Buffalo has signed Matt Villalta to a one-year, two-way contract.
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NHL Signings & Free Agents
Edmonton has signed Shakir Mukhamadullin to a two-year, $1.75 million AAV contact ($3.5M total).
The Maple Leafs have signed Emil Andrae to a two-year deal worth $1.55M AAV ($3.1M total).
The Panthers have signed Donovan Sebrango to a one-year deal worth $850K.
The Predators have signed Chase Bradley to a two-year, two-way contract.
Toronto has signed Gavin McKenna to a three-year, entry-level contract.
Pittsburgh has signed Hendrix Lapierre to a two-year, $1.3 million AAV contract. ($2.6M total)
Utah has signed Andrew Peeke to a one-year, $1 million contract.
The Golden Knights have signed Adam Ginning to a two-year deal worth $875K AAV ($1.75M total).
The Devils signed Xavier Parent to a one-year, two-way contract.
Parent made his NHL debut last season, playing five games with the New Jersey Devils and made a lasting impression, earning himself a one-year, two-way contract extension. The undrafted 25-year-old forward spent most of the 2025-26 season in the AHL, scoring 39 points (20G / 19A) in 63 games with the Utica Comets.
The Devils signed David Rittich to a one-year deal with $1.0M.
With the recent departure of Jacob Markstrom in a trade to the Florida Panthers, the New Jersey Devils shored up their goaltending depth by acquiring veteran David Rittich. The 33-year-old Czech goalie had a serviceable 2025-26 season as the backup netminder for the New York Islanders, posting a 2.76 GAA and .894 SV% in 30 games (14-10-3).
The Lightning have signed Jansen Harkins to a one-year, two-way contract.
Harkins, the 47th overall pick of the Winnipeg Jets in the 2015 NHL Entry Draft, has established himself as a reliable bottom-six forward. The 29-year-old scored eight points (3G / 5A) last season in 44 games with the Anaheim Ducks.
The Lightning have signed Tomas Kralovic to a three-year, entry-level contract.
Kralovic, the 90th overall pick of the Tampa Bay Lightning in the 2016 NHL Entry Draft, has signed a three-year, entry-level contract. The 20-year-old Slovak defenseman has yet to play a professional game in the North America, but he had an impressive 2025-26 season in Slovakia, scoring 31 points (6G / 25A) in 52 games for Bratislava Slovan.
Philadelphia has signed Nolan Foote to a one-year, two-way contract.
Foote, the 27th overall pick of the Tampa Bay Lightning in the 2019 NHL Entry Draft, has not been able to make the full-time jump to the NHL level but has provided solid organizational depth wherever he goes. The 25-year-old forward scored one goal last season in 12 games with the Florida Panthers.
Winnipeg has signed Henry Thrun to a one-year, two-way contract.
Thrun has 123 games of NHL experience under his belt, but was limited to just four games last season with the Toronto Maple Leafs. The 25-year-old defenseman spent most of the 2025-26 season in the AHL, where he scored 23 points (5G / 18A) in 55 games with the Toronto Marlies.
The Devils have signed Amadeus Lombardi to a two-year deal worth $875K AAV ($1.75M total)
Lombardi was a fourth-round pick, 113th overall, by the Detroit Red Wings in the 2022 NHL Entry Draft. The 23-year-old has yet to play an NHL game and has spent the entirety of the past three seasons in the AHL with the Grand Rapids Griffins. In 2025-26, he scored 42 points (16G / 26A) in 47 games.
Dallas has signed Jamie Benn to a one-year, $850,000 AAV contract extension.
Benn's production has dipped in recent seasons, but he still adds solid value on a league-minimum contract for a Dallas Stars team facing salary cap adversity. The soon-to-be 37-year-old forward averaged a career-low 13:17 time-on-ice in 2025-26, but still managed a serviceable 36-point campaign (15G / 21A) while playing 60 games.
Toronto has signed Vinnie Lettieri to a one-year, two-way contract.
Toronto has added significant forward depth this offseason, with Lettieri adding to the growing list of capable forwards that can flourish in a bottom-six role. The 31-year-old forward spent the entire 2025-26 season in the AHL, where he scored 42 points (14G / 28A) in 55 games with the Toronto Marlies.
Toronto has signed Samuel Hlavaj to a one-year, two-way contract.
Hlavaj was buried behind some strong organizational goaltending depth for the Minnesota Wild and hopes to get a bigger chance to showcase his talents in Toronto, likely in the AHL with the Marlies. The 25-year-old Slovak goalie had modest numbers player for a poor Iowa (AHL) team last season, posting a 3.28 GAA and .887 SV% in 22 games (7-11-4), but made a name for himself while representing Slovakia at the Winter Olympics.
The Predators have signed Hunter Skinner to a one-year, two-way deal.
Skinner made his NHL debut last season, playing one game with the Blues, but has otherwise exclusively played in the AHL. The 25-year-old defenseman, a fourth-round pick in the 2019 NHL Entry Draft, scored 19 points (7G / 12A) last season with the Springfield Thunderbirds (AHL).
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.