure with his regular-season play, but he could remind the Bruins why he’s worth one – plus more term – if he delivers a big postseason.

Casey DeSmith, Vancouver Canucks

Thatcher Demko’s undisclosed injury will hold him out week to week, dealing the Canucks a devastating blow while they lock horns with the underdog Nashville Predators in Round 1. Backup DeSmith was thrust into duty in Game 2 and, while he wasn’t the reason for Vancouver’s loss, he didn’t look heroic either. That doesn’t mean he won’t at some point in this series. Countless times in playoff history, backup goaltenders have been called upon to bail out their teams only to get hot and go on epic runs. Last year, both Stanley Cup Final entries made it with netminders who weren’t their starters at the beginning of the playoffs. DeSmith has a respectable .909 career save percentage. If he puts together a playoff heater and helps Vancouver reach Round 2 or beyond, he could jump up a pay grade on his next contract.

Matt Duchene, Dallas Stars

Can Duchene earn himself another long-term commitment at 33 years old? He was bought out by the Nashville Predators a year ago coming off a down season and joined the Stars on one-year “prove it” deal at a bargain $3 million AAV. Duchene had a strong year as Dallas’ second-line center, picking up 25 goals and 65 points while playing just 16:46 a night on a deep team. Can he be part of the Stars’ long-term plans? It’s complicated. The Stars have more than $71 million committed to their cap already for 2024-25, they have Joe Pavelski’s contract ending too, and they have just three defensemen signed, with breakout blueliner Thomas Harley due a big raise as an RFA. Considering Dallas’ forward depth is so great that they can’t even find a spot in the lineup for AHL scoring champion Mavrik Bourque, there’s a decent chance Duchene is auditioning for a gig elsewhere during these playoffs.

Matt Dumba, Tampa Bay Lightning

Just a couple years ago, Dumba was perceived as a viable top-four-grade NHL defenseman. But a combination of injuries, ineffectiveness and the erosion of his offensive game reduced him to an afterthought, to the point the Coyotes punted him to the Lightning along with a seventh-round pick just to net a fifth-rounder at the trade deadline. Relegated to third-pair duty, he doesn’t appear to have the trust of coach Jon Cooper, logging 15:12 a night so far in the playoffs. But Dumba still has a booming shot and an ability to deliver game-changing hits. If he wants anything more than a second consecutive one-year deal, he must find a way to make an impact in the minutes he gets. The problem: Tampa is down 3-0 in the series. Dumba is almost out of chances.

Elias Lindholm, Vancouver Canucks

No point in sugarcoating it: Lindholm has been a disaster for the Canucks, relative to (a) the expectations for his performance when they acquired him and (b) the hefty price they paid to acquire him. He was supposed to be a versatile swingman, capable of playing center or the wing and in all situations, producing something in the range of a point per game while playing strong defense as well. A 6-6-12 line in 26 games post-trade, with a demotion to third-line duty, wasn’t what anyone had in mind and threatens to shave down what was clearly going to be his set-for-life contract as a 29-year-old UFA. But Lindholm has a chance to salvage his next deal, wherever he signs, if he can be a go-to player for the Canucks this postseason. So far, he’s delivered a goal with six hits and won more than 60 percent of his faceoffs across Games 1 and 2 vs. Nashville, with the Canucks almost doubling the Preds in scoring chances at 5-on-5 when he’s on the ice. It’s a start.

Brandon Montour, Florida Panthers

Montour was on track for a great payday a year ago, coming off a career-best 73 points and helping the Panthers reach the Stanley Cup Final. But offseason shoulder surgery delayed his start to 2023-24 and he never recaptured the torrid scoring pace of last season. There’s no denying Montour’s talent as a puck-moving blueliner, though. A strong playoff performance could establish that his injury is behind him and help him secure a lucrative long-term contract, whether it’s to stay in Florida or move on. So far, so good; he scored a goal in Game 3 and is playing 23-plus minutes per game so far in the playoffs.

Ilya Samsonov, Toronto Maple Leafs

“Roller coaster” no longer adequately describes Samsonov’s season. How about…death-defying, heart-stopping, brand-new Six Flags attraction? The Leafs rendered his future murky by taking him to arbitration a year ago and walking out with a one-year deal that took him to unrestricted free agency in 2024. He struggled so badly in the first half that he wound up waived, unclaimed and demoted to the minors, only to fight back with such a strong surge in the stretch run that he secured unquestioned starting goalie status heading into the playoffs. But with ‘Sammy,’ one of the game’s most talented but least consistent netminders, you never know whether Jekyll or Hyde will be patrolling Toronto’s crease. How far Samsonov takes this team in the playoffs could decide whether he returns next season. Samsonov is equally capable of going on a heater and helping the Leafs turn their series around against Boston or flaming out in Game 4 and ceding the crease to Joseph Woll by Game 5.

Max Pacioretty, Washington Capitals

With the Capitals trailing the New York Rangers 2-0 and facing a potential short series, every game counts for ‘Patches.’ Entering this season coming off consecutive Achilles tendon tears, he had 91 points in his previous 92 games. There was little doubting he could still play; it was a matter of proving he was healthy. Pacioretty made it through 47 games in the regular season, but the rink rust showed in his lack of scoring touch: the six-time 30-goal scorer buried just four goals while converting on a career-low 4.2 percent of his shots. It might just be a matter of getting into a rhythm for someone who played three total games all last season. The longer the Capitals survive in the playoffs, the more runway Pacioretty gets to show he can still put the biscuit in the basket.

Cam Talbot, Los Angeles Kings

Considering he was only a $1 million investment, Talbot had delivered incredible value to the Kings this season. He finished seventh in the NHL in goals saved above average and 10^th in save percentage while earning a trip to the All-Star Game. Talbot also endured a brutal swoon in January that coincided with the Kings firing head coach Todd McLellan, and Talbot has been more survivor than thriver against the high-octane Edmonton Oilers attack so far this postseason, winning Game 2 but compiling an .867 SV%. Talbot, 36, did earn himself legit coin by starting more than 50 games for the first time in six years and quelling durability concerns. But if he can recapture the groove he was in at the start of this season, when he looked like a Vezina Trophy candidate, and steal some games from the Oilers, he’ll increase his odds of earning true starter money next year.

Sean Walker, Colorado Avalanche

No matter what happens, Walker has changed his NHL life this season. He went from healthy scratch for the Kings in the 2023 playoffs, to a salary dump in a trade to the Philadelphia Flyers, to a crucial contributor on their blueline, to a key deadline chip that netted them a first-round pick from Colorado. His simple, well-rounded, mobile game should earn him top-four money on his next deal. But considering his breakout came so late at 29, anyone hoping to sign him, whether it’s Colorado or a new team, will want to see as big of a sample size of “New Walker” as possible. A deep playoff run in which he’s an indispensable part of the Avs’ blueline, logging 20-plus minutes a night, would give suitors more confidence.

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