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Poll: How Many Top 50 Free Agents Will Opt For Retirement?

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A week into free agency, the vast majority of PHR’s Top 50 Unrestricted Free Agents are under contract. Unsurprisingly, many of those left unsigned are on the wrong side of 30 or even at or approaching 40. Veterans tend to be later additions in free agency, as teams aren’t rushing to sign them to long-term deals to be core pieces, but rather seek to use them to plug holes in the lineup after the fact. As of now, there are nine names in the Top 50 that are legitimate candidates for retirement. Some have offers on the table and are taking their time to make a decision, while other may not have much of a market and could have to choose between a PTO or calling it a career. How many will choose retirement this summer?

Justin Williams, 37, enjoyed a tremendous 53-point season with the Carolina Hurricanes this past season and looked far from done. GM Don Waddell hinted that the captain will return next season, but until pen meets paper it remains a question mark. Williams was a key piece of the Hurricanes’ run to the Eastern Conference Final last season and would be a major loss for the team. However, he could opt to go out on top as a player who has seen very little drop-off in production through his 30’s and hit his highest point total since 2011-12 last season. Williams can still play, but the question is whether he wants to.

Joe Thornton, 40, not only wants to play next season, but wants to play several more years. The future Hall of Famer has already had an illustrious career, but has yet to win that elusive Stanley Cup. Thornton would like to return to the San Jose Sharks, one of only two teams he’s played for in his 21-year career, and the Sharks should be able to find the space to bring him back after moving out salary via trade and free agency departures. However, Thornton’s asking price will play a part – he did top 50 points again last season – as will the Sharks’ interest in bringing back another retirement threat. Patrick Marleau, 39, left San Jose two years ago to join the Toronto Maple Leafs, but has since been bought out and all signs point to a desire to return to the Sharks. These two legendary Sharks are both capable of continuing their NHL careers, but can San Jose fit them both and are either willing to sign elsewhere at this point in their careers?

Brian Boyle, 34, enjoyed one of his best seasons in 2018-19 and netted a second-round pick at the trade deadline. He clearly still has value as a big, smart two-way forward, but the lack of attention he has garnered thus far in free agency is curious. Boyle did not make as much of an impact in Nashville post-trade as he did in New Jersey and teams may be skeptical of his production moving forward. Between a cold market and recent health concerns, Boyle may be considering calling it a career while he’s still considered an elite defensive forward. However, it would be a surprise if there isn’t a team in the NHL who could still use Boyle’s ability.

Dion Phaneuf, 34, is fresh off of a buyout and should be available at a bargain rate as he continues to cash paychecks from the Los Angeles Kings. Phaneuf stated earlier this off-season that he would be happy to land with a contender, but is also open to taking on a mentor role with a young team. That would seemingly make him a candidate to join a number of D-needy teams. Yet, a week into free agency there has been almost no noise surrounding Phaneuf. The veteran still plays a strong checking game, but his offense and mobility fell off a cliff last season, resulting in drastic career lows in production and ice time. Teams may be hesitant to invest at his current asking price. Phaneuf may be looking at a decision between a short-term, minimum deal or walking away.

Ben Lovejoy, 35, is also coming off an uninspiring season. The Dallas Stars still felt he was worth a deadline gamble, but Lovejoy failed to make much of an impact offensively with either the Stars or Devils pre-trade. An experienced journeyman defenseman, Lovejoy still plays a strong defensive game and has great awareness in his own zone. However, when it comes to moving the puck he can be prone to turnovers and when asked to contribute offensively, he offers little. At this point in his career, Lovejoy is an ideal No. 7 or 8 defenseman. However, does he want to continue his playing career only to be used sparingly as a depth player? That’s the question.

Thomas Vanek, 35, is a tricky case. While his 36 points this season marked a career low, it also came in just 64 games and was one of the top marks for the Detroit Red Wings. Vanek has been a tough player to get a read on in recent years because he has moved around so much and played in a variety of roles. The eye test, combined with a plethora of rumors so far this summer, suggest that he can keep playing. But does a decorated veteran really want to continue being a hired gun and deadline deal year after year? If Vanek can find some security in a short-term contract, he will stick around in the NHL and likely continue to be a great value as a player capable of 50 points. However, the respected veteran may also be ready to call it a career if the right fit doesn’t exist.

