Stars Sign Nathan Bastian
The Stars have added some depth on the wing as the team announced that they’ve signed Nathan Bastian to a one-year, one-way contract. The agreement will pay the league minimum of $775K. GM Jim Nill released the following statement:
Nathan will add forward depth and a physical presence to our lineup, both of which will be valuable to our organization. We’re looking forward to watching him take the next step of his career with the Stars and are excited to welcome him to Dallas.
The 27-year-old has parts of six NHL seasons under his belt, most of which came with New Jersey, which drafted him in the second round back in 2016. Before now, his only time away from the Devils since that time came when Seattle selected him in the 2021 Expansion Draft but just two months later, the Kraken waived Bastian with New Jersey quickly reclaiming him.
Last season, Bastian played in 59 games for the Devils, picking up four goals and six assists along with 138 hits in just under 11 minutes per night of playing time. That stat line lines up with most of his seasons as he has yet to reach 20 points in a single year while he has only hit the double-digit mark in goals once, that coming back in 2021-22. However, he averages 223 hits per 82 games played, giving the Stars some extra physicality in their lineup.
Dallas has largely stayed quiet as expected in free agency this season with the bulk of their moves coming from either re-signing players or making trades. As things stand, he’s likely to battle with Oskar Back and Colin Blackwell for playing time on the fourth line while starting out as the 13th forward is a realistic outcome as well.
At the moment, the Stars project to be very tight against the salary cap with a 23-player roster coming in just a few hundred thousand below the Upper Limit, per PuckPedia. Accordingly, this could very well be it for their free agent moves with a big chunk of their roster from last season’s run to the Western Conference Final returning as from here on out, any addition will require money coming off their books as well.
Poll: Will Jack Roslovic Or Matt Grzelcyk Sign First?
We’re closing in on a month before the start of informal rookie camps around the league. Of PHR’s Top 50 NHL Unrestricted Free Agents, 45 have already found new homes for the upcoming campaign – including 23 of the top 25 names.
The two missing from that group are three-position forward Jack Roslovic and left-shot defenseman Matt Grzelcyk. While Roslovic has had strong interest from multiple teams all summer long and appears to be playing the long game to drive up desperation as teams miss out on other forward options, Grzelcyk’s market hasn’t been as fervent.
In fact, there’s been essentially no firmly documented interest in Grzelcyk since July 1. That’s despite the 31-year-old entering the signing window with the most points among UFA defensemen last year, notching a career-best 1-39–40 scoring line with the Penguins.
There are some clear reasons for his smaller-than-expected market. He’s on the small side for a rearguard at 5’10” and 180 lbs, doesn’t play much of a physical game at all, and has something of an injury history. He played all 82 games last season for the first time, eclipsing the 70-game mark for the third time in nine years.
That being said, he has strong results in a complementary top-four role next to a more all-around dominant righty. The vast majority of his 527-game NHL career was spent with the Bruins alongside Charlie McAvoy, where he consistently put up 20 to 30 points per season and never had a negative rating.
Last year’s -6 mark on his one-year deal with the Pens isn’t much of a blemish, either. That came with more taxing minutes than he’s used to – averaging a career-high 20:37 per game – and he had better per-60 defensive results at even strength than Erik Karlsson and Kris Letang while also generating more offense than them on the power play.
Few teams would give Grzelcyk the top-unit PP deployment he had throughout the year in Pittsburgh, making another 40-point year unlikely. Still, there’s been an eerie silence around the market for someone who checks out as a highly serviceable No. 4/5 option on most teams who’s comfortable playing on any pairing.
Roslovic’s free agency has been covered more at length as a result of his more widespread interest. Last month, we published free agent profiles on both Grzelcyk and Roslovic.
He’s been connected most firmly to the Canucks and Maple Leafs over the past several weeks, but any team with at least $3MM to $4MM in cap space to accommodate him should be viewed as a legitimate contender for his services. Roslovic’s selling point is his versatility – he may not have the scoring consistency required of a bona fide top-six option. Still, few players could legitimately slot into any spot on any line and find a way to make things work like he can.
