NHL Signings & Free Agents

Rau had just one assist in three games with the Wild last season. He spent most of the year in the AHL, where he had 50 points (23G / 27A) in 69 games. Rau will push for a roster spot in training camp but will have a tough time cracking one of the deepest rosters in the NHL.

Sheahan was acquired from the Red Wings early in the season, and scored 11 goals with 21 assists (32 points) in 73 games with the Penguins. Sheahan posted a horrible -6.0 relative Corsi with the Penguins, but earned another season with them. He will likely serve as their No.4 centre with Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Derick Brassard ahead of him on the depth chart.

Connauton is coming off of his best season in the NHL, scoring 11 goals with 10 assists (21 points) in 73 games with the Coyotes. Connauton averaged just 15:11 TOI/GM, so expect him to serve as a third pairing defenseman again in 2019.

Rust has become a valuable middle-6 winger for the Penguins, scoring 13 goals with 25 assists (38 points) in 69 games this past season. Rust occasionally sees time on a line with Evgeni Malkin but is equally effective in a checking-line role. He grades out as the No.52 ranked RW in hockey according to Corsica Player Ratings.

Di Giuseppe was in and out of the Hurricanes’ lineup last season but appeared in a career-high 49 NHL games, scoring five goals with eight assists (13 points). The 24-year-old likely won’t be a full-time player in 2019 either, but is an effective bottom-6 player when he gets plugged into the lineup.

The former No.12 overall pick has never been able to find his game at the NHL-level and often splits his season between the AHL and NHL. This past season, Murphy had 28 points (4G / 24A) in 48 games with Iowa and five points (2G / 3A) in 21 games with Minnesota. He will likely serve as the Wild’ No.7 defenseman throughout the 2019 season.

Sprong dominated the AHL last season, collecting 32 goals and 33 assists (65 points) in 65 games before being called-up by the Penguins. After arriving in the NHL, he had two goals and one assist in eight games. Sprong has been great at lower-levels but it hasn’t translated into NHL success yet.

Simon split his 2018 season between Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (AHL) and Pittsburgh (NHL). The 23-year-old forward had 17 points (4G / 13A) in 21 AHL games and 12 points (4G / 8A) in 33 NHL games. Simon will battle for a roster spot in training camp this fall.

Orpik was acquired from Washington with Philipp Grubauer but the Avalanche were unable to flip him so they’ve bought him out. Orpik had one year left with a $5.5M cap-hit. The veteran defenseman becomes an unrestricted free agent on July 1st.

The Red Wings weren’t expected to bring Frk back originally, but he signed on for one more season. Frk has a great shot and is a weapon on the power-play. The 24-year-old scored 11 goals with 14 assists (25 points) in a career-high 68 games with the Red Wings in 2018. He figures to play in the Red Wings’ bottom-6 in 2019 with a lot of PP exposure.

Bertuzzi appeared in a career-high 48 games with the Red Wings in 2018, collecting seven goals and 17 assists (24 points) in 48 games. Including the playoffs, Bertuzzi has scored 28 goals with 42 assists (70 points) in his last 83 AHL games. The 23-year-old will be a full-time NHLer in 2019 and could play in the Red Wings’ top-6.

Carlson had a season to remember, leading all defensemen in points (68) and winning the Stanley Cup in a contract year. Re-signing Carlson looked like it might be difficult for the Capitals, but they traded Philipp Grubauer and Brooks Orpik to the Avalanche on Friday, clearing some cap-space to sign their No.1 blueliner. Carlson ties Brent Burns with the second-highest cap-hit among NHL defensemen at $8.0 million.

Wideman missed the majority of the 2018 season, appearing in just 16 games before suffering a hamstring in mid-November. Wideman recorded eight points (3G / 5A) before missing the rest of the season—he figures to compete for a spot in the Senators’ starting-6 blueliners this year.

Between the Maple Leafs and Blues, Soshnikov appeared in just 15 NHL games last season, scoring just one goal with one assist. Soshnikov figures to be a reserve forward with the Blues this upcoming season.

Grubauer was acquired from the Capitals on Friday and signs with the Avalanche, where he figures to start the season as Semyon Varlamov’s backup. Grubauer has played in more than 20 games in each of the last three seasons and ranks tied for first in GAA (2.25) and tied for third in SV% (.923) among goalies with at least 60 games played over that span.

After five years in the KHL, Kovalchuk will return to the NHL in 2019 with the Kings. Kovalchuk scored 31 goals with 32 assists (63 points) in 53 KHL games last season and carried a 1.1 points-per-game and averaged 50 games played, 23-goals and 32 assists in his six seasons in Russia. The Kings’ first line left-winger ranks 92nd at the position, so Kovalchuk is a huge upgrade, even at 35-years-old. He had 11 goals and 20 assists (31 points) in 37 games during his last NHL season.