Niklas Kronwall, 38, and Deryk Engelland, 37, are both in the same boat. They will either return to their current teams – the Red Wings and Golden Knights respectively – or they’ll retire. Neither is looking to move at this point in their careers, nor can they command salaries that their teams cannot pay. Instead, the duo are both valued for their leadership and loyalty and can still play well enough in a regular role or, more likely, thrive in a depth role. The question for both is simply how much they have left in the tank and whether it’s time to quit while they’re ahead.

So what do you think? Nine players, all with good reason to retire but also to keep playing, with various market factors at work. How many suit up in the NHL next season and how many make a final announcement in the coming weeks?

Don Waddell Believes Justin Williams May Be Leaning Towards A Return

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While the Hurricanes are still waiting to hear from Justin Williams regarding his plans for next season, GM Don Waddell told Chip Alexander of the Raleigh News & Observer that he thinks the winger may be leaning towards returning and is hoping for a final decision in the near future.  Williams had previously indicated that he’d either re-sign with Carolina or retire.  The veteran is coming off a solid 2018-19 season that saw him collect 53 points in 82 regular seasons games and chipped in with seven more in 15 postseason contests.  The Hurricanes have been relatively quiet with player movement up front this summer and it appears they’re waiting to see what Williams plans to do before doing much else.

Carolina Hurricanes Sign Brian Gibbons

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The Carolina Hurricanes have signed Brian Gibbons to a one-year, two-way contract to add some depth to the forward position. Gibbons will earn $725K at the NHL level and secured a $225K guarantee.

Now 31, Gibbons has scratched and clawed his way to 189 games in the NHL over the years including a career-high 64 last season split between the Anaheim Ducks and Ottawa Senators. The undrafted forward spent four years lighting the lamp at Boston College before earning an NHL deal with the Penguins, but still failed to actually make it to Pittsburgh for several years. In those 189 games Gibbons has just 67 points, but showed his scoring touch during the 2017-18 season with the New Jersey Devils where he was a dynamo on the penalty kill recording five short-handed points.

Even if he doesn’t get much of an opportunity in Carolina, it’s hard to pass up an opportunity that at worst will put you with the defending Calder Cup champions. The Charlotte Checkers have been an excellent AHL organization for some time, and if Gibbons ends up failing to grab a roster spot in Carolina he’ll be an important piece as they try to defend their title.

Snapshots: Panarin, McGinn, Greening

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It was hard to miss Artemi Panarin’s free agency decision on Monday, as an all-world player landed in the largest market in North America. However, what wasn’t clear right away was how Panarin’s new seven-year, $81.5MM contract with the New York Rangers was structured. CapFriendly has cleared that up, revealing the terms of the monster deal. To no surprise, the details continue to favor the star forward. While Panarin’s contract carries an $11.643MM cap hit, he will in fact make a salary of just $1MM each year. What this means is that Panarin’s deal includes nearly $75MM in signing bonuses, making the contract virtually buyout-proof. The bonuses role out in descending order, beginning with a $13MM bonus this season down to a $7MM bonus in 2025-26. Also unsurprisingly, Panarin’s deal includes a full No-Movement Clause. The investment in the 27-year-old Panarin, who has topped 70 points in each of his four NHL seasons, is pretty safe, which is lucky for the Rangers since is contract is all but immovable.

