The first day of NHL free agency was extremely busy, with Johnny Gaudreau, Claude Giroux, Andrew Copp, Darcy Kuemper and others changing teams.
The rest of the offseason will also be busy with Stanley Cup winner Nazem Kadri, John Klingberg, Evan Rodrigues, Phil Kessel and other unrestricted free agents still to sign, restricted free agents to get under contract, salary arbitration cases to be settled and teams needing to make moves to get under the salary cap before the end of training camp. The Flames and Panthers pulled off a stunning trade, the Sharks filled the last remaining coaching vacancy and Bruins center Patrice Bergeron needs to decide if he’ll return for another season.
Follow along for news and analysis from NHL offseason moves:
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July 28: Kaapo Kakko re-signs with Rangers
The Rangers announced a two-year bridge deal with restricted free agent Kaapo Kakko worth an average annual value of $2.1 million, a person familiar with the situation told lohud.com. The deal leaves them with roughly $900,000 in available cap space if we project a 22-man roster. It’s hard to see how the Rangers can carry the maximum 23 unless they shave salary. If they enter the 2022-23 season with that $900,000 figure in cap space and maintain it, they should be able to accrue $4 million or so in salaries by the time the trade deadline rolls around. Kakko posted 18 points in 43 games last season, but his underlying numbers suggest a solid possession player who’s improved defensively.
-Vincent Z. Mercogliano, lohud.com
Also: Two more players agreed to terms, avoidi arbitration hearings: Senators forward Mathieu Joseph (four years, $11.8 million) and Hurricanes defenseman Ethan Bear (one year, $2.2 million). … The Sharks announced that they’ll retire Patrick Marleau’s No. 12 on Feb. 25.
July 27: Ryan Donato re-signs with Kraken
Donato, who scored the first goal in franchise history, got a one-year, $1.2 million contract. He had a career-best 31 points, but wasn’t given a qualifying offer, making him an unrestricted free agent, because he would have been eligible for salary arbitration. He made $750,000 last season.
Also: Penguins winger Danton Heinen re-signed for one year at $1 million. He averaged $2.8 million on his last contract but didn’t get a qualifying offer after scoring a career-best 18 goals last season.
July 26: Sharks hire David Quinn as coach
He went 96-87-25 in three seasons with the Rangers and never officially made the playoffs (New York went 0-3 in the qualifying round during the 2020 bubble). The Sharks like his record at developing younger players at Boston University and with the Rangers. Of the 11 coaching hires this season, eight had previous NHL head coaching experience.
Also: Oilers forward Jesse Puljujarvi agreed to a one-year, $3 million deal, avoiding arbitration. He gets another chance to prove himself after he had a strong start, then struggled to produce points down the stretch. … The Devils signed defenseman Jonas Siegenthaler to a five-year, $17 million extension. … The Kings announced they’ll retire the No. 23 of two-time Stanley Cup captain Dustin Brown on Feb. 11 and unveil a statue of him.
July 25: Ryan Dzingel back with Hurricanes
Carolina signed the forward to a one-year, $750,000 contract, but it’s a two-way deal that would pay him less if he’s sent to the American Hockey League. Dzingel, who had two 20-goal seasons earlier in his career with the Senators, has bounced around a lot recently, playing for the Blue Jackets, Hurricanes, Senators again, Coyotes and Sharks. That doesn’t include going to the Maple Leafs as part of a trade from the Coyotes last season, being waived immediately and then claimed by San Jose.
Also: The Ducks reached a two-year, $3.6 million contract with center Isac Lundestrom, avoiding an arbitration hearing.
July 24: Kraken signs two players
Another arbitration hearing is avoided as forward Morgan Geekie gets a one-year, $1.4 million contract after a career-best 22 points. Seattle too signed defenseman Michael Kempny to a one-year, $750,000 contract. He had played the last four seasons with the Capitals and was part of the 2018 Stanley Cup team, but has dealt with injuries recently.
July 22: Flames trade Matthew Tkachuk to Panthers in stunner
It had become clear in recent days that Matthew Tkachuk’s time in Calgary was nearing its end. That became official Friday night as the talented young winger was traded to the Florida Panthers along with a conditional 2025 pick for forward Jonathan Huberdeau, defenseman MacKenzie Weegar, prospect Cole Schwindt and a first-round pick in 2025.
It’s a fairly stunning trade all the way around.
Tkachuk, 24, and Huberdeau, 29, both recorded over 100 points this past season. Huberdeau, in fact, trailed only Connor McDavid for most points in the NHL, tied with former Calgary star Johnny Gaudreau at 115. Weegar, 28, has been a dependable – and underrated – player for the Panthers for years.
