The Red Wings signed Leonard to a one-year contract extension on Thursday.
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NHL Signings & Free Agents
Winnipeg has signed Garrett Brown to a two-year, entry-level contract.
Brown was a fourth-round pick, 99th overall, of the Winnipeg Jets in the 2022 NHL Entry Draft. The 22-year-old defenseman recently completed his third season of collegiate hockey, scoring 12 points (2G / 10A) in 33 games with the University of Denver.
San Jose has signed Eric Pohlkamp to a two-year, entry-level contract.
Pohlkamp was a fifth-round pick of the Sharks in the 2023 NHL Entry Draft. The 22-year-old defenseman recently completed his third season of collegiate hockey, scoring 39 points (18G / 21A) in 42 games with the University of Denver.
2-year, $2,027,500 contract with the Minnesota Wild. Expires 2028 (RFA).
Source:
2026-04-16T03:59:00.000Z
3-year, $3,225,000 contract with the Ottawa Senators. Expires 2029 (RFA).
Source:2026-04-16T03:59:00.000Z
1-year, $980,000 contract with the Minnesota Wild. Expires 2027 (RFA).
Source:2026-04-16T03:59:00.000Z
2-year, $1,960,000 contract with the New York Islanders. GP bonus: 84 games. Expires 2028 (RFA).
Source:2026-04-16T03:59:00.000Z
2-year, $2,027,500 contract with the St Louis Blues. GP Bonus: $18,125 at 10/20/30/40 games played. Expires 2028 (RFA).
Source:2026-04-16T03:59:00.000Z
Minnesota has signed Ben Dexheimer to a one-year, entry-level contract.
Dexheimer completed his senior season at Wisconsin (NCAA) last week after a loss in the National Championship and has signed a one-year, entry-level contract on Wednesday with the Minnesota Wild. The 23-year-old undrafted defensemen was the captain of Wisconsin this season and had seven goals and 28 points in 39 games played in 2025-26.
St. Louis has signed Arseni Koromyslov to a two-year, entry-level contract.
Koromyslov was St. Louis' 2020 4th round pick (120th overall) and has signed a two-year, entry-level contract on Wednesday. The 22-year-old Russian defensemen just completed his fourth season in KHL and second with Traktor Chelyabinsk (KHL), where he had a goal and 17 points in 61 games played.
Minnesota has signed Rieger Lorenz to a two-year, entry-level contract.
Fresh off of winning an NCAA National Title, Rieger Lorenz has signed a two-year, entry-level contract with Minnesota on Wednesday. The 22-year-old winger was Minnesota's 2022 2nd round pick (56th overall) and completed a successful senior season at the University of Denver (NCAA) with 17 goals and 35 points in 43 games played.
New York has signed Quinn Finley to a two-year, entry-level contract.
Finley was a third-round pick of the Islanders in the 2022 NHL Entry Draft. The 21-year-old forward recently completed his third season of collegiate hockey, scoring 33 points (17G / 16A) in 36 games with the University of Wisconsin.
Ottawa has signed Blake Montgomery to a three-year, entry-level contract.
Fresh off his NCAA Championship loss, Blake Montgomery has signed a three-year entry-level contract with Ottawa on Wednesday. The 20-year-old towering defensemen was Ottawa's 2024 4th round pick (117th overall) and had nine goals and 17 points in 38 games in his first season in Wisconsin (NCAA) after coming over from London (OHL) the previous season.
2-year, $1,910,000 contract with the Toronto Maple Leafs. Expires 2028 (RFA).
Source:2026-04-15T03:59:00.000Z
3-year, $2,925,000 contract with the Nashville Predators. Expires 2029 (RFA).
Source:2026-04-15T03:59:00.000Z
The Predators have signed Daniel Nieminen to a three-year, entry-level contract.
Nieminen was Nashville's 2025 6th round pick (163rd overall) and has signed a three-year, entry-level contract on Tuesday with Nashville. The 20-year-old Finnish defensemen spent all of 2025-26 with Pelicans (Liiga) and had five goals, and 17 points in 47 games in his second season of professional hockey in Finland.
Toronto has signed Landon Sim to a two-year, entry-level contract.
Sim was a sixth-round pick of the St. Louis Blues that made his professional debut this season, splitting time between the Cincinnati Cyclones (ECHL) and the Toronto Marlies (AHL). In 13 games with the Marlies, the 21-year-old Sim has three goals.
1-year, $952,500 contract with the Dallas Stars. Expires 2027 (RFA).
Source:2026-04-14T03:59:00.000Z
1-year, $952,500 contract with the Columbus Blue Jackets. $72.5K GP Bonus / $250K "A" Bonus (plus-minus). Expires 2027 (RFA).
Source:2026-04-14T03:59:00.000Z
3-year, $2,895,000 contract with the Nashville Predators. Expires 2028 (RFA).
Source:2026-04-14T03:59:00.000Z
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.