  • The deadline to file for salary arbitration is coming up, and the first name to file has been revealed. Speaking with media, including the Raleigh News & Observer’s Chip Alexander, Carolina Hurricanes GM Don Waddell noted that forward Brock McGinn has filed for arbitration. McGinn, 25, has emerged as a regular contributor for the ’Canes over the past two years, missing only two games and posting back-to-back seasons of 25+ points. He additionally contributed six points in 15 playoff games during the run to the Eastern Conference Final this year. McGinn is also one of Carolina’s most physical forwards and plays a role on the penalty kill. Yet, his ice time is still somewhat limited, particularly playing sheltered minutes to do some turnover tendencies. The Hurricanes will try to support their filing number by pointing out McGinn’s relatively minor role and lack of overall career results, while the player side will emphasize the recent climb in scoring and ice time and his platform year being arguably his best season to date and coinciding in a return to the postseason for Carolina. Waddell, who recently joked that the Sebastian Aho offer sheet had freed up his summer due to a lack of contract negotiations, is not out of the woods yet, with McGinn filing, Trevor Carrick, Anton Forsberg, and Saku Maenalanen eligible to file, and several other restricted free agents in need of extensions.
  • Veteran forward Colin Greening has called it a career reports Toronto Marlies reporter Jacob Stoller. Although Greening has played solely for the Marlies over the past three seasons, he logged close to 300 NHL games with the Ottawa Senators and Toronto Maple Leafs, including a 37-point season in 2011-12. Greening’s NHL production certainly declined as his career went on, but as he transitioned to a minor league leadership role, Greening ended up being both a reliable source of scoring and a key locker room presence. Greening will likely be remembered most for captaining the Marlies to the 2018 Calder Cup, as well as his dominant college career at Cornell University.

Snapshots: Oilers, Penguins, Williams

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The Edmonton Oilers added a little bit of depth after free agency opened, signing forwards Markus Granlund and Tomas Jurco while also bringing back Alex Chiasson on a two-year deal. That doesn’t mean they’re finished though, as GM Ken Holland told David Staples of the Edmonton Journal. The Oilers would still like to find some more scoring for the wing and a legitimate third-line center, but whether that will come through free agency or trade isn’t clear.

It’s not like Edmonton has a ton of room to go after a free agent, even following the recent buyout of defenseman Andrej Sekera. The Oilers currently project to have over $77.5MM in cap hits committed to next season—including more than $4.1MM in various buyouts—though that is already for a 22-man roster. There is still plenty of talent left on the market, but as Holland told Staples he’s “been a manager for 22 years. [He knows] when it’s time to pay and when it’s time not to pay.”

  • The Pittsburgh Penguins might be another team looking to clear some cap room with a trade, as Josh Yohe of The Athletic (subscription required) examines in his latest piece. Yohe believes at least one more trade is coming before the end of the summer given the current salary situation the Penguins are facing, sitting with just under $1.6MM in cap space with restricted free agents Teddy Blueger, Zach Aston-Reese and Marcus Pettersson still to be signed. In his breakdown of the roster and the likelihood of each player being traded, he lists three “favorites” which includes relative newcomer Nick Bjugstad. The 26-year old has two years at a $4.1MM cap hit remaining on his current deal but scored just 36 points last year in a down season.
  • Justin Williams is still deciding whether to play or not next season, but the Carolina Hurricanes are optimistic that he’ll come back for at least one more year. Carolina GM Don Waddell told NHL.com’s Tom Gulitti that if Williams does come back, he’s confident the veteran winger will sign with the Hurricanes. Williams shared the same sentiment, explaining that he’d rather not move his family again. Even though he will turn 38 at the beginning of the season, Williams is still a capable offensive piece that put up 23 goals and 53 points last season.

Anaheim Ducks Sign Poturalski, Pietila; Add Sutter To Staff

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The Anaheim Ducks were totally quiet on July 1st, the only team in the league not to formally sign any players. They’ve made up for it this afternoon, confirming one expected signing, announcing another, and adding a legendary coach to their organization. The Ducks announced that they have signed forwards Andrew Poturalski and Blake Pietila to matching one-year, two-way $700K contracts, while also naming Darryl Sutter as an adivsor to the coaching staff.

Poturalski, 25, was named the MVP of the Calder Cup Playoffs this year after recording a league-high 23 points in 18 playoff games en route to a championship for the AHL’s Charlotte Checkers. Poturalski was also one of the top regular season scorers, netting 70 points in 72 games. Yet, the University of New Hampshire product did not see any NHL time with the Carolina Hurricanes this season and was expected to depart in search of better opportunity. Anaheim is a team collecting affordable depth options up front and Poturalski could emerge as a regular player for the team.

