2-year, $1,625,000 contract with the Buffalo Sabres. Expires 2027 (RFA).
Source:
2025-07-31T23:59:00.000Z
Daily Faceoff is a news site with no direct affiliation to the NHL, or NHLPA
NHL Signings & Free Agents
Buffalo has signed Devon Levi to a two-year, $1.625 million contract extension ($812,500 AAV).
Levi was once viewed as one of the top goaltending prospects in hockey, but has struggled to find a foothold in the NHL. The Sabres made it clear there was no guaranteed spot for Levi in Buffalo to start 2025-26 when they signed Alex Lyon in free agency. Levi, who was 25-13-4 with a 2.20 GAA and .919 SV% in 42 AHL games last season, will have to continue to earn his spot in the NHL. Over the span of three seasons, he's got 17-17-2 with a 3.29 GAA and .894 SV% in 39 NHL games.
3-year, $17,250,000 contract with the Winnipeg Jets. Yr 2-3: 6 Team NTC. Expires 2028 (UFA).
Source:2025-07-30T23:59:00.000Z
3-year, $7,500,000 contract with the Calgary Flames. Expires 2029 (UFA).
Source:2025-07-30T23:59:00.000Z
Calgary has signed Martin Pospisil to a three-year contract extension worth $2.5 million AAV ($7.5M total).
Pospisil still has one year left on his two-year contract worth $1 million AAV, but has signed an extension beyond this season for three-years, $7.5 million ($2.5 million AAV) with Calgary on Wednesday. The 25-year-old bruising ringer is entering his third NHL season after playing in nearly every game in 2024-25 (81), and picking up four goals, 25 points, and 84 PIMs. He is expected to fill another bottom-six role to start the season with Calgary.
Winnipeg has signed Dylan Samberg to a three-year contract extension worth $5.75 AAV ($17.25M total).
Winnipeg and Dylan Samberg avoided arbitration on Wednesday after they announced the 26-year-old had signed a three-year contract extension worth $5.75 AAV ($17.25M total). The stay-at-home defenseman is entering his fifth season in Winnipeg after posting career highs in almost all statistical categories in 2024-25, including goals (6), points (20), plus/minus (+34), SOG (95) and average TOI (21:08). He is expected to play a big role on Winnipeg's back end in 2025-26.
2-year, $2,825,000 contract with the Montreal Canadiens. Expires 2027 (RFA).
Source:2025-07-28T23:59:00.000Z
The Canadiens have signed Jayden Struble to a two-year deal worth $1.4125M AAV ($2.825M total).
Struble has appeared in 56 NHL games in each of the last two seasons, most recently posting 13 points (2G / 11A), 124 hits and 54 blocks in 2024-25. Struble became a reliable partner for rookie Lane Hutson, posting a 60.7 xG% together, the best of any Canadiens' pairing. Entering 2025-26, Struble will likely be in the mix to be the No.6 defenseman, and his strong play alongside Hutson last season should give him the upper hand.
2-year, $4,400,000 contract with the Buffalo Sabres. Expires 2027 (UFA).
Source:2025-07-27T23:59:00.000Z
Buffalo has signed Conor Timmins to two-year contract worth $2.2 million AAV ($4.4M total).
Conor Timmins and Buffalo avoided arbitration on Sunday after agreeing to a two-year contract worth $2.2 million AAV ($4.4M total). The 26-year-old defenseman was acquired in late June in a trade that saw Connor Clifton go the other way to Pittsburgh. He appeared in 68 games with Pittsburgh and Toronto in 2024-25, picking up three goals, 15 points and a +11 plus/minus.
2-year, $5,500,000 contract with the Chicago Blackhawks. Expires 2027 (UFA).
Source:2025-07-26T23:59:00.000Z
1-year, $775,000 contract with the St Louis Blues. $350K Guaranteed. Expires 2026 (RFA).
Source:2025-07-26T23:59:00.000Z
The Avalanche signed Daniil Gushchin to a one-year deal worth $775K (two-way).
Gushchin was acquired from the San Jose Sharks via trade on Friday and immediately signed a new deal with the Avalanche. Gushchin will be a fringe roster player with a chance to make the NHL out of training camp this fall.
St. Louis has signed Nikita Alexandrov to a one-year, two-year contract.
Springfield (AHL) will bring back one of their best scorers from the 2024-25 season after St. Louis announced on Saturday it had signed Nikita Alexandrov to a one-year, two-way contract extension. The 24-year-old last appeared with the Blues in 2023-24 but still had a successful seaosn in the minors with Springfield last year, putting up 21 goals and 49 points in 48 games played.
Chicago has signed Arvid Soderblom to a two-year extension worth $2.75 million AAV (5.5M total).
2-year, $4,500,000 contract with the New York Islanders. Expires 2027 (UFA).
Source:2025-07-25T23:59:00.000Z
Signing
1-year, $775,000 contract with the Colorado Avalanche. 200K Guaranteed. Expires 2026 (UFA NO QO).
Source:2025-07-25T23:59:00.000Z
The Islanders have signed Maxim Tsyplakov to a two-year contract worth $2.25 AAV ($4.5M total).
New York and Maxim Tsyplakov avoided arbitration on Friday after they announced a two-year contract extension worth $4.5 million ($2.25 million AAV) for the Russian forward. The 26-year-old made his NHL debut last season after signing out of the KHL and succeeded in his first taste of the big leagues with 10 goals, 35 points, and 39 PIMs in 77 games played. He is expected to take on a bigger role in his second season with the Islanders in 2025-26.
Carolina has signed Jackson Blake to an eight-year extension worth $5.625 AAV ($45M total).
Blake still has a season left in his Entry Level Contract, but has signed an eight-year contract extension worth $5.625 AAV ($45M total) due to the new CBA rules that limit contracts to seven years starting in September. Blake had a standout rookie season in 2024-25, finishing ninth in Calder Trophy voting after putting up 17 goals, 34 points and a +10 plus/minus in 80 games played.
8-year, $40,936,016 contract with the Carolina Hurricanes. $15.9M total signing bonus is deferred until July 1, 2034. The amount deferred is: $4.5M from Year 1, $4M from Year 2, $3.4M from Year 3, $600K from Year 4, $3.4M from Year 7. Expires 2034 (UFA).
Source:2025-07-24T23:59:00.000Z
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.