Now that it has been multiple days since the start of NHL free agency, many of this year's top unrestricted free agents (UFAs) have been signed. Although this is the case, there are still plenty of UFAs still looking for their next contracts.
Interestingly, a decent amount of the NHL's remaining UFAs are former Flyers players.
Claude Giroux is the most notable former Flyer who is still a UFA at this point in the summer. However, he has been heavily linked to Philadelphia since hitting the market. A reunion between the Flyers and their former captain would make for a fantastic story.
Giroux would provide the Flyers' forward group with a nice boost if successfully brought back, as he is still a very useful player at this stage in his career. In 82 games last season for the Ottawa Senators, he posted 14 goals and 49 points.
James van Riemsdyk is another former Flyer who is still a UFA. The 37-year-old winger is still a solid offensive contributor at this stage of his career. With that, it is possible that he could land a one-year deal if he does not retire. In 72 games last season for the Detroit Red Wings, the 2007 second-overall pick posted 15 goals and 31 points.
Former Flyers goalie Cam Talbot is one of the top goalies still available in free agency. The 39-year-old had a tough year for Detroit, posting an .883 save percentage and a 3.19 goals-against average in 34 games. However, the two-time All-Star also had a .900 save percentage or better in five out of his previous six seasons before 2025-26. This kind of past success could help him get at least a PTO from an NHL club.
Other former Flyers who are also still UFAs include Kevin Hayes, Rodrigo Abols, Luke Glendening, and Petr Mrazek.
During their chat, Gudas was asked about his decision to sign with the Panthers.
While speaking about the team Florida has built and his desire to win the Stanley Cup, Gudas let another interesting little piece of information slip out.
“Because of the lower income taxes, players are willing to play there even for a little less money,” he said.
Radko Gudas on taxes. In an interview with @DenikSport, he made an interesting point: “Because of the lower income taxes, players are willing to play there even for a little less money.“ He talked about Florida. He chose Florida because he wants to win the Stanley Cup.
I guess the rumors are true. The cat is out of the bag.
With the Panthers operating in the no-tax state of Florida, it gives them a clear and obvious edge over the majority of the teams in the NHL who are not located in a state that provides a similar advantage.
That doesn’t solve the problem of why players never seemed have the same kind of desire to play for the Panthers for the first 25 or so years of the team’s existence, but I digress..
All kidding aside, the tax situation is something that helps give places like Florida (and Texas and Nevada and Tennessee and Washington) a leg-up when players are weighing where to sign, there is no denying that.
But you better believe that if and when the day comes where the Panthers (or Stars or Golden Knights or Predators or Kraken) become less successful and as such, less desirable for free agents, those tax breaks won’t hold the same kind of wight as players decide where they want to spent the next several years of their respective careers.
For now, South Florida is the ultimate hockey haven for any pro looking to combine making money with winning titles while living in a tropical climate.
Photo caption: Jan 28, 2023; Sunrise, Florida, USA; Florida Panthers center Aleksander Barkov (16) and defenseman Radko Gudas (7) celebrate a victory over the Boston Bruins at FLA Live Arena. (Jason Mowry-Imagn Images)
Drew Commesso, one day after choosing not to file for arbitration, has signed a two-year extension with the Chicago Blackhawks. This is a contract that will carry a cap hit of $875 million.
Year one of the contract is a two-way deal that will pay him $800K in the NHL, $200K in the AHL, and has a $250K guarantee. In year two, it is a one-way deal worth $900K. Once it expires, Commesso will be a restricted free agent with arbitration rights once again. PuckPedia was the first with the details.
This is a wise bridge deal for Commesso and the Blackhawks, as they now have two years for him to continue developing. The expectation, based on the structure of this deal, is that Commesso will be Spencer Knight’s full-time backup going into the 2027-28 season.
