NHL Arbitration-Eligible Free Agents For 2025

Having already created a space to track this offseason’s pool of notable free agents at large, we’re turning our attention today to the restricted free agent class – more specifically, those who have accrued enough professional experience to be eligible for salary arbitration if they don’t reach extensions before July 1.

A player’s age determines arbitration eligibility as of September 15 of the calendar year in which they sign their entry-level contract. For those who sign between the ages of 18 and 20, they must have completed at least four seasons with at least 10 NHL games played. For players signing their first deal at 21, it’s three seasons with at least 10 games in any professional league (including AHL, ECHL, Europe, etc.). The years of experience requirement drops to two for players who signed at 22 or 23, and it drops to one for anyone who signed their first NHL contract at age 24 or older.

When a player is arbitration-eligible, both the player and the team can elect to have a hearing if they enter the 2025-26 league year without a new agreement. The first step in this process is, of course, extending a qualifying offer to the player before the June 30 deadline. Assuming the player opts not to accept their qualifying offer or sign an offer sheet, they can elect for an arbitration hearing by July 5. Doing so makes them ineligible for an offer sheet for the remainder of the offseason.

There are two windows for team-elected arbitration, and a team can only file for a hearing with two players each year. The first window ends on the later of June 15 or 48 hours after the Stanley Cup Final ends. Players who are bound to arbitration hearings by team elections in this window can still agree to offer sheets before July 5 and negate the team-elected arbitration hearing. Teams have a second window to elect arbitration for 24 hours after the player election window closes. Players can’t receive more than one team-elected arbitration hearing in their career, regardless of whether the case made it to a hearing.

There are plenty more nitty-gritty details to delve into regarding the specifics of arbitration rulings, but that information becomes more pertinent when we know which players will be subject to hearings this summer. It’s worth noting the number of players filing for arbitration has steadily declined over the past few seasons – only 14 opted to do so last summer after 20-plus did so in 2022 and 2023.

The list of arbitration-eligible RFAs for 2025 is listed below. This list, which can be found anytime under the “Pro Hockey Rumors Features” menu on the right sidebar on our desktop site or under the Flame icon on our mobile menu, will be updated later this offseason to note whether the player will be subject to arbitration this summer or not.

Each player’s minimum arbitration award (the lowest a team can file for based on the terms of the player’s previous contract) is noted in parentheses, although the actual cap hit of their next deal will almost certainly be higher if a qualifying offer is tendered.

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Anaheim Ducks

• Isac Lundeström ($1.5MM)
• Brett Leason ($1.05MM)
• Drew Helleson ($925K)
• Josh Lopina ($925K)
• Nikita Nesterenko ($874K)
• Lukáš Dostál ($850K)
• Judd Caulfield ($838K)

Boston Bruins

• Morgan Geekie ($2MM)
• Oliver Wahlstrom ($1MM)
• John Farinacci ($950K)
• John Beecher ($925K)
• Marat Khusnutdinov ($925K)
• Mason Lohrei ($925K)
• Georgii Merkulov ($925K)
• Jaxon Nelson ($870K)
• Drew Bavaro ($868K)
• Trevor Kuntar ($868K)
• Daniil Misyul ($868K)
• Jakub Lauko ($800K)
• Ian Mitchell ($775K)

Buffalo Sabres

• Bowen Byram ($3.93MM)
• Ryan McLeod ($2.1MM)
• Ryan Johnson ($925K)
• Erik Brännström ($900K)
• Bennett MacArthur ($868K)
• Jacob Bernard-Docker ($825K)

Calgary Flames

• Morgan Frost ($2.04MM)
• Kevin Bahl ($1.2MM)
• Waltteri Ignatjew ($870K)
• Sam Morton ($870K)
• Adam Klapka ($775K)
• Yan Kuznetsov ($775K)
• Connor Murphy ($775K)

Carolina Hurricanes

• Domenick Fensore ($925K)
• Anttoni Honka ($835K)
• Yaniv Perets ($805K)
• Skyler Brind’Amour ($775K)
• Ty Smith ($775K)
• Ryan Suzuki ($775K)

Chicago Blackhawks

• Philipp Kurashev ($2.25MM)
• Arvid Söderblom ($1MM)
• Aku Raty ($925K)
• Antti Saarela ($925K)
• Louis Crevier ($775K)

Colorado Avalanche

• Matthew Stienburg ($928K)
• Sam Malinski ($850K)
• John Ludvig ($775K)
• Kevin Mandolese ($775K)
• Trent Miner ($775K)
• Jason Polin ($775K)

Columbus Blue Jackets

• Jordan Harris ($1.4MM)
• Daniil Tarasov ($1.35MM)
• Hunter McKown ($950K)
• Dmitri Voronkov ($925K)
• Cole Clayton ($810K)

Dallas Stars

• Nils Lundkvist ($1.25MM)
• Benjamin Kraws ($850K)

Detroit Red Wings

• Elmer Söderblom ($925K)
• Antti Tuomisto ($868K)
• Jonatan Berggren ($825K)
• Albert Johansson ($775K)

