NHL free agency: Analysis of the biggest moves

The NHL's annual free-agent frenzy is underway. The action started a day early this year, with reports of multiple impact signings across the league filtering out Monday. The market officially opened Tuesday at 12 p.m. ET.

Follow along for live analysis of every major deal during one of the busiest times on the hockey calendar. You can also find a full list of offseason transactions here.

Canes, Rangers complete sign-and-trade deal

New York signs D K'Andre Miller to 8-year, $60-million contract; trades Miller to Carolina for D Scott Morrow, 2026 1st-round pick, 2026 2nd-round pick

The Rangers make out very well here. It was no secret Miller was due for a change of scenery: The restricted free agent had fallen out of favor in New York and had been rumored to be an offer sheet target. For Rangers general manager Chris Drury to turn what appeared to be minimal leverage into this multi-faceted package? Bravo. Morrow is a young right-shot defenseman with top-four potential, while the 2026 draft class is considered super strong. (Note: the 2026 first-rounder is top-10 protected.) As for Carolina's perspective, I don't mind them making a bold move, considering they entered trade talks with two 2026 firsts. Miller, who's already a top-four talent, has higher upside than Morrow. That $7.5 million cap hit will be nothing if he continues to trend in the right direction. Carolina's reworked blue line now features lefties Miller, Jaccob Slavin, Shayne Gostisbehere, and Alexander Nikishin, and righties Jalen Chatfield and Sean Walker. That's an enviable mix of size and mobility and veterans and youngsters. Rangers grade: A-. Canes grade: B.

Rangers avoid offer sheet drama

New York signs F Will Cuylle to 2-year, $7.8-million contract

The Rangers have been dealing with some pretty heavy situations on an otherwise light July 1. They signed defenseman Vladislav Gavrikov to a monster contract and are sending blue-liner K'Andre Miller to Carolina in a trade still to be finalized. And now this. Cuylle was an offer-sheet target, so Rangers fans could view any extension as a good extension. Cuylle, a 6-foot-3, 210-pound winger, is not going to single-handedly drive a top-six forward line, but he'll contribute plenty. Similar to Matthews Knies in Toronto, he protects the puck well, can beat goalies cleanly, and has a firm grasp of the little details required of big-minute wingers. Cuylle recorded 45 points in 82 games in 2024-25, his second full season in the NHL. The sky's the limit, and he's a Ranger for two more years on a $3.9 million cap hit. B+ signing.

Lurking Ducks land 2C in Granlund

Anaheim signs F Mikael Granlund to 3-year, $21-million contract

Ducks GM Pat Verbeek entered Tuesday with $36 million in cap space and has finally pulled the trigger on a signing. Granlund is a 33-year-old playmaker who's enjoyed some of the most productive seasons of his career recently, putting up 66 points in 2024-25 and 60 in 2023-24. Anaheim is his sixth NHL team. Practically speaking, Granlund should replace Trevor Zegras in the second-line center role. (Verbeek sent Zegras to Philadelphia for depth forward Ryan Poehling and two draft picks.) Granlund's creativity with the puck should help revitalize the Ducks' power play, which had a league-low success rate in 2024-25.

Kings making deadline-esque moves?

As I wrote earlier today, I'm on board with the Kings signing wily vet Corey Perry to a low-risk one-year deal. I also have time for the signings of depth forward Joel Armia (two years, $2.5 million AAV) and backup goalie Anton Forsberg (two years, $2.3 million). Justifiable stuff. What I'm not a fan of: GM Ken Holland confusing July 1 for the trade deadline. Cody Ceci for four years at $4.5 million a season? That's the type of defenseman you acquire in an act of desperation at the deadline and then let walk in free agency. Brian Dumoulin for three years at $4 million a season? Feels completely unnecessary. Just because you have cap space at the start of free agency doesn't mean you need to use it. The responsible approach is to keep your powder dry, then pounce on late-summer bargains or in-season trades.

Sharks extend core piece Eklund

Sharks sign F William Eklund to 3-year, $16.8-million contract

San Jose handles some less urgent business. Eklund, a young playmaking winger and important core piece, wasn't due for a new contract until next July 1. His extension will start in 2026-27 and run through '28-29. What springs to mind immediately is how that '28-29 expiry might line up with the timelines of other young players. The Sharks' nucleus includes Macklin Celebrini, Will Smith, Sam Dickinson, and, as of last week, Michael Misa. The salary cap will continue to rise, which is helpful, but GM Mike Grier can't take his eyes off the ball. The NHL's smartest organizations stagger contracts to avoid a cap crunch over one or two offseasons. Very interested to see how Grier plays it.