Like Grzelcyk, Roslovic is coming off something of a career year in his platform season, although his age advantage by three years strengthens his case for a multi-year deal. While he fell short of his career-high in points in 2024-25, he tied his mark in goals (22) in quite limited deployment with the Hurricanes, averaging under 14 minutes per game for the first time since 2018-19. He’s comfortably averaged 43 points per 82 games over the past three seasons and should be a solid bet to hit that mark again in 2025-26, especially if he sees a bump in minutes.
All that being said, who do you think will come off the UFA list first? Tell us what you think in the poll below and expand on your thoughts in the comments:
Snapshots: Kinkaid, Pulkkinen, Nurmi
Veteran NHL goalie Keith Kinkaid feels he still has plenty left in the tank and is working toward a return to the higher levels of professional hockey, per George Richards of NHL.com.
Kinkaid, 36, played last season for Savannah of the ECHL, the Panthers’ affiliate, posting a pedestrian .893 save percentage and 3.17 goals against average. It’s a steep fall for a 10-year NHL veteran with 146 career starts, but Kinkaid isn’t giving up hope that he can return to the top level. This summer, Kinkaid has performed well in 3ICE, an eight-team, 3-on-3 tournament being held in Florida. Kinkaid said he is hopeful to extend his pro career and is open to any opportunity.
“This is a great opportunity to show I still have it. My body is holding up very well. I am 36, but I am just trying to prolong my career because once it’s done, it’s done. [3ICE] has given me the chance to keep playing, to showcase that I still have gas left in the tank,” he said.
Elsewhere around hockey:
- NHL and KHL veteran Teemu Pulkkinen has signed in Finland with Kiekko-Vantaa of the Mestis League, per a team release. Pulkkinen, 33, appeared in 83 NHL games over four seasons. A fourth-round selection of the Detroit Red Wings in the 2010 draft (111th overall), he scored 13 goals and 22 points in the NHL but hasn’t appeared in the league since the 2016-17 season. He then spent eight seasons in the KHL, and spent last year split between Germany and Slovakia.
- New York Islanders prospect Jesse Nurmi will start next season in the AHL, per NHL.com’s Stefen Rosner. A fourth-round pick in the 2023 draft (113th overall), Nurmi, 20, spent last season with the OHL’s London Knights, where the winger produced nine goals and 31 points in 58 games. A native of Finland, the 6-foot, 180-pound left-shot winger spent parts of three seasons in Liiga, Finland’s top professional league, before making his North American debut last year.
Caleb Jones Eyeing Roster Spot With Penguins
The Pittsburgh Penguins and GM Kyle Dubas have made a number of acquisitions since the start of free agency, but one under-the-radar move may prove impactful. On the opening day of free agency, the team agreed to terms with left-handed defenseman Caleb Jones on a two-year, $1.8 million deal. While the signing didn’t generate much buzz, Jones could quietly become a meaningful contributor in Pittsburgh as he sets his sights on earning a spot on the team’s opening night roster.
As Justin Guerriero of TribLive.com outlines, Jones is joining a franchise in the midst of a significant transition — not only will the team be adapting to new head coach Dan Muse’s philosophies, but the names on the blue line have changed considerably as well. He joins newly signed defenders Parker Wotherspoon, Alexander Alexeyev, and a host of other options on the left side vying for a spot in the lineup.
The organization is particularly thin on the left side of the blue line, with embattled veteran Ryan Graves likely the only lock for the opening night roster. Competing for spots behind him are promising prospect Owen Pickering and journeymen Ryan Shea and Sebastian Aho. While Jones admitted to not knowing much about Muse or his preferred style of play, he is confident his performance can make an impact at the NHL level.
“I just felt like the opportunity to come to Pittsburgh and kind of be a regular guy every night and really fully be established was something too good to pass up,” he said. “I had a lot of communication with management and the coaches, and I just felt really good about the opportunity I was going to have. I’m really excited. I think we’ll have a good team, and I think it’s going to be a great chance for me to come in, show what I can do and really earn a spot.”
Jones, 28, has 248 games at the NHL level under his belt across seven seasons with the Edmonton Oilers, Chicago Blackhawks, and LA Kings. He appeared in six games with the Kings last season, but spent the majority of the year in the AHL with the Ontario Reign. His most extended look in the NHL came during the 2022-23 season, when he registered career highs in games played (73), points (16), penalty minutes (40), blocked shots (118), and hits (116).
