Panthers Sign Tomas Nosek, A.J. Greer
Addressing depth in their forward core, Darren Dreger of TSN reports the Florida Panthers have signed free agent forward Tomas Nosek to a one-year, $775K contract. They’ve also inked forward A.J. Greer to a two-year deal, David Dwork of The Hockey News reports. That one carries an $850K cap hit, per Renaud Lavoie of TVA Sports.
Nosek came to New Jersey with the hopes that he’d become a key fourth-line center for them. Instead, he dealt with four separate injuries during the season, limiting him to just 36 games, his lowest total since the 2016-17 campaign. In those appearances, the 31-year-old managed just two goals and four assists in a little under 12 minutes per game.
When healthy, Nosek is a consistently above-average player at the faceoff dot who can kill penalties, elements that made him appealing to Florida. He’ll be asked to fill the void created by Kevin Stenlund who inked a two-year deal with Utah on Monday.
As for Greer, he comes over from Calgary to fill the fourth line energy role created by the departure of Ryan Lomberg who coincidentally signed a two-year deal with the Flames. Greer’s price tag is much more affordable for the Panthers, however, given their salary structure.
The 27-year-old played in 59 games last season, recording six goals and six assists along with 100 hits while averaging a little under nine minutes a night. For his career, Greer has 32 points and 205 penalty minutes in 167 NHL appearances between four different organizations.
Kings Sign Warren Foegele, Re-Sign Copley, Lewis; Sign Five Others
David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period reports the Los Angeles Kings have agreed to a contract with free agent forward Warren Foegele. It’s a three-year deal in the $3.5MM AAV range, reports TSN’s Darren Dreger. They’re also bringing back depth goalie Pheonix Copley and fourth-line forward Trevor Lewis, per Dennis Bernstein of The Fourth Period. The team also announced the signings of forward Jeff Malott (one-way in 2024-25, two-way in 2025-26) and Glenn Gawdin on two-year contracts plus centers Tyler Madden and Jack Studnicka along with defenseman Reilly Walsh on one-year, two-way agreements.
Foegele is the headline addition out of the group. He’s coming off a career year with Edmonton, one that saw him post 20 goals and 21 assists in 82 regular season games despite averaging less than 14 minutes a night of ice time. However, he wasn’t quite as productive in the playoffs, being held to three goals and five assists in 22 contests.
Still, it’s a nice raise for the 28-year-old who recently wrapped up a three-year deal that carried a cap hit of $2.75MM. He’ll likely take the place of Viktor Arvidsson on Los Angeles’ roster; coincidentally, Arvidsson signed a two-year agreement with the Oilers today to replace Foegele. His role will likely be the same with the Kings, splitting time between the second and third lines.
As for Copley, he received a one-year, $825K agreement. The 32-year-old North Pole native was a feel-good story in 2022-23, coming up from the AHL to eventually post a 2.64 GAA with a .903 SV% in 37 games, earning him a one-year, $1.5MM deal for last season. However, Copley struggled in his eight appearances before tearing his ACL, ending his campaign in December. He’ll have a chance to battle David Rittich for the backup job with the other netminder heading for AHL Ontario.
Lewis, meanwhile, signed for $800K, a small raise after making the league minimum. The 37-year-old played in all 82 games last season, picking up eight goals and eight assists on the fourth line while playing a regular role on the penalty kill. He’s likely to reprise that role for 2024-25 which will be his 17th NHL campaign.
Malott has been a productive AHL scorer for the last three seasons, helping him secure a one-way year on this contract. He played exclusively with AHL Manitoba in 2023-24, notching 22 goals and 30 assists; it was the third straight campaign of 20-plus goals at that level. Despite that, he has just one career game of NHL experience. Even with the change in organization, the 27-year-old will likely have to start with the Reign and try to earn a recall from there.
Gawdin has a bit more NHL experience, seeing action in each of the last four years, spanning 13 games in total. He’s coming off a career year with AHL San Diego, one that saw him notch 22 goals and 33 assists in 70 games. The 27-year-old will be counted on to play a prominent role with the Reign next season.
