Top 5 NHL UFA centers still available

In the last week, I’ve written lists on the best available UFA wingers, defenders and a shortlist of the best older players available, regardless of position. But in that last one, none of the players were centers.

If you have an NHL-caliber center in your lineup, you’ll do whatever it takes to keep them, and if one becomes available via trade or free agency, you do what you can to get them. It’s the position scouts salivate for at the top of every draft board, and it always feels like there’s 12 of them on every Canadian National Team.

Now just a month before NHL training camps open, nearly all of those available centers have found jobs around the league, and those still unsigned might be forced to go into camps on professional tryouts (PTO) instead of with a contract. Let’s take a look at five players who might be able to provide depth for a team down the middle.

Nick Cousins

The first name on our list is Nick Cousins, who recently checked off the almighty “Stanley Cup champion” box, even though he was a healthy scratch for half of the Florida Panthers’ games.

The 32-year-old can took a step back last season in terms of productions, only producing seven goals and 15 points in 69 regular-season games, the lowest total since his rookie season in 2015-16.

Cousins has never averaged more than 13 minutes per game in his career, so if you’re adding him, it’s as a fourth liner or as a 13th forward. The former Soo Greyhound has a reputation as someone who’s known to cross the line of physical and dirty, and provide teams with a physical element they may lack.

Chris Tierney

Between 2017-18 and 2019-20, there was a case to be made that Chris Tierney was a legitimate top-six forward, with a helluva pass in the offensive zone and some decent offensive production, with three seasons at or near 40 points before age 26.

But his production dropped like a stock chart in September 1929, and the Keswick, Ont., native suddenly became a fouth-line center who could provide some half-decent penalty killing.

Last season, he only mustered 12 points in 52 regular-season games with the New Jersey Devils, and he’s yet to sign with a club ahead of the 2024-25 season. Expect a team to offer him a PTO during training camp next month.

Colin White

A 2015 first-round pick for the Ottawa Senators, Colin White’s rookie season in 2018-19 was nothing to sneeze at, scoring 14 goals and 27 assists for 41 points. He performed so well that the club signed him to a six-year, $28.5 million deal, paying him an AAV of $4.75 million.

However, over the next three seasons, White would only produce 20 goals and 51 points, struggling with injuries and falling well short of expectations. After the 2021-22 season, the Senators placed him on waivers, then bought out the final three years of his contract.

Since then, he had pit stops with the Panthers, Pittsburgh Penguins and Montreal Canadiens, scoring just 15 points in 96 regular-season games and going pointless in 28 games last season. White might earn a PTO ahead for training camp, but there’s a good chance he’s played his last game in the NHL.

Rem Pitlick

Rem Pitlick could be an interesting pickup for a rebuilding group next season. Having only played 132 regular-season NHL games across six seasons, Pitlick’s career path has had plenty of stop, start, stop and pull over.

He was acquired by the Chicago Blackhawks last season, and while he was scoreless in nine games with the club, he tore up their AHL affiliate, the Rockford IceHogs, scoring 14 goals and 19 assists for 33 points in just 27 games, including five points in four Calder Cup Playoff games.

The 27-year-old has some offensive ability in his game and is more physical than his 5-foot-10, 185-pound frame suggests, and might be a valuable pickup for a group’s third or fourth line.

Sam Gagner

I’ll be honest, Sam Gagner has been a player I’ve followed since his legendary single season with the London Knights in 2006-07 and have quietly rooted for during his 17-year NHL career. There’s players whose presence just boost the spirit of their teammates and fans, and he’s one of them.

Now, is there enough in the tank for his career to continue? In 2022-23, Gagner produced eight goals and 14 points in 48 games with the Winnipeg Jets, and last season, in his third stint with the Edmonton Oilers, he had five goals and 10 points in 28 games, and was a healthy scratch for the Oilers’ entire Stanley Cup Final run.

It’s hard to determine where a 35-year-old fourth liner could fit in a lineup, as teams might prefer to give that spot to a younger player, or a better penalty killer, or for whatever reason they can come up with. But speaking strictly as a hockey fan, I hope he finds an NHL team next season. The league and its fans will be better for it.