Five veteran NHL forwards on big contracts who might need changes of scenery
We’re roughly a fifth of the way through the 2026-27 NHL regular season, which means it’s been just long enough to start drawing some conclusions.
The playoff picture is starting to take shape, as are the Landon DuPont sweepstakes. Certain teams are exceeding expectations, while others are faltering — and that also extends to individual players.
With the NHL’s salary cap on the rise in a big way, there are fewer completely immovable contracts in the current landscape. It’s just simple math: A deal that once looked entirely unwieldy under an $88-million cap won’t look nearly as bad as the ceiling inches closer to $150 million.
Keeping all that in mind, here are five veteran NHL forwards on less-than-ideal contracts who could soon be in line for changes of scenery amidst challenging starts to the 2026-27 season.
Josh Norris, Buffalo Sabres
Center, shoots left, age 27
6’2″, 196 pounds
2026-27 stats: 15 games, 2 goals, 3 points, 6 penalty minutes
Contract: $7.95 million AAV through 2030, 10-team NTC
It’s been tough sledding for a handful of Sabres forwards through the team’s turbulent start to the new season, with Josh Doan, Ryan McLeod, and Jason Zucker among those struggling to produce. But the Sabres especially need more from Norris, who remains their highest-paid forward but has come in far below expectations through 15 games.
Norris was generally effective with the Sabres in the 2025-26 regular season, scoring at a 0.77 points-per-game clip; the main concern, however, was that he only appeared in 44 of a possible 82 games with the club, continuing a trend of significant absences that began early in his Senators tenure. Since playing in all 56 games during the pandemic-shortened 2020-21 campaign, Norris has missed 186 games over the last five full seasons. He’s appeared in all 15 games this year — knock on wood — but has just three points, which can mostly be attributed to an awful on-ice shooting percentage.
The Sabres parted with Dylan Cozens and a second-round pick to acquire Norris from the Ottawa Senators in 2024. That’s a high price to pay for an injury-prone center on a big contract, especially considering that Cozens is two years younger, similarly productive and hasn’t had any major health issues in his career. But at this point, it’s water under the bridge, and the Sabres have to figure out the best way to move forward from here. With natural centers in short supply, Norris will likely continue to carry a certain degree of intrinsic value. He could be an appealing buy-low piece for a rebuilding team in search of a bit more experience down the middle.
Yegor Sharangovich, Calgary Flames
Left wing, shoots left, age 28
6’2″, 196 pounds
2026-27 stats: 16 games, 3 goals, 5 points, 2 penalty minutes
Contract: $5.75 million AAV through 2030, 10-team NTC
Like Norris, Sharangovich is signed for three more seasons after this one, although his cap hit is a fair bit more manageable. The Flames acquired Sharangovich from the New Jersey Devils in 2023 and almost immediately stuck him on their top line and No. 1 power-play unit, and he responded by setting new career highs with 31 goals and 59 points in 82 games. But after being demoted in the lineup (and taken off PP1) early in 2024-25, Sharangovich has settled in as more of a middle-six contributor in Calgary.
Sharangovich played extensively as a center in his native Belarus, but he’s always looked far more comfortable on the wing in the NHL. He has a very hard shot, although he sometimes struggles to get it off quickly. And while he has gradually taken on a bigger role on the penalty kill over parts of four seasons in Calgary, he still isn’t much of a defensive specialist. At his best, Sharangovich is excellent in transition and consistently generates chances in the offensive zone. When he’s off his game, he loses a lot of puck battles and fades into the background.
The Flames would probably be just fine keeping Sharangovich around for a couple more seasons if not for the wave of young talent rapidly approaching their shores. Even this year, it’s going to be difficult for everyone to get looks once Jonathan Huberdeau and Sam Honzek return from their injury absences. Once they add Cole Reschny, Ethan Wyttenbach, and Cullen Potter to the equation, it’ll become nearly impossible. Sharangovich figures to be the odd man out, and the Flames might have to retain a bit of money to make it work.
Conor Garland, Columbus Blue Jackets
Right wing, shoots right, age 30
5’10”, 175 pounds
2026-27 stats: 13 games, 0 goals, 1 point, 4 penalty minutes
Contract: $6 million AAV through 2032, full NMC
The Vancouver Canucks seem to have picked a good time to sell Garland to the Blue Jackets. With his six-year contract extension set to take effect in 2026-27, the Canucks dealt Garland to Columbus at the 2026 Trade Deadline in exchange for future second- and third-round draft picks; then, after getting off to a hot start with the Blue Jackets, Garland went a full 20 games without a single point (spanning the end of the 2025-26 season and the start of 2026-27) before finally recording an assist in Tuesday’s 7-2 win over the Colorado Avalanche.