Madden, meanwhile, is someone more familiar with the organization having spent the last four seasons with them, all with the Reign. He was non-tendered on Sunday to avoid giving him arbitration rights but quickly struck an agreement to return. The 24-year-old had 15 goals and 19 assists last season and should remain a regular in Ontario’s lineup.
Studnicka is the most experienced of their AHL-bound signings. He played in 22 NHL games last season but was limited to just one goal, eventually resulting in his clearing waivers. He was more productive in the minors, collecting 21 points in 36 games between AHL Abbotsford and San Jose. The 25-year-old has 107 career NHL games under his belt where he has six goals and ten assists.
As for Walsh, he has been a productive defenseman at the AHL level with a pair of 40-plus-point showings. Last season, he played in Boston’s system with Providence, collecting nine goals and 18 assists in 60 games. The 25-year-old became a Group Six free agent and should play a big role on Ontario’s back end next season.
Capitals Re-Sign Ethen Frank, Chase Priskie, Mitchell Gibson
July 1, 9:01 a.m.: Washington has made both of these depth extensions official, also inking RFA goalie Mitchell Gibson to a one-year, two-way deal ($775K NHL/$100K AHL). Gibson, 25, was a fourth-round pick of the Caps in 2018. Last year was his first pro season after a four-year career at Harvard. He played mostly with the ECHL’s South Carolina Stingrays, recording a .899 SV%, 2.56 GAA and three shutouts in 42 games.
June 30, 8:14 p.m.: Just hours after issuing a qualifying offer to Ethen Frank, the Capitals have reached an agreement on a new contract with him. PuckPedia reports (Twitter link) that they’ve re-signed the forward to a two-year contract. The NHL portion is the minimum of $775K in both years while the AHL salary is $250K next season before converting to a one-way agreement for 2025-26.
Meanwhile, PuckPedia adds (Twitter link) that the Caps have also re-signed pending UFA blueliner Chase Priskie to a one-year, two-way agreement. The deal pays $775K in the NHL and $400K in the minors.
Frank only has two full professional seasons under his belt after a five-year NCAA career. In his rookie campaign, the 26-year-old put up a strong 30 goals and 19 assists in 57 games with AHL Hershey.
This past season, he followed it up with a similarly strong showing, notching 29 goals and 18 assists in 64 regular season games. Despite that, he didn’t receive a recall from Washington during the season. Frank finished up on a high note, collecting 10 goals and seven assists in 18 postseason appearances, helping the Bears take home the Calder Cup.
As for Priskie, the 28-year-old has four career NHL appearances under his belt from 2021-22 with Florida but has played exclusively in the minors since then. This season, he had eight goals and 26 assists in 69 games with Hershey before adding 14 more points in 20 playoff contests. He’s in line to play a big role for them again next season.
Stars Re-Sign Sam Steel
July 1, 6:08 a.m.: While the team hasn’t announced it, CapFriendly reflects that Steel’s deal has been signed.
June 30, 10:40 p.m.: Although he wasn’t tendered a qualifying offer earlier today, it looks like Sam Steel will be staying in Dallas. Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff reports (Twitter link) that the center is expected to ink a one-year, $1.2MM contract to remain with the Stars.
The 26-year-old has actually been non-tendered in three straight years to avoid giving him arbitration eligibility which could have pushed the price tag higher than his previous teams wanted to pay. That resulted in Anaheim letting him go in 2022 while Minnesota did the same last summer, paving the way for him to sign a one-year, $850K deal with the Stars on the open day of free agency last summer.
Steel had a quality year with Dallas in their bottom six, recording 24 points in 77 games while averaging a little over 13 minutes per game including nearly two minutes per night shorthanded. He also suited up in all 19 playoff contests, picking up a goal and four helpers.
For his career, Steel has played in 339 NHL games between the Ducks, Wild, and Stars. While he was a high-end scorer in junior, that hasn’t translated to the pros as he has just 43 goals and 74 assists in those appearances; the fact that he has become a capable defensive forward will help extend his career as it makes him a better fit to play in the bottom six.
In the end, Steel will wind up with a $350K raise, a pretty good outcome as it will be the first seven-figure contract of his career. Meanwhile, the Stars were able to avoid the risk of going to arbitration while ensuring they can keep him at a rate they can afford. With at least seven more players needed to fill out their roster, expect Dallas to be busy in the coming days.
