Wowza!
The NHL has swung back open for business in a major way, which is something seldom seen before the Stanley Cup has even been hoisted.
If there’s one conclusion to draw from the early activity it’s that the conditions may be ripe for more player movement now that the salary cap is finally emerging from its pandemic lag and jumping to $88 million next season.
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The most striking thing about Wednesday’s swap of Pierre-Luc Dubois for Darcy Kuemper was that the Los Angeles Kings got out from under the remaining seven years of PLD’s $8.5 million annual contract entirely after his disappointing 40-point season.
Consider that a sign of hope for those looking to get a significant contract off the books during a trading window that typically remains open through July.
There have also been two goaltenders traded — with Jacob Markstrom going to the New Jersey Devils from the Calgary Flames and Kuemper being sent to Los Angeles from the Washington Capitals in the Dubois deal — ahead of a free-agency period that is short on proven front-line starters.
That’s another theme to keep an eye on.
As we enter uncharted territory with the NHL’s silly season blending into its postseason, the Big Board returns. Here are my top targets to watch.
1. Mitch Marner, Toronto Maple Leafs
2023-24 stats: 26 goals, 85 points, 21:17 average time on ice, plus-21
Age: 27
Contract: $10.903 million through 2025 (UFA)
The possibility of a Marner trade is the talk of the town in Toronto. With it being an offseason where “everything is on the table,” according to the team’s senior leadership, and with Marner eligible to sign a contract extension July 1, there are multiple potential outcomes here. But the mere fact that the Leafs are willing to take calls on the former Selke Trophy finalist and perennial 90-plus point man is a significant development. Marner holds the hammer with a no-movement clause and may need some cajoling or convincing to green-light a move out of his hometown. That makes it a delicate situation for all involved.
2. Linus Ullmark, Boston Bruins
2023-24 stats: 22-10-7, 2.57 GAA, .915 save percentage
Age: 30
Contract: $5 million through 2025 (UFA)
Not only did Ullmark perform consistently above average for the Bruins over the past three years, he did so while making 41, 49 and 40 appearances. You won’t find any goaltenders available in free agency who can make that claim, making the Vezina Trophy winner even more attractive to teams needing an upgrade. Boston has also reached a point where it’s prepared to allow 25-year-old Jeremy Swayman to handle more of the workload in net, and it needs to clear Ullmark’s cap space to make improvements to other areas of the roster, not to mention to help cover the raise soon to be coming Swayman’s way. One potential complication: Ullmark has some say in the process with a 15-team no-trade list, which prevented him from being dealt at the trade deadline.
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3. Martin Necas, Carolina Hurricanes
2023-24 stats: 24 goals, 53 points, 17:21 ATOI, minus-9
Age: 25
Contract: 2024 RFA
It’s no secret that the talented forward would welcome a change of scenery. Necas took a step back production-wise last season — going from 71 points to 53 — and he wasn’t too happy about how he was deployed. Now two years out from unrestricted free agency and needing a new contract this summer, he’s been made available on the trade market. The Hurricanes are working through concrete offers and hoping to get another roster player back in return, instead of a package built around future assets. Necas has an enticing blend of size, speed and skill, and he showed extremely well while helping Czechia win gold at the IIHF World Hockey Championship in May.
4. Nikolaj Ehlers, Winnipeg Jets
2023-24 stats: 25 goals, 61 points, 15:52 ATOI, Plus-27
Age: 28
Contract: $6 million through 2025 (UFA)
A skilled offensive play-driver who consistently produces 20-plus goals and 60-ish points, Ehlers remains a polarizing figure among the Winnipeg hockey discourse. What’s not up for debate is that he’s now one year out from potential unrestricted free agency and there are only so many cap dollars to go around. Plus teammate Kyle Connor is up for an extension of his own two years down the road. As a result, the Jets are listening to interest on Ehlers to see if there’s something out there that makes sense for them to act on.
5. Jakob Chychrun, Ottawa Senators
2023-24 stats: 14 goals, 41 points, 22:23 ATOI, minus-30
Age: 26
Contract: $4.6 million through 2025 (UFA)
Something has to give on the left side of the Senators blue line, where Jake Sanderson and Thomas Chabot are already signed to significant long-term contracts and Chychrun is one year away from being in line for one. Not only is he coming off the first 82-game campaign of his career — notable given his lengthy injury history — but the fit has actually been pretty seamless since he was acquired from the Arizona Coyotes. His pending UFA status in 2025 complicates the picture, though.
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6. Patrik Laine, Columbus Blue Jackets
2023-24 stats: 6 goals, 9 points, 15:13 ATOI, minus-10
Age: 26
Contract: $8.7 million through 2026 (UFA)
The former 44-goal man has endured a tough couple of seasons in Columbus and would like a fresh start. Laine is currently under the care of the NHL/NHLPA Player Assistance Program, which he entered in late January, and recently underwent a minor procedure on his left shoulder. While there is obviously uncertainty about where his game will be at, there’s also the possibility of a big payoff if a team can put Laine in the right position to succeed. Despite the ups and downs with the Blue Jackets, he still produced 0.79 points per game during his tenure with the team.