Latest On Matthew Tkachuk
Florida Panthers star Matthew Tkachuk is continuing to work his way back from an adductor injury sustained during the 4-Nations Face-Off tournament in February. The injury ended Tkachuk’s regular season early, though he played through it for all 23 games of Florida’s run to the Stanley Cup. Now, Tkachuk is paying the price of a long-term injury, and faces the often uncomfortable question of whether to undergo surgery to address the ailment. Tkachuk told ESPN’s Greg Wyshynski that surgery would require him to miss the first two-or-three months of the regular season.
That’s a long time for Florida to be without one of their top scorers. Tkachuk finished the year ranked third on the team in points (57) even despite missing the last 30 games of the regular season. Luckily, the St. Louis-native has shown a consistent knack for being able to play through, and above, painful injuries. He tied for Florida’s scoring lead during the postseason, with eight goals and 23 points in as many games. It was an incredibly impressive performance, given Tkachuk entered the postseason having not played a game for three months.
That ability to bounce back to form could make a delayed start to the season a bit easier to stomach. Wyshynski emphasized previous reports that one of Tkachuk’s main goals for next season is to play for Team USA at the 2026 Winter Olympics. A few-month absence would put him back on the ice just weeks ahead of the NHL’s midseason break, and could provide a chance for 10-to-15 games worth of conditioning. That may be a short window for the average player, but Tkachuk’s ability to quickly jump back onto the scoresheet should only be emphasized on the international stage.
He scored three points in three games at the 4-Nations tournament, his first time representing America at a Men’s National tournament. Prior to that, Tkachuk managed 11 points in seven World Junior Championship games in 2016, 12 points in seven games at the World U18 Championship in 2015, and seven points in six games at the World U-17 Hockey Championship in 2014.
Around his spot appearances with Team USA, Tkachuk has managed a star-studded NHL career. He earned his first 100-point campaign in the 2021-22 season – netting 104 points in 82 games with the Calgary Flames – and then one-upped it with 109 points in 79 games with the Florida Panthers in the next season. Tkachuk was also rarely injured, averaging 74 games and 72 points per season before the 2024-25 campaign. Last year’s shortened season brought his career averages down to 71 points in 71 games each season.
That scoring precedent will make Tkachuk a must-include for the Olympic roster, should he be healthy in time for the tournament. He shared that he was “50/50” on undergoing surgery when the season came to a close, and has spent the off-season taking the time to ensure he’s making the right decision. If he does go under the knife, Florida could be due for a big boost of cap space through the first-half of the season.
Islanders’ Kashawn Aitcheson Will Return To OHL
Season plans have been revealed for New York Islanders first-round prospect Kashawn Aitcheson. Amid rumors of signing his entry-level contract or moving to the NCAA, Aitcheson will instead be returning to the OHL’s Barrie Colts for his age-19 season, Stefen Rosner of The Hockey News reports in his newsletter. Rosner adds that New York will wait to sign Aitcheson until next summer.
Aitcheson led Barrie’s blue-line in scoring in each of the last two seasons. He joined the Colts’ full-time in the 2023-24 season, at age 17, after a 23-game trial run in the prior season. It didn’t take long for Aitcheson to display a special lean towards feisty, aggressive hockey. He finished his first full OHL season with a team-leading 126 penalty minutes in 64 games, to go along with his defense-leading 39 points. The performance was a great show of the unique and overwhelming presence that Aitcheson brought to the lineup. Even more exciting was how he managed to build on that strong start this past season.
Through 64 games this year, a focus on staying poised and in-position boosted Aitcheson to an impressive 26 goals and 59 points, along with a restrained 88 penalty minutes. His goal-total is the third-most any OHL defenseman has managed in their draft year since 2000 — behind only Zayne Parekh (33) and Ryan Murphy (26). Aitcheson ranks just ahead of Evan Bouchard (25), Aaron Ekblad (23), and Ryan Ellis (22). That’s impressive company for the Islanders prospect, especially given that Ekblad is the only one of the bunch to also record more than 80 penalty minutes. Aitcheson’s performance was enough to earn the 17th-overall selection in this year’s draft.