Snapshots: Murray, Canucks, Studenic, Lomberg
Defenseman Ryan Murray has had a long history when it comes to chronic back injuries. He played just 13 games in 2022-23 and didn’t play anywhere this past season. However, Aaron Portzline of The Athletic reports (Twitter link) that Murray had surgery which he believes has solved his chronic back troubles and he will be looking to land a PTO with an NHL team this summer. The 29-year-old was the second-overall pick back in 2012 and has played in 445 career contests at the top level so far, recording 15 goals, 116 assists, and 716 blocked shots. PTO agreements often take longer to materialize so Murray will likely have to wait a while to see what opportunities might become available closer to training camp in September.
More from around the hockey world:
- Although the expectation was that the Canucks would go with Arturs Silovs as Thatcher Demko‘s backup next season, that might no longer be the case. Thomas Drance and Rick Dhaliwal of The Athletic report (subscription link) that Vancouver will be shopping for a veteran netminder on the open market and it appears that they’re willing to spend around $1.5MM for that player. Casey DeSmith served as the second-string option this past season but does not appear to be an option at this time. Silovs still has one year of waiver exemption remaining so there’s a case to be made that he’d be better served playing as the starter in the minors over seeing second-string duty with Vancouver.
- Kraken free agent winger Marian Studenic has inked a two-year deal with SHL Farjestad, per a team release. The 25-year-old spent most of the year with AHL Coachella Valley, recording 15 goals and 29 assists in 64 games, earning him a two-game recall to Seattle. Studenic also added 11 points in 18 playoff contests for the Firebirds. However, rather than stick around in the minors, he’s opting to try his hand overseas.
- Pending UFA winger Ryan Lomberg appears to have priced himself past what the Panthers can afford, relays David Dwork of The Hockey News (Twitter link). The 29-year-old put up 12 goals and 20 points in 2022-23 but was limited to just five goals and two assists in 75 games this past season although he added a career-high 175 hits. Lomberg played on an $800K AAV for the last two years and Florida will need to have several players at that price point again next season. If Lomberg believes he can beat that on the open market – a reasonable assumption – then he’ll have to go elsewhere to get it.
Free Agent Notes: Reinhart, Ekman-Larsson, Joseph, Lafferty
Contract discussions between the Panthers and Sam Reinhart appear to be going down to the wire, reports Pierre LeBrun of TSN and The Athletic (Twitter link). The 28-year-old is coming off a career year, one that saw him score 57 goals and 37 assists while playing in all 82 games, setting new personal bests in goals and points. He didn’t produce at quite the same rate in the playoffs but still managed 16 points in 24 games to help lead Florida to their first Stanley Cup title. Reinhart is in line for a significant raise on the $6.5MM AAV he had over the last three seasons while getting a max-term agreement. However, the length of that max-term contract is about to change. Unless a contract is agreed to by 11 PM CT, Florida will be capped at offering only seven years. If a deal is reached before that time, they can make it an eight-year agreement.
More free agent news:
- While the Panthers are hoping to keep Reinhart in the fold, it looks like they won’t be re-signing Oliver Ekman-Larsson, at least not yet. Rick Dhaliwal of TSN and The Athletic reports (Twitter link) that the veteran blueliner will be testing the open market. After being bought out by Vancouver last summer, the 32-year-old signed a one-year, $2.25MM deal with Florida to try to rebuild his value. The move worked as Ekman-Larsson had a solid season, notching 32 points in 80 games while logging over 18 minutes a night. He also recorded six points in 24 playoff contests.
- Although the Penguins non-tendered defenseman Pierre-Olivier Joseph earlier today, TVA Sports’ Renaud Lavoie reports (Twitter link) that the two sides are still discussing a new deal. The 24-year-old had more of a limited role in 2023-24, getting into 52 games where he had 11 points while logging a little over 15 minutes a night. Joseph was arbitration-eligible and Pittsburgh didn’t want to give him that option, resulting in him not getting his qualifying offer. It’s a tactic we’re seeing more of lately with teams then sometimes circling back to work out a deal after. We’ll see if this is one of those cases.