Arvid Soderblom still has one year left on his current deal, which might give him the edge for the job going into 2026-27. There is a chance that Commesso plays in the NHL, but another year of AHL seasoning may be in front of him as well.
In 3 NHL appearances last season, Commesso had a .918 save percentage, a 2.31 goals against average, and 1 shutout. It’s a small sample size, but he was great when called upon. With the way the NHL is trending these days, having 3 capable goalies will help the Blackhawks navigate an 84-game schedule.
Commesso has the talent to become a starter years down the line, but he has a lot to prove before he can be that for the Blackhawks or someone else. For now, he has a contract set up to give him the best chance at success.
Now, Connor Bedard, Kevin Korchinski, and Ethan Del Mastro are the only three remaining restricted free agents in the Chicago Blackhawks system.
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The Winnipeg Jets are looking to make meaningful additions to their offense heading into next season as they push to get back into playoff contention, and it may come by way of another trade with the Buffalo Sabres, though not involving the player most people are thinking of.
It's well known by now that the Jets received a substantial trade offer for superstar goaltender Connor Hellebuyck that reportedly included the fourth overall pick, starting goaltender Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, a player believed to be Jack Quinn and at least one additional asset.
Now the trade talks between the two clubs appear to be shifting toward a much smaller piece of that same deal. The Fourth Period's Dave Pagnotta has once again linked the Jets to Quinn as Winnipeg continues searching for an impact forward to add to its top six.
Quinn, 24, is a young two-way winger with plenty of upside as a former eighth overall pick at the 2020 NHL Draft, and his game has continued to trend in the right direction. The Cobden, Ontario native is coming off a career-best 51-point season on 20 goals in all 82 games for Buffalo, along with seven points in the playoffs.
Buffalo may look to move the young talent as he enters the final year of his contract before becoming a restricted free agent next summer, and the Sabres have reportedly been shopping him since before the draft in search of a roster upgrade rather than more draft capital.
If the Jets can find a way to make it work, it could give them a meaningful addition to their top six, though the exact cost of acquiring Quinn on his own, separate from any larger Hellebuyck package, is not yet known.
It could take a notable return, especially with Buffalo looking to build off the momentum from this past season, when the Sabres beat the Boston Bruins in six games in the first round before falling to the Montreal Canadiens in a seven-game battle in the second.
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The Calgary Flames have wasted little time locking up one of the biggest additions of their offseason.
Just weeks after acquiring defenceman Simon Nemec from the New Jersey Devils, the Flames have signed the 22-year-old to a five-year contract worth $36.25 million. The deal carries an average annual value of $7.25 million and keeps the former second-overall pick under contract through the 2030-31 season.
The Slovak defenceman is coming off the best offensive campaign of his NHL career, finishing the 2025-26 season with 11 goals and 15 assists for 26 points in 68 games.
Selected second overall in the 2022 NHL Draft, Nemec has long been viewed as one of the league’s premier young defencemen. At 6-foot-1 and 200 pounds, the right-shot blueliner combines mobility, vision and poise with the puck, making him a key piece of Calgary’s long-term plans.
Philadelphia Flyers defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen has been the subject of trade speculation for multiple seasons. It has carried over to this off-season, and it makes sense with the big right-shot defenseman entering the final season of his contract in 2026-27.
If the Flyers end up moving Ristolainen, these two teams could be good fits for the veteran blueliner.
Montreal Canadiens
The Canadiens were connected to Ristolainen leading up to the 2026 NHL Trade Deadline. When noting that they could still use a right-shot shutdown defenseman in their top four, it would make sense if they kicked tires on him again this summer. The Habs have yet to make any notable additions this summer, so it would be understandable if they tried to change that by landing Ristolainen.
Ottawa Senators
The Senators could be another team to keep an eye on when it comes to Ristolainen. Like the Canadiens, they have been linked to the Flyers blueliner in the past. The Senators' right side has also been in need of a boost for a while now, and acquiring Ristolainen could provide them with just that. He would slot well on their second pairing and would be an obvious option for their penalty kill.