Pietila, 26, comes from the opposite situation in New Jersey. The Devils were forced to use Pietila, as well as a number of his AHL teammates, frequently last season, but the former Michigan Tech standout did little with the opportunity. In fact, Pietila has just four points in 38 career NHL games. However, he did set a career high in AHL production this past season, recording 46 points in 50 games with the Binghamton Devils. The Ducks hope he can continue to be a near point-per-game player in the minors with the potential to put up offense in the NHL.

Sutter, 60, needs little introduction. A veteran of close to 1,300 games behind the bench, Sutter is a former rival of Anaheim’s as the two-time Stanley Cup-winning coach of the Los Angeles Kings, not to mention past stops in Calgary, San Jose, and Chicago as well. Working as an adivsor to Dallas Eakins and his staff, Sutter is one of the wisest minds in hockey and will be a major asset for the Ducks.

Carolina Hurricanes Re-Sign Petr Mrazek

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The run on goaltenders continues. As the dominoes of Robin Lehner and Semyon Varlamov fell, the Carolina Hurricanes determined that bringing back their starter was the best option. The team has announced a two-year, $6.25MM contract to bring back Petr Mrazek. Mrazek started 40 games for the Hurricanes last year, but will likely be asked to do even more moving forward.

When the 2018-19 season ended, Hurricanes GM Don Waddell made it clear that he wanted to re-sign the duo of Mrazek and Curtis McElhinney if possible. Just a few weeks later though it seemed like neither one would be back after talks failed to get extensions done. When things started falling this afternoon though, Waddell may well have realized that his best option in net was bringing back the man who got them to the playoffs a year ago.

Mrazek, 27, was a floundering goaltender without a team last year after failing to receive a qualifying offer from the Philadelphia Flyers. The Hurricanes gave him an opportunity to prove that he could still compete at the NHL level with a one-year, $1.5MM deal and he went out and had his best season in several years. In those 40 appearances, Mrazek went 23-14-3 for the Hurricanes with a .914 save percentage and helped them reach the playoffs for the first time in a decade. Unfortunately that success didn’t continue in the postseason where he posted just an .894 save percentage and was eventually replaced by McElhinney.

Still, the Czech goaltender ended up 15th overall on our Top 50 UFA list and ended up staying right where he was for a healthy raise to $3.125MM per season. He’ll get a chance to prove he is worthy of an even longer deal, but has some competition once again. The Hurricanes recently traded for James Reimer, who will actually be making more than Mrazek next season and also has a history of success in the NHL. The two will likely share the spotlight if Reimer stays with the organization for the year, giving them options as they try to contend for the playoffs once again.

Florida Panthers Trade James Reimer

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July 1: The Panthers have officially bought out Darling.

June 30: The Florida Panthers have traded goaltender James Reimer to the Carolina Hurricanes. In return the Panthers will acquire a 2020 sixth-round pick and goaltender Scott Darling, who has been placed on waivers for the purpose of a contract buyout. After the recent retirement of Roberto Luongo this leaves the Panthers with just two minor league goaltenders under contract, likely opening the way for a free agent signing tomorrow. Sergei Bobrovsky is the speculative favorite, though nothing can be official until the free agent period opens.

Darling had two years remaining on his current deal, meaning a buyout will force the Panthers to pay him $4.73MM total over the next four years with the following cap hits:

  • 2019-20: $1,233,333
  • 2020-21: $2,333,333
  • 2021-22: $1,183,333
  • 2022-23: $1,183,333

Reimer meanwhile becomes the presumptive starting goaltender in Carolina for the time being, since they too are lacking in NHL experience at the position. Both Petr Mrazek and Curtis McElhinney are set to become unrestricted free agents after failing to work out new contracts, leaving Reimer and one of Anton Forsberg or Alex Nedeljkovic as the tandem for next season. That is of course unless the Hurricanes go after another free agent, and Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic tweets that the team is still interested in bringing back Mrazek or going after Semyon Varlamov.