- While the Blackhawks asked for the negotiating rights to Sam Lafferty to be added in the Ilya Mikheyev trade earlier this week, Scott Powers and Mark Lazerus of The Athletic report (subscription link) that the veteran will test the market. Lafferty spent parts of two years with Chicago and had discussions on a new deal with them following his rights being acquired but instead will see what’s out there. The 29-year-old had 13 goals and 11 assists in 79 games with Vancouver after being acquired late in training camp from Toronto.
Oliver Kylington To Test Free Agency
For the past several weeks, the Flames and Oliver Kylington had been talking about a new contract with a mutual desire to get something done. Early in the day, Sportsnet’s Eric Francis reported that Calgary hadn’t given up hope on getting a new deal in place. However, TSN’s Salim Valji reports (Twitter link) that the blueliner will indeed hit the open market tomorrow.
Kylington is one of the wild cards of this year’s free agent class. In 2021-22, he had a breakout campaign, collecting nine goals and 22 assists in 73 games while logging over 18 minutes a night. It looked like he had arrived as a legitimate full-time NHL blueliner, resulting in Calgary giving him a two-year, $5MM agreement.
However, the 27-year-old hardly played on that contract. He took all of 2022-23 away from the team and missed half of this season to focus on his mental health. When he did return in January, the Flames were cautious with him, easing him in. Overall, Kylington played in 33 games, picking up three goals and five assists while averaging 17:15 per contest.
For his career, Kylington has played in just 201 games, recording 55 points. That’s not a significant body of work for a typical unrestricted free agent to be negotiating off of but TSN’s Darren Dreger relays (Twitter link) that Kylington’s camp is hoping for a two-year deal with a small increase off his $2.5MM AAV from the last two years.
Contending teams might be looking for more certainty when it comes to distributing their largely limited free agent dollars around. However, teams with more flexibility might be intrigued by the potential upside if they feel Kylington can get back to the level he was at back in 2021-22. If a few of those feel that way, he might be able to get the type of commitment he’s looking for.
Atlantic Notes: Swayman, Bruins, Roy, Bertuzzi, Xhekaj
With Linus Ullmark now in Ottawa, Jeremy Swayman is the Bruins’ undisputed goalie of the present and future moving forward. However, it doesn’t appear as if much progress has been made on a new deal, according to Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli (Twitter link). Last summer, the two sides wound up going through salary arbitration with the netminder receiving a one-year, $3.475MM award. This past season, the 25-year-old posted a 2.52 GAA with a .916 SV% in 44 regular season games before putting forth a better showing in the playoffs, playing to a 2.15 GAA and a .933 SV% in a dozen postseason contests. It stands to reason that both sides would like to get a long-term agreement done; that type of deal should carry a price tag of at least $6MM.
More from the Atlantic Division:
- Still with the Bruins, Kevin Paul Dupont of The Boston Globe suggests that they could be in position to land a pair of prominent Vancouver free agents when the market opens up on Monday, linking Boston to both center Elias Lindholm and defenseman Nikita Zadorov. Lindholm is coming off a down year but still managed 15 goals and 29 assists in 75 games. He’d give Boston a legitimate two-way middleman after they didn’t really replace Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci last summer. Zadorov, meanwhile, split the year between Calgary and Vancouver, notching 20 points and 177 hits in 75 games. However, he was quite impactful in the playoffs, recording four goals and four assists in 13 contests while logging over 20 minutes a game, putting himself in a spot to land a big raise on the $3.5MM he made in 2023-24 on a long-term agreement.
- The Senators are expected to make an aggressive pitch for pending UFA defenseman Matt Roy, reports Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch. The 29-year-old is positioned to be one of the top right-shot defenders to hit the open market on Monday and is coming off a strong year that saw him record 25 points, 197 blocks, and 152 hits in 81 games while averaging just under 21 minutes a night. After making $3.15MM the last three seasons, he could potentially come close to doubling that in free agency which would be very difficult for Ottawa to fit into their current salary structure.