The Chicago Blackhawks made a blockbuster trade earlier this off-season when they acquired Bowen Byram from the Buffalo Sabres in exchange for this year's 4th overall pick, 45th overall pick, and defenseman Louis Crevier. Byram is now expected to be Chicago's No. 1 defenseman, and they made that clear when they signed him to a six-year, $75 million contract extension earlier this month.
While Byram was the big prize for Chicago in their major summer trade with the Sabres, new Blackhawks forward Jordan Greenway should not be ignored. The 29-year-old forward has the potential to be a solid addition to the Blackhawks' roster as they look to take that next step in 2026-27.
Greenway is coming off a quiet season offensively, as he posted one goal and six points in 40 games for Buffalo. While the veteran winger had a tough year offensively, he provides his most value when it comes to his size and physicality. These elements are what should make him a solid addition to Chicago's bottom six.
The Blackhawks are going to need some tougher players to stand up for their young guns, and Greenway should fill that role nicely. Furthermore, the Blackhawks also need veterans to help mentor their youngsters as they look to take that next step in their rebuild. This is an area that Greenway should be able to help the Blackhawks as well.
Greenway has also shown in the past that he has the potential to provide decent offense when playing at his best. Just back during the 2023-24 season with the Sabres, he posted 10 goals and 28 points in 67 games. He has also recorded at least 24 points five times in his nine-year career.
It will be interesting to see how much of an impact Greenway will make for the Blackhawks next season. While he was primarily added to the deal to help the Sabres' salary cap situation, he could end up being a sneaky good pickup for their bottom six.
The Pittsburgh Penguins have brought in a few new players this off-season. Among them is defenseman Kaedan Korczak, as the Penguins acquired him from the Vegas Golden Knights in exchange for blueliner Parker Wotherspoon.
The Penguins' decision to trade Wotherspoon was certainly surprising, as the left-shot defenseman just had a breakout year for Pittsburgh in 2025-26. While this is the case, it is also understandable that Pittsburgh has decided to acquire Korczak.
At 25 years old, Korczak is still young enough that he could hit a new level after getting this change of scenery with the Penguins. He should be a nice addition to their bottom pairing at a minimum, but it would also not be surprising if the 2019 second-round pick even competed for a spot in their top four.
Korczak appeared in a career-high 78 games last season with the Golden Knights, where he recorded three goals, 13 assists, 16 points, 95 blocks, and 102 hits. Overall, the right-shot defenseman showed promise last season with Vegas and was a regular in their lineup because of it. Now, he will be looking to take another step forward after being dealt to Pittsburgh.
Korczak's contract also adds to his appeal, he has an affordable $3.25 million cap hit through the 2029-30 season. With this, he has the potential to be a key part of the Penguins' blueline for multiple seasons if he breaks out. It will be interesting to see how much of an impact he can make with the Penguins from here.
On Monday, new reports surfaced that may see a fan favorite leave the Detroit Red Wings.
On his podcast, 32 Thoughts, Elliotte Friedman spoke on several topics when it came to the Red Wings, including the Dylan Larkin trade situation, a possible offer sheet for restricted free agent Simon Edvinsson and, lastly, the future of future Hall of Fame winger Patrick Kane.
The 37-year-old hockey legend is coming off his 19th NHL season, in which he surpassed 500 career goals, crossed 1,400 points and became the all-time leader in points recorded by an American-born player.
Kane finished the season with 16 goals and 41 assists for 57 points in just 67 games after missing time due to injury. The hope was that with the Red Wings likely pushing to end their decade-long playoff drought next season, Kane would play a large role on the team once again, but that may not be the case.
The Buffalo native has been rumored to be exploring options outside the Motor City, and Friedman quickly addressed the topic, saying, "I don't know that I expect him to go back to Detroit."