Huberdeau and Weegar both have one year left on their deals. Tkachuk has agreed to a new eight-year deal with the Panthers, reportedly for $76 million (a $9.5 million AAV).
For the Flames, getting players as talented as Huberdeau and Weegar should help salvage what has been a brutal offseason after Gaudreau walked and Tkachuk made it clear he wanted out. The Panthers lost two key pieces from the NHL’s best regular-season team last year but gained a young star in his prime and perhaps alleviated even more future salary cap headaches.
— Jace Evans
July 22: Blue Jackets sign Patrik Laine to extension
He’ll average $8.7 million in the four-year deal. Laine, 24, scored 56 points in 56 games last season, and getting him re-signed was a priority, especially after they added star Johnny Gaudreau ($9.7 million cap hit) in free agency. Laine and Gaudreau could end up as linemates. The Blue Jackets traded forward Oliver Bjorkstrand ($5.4 million average salary), their leading goal scorer last season, to the Kraken to help their cap situation.
Also: The Jets re-signed forward Pierre-Luc Dubois for one year at $6 million, nearly doubling his salary. He’ll be a restricted free agent again next summer.
July 21: Predators sign winger Nino Niederreiter
The former Hurricane gets a two-year, $8 million contract. It’s a smart move by the Predators, who had re-signed Filip Forsberg and traded for Ryan McDonagh. Niederreiter scored 24 goals in a third line role and has five other 20-goal seasons. He scored 39 of his 44 points at even strength. The Predators ranked 16th in even strength goals.
Also: The Penguins and forward Kasperi Kaspanen reached a two-year, $6.4 million contract, avoiding arbitration. His cap hit is the same as last season, when he struggled and scored only 11 goals.
July 20: Report says Matthew Tkachuk likely to be traded
The Athletic reported that Tkachuk told the Flames that he wouldn’t sign a long-term deal and the team is likely to trade him soon rather than lose him for nothing next summer as they did with Johnny Gaudreau. The website also said that Tkachuk provided a list of teams where he would be willing to sign a long-term contract. Among them: the St. Louis Blues, where his father, Keith, used to play.
July 19: Devils sign Vitek Vanecek for three years
He’ll average $3.4 million and avoids arbitration. Vanecek was acquired from the Capitals at the draft and will get a raise from $750,000 and will make more than Devils goalie Mackenzie Blackwood ($2.8 million), who can become a restricted free agent next season.
July 18: Flames take Matthew Tkachuk to arbitration
The move prevents a team from making an offer sheet to the rugged winger, who topped 40 goals and 100 points for the first time in his career. Ideally, the Flames would like to get Tkachuk signed long-term before his Aug. 11 hearing because a ruling would be for one year and he’s eligible to become a UFA next summer. They lost Gaudreau for nothing and don’t want the same to happen with Tkachuk. The Flames could end up trading him. Calgary players Andrew Mangiapane and Oliver Kylington filed for arbitration.
Also: Sharks goaltender Kaapo Kahkonen agreed to a two-year deal, avoiding arbitration.
July 17: 24 file for salary arbitration
The following 24 players filed for salary arbitration: Isac Lundestrom (Anaheim), Lawson Crouse (Arizona), Pavel Zacha (Boston), Andrew Mangiapane, Oliver Kylington, Matthew Phillips (Calgary), Ethan Bear, Maxime Lajoie (Carolina), Jake Walman (Detroit), Jesse Puljujarvi, Kailer Yamamoto (Edmonton), Yakov Trenin (Nashville), Jesper Bratt, Vitek Vanecek, Tyce Thompson (New Jersey), Mathieu Joseph (Ottawa), Zack MacEwen (Philadelphia), Kasperi Kapanen (Pittsburgh), Niko Mikkola (St. Louis), Kaapo Kahkonen, Steven Lorentz (San Jose), Morgan Geekie (Seattle), Keegan Kolesar (Vegas) and Mason Appleton (Winnipeg).
The biggest names are Mangiapane (35 goals) and Bratt (73 points in 76 games). Puljujarvi’s case is interesting because the Oilers have tried him in the top six but he hasn’t put up big numbers. Most players filing for arbitration settle before their hearings, which are scheduled for July 27 to Aug. 11. Mikkola signed after filing.
July 16: Penguins shake up defense
The Penguins added defensemen Jeff Petry and Ty Smith in separate trades, sending Mike Matheson to the Canadiens and John Marino to the Devils. Petry had a strong 2021 season but struggled like the rest of the Canadiens last season. The trade of Matheson was a little surprising because he’s six years younger than Petry and signed for four years, compared to Petry’s three.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: NHL news, rumors: Offseason tracker for signings, trades and more