Utah grabs worker bee Tanev

Mammoth sign F Brandon Tanev to 3-year, $7.5-million contract

It's been a pretty quiet day for Utah after GM Bill Armstrong flexed his muscles on the trade market by acquiring star forward JJ Peterka last week. Still, I like the Tanev signing. He's basically the perfect modern day fourth-line winger: forechecks and backchecks like crazy, blocks shots, and isn't on the ice for too many goals against. Tanev's 33 so this deal could take him right to retirement. The cap hit's fine - overall, win-win for the player and team. The Mammoth, who picked fourth overall a day after the Peterka trade, are on a bit of a heater. They're setting themselves up to challenge for a playoff spot.

Bruins make regrettable tough-guy signing

Boston signs F Tanner Jeannot to 5-year, $17-million contract

I get the appeal of toughness, physicality, and fighting. There's value in adding size to a lineup. But it's only worth so much. Five years for Jeannot, at a $3.4-million cap hit, is bonkers. He hasn't come close to repeating his explosive 2021-22 season of 24 goals. Jeannot recorded 0.25, 0.20, 0.25, and 0.19 points per game in the four seasons that followed, including 13 points in 67 games for the Kings in 2024-25. This is an instantly regrettable deal - there are much cheaper alternatives when it comes to tough guys.

Rangers win Gavrikov sweepstakes

New York signs D Vladislav Gavrikov to 7-year, $49-million deal

This is the biggest splash of the day so far, seeing as most of the household names took themselves off the market by re-signing. I love this for New York: Gavrikov is a 6-foot-3, 220-pound left-shot defenseman whose skill set perfectly complements Adam Fox's game (at least on paper). Gavrikov is one of the very best defensive defensemen in the league, and he also moves the puck well. Is a $7 million cap hit a tad generous? Sure. Is seven years too long for a 29-year-old with a plenty of miles on him? Sure. But it's ultimately a palatable deal. Rangers left-handed D-man K'Andre Miller is reportedly being traded to the Hurricanes in a corresponding move.

Flyers push to improve goaltending

Philadelphia signs G Dan Vladar to 2-year, $6.8-million contract

The Flyers are desperate for help between the pipes, and while this deal is far from a guaranteed win, at least the front office is trying to plug a hole. Vladar, a soon-to-be 28-year-old with 105 games of NHL experience, posted roughly league-average numbers last year in backup minutes with the Flames. The Flyers finished with a league-worst .872 save percentage thanks to rough years from Ivan Fedotov and Aleksei Kolosov. Samuel Ersson, presumably Vladar's future partner, was OK. As for the deal itself, the cap hit ($3.4 million) is alright and two years gives enough runway to see whether there's a long-term fit.

Old pals Holland, Perry link up in L.A.

Kings sign F Corey Perry to 1-year, $3.5-million contract

The Kings have lost to the Oilers in the first round of the playoffs four straight years. Now they have a former Edmonton GM running the club in Ken Holland and an ex-Oilers veteran in Corey Perry on the right wing. Perry is 40, and it shows in his serious lack of speed. However, The Worm has proven he can still impact a game under the right conditions. Perry's incredibly smart and makes his hay in the opposing team's crease. I could see a world in which coach Jim Hiller lines him up alongside Anze Kopitar and speedy winger Adrian Kempe.

Boeser unexpectedly stays in Vancouver

Canucks sign F Brock Boeser to 7-year, $50.75-million contract extension

This is the weakest UFA class in recent memory, which is why it's borderline shocking that Boeser re-signed with Vancouver - especially at a totally reasonable $7.25-million cap hit. Boeser and Nik Ehlers were the most impactful forwards available when the market opened. The Canucks' first-round pick in 2015 definitely left millions on the table to stay. Boeser, a six-time 20-goal scorer with one 40-goal season on his resume, now has a chance to finish his career in Vancouver. Good for him and his family. Canucks GM Patrik Allvin has been busy; this deal comes on the heels of trading for Evander Kane and extending Conor Garland and Thatcher Demko. I still see Vancouver as a high-floor, low-ceiling team.