An 18-goal leap from one season to the next will be hard for any player to sustain, though. Rather than couple that task with the challenge of a league change, Aitcheson will return to familiarity to really carve in his rut as a scorer. That will come as great news for Colts fans, who can almost certainly expect a near point-per-game season out of Aitcheson’s encore display. He’ll be joined by the return of Utah Mammoth first-round pick Cole Beaudoin, who scored 22 goals and 51 points in 52 games last season.
Islanders fans will have a list of places to follow their 2025 first-round picks on the back of this news. First-overall pick Matthew Schaefer will compete for a role on the NHL lineup, or join Aitcheson in a return to the OHL, after recently signing his first pro contract. New York’s patience with signing Aitcheson seems to indicate the runway Schaefer will receive. Meanwhile, Victor Eklund will return to Sweden’s SHL for next season, after he supported Djugardens IF to a promotion from the HockeyAllsvenskan last year.
Jakub Vrána Signs Two-Year Deal With Linköping HC
Aug. 8: Linköping made Vrána’s signing official today in a team release. It’s a two-year deal for the 29-year-old.
Aug. 2: Vrána’s move to Linköping will become official this week after he failed to land an NHL contract in free agency, reports Expressen’s Johan Svensson.
June 5: A once-efficient top-six scorer for the Washington Capitals and Detroit Red Wings could be headed overseas for his next job. In a report out of Sweden, the SHL’s Linköping HC is attempting to sign Jakub Vrána this offseason.
It would’ve been difficult for Vrána to find an NHL contract this summer. Marketed as a goal-scoring forward, Vrána hasn’t scored more than 20 points in a season in five years. The last time came during the 2020-21 season, when Vrána scored 19 goals and 36 points in 50 games split between the Capitals and Red Wings.
Due to injuries, a trip through the NHL and NHLPA Player Assistance Program, and a general lack of opportunity, Vrána’s scoring has completely dissipated since. There have been brief stretches where he’s scored in bunches, but those have been few and far between.
This past season, Vrána earned a second stint in Washington on the heels of a professional tryout agreement in preseason action. He got off to a decent start with the Capitals, scoring six goals and 10 points in 20 games with a +5 rating.
Unfortunately, his role with the Capitals quickly dissipated, and he was exposed on the waiver wire near the trade deadline, being claimed by the Nashville Predators.
A return to Linköping HC would be a homecoming for Vrána. He played for them from 2012 to 2014 before the beginning of his NHL career, scoring 14 goals and 27 points in 73 contests.
Avalanche Re-Sign Joel Kiviranta
The Avalanche announced that they’ve re-signed forward Joel Kiviranta to a one-year deal. The deal is worth $1.25MM against the cap, AJ Haefele of DNVR Sports reports.
Kiviranta, 29, returns to Colorado on the heels of a career year. The winger set career highs in goals (16), assists (7), points (23), appearances (79), and average time on ice (12:31) in 2024-25. He now signs his third consecutive one-year deal with the Avs in free agency after initially joining the organization on an AHL contract in 2023.
On a per-game basis, though, that’s not too far off from his career averages. Kiviranta, who initially made the jump to North America in 2019 with the Stars as an undrafted free agent, has consistently produced at a 15-to-20-point clip per 82 games, albeit usually in lesser minutes. That increased deployment this season, getting more consistent reps while also seeing some looks in the Avs’ top nine, helps explain the boost in production. His 19.0% shooting rate, well above his career average of 10.9%, had something to do with that as well.
Nonetheless, the Finnish winger has firmly established his floor as a defensively responsible plug-and-play fourth-line piece. Despite his smallish 5’11”, 185-lb frame, he finished third on the Avs last season with 114 hits with some of the better even-strength possession impacts on the club.
While the Avs still have some holes in their middle and bottom-six forward group to fill, retaining Kiviranta is a significant step toward relaxing the strain on some inexperienced or overtaxed depth pieces who likely would have needed to shoulder regular minutes out of the gate otherwise, especially with checking winger Logan O’Connor starting the year on injured reserve. As things stand, Kiviranta could get a crack at third-line minutes on opening night if younger names like the recently acquired Daniil Gushchin or Ivan Ivan don’t command those minutes with a strong training camp performance.
Image courtesy of Sergei Belski-Imagn Images.
