It’s officially July 1. Happy Canada Day!

Always one of the most anticipated days of the year for puckers, NHL free agency gets rolling this afternoon. Already, we’ve seen some reported signings.

1. Blackhawks sign Bowen Byram for $12.5 million AAV over six years.
2. Devils sign Arseny Gritsyuk for $3.25 million AAV over three years.
3. Ducks sign A.J. Greer for $4.25 million AAV over four years.
4. Golden Knights sign Jeremy Lauzon for $6 million AAV over six years.
5. Wild sign Bobby Brink for $2.75 million AAV over one year.
6. Sabres sign Beck Malenstyn for $2.916 million AAV over six years.
7. Senators sign Nick Cousins for $1.587 million AAV over two years.
8. Mammoth sign Sebastian Cossa for $2 million AAV over two years.
9. Flyers sign Carl Grundstrom for $1 million AAV over one year.
10. Blues sign Jonatan Berggren for $2 million AAV over one year.

According to Kevin Weekes, the Devils are expected to sign captain Nico Hischier to a contract extension worth just under $12 million AAV over five years. The Fourth Period reported the contract length. Hischier has a $7.25 million cap hit for 2026-27. If he signs for around $60 million over five years, it’s fair value based on a chaotic market that’s seen teams overpay for players.

CONFIRMED: Devils sign Hischier for $11.7 million AAV over five years.

Not only did the Blackhawks give up a lot to get Byram, but they severely overpaid him. The contract Lauzon got from Vegas is absurd. It’s three years too many for the physical defenseman.The best deals are Brink coming back to Minnesota for one year and Greer cashing in with his new team in Anaheim for four after he was acquired for Radko Gudas. Florida is hoping to get Gudas signed.

The Rangers made it official by signing Pavel Dorofeyev for $11 million AAV over seven years. Acquired from the Knights last Friday during the first round of the NHL Draft, he got a huge $13 million signing bonus for Year 1. Here’s the full breakdown on Dorofeyev’s contract.

For the Rangers’ sake, he better be worth it. They believe the skilled Russian is the goalscorer they’ve lacked. It’s not up to Dorofeyev to replace Artemi Panarin’s production. What he must do is fill the net. Whether it’s with Mika Zibanejad or J.T. Miller remains to be seen. One thing that’ll help Dorofeyev is playing with Adam Fox. Fox is a premier setup man and elite on the power play.

Werenski Rejects Dallas

With the news coming out that Zach Werenski is unlikely to re-up in Columbus, the Blue Jackets have been shopping him. The 2025-26 Norris winner still has two years left on his current deal that pays him $9.583 million AAV through 2027-28. They don’t have to trade him.

The 28-year-old Werenski is an elite player who can dominate from the back end. The Stars were very interested in acquiring him. However, he turned them down. The reported offer included Thomas Harley.

Werenski hasn’t formally asked for a trade. However, it sounds like he’d prefer to go to either Tampa Bay or Toronto ‘if’ it happens.

The Blue Jackets also are a year away from Kirill Marchenko becoming a restricted free agent. Their best forward is a bargain at $3.85 million AAV for next season. He doesn’t intend to stay in Columbus. Keep an eye on Marchenko, who could help several teams, including the Devils.

Robertson and Dallas

Jason Robertson has been in the headlines. The Stars’ best player is a restricted free agent. He’s already turned down deals to Ottawa, Seattle, and St. Louis. It seems that nobody wants the Kraken. Panarin rejected them before accepting a deal to the Kings.

ESPN insider Emily Kaplan believes Robertson will stay in Dallas.

Considering how much Robertson wants ($14 million and up), it’s anyone’s guess where he’ll wind up. Dallas qualified Mavrik Bourque along with Robertson. However, Bourque is available. Contrary to popular belief, Vince Mercogliano reported that the Rangers aren’t in on him. It looks like he was right. The latest from Pierre LeBrun has the Predators on the verge of acquiring Bourque for draft picks.

See Ya, Marky

Yesterday, new Devils general manager Sunny Mehta was able to successfully find a taker for Jacob Markstrom. A disaster in New Jersey since coming over from Calgary, Markstrom was sent to the Panthers with Angus Crookshank in exchange for forwards Evan Rodriguez, Jesper Boqvist, and Ben Steeves.

What a great deal by Mehta to get rid of a goalie who looked done. The Devils had to unload Markstrom, who received a two-year contract extension worth $6 million AAV from former GM Tom Fitzgerald last October. The 36-year-old returns to Florida, who are suddenly banking on a pair of Devils rejects in net. They also acquired Akira Schmid from Vegas for a 2028 third round pick.

Not only was Sunny able to get rid of Markstrom, but he also got solid depth players in return. Rodriguez is a good top nine player who doubles on the power play and penalty kill. Boqvist returns to the Devils and will play a fourth line role. New Jersey didn’t qualify Paul Cotter after a bad season. Boqvist and Rodriguez are upgrades that’ll improve the roster.

After re-signing Gritsyuk, the Devils still have $9.7 million in cap space. Is the plan to get another goalie or bring in a top six scorer? Right now, the goalies are Jake Allen and Nico Daws. They’re not expected to be in on Connor Hellebuyck, who would accept a trade to Buffalo.

Who Lands Larkin?

