NHL Signings & Free Agents

The Bruins were busy on July 1st, adding Eyssimont to a list of depth forwards that includes Tanner Jeannot and Sean Kuraly. The 28-year-old Eyssimont scored 16 points (9G / 7A) in 77 games between the Tampa Bay Lightning and Seattle Kraken last season.

Kuraly spent the previous four seasons with the Columbus Blue Jackets, but will join his third NHL team in the 2025-26 season on a two-year deal worth $1.85 million AAV with the Boston Bruins. The 32-year-old Kuraly had 17 points (6G / 11A) in 82 games with the Blue Jackets last season, his lowest point total since scoring nine points (4G / 5A) in 47 games with the Boston Bruins in 2020-21.

Entering his 17th NHL season, the Red Wings add more veteran experience by signing van Riemsdyk to a one-year deal worth $1 million. The 36-year-old American forward scored 36 points (16G / 20A) in 71 games with the Columbus Blue Jackets last season. He has 665 points (327G / 338A) in 1082 career games.

Bernard-Docker was the 26th-overall pick of the Ottawa Senators in the 2018 NHL Entry Draft and spent his first five NHL seasons with the organization before being sent to the Buffalo Sabres before the trade deadline in 2024-25. He will join his third NHL team in the 2025-26 season, with the Red Wings on a one-year deal worth $875K. The 25-year-old defenseman has 24 points (6G / 18A) in 144 career games.

Geersten was a fourth-round pick of the Colorado Avalanche in the 2013 NHL Entry Draft but has been limited to only 25 NHL games, all with the New Jersey Devils in the 2021-22 season. The 30-year-old defenseman has spent the majority of his career in the AHL, including scoring five points (0G / 5A) in 31 games with the Henderson Silver Knights last season.

Jaros has played 94 career NHL games but spent the previous four seasons playing in Europe in the KHL. The 29-year-old defenseman was a fifth-round pick of the Ottawa Senators in the 2015 NHL Entry Draft and returns to North America on a two-way, one-year deal with the Blue Jackets.

Clurman made his NHL debut last season, playing one game with the Pittsburgh Penguins, and has signed a one-year, two-way deal with the Montreal Canadiens. The 27-year-old Clurman scored 11 points (2G / 9A) in 31 games from the blueline with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (AHL) last season.

Allard is an undrafted 23-year-old forward who has spent the previous three seasons with the Syracuse Crunch (AHL) and will remain in the Tampa Bay Lightning organization after signing a two-year, entry-level contract. He scored 16 points (7G / 9A) in 45 games last season with Syracuse.

Lycksell was a sixth-round pick of the Philadelphia Flyers in the 2017 NHL Entry Draft and, despite impressing at the AHL level, was limited to only 45 games in his NHL career. The 25-year-old winger scored an impressive 44 points (19G / 25A) in 43 games with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms (AHL) last season.

Pederson is an undrafted 27-year-old forward who last played in the NHL in a 16-game stint with the Columbus Blue Jackets in the 2022-23 season. He spent the entirety of the 2024-25 season in the AHL, scoring 12 points (5G/ 7A) in 18 games with the Bakersfield Condors.

Entering his age-34 season, Tanev will look to prove he is still an intimidating force as he joins the Utah Mammoth on a three-year deal worth $2.5 million AAV. Tanev finished the 2024-25 season splitting time between the Seattle Kraken and Winnipeg Jets, recording 22 points (10G / 12A), 105 blocks, and 168 hits in 79 games.

Blais had a breakout 2022-23 season, scoring 20 points (9G / 11A) in 31 games with the St. Louis Blues, but only scored seven points (1G / 6A) in 53 games in 2023-24 and ultimately spent the entirety of the 2024-25 season in the AHL. After losing Joel Armia and Michael Pezzetta, the Canadiens will look to Blais to compete for a bottom-six role in the upcoming 2025-26 season.

Kahkonen had a one-game stint with the Colorado Avalanche early in the 2024-25 season when they were experimenting with goalies, but failed to impress and spent the remainder of the season in the AHL. The 28-year-old goalie had a 2.30 GAA and .906 SV% in 12 games (8-4-0) with the Charlotte Checkers (AHL) last season. His last campaign as a full-time goalie on an NHL roster was in 2022-23 with the San Jose Sharks when he posted a 3.81 GAA and .895 SV% in 31 games (6-20-3). He will likely be third on Montreal's depth chart behind Samuel Montembeault and Jakub Dobes.

Bear will join his fourth organization in five seasons after signing a one-year deal worth $775,000 with the Islanders on Tuesday. The 28-year-old defenceman last appeared in the NHL in 2023-24 after spending last season in Hershey (AHL) where he had 10 goals and 46 points in 62 games played. He is expected to compete for one of the Islanders' final roster spots in training camp.

Perunovich will join his third organization in two seasons after signing a one-year, two-way minimum deal with Utah on Tuesday. The 26-year-old joined the Islanders midseason in 2024-25 after three seasons with St. Louis and ended his campaign with two goals and nine points in 35 total games played between the two organizations. He will provide depth for Utah's defence this season and is expected to compete for one of the final roster spots in training camp for the upcoming season.