2026 NHL Free Agents
Pro Hockey Rumors’ up-to-date list of 2026 free agents is below. These are players who are eligible for restricted or unrestricted free agency after the 2025-26 season. The player’s age in 2026 is in parentheses.
Players who are currently free agents are not seen here. Only players with at least one game played in the 2025-26 season are listed below, regardless of their inclusion on an active roster.
This list will be continually updated. You’ll be able to access it 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. If you have any corrections or omissions, please get in touch with us.
Updated Jan. 15, 2026 (8:08 a.m. CT)
Unrestricted Free Agents
Centers
Rodrigo Abols (30)
Teddy Blueger (31)
Nick Cousins (32)
Charlie Coyle (34)
Jason Dickinson (30)
Lars Eller (37)
Luke Glendening (37)
Jansen Harkins (29)
Erik Haula (35)
Kevin Hayes (34)
Adam Henrique (36)
Mark Jankowski (31)
David Kämpf (31)
Justin Kirkland (29)
Anže Kopitar (38)
Scott Laughton (32)
Curtis Lazar (31)
Evgeni Malkin (39)
Tomáš Nosek (33)
Jean-Gabriel Pageau (33)
Ryan Poehling (27)
Kevin Rooney (33)
Cole Schwindt (25) – RFA if 31 GP in 2025-26
Kevin Stenlund (29)
Mitchell Stephens (29)
Oskar Sundqvist (32)
Left Wingers
Zach Aston-Reese (31)
Jamie Benn (36)
Michael Bunting (30)
Michael Carcone (30)
Nicolas Deslauriers (35)
Connor Dewar (27)
Brandon Duhaime (29)
Adam Erne (31)
Tye Felhaber (27)
Nick Foligno (38)
A.J. Greer (29)
Noah Gregor (28)
Carl Grundström (28)
Danton Heinen (30)
Boone Jenner (33)
Marcus Johansson (35)
Ross Johnston (32)
Mathieu Joseph (29)
Tyson Jost (28)
Alexander Kerfoot (31)
Cole Koepke (28)
Andrei Kuzmenko (30)
Patrik Laine (28)
Anders Lee (35)
Ryan Lomberg (31)
Beck Malenstyn (28)
Mason Marchment (31)
Bobby McMann (30)
Sonny Milano (30)
Alex Ovechkin (40)
Artemi Panarin (34)
Tanner Pearson (33)
David Perron (38)
Brandon Saad (33)
Jaden Schwartz (34)
Conor Sheary (34)
Jeff Skinner (34)
Cole Smith (30)
Reilly Smith (35)
James van Riemsdyk (37)
Right Wingers
Noel Acciari (34)
Viktor Arvidsson (33)
Nicolas Aubé-Kubel (30)
Oliver Bjorkstrand (31)
Jonny Brodzinski (33)
Mitchell Chaffee (28)
Evgenii Dadonov (37)
Jordan Eberle (36)
Robby Fabbri (30)
Claude Giroux (38)
Calle Järnkrok (34)
Patrick Kane (37)
Kasperi Kapanen (29)
Sam Lafferty (31)
Anthony Mantha (31)
Michael McCarron (31)
Ilya Mikheyev (31)
Gustav Nyquist (36)
Corey Perry (41)
Ryan Reaves (39)
Jack Roslovic (29)
Nick Schmaltz (30)
Kiefer Sherwood (31)
Colton Sissons (32)
Givani Smith (28)
Vladimir Tarasenko (34)
Eeli Tolvanen (27)
Alex Tuch (30)
Austin Watson (34)
Mats Zuccarello (38)
Left-Shot Defensemen
Uvis Balinskis (29)
Jake Bean (28)
Jacob Bryson (28)
Ben Chiarot (35)
Ian Cole (37)
Andreas Englund (30)
Mario Ferraro (27)
Derek Forbort (34)
Dennis Gilbert (29)
Matt Grzelcyk (32)
Erik Gustafsson (34)
Ben Hutton (33)
Brett Kulak (32)
Jeremy Lauzon (29)
Nick Leddy (35)
Jacob Moverare (27)
Jordan Oesterle (34)
Jamie Oleksiak (33)
Mike Reilly (32)
Ryan Shea (29)
Brendan Smith (37)