It would be a big blow for a Red Wings team to lose a player still capable of 50 to 60 points out of the middle of their lineup, and it would create another hole general manager Steve Yzerman would need to fill. Detroit has already made it known it wants Kane back, but with the organization also dealing with uncertainty surrounding Larkin, the roster picture in Detroit is far from settled.
The rumor mill has suggested Kane may look to explore the possibility of chasing one more Stanley Cup, having already won three during his dynasty days in Chicago alongside Jonathan Toews.
With Toews having recently retired after 16 NHL seasons and a storybook final year with his hometown Winnipeg Jets, Kane may look to follow a similar path and try to go out on top by joining a true contender.
Multiple reports have floated Kane's hometown Buffalo Sabres as one of the more realistic landing spots, should he ultimately decide his time in Detroit has run its course.
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After the Nashville Predators extended him a qualifying offer on July 1, defenseman Justin Barron has signed a one-year contract worth $1.575 million.
The new contract is a $425,000 raise AAV from his previous one. Nashville now has $7,546,277 left in cap space.
The 24-year-old righty reached the end of a two-year, $2.3 million contract that was originally offered by the Montreal Canadiens in the 2024 offseason. Barron was traded to Nashville for Alexandre Carrier in a one-for-one transaction.
Since arriving in Nashville, Barron's numbers have been lackluster. During the 2024-25 season, Barron had 12 points in 45 games and a plus-minus of -14.
Staying in Smashville ✍️
We've signed defenseman Justin Barron to a one-year contract.
This past season, he logged just 9 points in 52 games and was healthy scratched a handful of times.
Barron is just the second defenseman that Chris MacFarland has signed as a free agent, and the fourth defenseman acquired via trade.
Those defensemen that MacFarland traded for are Adam Edstrom (New York Rangers), Jack Ahcan (Colorado), Hunter Skinner (St. Louis) and Ilya Lyubushkin (Dallas.
Edstrom and Lybushkin will likely play in the bottom four, while Ahcan and Skinner will likely be in Milwaukee.
Nashville Predators 2026 Signings
June 28: C Jack Drury to a 5-year, $22.5 million contract.
July 1: C Alex Kerfoot to a 2-year, $7 million contract.
July 1: D Jack Ahcan to a 2-year, $1.75 million contract.
July 1: D Hunter Skinner to a 1-year, $850,000 contract.
July 3: LW Chase Bradley to a 2-year, $1.75 million contract.
July 4: C Mavrik Bourque to a 5-year, $33 million contract.
July 6: D Justin Barron to a 1-year, $1.575 million contract.
The Kings have signed defensemen Scott Perunovich and Erik Gustafsson to one-year contracts. More moves are expected to be made as these two signings aren’t good enough to improve the defense.
Last season, the Kings had a top 10 defense with 2.9 goals allowed per game. The success on defense was in large part due to the two-way forwards and the first two defensive lines.
The success on defense was in large part due to the two-way forwards and the first two defensive lines. The depth was not up to the defensive standards that the Kings needed to be a complete defense.
Los Angeles saw struggles from Cody Ceci and Brian Dumoulin on the third line in 2026. A big flaw of both of these players is that they brought very little physicality.
Ceci dished out 37 hits and had 166 hits taken, while Dumooulin had 36 hits and 137 hits taken. Both players received 100 more hits than they gave, which is a major problem for defensemen.
Physicality is required for depth defensemen, so that they bring energy and keep the opponent's offense in check. The Kings lacked that physical force last season and the new signings don't necessarily fix that problem.
Perunovich is only on a two-way contract as he likely won’t even spend a lot of time with the Kings. Even if Perunovich were on the Kings roster, the physicality would still be a major question for him.
From his brief stint with the St. Louis Blues, Perunovich had only 30 hits in 2024, a season-high for his career. Since then, Perunoich found himself out of the league last season. So it would be hard for Perunovich to come into the NHL and become the physical enforcer he never was.