Flyers bring in bottom-6 center

Philadelphia signs F Christian Dvorak to 1-year, $5.4-million contract

GM Daniel Briere is placing a low-risk bet on Dvorak here. Philly has Sean Couturier and Trevor Zegras as its top-six centers, Noah Cates as one bottom-six pivot, and now Dvorak as the other. That's by no means a Stanley Cup-contending center group. However, it's a respectable 1-4. Dvorak, 29, is very good in the faceoff circle, winning 58% and 56% of draws in 2023-24 and 2024-25. He brings a bit of offensive punch, too (six 30-point seasons). As for the cap hit, $5.4 million is definitely an overpay. But the fact that Briere got him at that number for just one year makes the deal worth it for the Flyers.

Jets make Toews' homecoming official

Jets sign forward Jonathan Toews to 1-year, $2-million contract

It's official: Jonathan Toews, one of the best two-way forwards of the salary-cap era, is making an NHL comeback by returning to his hometown of Winnipeg. Toews, a three-time Stanley Cup winner with the Blackhawks, had a long list of suitors, but the fit with the Jets made almost too much sense, given the local ties and Winnipeg's lack of second-line center options internally and on the open market. That said, expectations should be tempered for a 37-year-old who last played a competitive hockey game in April 2023 and has been on a years-long "healing journey" after dealing with symptoms of long COVID. Toews' cap hit is a drop in the bucket because of all the uncertainty, though the deal does include $5 million in performance bonuses.

Canadiens and Blues swap youngsters

Montreal trades D Logan Mailloux to St. Louis for F Zachary Bolduc

Montreal has hoarded young defensemen in recent years, and with star Noah Dobson joining the fold this past weekend, Mailloux became an obvious trade chip. The big right-shot blue-liner has appeared in only eight NHL games, but he put up a promising 33 points in 63 AHL games in 2024-25. Bolduc, meanwhile, is a hard-hitting winger with legitimate top-six upside. He's posted strong defensive metrics and has a nose for the net (19 goals in 72 games for the Blues). Both players were drafted in 2021 - Bolduc 19th overall and Mailloux controversially 31st. The curious part of this transaction, at least at first glance: St. Louis also has a logjam on the back end. Colton Parayko, Justin Faulk, Philip Broberg, Cam Fowler, and Nick Leddy lead a fairly deep group. I like this trade slightly better for the Habs.

New Jersey takes top goalie off market

Devils sign G Jake Allen to 5-year, $9-million contract extension

We're less than an hour away from the market opening and the best goalie is suddenly no longer available. Allen, a soon-to-be 35-year-old, is headed back to the Devils' crease for a whopping five years. The lengthy term keeps the cap hit at a completely manageable $1.8 million. We'll see if Allen ultimately makes it to 40 in one piece, but props to New Jersey for stretching the dollars out on a netminder with a long track record of performing in a tandem role. It'll be him and Jacob Markstrom in 2025-26. As for the remaining UFA goalies, "notable" names include Anton Forsberg, Dan Vladar, James Reimer, Ilya Samsonov, Alexandar Georgiev, and Vitek Vanecek. Yikes!

Stankoven staying in Carolina for long haul

Hurricanes sign F Logan Stankoven to 8-year, $48-million contract extension

Stankoven, the main piece sent back to the Hurricanes in March's Mikko Rantanen trade with the Stars, will be a Cane for the next nine years as his extension doesn't start until 2026-27. The feisty 5-foot-8, 165-pound winger flourished in his first 34 regular-season and playoff games in Carolina. His relentless playing style fits seamlessly in coach Rod Brind'Amour's high-pressure system. To have Stankoven at a decent cap number ($6 million) for his age 22-29 seasons while the upper limit continues to rise quickly year over year is some tidy business by GM Eric Tulsky. Stankoven has scoring upside.

DeAngelo signing highlights weak RHD class

Islanders sign D Tony DeAngelo to 1-year, $1.75-million deal

New York is keeping DeAngelo around after he arrived on Long Island in January. The 29-year-old split the 2024-25 season between the KHL (34 games) and NHL (35 games). He's a liability defensively but can be useful as a puck-mover in a sheltered third-pair role. Put another way, the signing is fine. What's more interesting: Teams looking for an upgrade on the right side of the blue line have very few options, with Brent Burns, Cody Ceci, and Nick Perbix headlining the list of UFAs after Aaron Ekblad re-signed with the Panthers.

