NHL Signings & Free Agents

Hannikainen spent the entire season with the Blue Jackets, where he recorded seven points (4G / 3A) in 44 games. Hannikainen will likely continue to serve as a fourth-line/reserve forward for the Blue Jackets in 2019-20.

Karlsson was set to become an unrestricted free agent on July 1st but the Sharks have locked him up through the 2026-27 season. Karlsson’s new $11.5M cap-hit, represents a $5.0M raise and makes him the highest-paid defenseman in the NHL. After a slow-start and an injury plagued season, Karlsson posted his lowest point total (45) since 2012-13, but his point-per-game number (0.849) was right there with his most recent seasons.

Duclair was acquired from the Blue Jackets as a part of the Matt Duchene trade and drastically improved his numbers in Ottawa. Duclair saw over 1:30 TOI more per game with the Senators and scored eight goals with six assists (14 points) in 21 games. With a lack of talent in Ottawa heading into 2019-20, Duclair should continue to play a middle-6 role for the Senators.

The Capitals acquired Hagelin from the Kings in February and the veteran winger put his early-season struggles behind him, posting 11 points (3G / 8A) in 20 games with Washington. Hagelin had a 56.7 CorsiFor% and led all Capitals forwards in PK TOI/GM (2:21) after being acquired.

Gaunce spent most of the 2018-19 season in the AHL, where he led all Crunch defensemen with 46 points (10G / 36A) in 59 games. During his brief time in the NHL, the 29-year-old has two goals and three assists in 34 combined games with the Avalanche, Stars, Penguins and Lightning.

Lilja is an undrafted free agent who has been in the Swedish Elite League since the 2015-16 season. This past season he led Djurgardens IF with 37 points (12G / 25A) in 52 games.

Luoto played the last three seasons in the Finnish Elite League and recorded 16 points (8G / 8A) in 58 games with Tappara Tampere. Luoto and Patrik Laine were teammates for several Tappara teams growing up, including their U18 and U20 teams

Lyubushkin had four assists in 41 games with the Coyotes this season. The 25-year-old defenseman came to the NHL after spending six years in the KHL. Lyubushkin will likely serve as the Coyotes No.6/No.7 defenseman in 2019-20.

Olofsson was originally selected in the second-round in 2013 and ended up with Montreal after spending the first four years of his career the Wild’s organization. Olofsson had eight assists in 41 games with Minnesota last season and had one assist in just two games with Laval (AHL).

In his second season with the Islanders, Eberle struggled in the regular season, posting just 37 points (19G / 18A) in 78 games but cranked it up in the playoffs. Eberle got hot in the first two rounds of the postseason, leading the Islanders with nine points (4G / 5A) in eight games. Eberle joins Andrew Ladd and Nick Leddy as players earning $5.5 AAV from the Islanders.

Gustafsson was picked in the second-round (No.60 overall) in 2018 and is coming off of his second season in the Swedish Elite League. Gustafsson had two goals and 10 assists (12 points) in 36 games with HV71 and also had three assists in five games while playing with Sweden at the U20 World Juniors.

The Flames drafted Tuulola in the sixth-round (No.156 overall) in 2016. The 21-year-old winger had 13 gaols and 23 assists (36 points( in 60 games with HPK Hameenlinna of the Finnish Elite League this season.

Klimchuk is a former first-round pick (No.28 overall in 2013) but bounced all over Canada last year. The 25-year-old spent the first three years of his career in Calgary before being moved to Toronto and eventually Ottawa last year. He played 17 games with the Flames AHL affiliate, 13 with Toronto’s and eight with Ottawa’s—overall he had nine goals and six assists (15 points) in 38 AHL games.

Bartkowski, 31, spent most of the 2018-19 season in the AHL, where he had 19 points (4G / 15A) in 70 games. The veteran defenseman had one goal in two games with Minnesota and has 48 points (8G / 40A) in 255 career NHL games.

Russell had a career-best 40 points (18G / 22A) in 51 games with Bakersfield (AHL) this season. Russell also appeared in the first six games of his NHL career with the Oilers but did not register a point.

O’Brien, 24, had 15 goals and 13 assists (28 points) in 74 games with the Hershey Bears (AHL) this season. The undrafted centre has just one goal and one assist in 17 career NHL games with Washington.

New Jersey selected Boqvist with the No.36 overall pick in 2017. The 20-year-old centre has been in the Swedish Elite League since 2016 and is coming off of a season where he had 35 points (13G / 22A) in 51 games with Brynas IF—good for second on the team.

Sodergran, 19, was selected in the sixth-round (No.165 overall) in 2018. The right winger had eight goals and five assists (13 points) while playing with Linkopings HC of the Swedish Elite League. Sodergran also represented Sweden at the U20 World Juniors, but failed to record a point in four games.

Ebert was originally a seventh-round pick of the Kings back in 2012 but never made it to the NHL, appearing in 157 AHL games across three seasons with the Kings and Stars organizations. Ebert left North America after the 2017 and played one season in the KHL and another in the Swedish Elite League, where he had 11 goals and 22 assists (33 points) in 49 games with Orebro HK last season.

Skinner was set to become an unrestricted free agent on July 1st but is now signed through the 2026-27 season. Skinner set a new career-high and led the Sabres with 40 goals and ranked third on the team with 63 points in 82 games. Skinner spent 70 percent of his 5v5 minutes on the top-line with Jack Eichel and the duo outscored the opposition 53-to-43 (per naturalstattrick.com).