NHL Signings & Free Agents

The Oilers have signed Devin Shore to a one-year, two-way contract worth $700K and placed him on waivers.

Shore has bounced around the NHL in recent years, going from Dallas to Anaheim to Columbus since 2019 and now lands in Edmonton. The 26-year-old centre had five goals and seven assists (12 points) in 45 games in 2020 and appears destined to start the 2021 season on the Oilers taxi squad.

Devin Shore
The Wild have signed Marcus Foligno to a three-year contract worth $9.3 million ($3.1M AAV).

Foligno has picked up 26 goals and 41 assists in 218 games over the last three seasons, including a career-high 25 points (11G / 14A) in 59 games a season ago. Foligno is often found among the hits leaders and has become a key part of the Wild's bottom-6. Look for him to open the 2021 season on the third-line with Joel Eriksson Ek and Jordan Greenway.

Marcus Foligno
The Canucks have signed Travis Hamonic to a one-year contract worth $1.25 million.

Hamonic was in Canucks training camp on a PTO but was always expected to sign before the season. Hamonic inked a very team-friendly, one-year deal and is expected to start the season on the second-pair with Quinn Hughes. The 30-year-old defenseman averaged five goals, 13 assists, 71 hits and 170 blocked shots per-82 games in his three seasons with the Flames.

Travis Hamonic
The Devils have signed Jesper Bratt to a two-year contract worth $5.5 million ($2.75M AAV).

Bratt was the Devils' last remaining unsigned RFA but got a two-year deal on Sunday night. Bratt set a new career-high in goals (16) while adding 16 assists (32 points) in 60 games a season ago. Bratt will miss the start of the regular season but is expected to be in the Devils top-6 when he makes his debut.

Jesper Bratt
The Islanders have re-signed Mathew Barzal to a three-year contract extension worth $21.0 million ($7.0M AAV)

Barzal debuted in Islanders' camp on Saturday, fresh off of a three-year contract extension. The 23-year-old centre had 19 goals and 41 assists (60 points) in 68 games a season ago and has averaged 14 goals and 36 assists (50 points) per 56-games over the last three years. Given the depth at the position, Barzal is a strong No.2 fantasy centre now that he'll be there for the start of the 2021 season.

Mathew Barzal
The Predators have signed Luke Kunin to a two-year deal worth $4.6 million ($2.3M AAV).

The Predators acquired the RFA this offseason and signed him to a two-year extension on Wednesday. Kunin, who is coming into his third full NHL season set career-highs in goals (15) and assists (16) in 63 games a season ago. Kunin opened Predators training camp skating on a line with Colton Sissons and Calle Jarnkrok.

Luke Kunin
The Blue Jackets have signed Oliver Bjorksrand to a five-year contract extension worth $27 million ($5.4M AAV).

Bjorkstrand finally saw his long-awaited bump in ice time in 2020 and he turned out a career-year, which was unfortunately hampered by injuries. Overall, he scored 21 goals with 15 assists (36 points) in 49 games, a 35-goal and 60-point per 82-game pace. Bjorkstrand is expected to continue to see huge minutes in 2021 as a fixture on the Blue Jackets' top line with Pierre-Luc Dubois.

Oliver Bjorkstrand
The Blackhawks have signed Dylan Strome to a two-year contract extension worth $6.0 million ($3.0M AAV).

After a breakout 2019 campaign, he finished 2020 with 38 points (12G / 26A) in 58 games. Strome appeared set to open the 2021 campaign as the Blackhawks' No.3 centre behind Jonathan Toews and Kirby Dach, but with both with Toews dealing with a health issue and Dach out for five months, Strome will be their No.1 centre when they start training camp on Monday.

Dylan Strome
The Penguins have signed John Marino to a six-year extension worth $26.4 million ($4.4M AAV).

Marino was originally drafted in the sixth-round by the Oilers but was traded to Pittsburgh for a sixth-round pick back in the summer of 2019. What a trade that has turned out to be for the Penguins. Marino had a terrific rookie season, compiling six goals with 20 assists (26 points) in 56 games. He averaged over 20 minutes per game in 2020 and should continue to eat huge minutes in the Penguins' top-4 in 2021.

John Marino
The Blues have signed Vince Dunn to a one-year contract worth $1.875M.

Dunn was the last of the Blues unsigned RFAs and gets a one-year contract for a very good number for a team tight up against the salary cap. Dunn's numbers dipped a bit in 2020 and he still has plenty of competition for playing time with Torey Krug coming over to replace Alex Pietrangelo. Still, he's scored 21 goals over the last two seasons and should continue to be a good source of goals with modest assist totals in 2021.

Vince Dunn

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.