The 31-year old Reimer struggled last season in Florida, posting just a .900 save percentage in 36 appearances and seeing his goals against average balloon to 3.09. That’s a far cry from the .920 mark he posted in his first season with the Panthers in 2016-17, one that made him look like the eventual successor to Luongo and a long-term option. That’s the goaltender the Hurricanes will hope they can get, one that carried an average Toronto Maple Leafs team to the playoffs in 2013 and even earned Hart Trophy votes. They’ve had success with ex-Maple Leafs before, as McElhinney played excellent after a waiver claim at the start of last season.

Carolina has been one of the more active teams on the trade market so far, making deals to acquire Patrick Marleau (who they then bought out), Erik Haula, Forsberg and Gustav Forsling, while sending Calvin de Haan and others out of town. The team found so much success in the second half of last season and the playoffs, but obviously aren’t content with waiting around for their team to take another run without changes.

The question in Florida now becomes whether they can officially land Bobrovsky—and perhaps his close friend and teammate Artemi Panarin. The team has more than $26MM in cap space to use without any high profile restricted free agents to get under contract. With a new head coach in Joel Quenneville and big moves expected in free agency, it is obvious that GM Dale Tallon is ready to compete for the Stanley Cup right now and will spend quite a bit of money to do it.

Montreal Canadiens Tender Offer Sheet To Sebastian Aho

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It has finally happened. The Montreal Canadiens have tendered an offer sheet to Sebastian Aho of the Carolina Hurricanes. The proposed contract is a five-year deal with an average annual value of $8.454MM. Sportsnet reports that Aho has indeed signed it, meaning the Hurricanes now have one week to either match the contract or allow Aho to join the Canadiens and receive draft compensation in return. A deal of this value would result in the Hurricanes receiving a first, second and third-round pick in 2020. Chris Johnston of Sportsnet reports that the deal has the maximum amount of signing bonuses allowable—which would equate to approximately $21MM in the first 12 months—a contract structure the Hurricanes would have to match. If they do, Carolina would also not be able to trade Aho for a full year.

Appearing at a press conference soon after he received word of the offer sheet, Hurricanes GM Don Waddell admitted he was surprised that the offer wasn’t higher for Aho, and joked that it made his summer easier by removing any negotiations. To be clear, this will be Aho’s next contract one way or the other meaning he will carry a cap hit of $8.454MM for the next five years and reach unrestricted free agency in the summer of 2024. That’s obviously not an ideal situation for the Hurricanes, but actually isn’t a salary that is far away from what the two sides likely would have settled on.

In fact, this deal for Aho may well have ramifications around the league regardless of whether the Hurricanes match or not. The 21-year old forward switched to center full-time this season and reached new heights in basically every offensive category. With 30 goals and 83 points in 82 games, Selke and Hart trophy votes, Aho is deserving of a huge raise and was arguably just as valuable as some of the other top restricted free agents on the market. Those players and teams now have a five-year contract comparable, something that may not please some of the young stars.

It’s also important to remember that the first-round pick would be unprotected if the Hurricanes choose not to match the offer sheet.

Lightning Sign McElhinney, Will Look To Trade Domingue

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The Tampa Bay Lightning emerged this morning as the surprise favorite to land veteran backup goalie Curtis McElhinney and a deal is now done. The team has announced a two-year contract with a $1.3MM AAV for the 35-year-old, strengthening their depth behind young starter Andrei Vasilevskiy. 

However, the team was not expected to be in the running for a goalie, as Louis Domingue performed well last season and looked comfortable as the backup. While it’s possible that the team sees Domingue, signed through next season at $1.15MM, as better suited for a third-string role, The Athletic’s Joe Smith reports that Tampa will also work on trading the understudy.

In McElhinney, the Bolts add a backup who is an upgrade both statistically and in terms of experience. McElhinney appeared in 33 games for the Carolina Hurricanes last season and made several more appearances in the postseason while posting strong numbers. Should injury befall Vasilevskiy, McElhinney would be ready to take over the starter role temporarily and Tampa Bay obviously felt more comfortable paying slightly more to have McElhinney in case of emergency rather than Domingue.

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