On the other hand, Gustafsson was once a physical presence back in his days with the Chicago Blackhawks. However, time has past and Gustafsson struggled with the Detroit Red Wings back in 2025. He only dished out 28 hits and had 112 hits taken, which is part of the reason he was moved down to the AHL last season.
Neither Perunovich nor Gustafsson brought physicality in their last NHL stints, which is why both players spent 2026 in the AHL. The Kings will not fix their lack of physicality from either player, which is why another solution is required.
If the Kings want to improve the depth of the defense, Los Angeles need to stay on the free agency market. The Kings need more physical defensemen on the third and fourth line, which was not solved by signing Perunovich and Gustafsson.
In the latest edition of the 32 Thoughts Podcast, Elliotte Friedman and host Kyle Bukauskas discuss, among other things, a couple of potential trade targets for the Montreal Canadiens. The Sportsnet insider reports that Kent Hughes is leaving no stones unturned in his quest to add a top-six young talent (in their 20s) to the squad, but it’s proving to be a tough task despite the GM being very aggressive. Friedman mentioned that Kirill Marchenko would have been a possibility, but it’s been reported that he isn’t moving right now. As for the big trade offer that has been discussed, he adds that beauty is in the eye of the beholder, suggesting that what Montreal considered a great offer might not have looked so great to the other team.
He also reports that Montreal hopes Zachary Bolduc can give more than he has so far, and that they could still work with Oliver Kapanen to develop the center further, but he wouldn’t be surprised if the Finns had been included as part of the package offered. That in itself is not surprising, especially since Hughes has shown in the past that he is willing to move young talent if he believes that makes his team better. Alexander Romanov and Emil Heineman were both traded that way. He also threw an idea out there:
Someone else told me, you know who they thought might be a good fit in Montreal? And I have no idea if it’s even possible: one of those two Pittsburgh wingers, Rust (Bryan) or Rakell (Rickard). I think those guys would have to approve, but he looked at Montreal and said: “I thought with another scorer like one of those two guys, they might look pretty good”.
According to Puckpedia, Rakell has an 8-team no-trade list modified no-trade clause but Rust has no trade protection. While the idea is not silly, Rust put up 65 points in 72 games last season, and Rakell had 48 points in 60 games; I think that would be a plan D or E for Hughes. Both of these wingers are significantly older than the Canadiens’ core; the former is 34, while the latter is 33, and Hughes has repeatedly stated that he wasn’t looking to add veterans who would impede the development of his younger players.
If it gets very late in the offseason and Hughes cannot find a dance partner that would allow him to have a top-six twenty-something player, that may be an option he would turn to, but it definitely wouldn’t be his preference. They could be good stopgap options as they both have two seasons left on their contract, but stopgap to what?
Who in the Canadiens’ system could be ready to step into a top-six winger role by then? Alexander Zharovski? Perhaps his KHL contract will run out at the end of the season, but will he be ready to jump into such a high-profile role right away? That’s not guaranteed. And then there’s also Michael Hage, who should join in the Spring, once the Michigan Wolverines have (hopefully) won the Frozen Four.
Would it be wise to put two green rookies on the top six right away? Some would argue that it wouldn’t be, but that’s precisely what Montreal did this past season with Ivan Demidov and Kapanen, and it worked quite well until the playoffs at least. Would the two be as NHL-ready as Demidov and Kapanen were? At this stage, it appears somewhat doubtful…
Back to Rust and Rakell, though, it remains to be seen if they could be as productive in Montreal as they have been riding shotgun with Sidney Crosby in Pittsburgh. They do have plenty of offensive talent though.
The New Jersey Devils traded Simon Nemec to the Calgary Flames earlier in the offseason. He was an RFA looking for a major pay raise, and New Jersey saw it best to unload him to make more room on their cap sheet and blue line.