Edmonton Oilers

• Evan Bouchard ($3.66MM)
• Cameron Wright ($952K)
• Noah Philp ($775K)
• Alec Regula ($775K)
• Olivier Rodrigue ($775K)

Florida Panthers

• Oliver Okuliar ($870K)
• Wilmer Skoog ($870K)
• Nathan Staios ($859K)
• Zachary Uens ($859K)
• Tobias Björnfot ($775K)
• MacKenzie Entwistle ($775K)

Los Angeles Kings

• Cole Krygier ($838K)
• Jack Studnicka ($775K)

Minnesota Wild

• Declan Chisholm ($1MM)
• Luke Toporowski ($870K)
• Graeme Clarke ($800K)
• Adam Raška ($775K)

Montreal Canadiens

• Cayden Primeau ($1.1MM)
• Rafaël Harvey-Pinard ($1MM)
• Jakub Dobes ($925K)
• Jayden Struble ($868K)
• Xavier Simoneau ($855K)
• Noel Hoefenmayer ($775K)
• Gustav Lindström ($775K)

Nashville Predators

• Ondrej Pavel ($870K)
• Jesse Ylönen ($775K)

New Jersey Devils

• Cody Glass ($2.13MM)
• Isaac Poulter ($830K)
• Nolan Foote ($825K)
• Santeri Hatakka ($775K)
• Nathan Legare ($775K)

New York Islanders

• Noah Dobson ($3.4MM)
• Alexander Romanov ($2.13MM)
• Scott Perunovich ($1.15MM)
• Maxim Tsyplakov ($950K)
• Travis Mitchell ($895K)
• Aidan Fulp ($870K)
• Simon Holmström ($850K)
• Samuel Bolduc ($800K)
• Adam Beckman ($775K)
• Adam Boqvist ($775K)
• Liam Foudy ($775K)
• Marc Gatcomb ($775K)

New York Rangers

• K’Andre Miller ($3.95MM)
• Lucas Edmonds ($870K)
• Adam Edstrom ($855K)
• Zachary Jones ($825K)
• Arthur Kaliyev ($825K)
• Juuso Pärssinen ($775K)
• Matthew Robertson ($775K)

Ottawa Senators

• Fabian Zetterlund ($1.5MM)
• Max Guenette ($775K)
• Jan Jeník ($775K)
• Nikolas Matinpalo ($775K)
• Jamieson Rees ($775K)

Philadelphia Flyers

• Noah Cates ($2.23MM)
• Cameron York ($1.6MM)
• Oscar Eklind ($950K)
• Jakob Pelletier ($800K)

Pittsburgh Penguins

• Connor Dewar ($1.18MM)
• Conor Timmins ($1.1MM)
• Pierre-Olivier Joseph ($950K)
• Taylor Gauthier ($868K)
• Philip Tomasino ($825K)
• Emil Bemström ($775K)

San Jose Sharks

• Klim Kostin ($2.2MM)
• Carl Berglund ($950K)
• Georgi Romanov ($950K)
• Thomas Bordeleau ($874K)
• Nikolai Kovalenko ($868K)
• Noah Gregor ($850K)
• Brandon Coe ($814K)
• Gabriel Carriere ($805K)

Seattle Kraken

• Kaapo Kakko ($2.04MM)
• Tye Kartye ($868K)
• Cale Fleury ($800K)
• Ben Meyers ($775K)

St. Louis Blues

• Anton Malmström ($950K)
• Vadim Zherenko ($855K)
• Nikita Alexandrov ($775K)
• Joel Hofer ($775K)
• Hunter Skinner ($775K)

Tampa Bay Lightning

• Maxwell Crozier ($868K)
• Jaydon Dureau ($850K)
• Gage Goncalves ($775K)

Toronto Maple Leafs

• Nicholas Robertson ($875K)
• Dennis Hildeby ($855K)
• Mikko Kokkonen ($855K)
• Pontus Holmberg ($825K)
• Reese Johnson ($775K)
• Cédric Paré ($775K)

Utah Hockey Club

• Jack McBain ($1.6MM)
• Montana Onyebuchi ($825K)
• Ben McCartney ($775K)
• Kailer Yamamoto ($775K)

Vancouver Canucks

• Nikita Tolopilo ($950K)
• Christian Felton ($870K)
• Tristen Nielsen ($870K)
• Max Sasson ($870K)
• Ty Glover ($868K)
• Arshdeep Bains ($825K)
• Cole McWard ($775K)
• Jett Woo ($775K)

Vegas Golden Knights

• Nicolas Hague ($2.3MM)
• Cole Schwindt ($800K)
• Raphael Lavoie ($775K)

Washington Capitals

• Alexander Alexeyev ($875K)
• Pierrick Dube ($870K)
• Henrik Rybinski ($868K)
• Mitchell Gibson ($775K)

Winnipeg Jets

• Gabriel Vilardi ($3.06MM)
• Dylan Samberg ($1.5MM)
• Morgan Barron ($1.4MM)
• Rasmus Kupari ($1.1MM)
• Parker Ford ($868K)
• Simon Lundmark ($775K)
• Isaak Phillips ($775K)
• Mason Shaw ($775K)

Photo courtesy of Timothy T. Ludwig-Imagn Images (Byram) and Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images (Dobson).