Post-Marner era off and running in Toronto

After a flurry of activity, including the Matthew Knies extension announced Tuesday, Maple Leafs fans are beginning to understand GM Brad Treliving's vision for the post-Mitch Marner era. Power winger Knies is locked in on a fair contract ($7.8 million a season for six years), second-line center John Tavares took a major discount ($4.4 million for four years), and top-nine forwards Nic Roy and Matias Maccelli arrived via trade. Marner isn't being directly replaced by Maccelli, Roy, and whoever else joins this offseason, but Toronto projects to be a more well-rounded group in the fall. Maccelli, a creative playmaker, could end up on the left wing alongside Tavares or Auston Matthews in the top six (or slide to the third line). There's a strong chance Roy punches above his weight in the third-line center role. In other words, while this is Matthews and William Nylander's team now, the Leafs will look different. They have transitioned out of the top-heavy years.

Canucks invest in another goalie

Vancouver signs G Thatcher Demko to 3-year, $25.5-million contract extension

On one hand, a healthy Demko is a top-10 goalie in the NHL and worthy of a short-term deal that'll pay him $8.5 million annually. On the other, he's suffered a series of injuries, will turn 30 in December, and isn't the only Canucks goalie eating up a chunk of money. Kevin Lankinen, 30, signed his own extension in February with a $4.5 million cap hit for five years, taking him to 2030 free agency. (Demko has one year left on his current deal, so his extension runs through 2028-29.) Securing two capable goalies is a reasonable approach, but Vancouver is assuming some risk by devoting so much money to a position where only one guy plays every night. What if one or both contracts don't age well? And does this mean promising Arturs Silovs is simply the No. 3, or will he get flipped soon?

Florida re-signs yet another Cup winner

Panthers sign F Tomas Nosek to 1-year, $775,000 contract extension

This deal - one year at the league-minimum salary for a fourth-line center - isn't notable in a vacuum. It is, however, notable in the big picture because it adds another name to the list of Panthers who've committed to running it back. GM Bill Zito has gone down the priority list, from Sam Bennett to Aaron Ekblad to Brad Marchand to Nosek, and convinced each pending UFA to stay and pursue a third Stanley Cup. Nate Schmidt, who was excellent in the Cup Final against Edmonton, is the only interesting pending UFA remaining. The defenseman is reportedly headed elsewhere. Hey, can't win 'em all, Zito. The executive will surely find a suitable replacement, anyway.

Washington locks up another blue-liner

Capitals sign D Martin Fehervary to 6-year, $42-million contract extension

The future of the Capitals' defense corps is starting to come into sharp focus. Fehervary, whose new deal runs through the 2031-32 season, joins a long-term core of Jakob Chychrun (2032-33), Matt Roy (2029-30), and Rasmus Sandin (2028-29). He became eligible for an extension Tuesday, with his current contract not expiring until the end of next season. The 25-year-old Slovak played 19 minutes a night in 2024-25. The $7-million cap hit is roughly $1 million over market value, but it's ultimately no big deal in a rising cap world. We can assume Fehervary will start to take on a larger role moving forward.

June 30

Pietrangelo out indefinitely, maybe forever

The Golden Knights announced Monday night that defenseman Alex Pietrangelo will be sidelined indefinitely with a significant hip injury. The 35-year-old won't be back anytime soon - if ever - as he said, "The likelihood is low that my body will recover to the standard required to play." Pietrangelo is a potential future Hall of Famer with two Stanley Cups and an Olympic gold medal. Vegas' blue line took two hits Monday, with Nic Hague traded to the Predators earlier in the day. Shea Theodore, Noah Hanifin, Zach Whitecloud, Brayden McNabb, Jeremy Lauzon, and Kaedan Korczak are the top six D-men right now. Expect a depth add after the market opens.