Carson Soucy (31)
Logan Stanley (28)
Juuso Välimäki (27)
Right-Shot Defensemen
Rasmus Andersson (29)
Nick Blankenburg (28)
Zach Bogosian (35)
Brent Burns (41)
Kyle Burroughs (30)
John Carlson (36)
Connor Clifton (31)
Tony DeAngelo (30)
Vincent Desharnais (30)
Matt Dumba (31)
Radko Gudas (36)
Erik Gudbranson (34)
Justin Holl (34)
Nick Jensen (35)
Noah Juulsen (29)
Matthew Kessel (26) – RFA if 10 GP in 2025-26
John Klingberg (33)
Timothy Liljegren (27)
Sam Malinski (27)
Colin Miller (33)
Daniil Miromanov (28)
Connor Murphy (33)
Andrew Peeke (28)
Alexander Petrovic (34)
Jeff Petry (38)
Darren Raddysh (30)
Luke Schenn (36)
Troy Stecher (32)
Jacob Trouba (32)
Trevor van Riemsdyk (34)
Goaltenders
Frederik Andersen (36)
Sergei Bobrovsky (37)
Laurent Brossoit (33)
Eric Comrie (30)
Ivan Fedotov (29)
Connor Ingram (29)
Kaapo Kähkönen (29)
Petr Mrázek (34)
Alex Nedeljkovic (30)
Calvin Pickard (34)
Jonathan Quick (40)
James Reimer (38)
David Rittich (33)
Stuart Skinner (27)
Cam Talbot (38)
Daniil Tarasov (27)
Vítek Vaněček (30)
Restricted Free Agents
* denotes eligible for arbitration
Centers
Nils Åman (26)*
Connor Bedard (20)
Thomas Bordeleau (24)*
Leo Carlsson (21)
Kirby Dach (25)
Jack Drury (26)*
Adam Fantilli (21)
Barrett Hayton (26)*
Ivan Ivan (23)*
Peyton Krebs (25)*
Philipp Kurashev (26)*
Connor McMichael (25)*
Cole Sillinger (23)*
Fedor Svechkov (23)
Trevor Zegras (25)*
Left Wingers
John Beecher (25)*
Zach Benson (21)
Jonatan Berggren (25)*
Yegor Chinakhov (25)*
Paul Cotter (26)*
Cutter Gauthier (22)
Daniil Gushchin (24)
David Gustafsson (26)*
Dylan Holloway (24)*
Zachary L’Heureux (23)
Carter Mazur (24)
Jason Robertson (26)*
Joe Veleno (26)*
Right Wingers
Zachary Bolduc (23)
Mavrik Bourque (24)
Bobby Brink (24)*
Ty Dellandrea (25)*
Josh Doan (24)
Pavel Dorofeyev (25)*
Marc Gatcomb (26)*
Collin Graf (23)
Arttu Hyry (25)*
Arthur Kaliyev (25)*
Hendrix Lapierre (24)
Matias Maccelli (25)*
Cole Perfetti (24)*
Matthew Poitras (22)
Lukas Reichel (24)*
Nicholas Robertson (24)*
Mackie Samoskevich (23)
Philip Tomasino (24)*
Left-Shot Defensemen
Alexander Alexeyev (26)*
Nolan Allan (23)
Simon Edvinsson (23)
Jordan Harris (25)*
Zachary Jones (25)*
Pierre-Olivier Joseph (27)* – July 1 birthday
Kevin Korchinski (22)
Pavel Mintyukov (22)
Shakir Mukhamadullin (24)
Henry Thrun (25)*
Arber Xhekaj (25)*
Egor Zamula (26)*
Olen Zellweger (22)
Right-Shot Defensemen
Justin Barron (24)*
Jacob Bernard-Docker (26)*
Adam Boqvist (25)*
Brandt Clarke (23)
Jamie Drysdale (24)*
David Jiricek (22)
Michael Kesselring (26)*
Nils Lundkvist (25)*
Scott Morrow (23)
Simon Nemec (22)
Braden Schneider (24)*
Jordan Spence (25)*
Jack Thompson (24)
Goaltenders
Samuel Ersson (26)*
Jet Greaves (25)*
Leevi Merilainen (23)*
Akira Schmid (26)*
Arturs Silovs (25)*
How The Canadiens, Golden Knights, And Panthers Will Use LTIR
At the time of writing, the Canadiens, Golden Knights, and Panthers are the only three teams that have negative projected cap space to open the season, per PuckPedia.