Trading Nemec to Calgary was the first big player move that Sunny Mehta made since becoming a first-time NHL GM. Since then, he has had a solid off-season, and more may be on the horizon.
On Monday, the Flames announced a contract extension for Nemec, who locked in a five-year deal with a cap hit of $7.25 million. This is a deal where the Flames are paying for the player that they hope he becomes, rather than the player that he is right now.
Nemec is a former 2nd overall pick from the 2022 NHL Draft, so the pedigree is there. He can create offense if he’s in the right situation, but he must work on his defensive game if he’s ever going to truly drive a pair in any of the three zones.
In 155 games played, Nemec has 16 goals and 33 assists for 49 points. He had somewhat of a breakout last year, as he had 11 of those goals to go with 15 assists for 26 points in 68 games played.
A lot of his ice time in the NHL has been in the shadow of guys like Dougie Hamilton and Luke Hughes. In Calgary, he’ll get a chance to show what he can do with more opportunity. If he reaches his true potential, his contract will then look like a bargain.
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While a decision on his playing future is anxiously anticipated, a reunion between the Philadelphia Flyers and former captain Claude Giroux still remains a distinct possibility, five days on from the start of NHL free agency.
Giroux, 38, remains one of the best remaining free agents around the NHL, even in his advanced age, still without a new contract from his Ottawa Senators.
According to a new report from Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Citizen, that will remain the case for some time, as the former Flyers captain weighs his options ahead of what is widely assumed to be his last NHL season.
"Sources close to Giroux told the Ottawa Citizen late Friday that 'he hasn’t made his decision yet' on where he’s headed," Garrioch reported. "The Toronto Maple Leafs have also spoken with Giroux’s camp and remain keenly interested, while the Edmonton Oilers made a pitch, but well-respected Sportsnet columnist Mark Spector says they’re no longer involved."
That leaves two horses left in the race for Giroux: the Flyers, and the Senators, who have undergone a considerable roster shake-up this offseason already.
Added Garrioch: "After spending the last four seasons with the Senators, it feels like Giroux has a foot out the door, and the sense in league circles is a return to the Flyers is inevitable. The belief is Giroux wants to take some time to make his decision because this will likely be his final season in the NHL."
A potential Giroux reunion with the Flyers could hinge on the outcome of the Leo Carlsson offer sheet, which would tie up a whopping $18 million of cap space and leave the Flyers needing to move out some money to make any further additions and comfortably re-sign free agents Trevor Zegras, Jamie Drysdale, and Nikita Grebenkin.
The Flyers remain interested in Giroux with or without Carlsson, but ultimately, the decision lies with the player, a veteran of 1,345 regular season games who has earned the right to choose the way he goes out.
At the time of this writing, PuckPedia shows the Flyers having $29.5 million in cap space, not including Carlsson's pending $18 million cap charge, leaving $11.5 million for Giroux, Zegras, Grebenkin, and Drysdale
The Pittsburgh Penguins have had a pretty active this off-season, as they have brought in new some players and lost others.
When looking at the Penguins' current roster, it is clear that they should not be done making moves yet. One specific area that they should be looking to improve this summer is the left side of their defense.
The Penguins traded Parker Wotherspoon to the Vegas Golden Knights and lost Ryan Shea to the Edmonton Oilers in free agency this summer. With this, it is clear that they could use another left-shot defenseman before the new season is here.
A few left-shot defensemen who are still on the free agent market include Logan Stanley, Carson Soucy, Mike Reilly, and former Penguin Matt Grzelcyk. While none of these players would necessarily be major additions, signing one of them would help Pittsburgh's depth.
There are also some left-shot defensemen who have come up in the rumor mill this summer as trade candidate. Morgan Rielly, Alexander Nikishin, and Mason Lohrei are a few examples.
It will be interesting to see if the Penguins bring in another left-shot defenseman this summer, but it is something that they should consider after losing two solid blueliners in Shea and Wotherspoon.