The Red Wings are still looking to trade Dylan Larkin following his request. The question is whether or not they can get enough back to justify moving him. If not, GM Steve Yzerman could keep him.

With Larkin at an affordable cap hit ($8.7 million AAV) through 2030-31, he has one of the best contracts. With the escalating costs in salaries, Larkin is a bargain. The likely candidates are the Knights, Wild, Hurricanes, and possibly the Stars depending on what happens with Robertson.

If Larkin is moved, some other dominoes could fall, including Vincent Trocheck and Tomas Hertl.

The Trocheck Issue

Since March, GM Chris Drury has made it no secret that he’d like to move Trocheck to a contender. However, he continues not to budge from what he’s asking for. No team is going to pay three key pieces for a 33-year-old checking center. Trocheck celebrates his 33rd birthday in 10 days.

Signed for another three years with a $5.625 million cap hit, nobody would dispute that he is a valuable player who can help a team. A gritty pivot who’s money on draws while being able to provide offense at both even strength and on the power play, Trocheck can certainly improve a team’s chances.

The Wild remain the likeliest candidate with young center Danilla Yurov a perfect target. With them expected to re-sign Nick Foligno and Zach Bogosian, they don’t have enough room for Trocheck unless another move is coming.

Perhaps it’ll be a different team that goes after Trocheck. The Sabres were very interested during the draft. Nothing ever happened.

If they wanted to, the Rangers could decide to hang onto him for now. He’s under contract and is a professional. Entering the season with Zibanejad, Miller, and Trocheck isn’t the worst thing. Noah Laba is expected to anchor the fourth line. If they can’t work out a deal this summer, it could always be revisited during the season.

Big Deals Expected for Makar and Hughes

Two of the game’s best players are a year away from unrestricted free agency. Cale Makar and Quinn Hughes are the game’s best two defensemen. They can impact the game like nobody else can from the blue line. The tremendous combination of skating and offensive skill makes them elite. We’ve seen Makar do it. During the postseason, Hughes was at his absolute best for Minnesota.

They’re 1A and 1B. The Avalanche are expected to sign Makar long-term. He currently makes $9 million AAV through 2026-27. It could wind up in the neighborhood of $18 to 19 million.

The Wild have indicated that they plan to sign Hughes to a contract extension. It’ll likely be either for three or five years. If he really has his heart set on joining brothers Jack and Luke in Newark, three makes more sense. Both he and Jack would both be up in 2030.

If Quinn gets a shorter term, it’ll probably be around $15 million.

Who the Rangers Should Chase

The Rangers can still use another top six scoring forward. This year’s free agent class isn’t great. But there’s still some good candidates they should explore.

1. Mattias Maccelli: Still a younger player who can create offense for teammates, he wasn’t qualified by Toronto. Maccelli once put up 57 points, including 40 assists for Arizona in 2023-24. He shouldn’t cost more than $4 million due to his last two seasons. He could complement Dorofeyev.
2. Eeli Tolvanen: A 27-year-old physical wing, Tolvanen can provide secondary help. He’s capable of putting up 15 to 20 goals and 20 to 25 assists. A player who loves to finish checks, the former Predators 2017 first round pick should check in at around $5 million. His CF was down due to how Seattle used him.
3. Mats Zuccarello: Many fans would love to see a Broadway reunion with Zuccarello. To this day, Zucc remains a fan favorite. Despite being 38, he’s still producing at a high level. Consecutive 54-point seasons with the Wild is proof. It helped that he sometimes played with elite talent. How would an older player fit in with the Rangers? He’ll cost at least $7 million. I doubt he accepts one year.
4. Anthony Mantha: Coming off surgery that limited him to only 13 games in Calgary, the 31-year-old Mantha landed on his feet in Pittsburgh, where he set career bests in goals (33), assists (31), and points (64) while playing with Evgeni Malkin. One has to think the Pens will keep him. However, he’s going to want a big payday. In a normal year, Mantha is still good for 20-plus goals and 20 assists. There are cheaper options.
5. Kasperi Kapanen: A secondary player who hasn’t had much success lately, the 29-year-old Kapanen is a good skating forward who brings energy. While not as popular as some of the other free agents, he wouldn’t be a bad addition to the third line. He won’t cost as much.

If you buy into the talk from the Rangers beat reporters that they’re in the market to add a left defenseman, it better not be to sign Mario Ferraro. A physical defensive defenseman who will age poorly due to how he plays, it would be a colossal mistake to sign him. Already not the best skater, can anyone imagine Ferraro in his thirties? Considering what Vegas gave Lauzon, he won’t be cheap.

I’d much rather the Rangers take another crack at trying to acquire Alexander Nikishin. A restricted free agent, the 24-year-old defenseman produced 11 goals and 22 helpers in his rookie season for the Hurricanes. A superb skater who’s a strong possession player, Nikishin is the kind of player the Rangers can use. They reportedly offered a first round pick to try to get him during the draft. Carolina turned down the offer that included multiple picks.

Are the Rangers planning to sign another goalie? Dylan Garand re-signed on a two-way, two-year deal. Perhaps they’re going to add another veteran to compete for the backup position. Maybe that’s Daniil Tarasov. He won 13 games with the Panthers. Like Igor Shesterkin, Tarasov is Russian. It could be a good partnership. Compared to some other goalies, he shoudn’t cost too much.

We’ll see what kind of day it is. The fun just started.