Effective Kane re-ups with Red Wings

Red Wings sign F Patrick Kane to 1-year, $3-million contract extension

It's looking more and more like Patrick Kane will retire as a Red Wing. This is Kane's third deal with the Detroit franchise that won the sweepstakes for his services following career-threatening hip surgery in 2023. The latest extension includes extensive games-played and team-success bonuses. Kane, who turns 37 in November, recorded 59 points in 72 games last year to bring his Red Wings total to 106 points in 122 games, or 0.87 per game. That's pretty good for a former superstar supposedly well past his prime. The extension was a no-brainer for Detroit, which had the 22nd-ranked offense in 2024-25.

CBJ getting (puzzling) business done early

It's fair to assume Don Waddell isn't totally enamored by the free-agent crop. While some of his peers have sat tight, Columbus' general manager has traded for forwards Charlie Coyle and Miles Wood and re-signed pending UFA defensemen Dante Fabbro and Ivan Provorov over a four-day span. These moves make the Blue Jackets better in the short term and extra competitive in a meh Metropolitan Division. The medium- and long-term outlooks, on the other hand, are less rosy, with what's remaining on Wood's contract ($2.5 million AAV for the next four years) and the entirety of Provorov's ($8.5 million AAV, seven years) jumping out as future liabilities. Wood is a 29-year-old bottom-six winger who could theoretically be replaced by a younger, cheaper player in Years 3 and 4, and Provorov is a 28-year-old second-pair defenseman who's flat-out not worth the sizable cap hit OR lengthy term.

Bouchard deal a sign of the times

Oilers sign D Evan Bouchard to 4-year, $42-million contract extension

Whoa, sticker shock - Bouchard signed for how much over only how many years?! Expect to see more of these short-term, big-AAV deals as the salary cap keeps jumping. It's going from $88 million in 2024-25 to $95.5 million in 2025-26 to $104 million in '26-27, and then, finally, up to $113.5 million in '27-28. Bouchard's cap hit accounts for a lower percentage of the Oilers' total payroll with each passing year. He's using the changing landscape to his advantage; upon expiry of this new deal, the blue-liner will be able to cash in again as a 29-year-old free agent in the summer of 2029. Bouchard's an offensive dynamo with insane playoff numbers (81 points in 75 games) but a habit of turning the puck over at inopportune times.

Bill Zito continues to put on clinic

Panthers reportedly sign F Brad Marchand to 6-year, $31.5-million contract extension

It didn't seem probable, but the Stanley Cup champions are running it back. Zito, the Panthers' shark of a general manager, convinced winger Marchand, defenseman Aaron Ekblad, and center Sam Bennett to all sign below-market extensions before July 1. The key selling point, of course, was term, with Ekblad (who also signed Monday at a $6.1 million AAV) and Bennett (signed last Friday at an $8 million AAV) committing to eight years at 29 years old and Marchand six years at 37. None of these deals will age gracefully, but that's beside the point. Zito and the Panthers are shooting for a fourth straight trip to the Cup Final and third straight Cup victory to seal dynasty status, and these three tunnel-vision transactions bring them closer to achieving that goal.

Marner takes talents to Sin City

Maple Leafs reportedly sign F Mitch Marner to 8-year, $96-million contract extension, trade him to Golden Knights for F Nicolas Roy

This is savvy asset management by Brad Treliving.

The Leafs general manager would have lost Marner for nothing if the winger reached free agency Tuesday. Any trade, then, is worthy of a thumbs-up. To receive a legitimate NHLer instead of a mid-round draft pick (the going rate for trading the rights of a pending UFA star) is a massive win. Roy, 28, is a 6-foot-4 two-way center who'd long been buried on Vegas' depth chart. He slots in nicely behind Auston Matthews and John Tavares as the Leafs' 3C. His cap hit of $3 million through 2026-27 leaves plenty of room for upgrades elsewhere.

The Golden Knights, meanwhile, continue to care about one thing and one thing only: challenging for the Stanley Cup every season. Regardless of risk.

Marner, arguably the NHL's most well-rounded winger, is fresh off a 102-point campaign. He joins a forward group that orbits around two other stars acquired via trade in Jack Eichel and Mark Stone. Does Marner, 28, find a home on Eichel's wing? William Karlsson's? Either way, he's escaped the Toronto microscope and added $96 million to his career earnings (though he surely could have reeled in a heftier deal on the open market). Time will tell if his checkered playoff production follows him to the Western Conference.

John Matisz is theScore's senior NHL writer. Follow John on Twitter (@MatiszJohn) or contact him via email ([email protected]).