Those clubs also have high-priced LTIR candidates. Montreal’s Carey Price and Vegas’ Alex Pietrangelo are either retired or ruled out for the season and have cap hits higher than the amount their respective clubs are in the hole. Florida is likely to have Matthew Tkachuk miss significant time to start the year as he continues to get back to full health from last season’s adductor injury. While they won’t have a whole year’s worth of LTIR relief for him, they still have a clear pathway to compliance to start the season without making a cap-shedding trade.
But while these teams have a pathway to cap compliance, it’s not as simple as making an LTIR placement and calling it a day. LTIR usage isn’t blanket cap relief based on the cap hit of the injured player – the amount of financial relief a team gets is tied directly to how well a team optimizes its roster before making the placement.
There are two methods of going about this. The first, and more common one, is waiting until the start of the season to place a player on LTIR.
That means a club needs to, even if it’s for a matter of minutes via paper transactions, be cap-compliant without LTIR usage before making the placement and using their newfound flexibility to restore their roster. The difference between the LTIR player’s cap hit and the cap space available when making the placement will be the relief pool amount the team has to work with – hence why teams using LTIR to start the year try to get as close to $0 in cap space as possible to unlock the player’s full cap hit in relief.
The second involves the usage of offseason LTIR. If a team opts to place a player on LTIR before the season starts, the relief amount is equivalent to their cap excess. In that case, it behooves a team to spend more to boost the amount they exceed the cap by as close as the injured player’s cap hit as possible.
That second method is almost certainly what Vegas will use. Their roster is currently set to exceed the cap by $7.64MM, per PuckPedia, roughly $1.16MM shy of Pietrangelo’s $8.8MM cap hit.
With the rest of their offseason business done and one roster spot open, the Knights still haven’t signed restricted free agent winger Alexander Holtz to a new contract for 2025-26. Signing him to a one-year deal worth exactly $1,161,429 would allow them to have a perfect LTIR capture when opening-night rosters are due, allowing them the full $8.8MM relief amount throughout the season. That figure is above Holtz’s market value anyway, so it’s unlikely they’d have any trouble convincing him to ink that contract.
At first glance, Florida’s pathway to making things work is more likely the first option, if for no other reason than the fact they’ll need the flexibility to activate Tkachuk in-season when he’s cleared to play. They’re also much closer to no cap exceedance than $9.5MM, Tkachuk’s cap hit, worth of exceedance.
Wouldn’t the Panthers thus look to clear exactly their projected exceedance of $3.725MM via paper transactions that can be reversed after Tkachuk’s LTIR placement? Not exactly.
Usually, teams in that situation have a few young waiver-exempt players on their roster that they can briefly send down to the AHL to achieve the intended result. The Panthers have no waiver-exempt players on their projected 22-player roster, and the likelihood of a claim for highly-regarded Cup-winning depth talent like Jesper Boqvist, Jonah Gadjovich, or A.J. Greer is almost 100%.
With the Cats prioritizing continuity between last year’s championship team and this one above all else, it stands to reason they might simply take severely reduced LTIR flexibility out of the gate. Making no other moves before LTIRing Tkachuk would leave them with only $3.725MM in flexibility to open the season, compared to their potential $9.5MM if they tried to optimize his relief. Still, as they’d need to activate him later in the year, they wouldn’t take full advantage of that $9.5MM even if they had it.
As for the Canadiens, they’re stuck in the mushy middle. Price’s cap hit is $10.5MM, and their projected exceedance is $5.93MM. That means they’d either need to shed nearly $6MM in cap space or add over $4.5MM worth of cap hits to take advantage of his placement fully.
For a team on the rise with playoff aspirations and some holes in their middle-six forward group, the latter outcome is the likelier one. They still only have $4.5MM in flexibility if they decide to go that route, though, pricing them out of a new deal for top centers on the trade market like RFAs Mason McTavish and Marco Rossi without sending a significant salary – potentially Kirby Dach‘s $3.36MM cap hit or Alex Newhook‘s $2.9MM cap hit – back the other way to help make up the difference.