- While the Maple Leafs were hoping to re-sign winger Tyler Bertuzzi, that won’t be the case according to TSN’s Darren Dreger (Twitter link) who notes that the contract he’s expected to get is more than what Toronto can afford. The 29-year-old couldn’t get a multi-year deal at his asking price last summer, instead settling for a one-year, $5.5MM agreement with the Maple Leafs. Bertuzzi picked up 21 goals and 22 assists in 81 games during the regular season. That, coupled with his production in the past (three other years of at least 20 goals) has Dreger feeling that Bertuzzi will land a deal around four years at more than $5MM per season.
- Canadiens defenseman Arber Xhekaj received a qualifying offer today but a new agent will be handling the discussions. Bartlett Hockey announced (Twitter link) that they’ve signed Xhekaj along with his brother Florian Xhekaj as new clients. Arber played in 44 games in his sophomore year with Montreal, picking up 10 points, 125 hits, and 81 penalty minutes while averaging just under 16 minutes a night. He also played in 17 games with AHL Laval, recording 11 points. Florian, meanwhile, is a Canadiens prospect and will begin his entry-level agreement next season.
Predators Nearing Agreement With Alexandre Carrier
Defenseman Alexandre Carrier won’t be hitting the open market on Monday after all. Pierre LeBrun of TSN and The Athletic reports (Twitter link) that the two sides are close to finalizing a new contract. Terms of the potential agreement have not been disclosed.
After a rough 2022-23 showing, the 27-year-old had a nice bounce-back effort this past season. Carrier played in 73 games, scoring a career-best four goals while adding 16 assists and a career-high 137 blocked shots while logging a little under 19 minutes a night. He was one of their most-used penalty killers, averaging more than two minutes a night shorthanded. He added a goal and two assists with 19 blocks in six playoff contests where his ATOI jumped to over 21 minutes per game.
For his career, Carrier has played in 217 NHL games, all with Nashville who drafted him in the fourth round (115th overall) back in 2015. He has just 10 goals and 52 assists to his name but has become an effective shot blocker and defensive blueliner, even earning a spot on the All-Rookie team back in 2021-22.
Carrier played on a one-year, $2.5MM deal in 2023-24, an agreement that gave him a nice raise based on his play the past couple of years while giving the Preds a chance to walk away if he couldn’t get back to his form from a couple of years ago. Since he was able to rebound nicely, Carrier should be in line for a nice raise and a multi-year pact this time around.
Shane Pinto Hoping To Be Offer-Sheeted
Offer sheets are a rarity in the NHL and it’s even rarer that there is word of a player believed to be trying to solicit one on the opening day of free agency. However, that appears to be the case in Ottawa as Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch reports (Twitter link) that Shane Pinto’s camp will be looking to get an offer sheet when the market opens up on Monday.
[Related: Offer Sheet Thresholds for 2024]
The Senators and Pinto haven’t had much success with contract talks. Last year, the two sides weren’t close to an agreement for most of the summer and just when it looked like they were closing in on an agreement, the 23-year-old was suspended for the first half of the season for a violation of the league’s gambling policy. Upon being reinstated, he didn’t have much choice but to accept a pro-rated deal for the minimum salary of $775K.
To his credit, Pinto was rather productive for the Sens down the stretch, notching nine goals and 18 assists while logging over 18 minutes a night. That brought him up to 30 goals and 40 assists in 140 career NHL appearances.
Both sides were believed to be interested in a long-term agreement but a report in mid-May suggested that they were far apart on money with Pinto’s camp believed to be seeking around $5MM on that contract. The report that he’s now seeking an offer sheet indicates that they remain far apart in discussions.
A $5MM asking price pegs the required compensation at a first-round pick and a third-round pick. Both of those must be 2025 selections and the offer-sheeting team must have their own picks to use; they can’t substitute one from another team. That means that 16 teams are ineligible to attempt to give Pinto an offer sheet at that threshold, per CapFriendly, unless they’re able to re-acquire their own selections first.
Once the market officially opens up at 11 AM CT on Monday, there will generally be a free-for-all when it comes to unrestricted free agent signings so if Pinto is to get his way and get an offer sheet, he may have to be patient and wait for the dust to settle before assessing if there is a viable option out there. Unlike many restricted free agents, salary arbitration isn’t an option as he is ineligible for one this summer so if he wants to show the Sens that he’s worth the money he’s seeking, an offer sheet is the only route he can take.