There was a bit of drama leading up to the start of free agency, especially from two Atlantic Division teams in the Toronto Maple Leafs and Florida Panthers, that even included threats of a tampering investigation. But as the clock was about to strike midnight on the 2024-25 season, most of the major stories received anticlimactic endings. Brad Marchand and Aaron Ekblad re-signed with the Panthers, and the Leafs completed a sign-and-trade with the Vegas Golden Knights to send Mitch Marner to a new destination without him ever seeing what his market could look like.
Now, as teams receive a influx of salary-cap funds with the first major increase to the upper limit in years, the pool of players available has been depleted of many of the most interesting names, with some middle-of-the-lineup talent on offer.
Yet there are still teams with roster holes to fill that will be competing for the players available today. Most teams believe that they have a shot at making the playoffs, and will want to give themselves the best shot at making that happen. We’re bound to see a team overpay to add a player today, and it will be interesting to see what this higher salary cap brings on the first day of the 2025-26 season.
A selection of top unrestricted free agents available
Nikolaj Ehlers
Vladislav Gavrikov
Brock Boeser
Jake Allen
Mikael Granlund
Dmitry Orlov
Pius Suter
Nate Schmidt
Ryan Lindgren
Jonathan Drouin
Jack Roslovic
Corey Perry