Still, Garland hasn’t scored a goal since March 19. Through 13 games with the Blue Jackets this season, he’s managed just 14 shots while averaging a mere 13:27 of ice time. It’s been nothing short of a disastrous start for the 30-year-old winger, and with five years after this one on his contract, it’s hard to imagine anyone taking him on … yet. (Garland’s deal does include a full NMC, although it’s worth noting he had no trade or movement protection whatsoever — and therefore had no say — when the Blue Jackets acquired him).
The Blue Jackets aren’t going to continue shooting 3.85% with Garland on the ice. Nobody is that bad, and he’ll start picking up more points here and there. But it’s been an incredibly difficult situation for everyone involved. Garland’s on-ice puck possession numbers are among the weakest on a mediocre Blue Jackets team, and it looks like he has a long way to go to win the trust of head coach Rick Bowness. In all likelihood, Blue Jackets general manager Don Waddell will have to ride this one out for the time being.
Timo Meier, New Jersey Devils
Right wing, shoots left, age 30
6’1″, 220 pounds
2026-27 stats: 15 games, 1 goal, 5 points, 4 penalty minutes
Contract: $8.8 million AAV through 2031, full NMC
When the Devils acquired Meier from the San Jose Sharks in 2023, they were hoping they’d just landed the star winger they needed to play with Jack Hughes. It hasn’t worked out that way. Meier has been an uneasy fit in New Jersey from Day 1 and has never fully lived up to the eight-year extension he signed with the club shortly after he arrived. His production and underlying numbers have been … okay. In his three full seasons with the Devils, he’s scored 28, 26, and 24 goals, but you’d expect much more from the player who scored 40 goals in 78 games split between San Jose and New Jersey in 2022-23. With four seasons left on his deal after this one, it probably isn’t going to get much better from here.
Still, if there’s any reason for optimism around Meier, it’s that he’s still taking a ton of shots. Back in his big 40-goal year, Meier took 327 shots on goal in 78 games, or an average of just over four per night. Through 15 games this season, Meier ranks second among Devils skaters with 51 shots (only behind Hughes, who has 59), and Meier also leads all Devils players with 30 hits. A career 10.4% shooter, Meier has just one goal on 51 shots this year, good for a pitiful 2% conversion rate. That’s not going to continue.
Under new GM Sunny Mehta, the Devils have been aggressive in their efforts to break out of the mushy middle in the Eastern Conference. Mehta went all-out in his pursuit of Hart Trophy-winning goaltender Connor Hellebuyck, and his other additions (especially Luke Evangelista) look promising. As a former professional poker player, Mehta is smart enough to know when to buy and when to fold, and he won’t make a move to get rid of a player like Meier just for the sake of it.
Owen Tippett, Philadelphia Flyers
Right wing, shoots right, age 27
6’1″, 210 pounds
2026-27 stats: 11 games, 1 goal, 2 points, 4 penalty minutes
Contract: $6.2 million AAV through 2032, 10-team NTC
Virtually everyone in Philadelphia not named Matvei Michkov has had a tough time scoring this year, but Tippett has gotten off to a particularly difficult start. The 27-year-old power forward scored in the Flyers’ third game of the season but hasn’t done it again since; additionally, after returning from a six-game injury absence on Sunday, Tippett’s average ice time has plummeted — he logged a season-low 12:20 in the Flyers’ 4-2 loss to the Minnesota Wild on Tuesday.
It feels like just yesterday that the Flyers traded Claude Giroux to the Florida Panthers for a package centered around Tippett, the No. 10 pick in the 2017 NHL Draft. Since then, Tippett has scored at least 20 goals in each of his four full seasons in Philadelphia, tying his career high in that category with 28 last year. But this season has been very different, and it remains to be seen whether changes are on the horizon that could give some of the Flyers’ struggling forwards a bit of a spark.
It’s fair to wonder how much of the Flyers’ difficulties this year can be boiled down to the style implemented by head coach Rick Tocchet, who has a long track record of asking his teams to play the “right way” at the expense of individual offense. Still, at his salary, Tippett can’t be scoring two points over an 11-game stretch under even the most unfavorable circumstances. With four consecutive 20-goal seasons under his belt, Tippett would be highly sought-after if he became available, and he’d definitely benefit from being put on a line with a play-driving offensive center. Can the Flyers offer him that opportunity? If not, it’d likely happen somewhere else.
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