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Patrik Laine trade destinations: 8 teams that could (or should) be interested
7. Filip Gustavsson, Minnesota Wild
2023-24 stats: 20-18-4, 3.06 GAA, .899 save percentage
Age: 25
Contract: $3.75 million through 2026 (UFA)
What’s that line about goalie being the hardest position to predict? Two years after helping push the Wild into the playoffs, Gustavsson fell back to earth in a big way in 2023-24. Now he’s on the trade market. The Wild are operating with an extremely tight cap sheet and have Jesper Wallstedt waiting in the wings for NHL starts alongside veteran Marc-Andre Fleury. Those circumstances have made the Swede available.
8. Tanner Jeannot, Tampa Bay Lightning
2023-24 stats: 7 goals, 14 points, 12:01 ATOI, minus-10
Age: 27
Contract: $2.665 million through 2025 (UFA)
At the outset of yet another summer with tight cap dollars, the Lightning are looking for ways to create space. Enter Jeannot, the hard-hitting winger who hasn’t ever been close to duplicating the 24-goal, 41-point season had in Nashville in 2021-22. It’s safe to say he’s one of the few big swings made by Tampa general manager Julien BriseBois that didn’t pay off, and he also happens to be one year out from unrestricted free agency. BriseBois has never shied away from a tough decision, and if he can find a way to get Jeannot’s cap hit off the books, it might not even be that tough for him to pull the trigger on the deal.
9. Ilya Mikheyev, Vancouver Canucks
2023-24 stats: 11 goals, 31 points, 14:16 ATOI, plus-1
Age: 29
Contract: $4.75 million through 2026 (UFA)
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After watching Mikheyev put up an ugly playoff stat line — no points in 11 games — the Canucks can certainly find better ways to use the $4.75 million in cap space they’ve dedicated to Mikheyev. He hasn’t lived up to expectations since signing in free agency two years ago and wasn’t helped by a knee injury during his first season in Vancouver. Add it all together and Mikheyev is a distressed asset, but he’s a distressed asset they’d like to move.
10. Torey Krug, St. Louis Blues
2023-24 stats: 4 goals, 39 points, 21:58 ATOI, minus-31
Age: 33
Contract: $6.5 million through 2027
The veteran puck-moving defenseman would have been a member of the Philadelphia Flyers last summer had he not exercised his right to block the potential deal with a no-trade clause. Now another year on, the dynamics behind those discussions are unchanged and Krug is down to three seasons remaining on his $6.5 million annual contract. He also loses the full no-trade clause beyond this year. There may be slightly more room to maneuver a second time around.
11. Kaapo Kakko, New York Rangers
2023-24 stats: 13 goals, 19 points, 13:17 ATOI, plus-6
Age: 23
Contract: $2.4 million through 2025 (RFA)
When the playoffs ended, the former No. 2 draft pick expressed a desire to remain in New York and quickly signed a one-year contract at the amount he would have been due on his qualifying offer — $2.4 million — rather than pushing for more money and term. That provided cost certainty for the Rangers, but it won’t guarantee him a future roster spot as the team enters an important summer for retooling.
12. Mathieu Joseph, Ottawa Senators
2023-24 stats: 11 goals, 35 points, 16:28 ATOI, minus-4
Age: 27
Contract: $2.95 million through 2026 (RFA)
His second full season in Ottawa went much better than the first, but he remains expendable on a roster stocked with young forwards. In fact, with an affordable cap hit for the next two years, Joseph may be able to bring back some value. His speed remains an asset, and there were teams who inquired about his availability during the season.
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13. Arthur Kaliyev, Los Angeles Kings
2023-24 stats: 7 goals, 15 points, 11:48 ATOI, minus-3
Age: 22
Contract: 2024 RFA
Kaliyev didn’t play much more hockey than he watched this past season as a regular healthy scratch or fourth-line winger for the Kings. That represented regression for a player in his fourth professional season. An elite shooter who carried considerable promise after being a second-round pick by Los Angeles in 2019, Kaliyev is at the stage of his career where he needs to draw more results out of his attributes. He may need a fresh start to accomplish that.
14. Juuse Saros, Nashville Predators
2023-24 stats: 35-24-5, 2.86 GAA, .906 save percentage
Age: 29
Contract: $5 million through 2025 (UFA)
There’s optimism that the Predators will be in position to extend Saros to a new contract once the CBA rules allow it to happen in July, but it’s no secret that they’ve shopped him before. That’s significant because of the current state of the goaltending market and the possibility that Nashville pivots in the event contract talks aren’t as fruitful as hoped. Saros is an incredibly athletic goaltender who has averaged 65 starts across his past three seasons, and he never seems to stray too far from the Vezina Trophy conversation.
15. John Gibson, Anaheim Ducks
2023-24 stats: 13-27-2, 3.54 GAA, .888 save percentage
Age: 30
Contract: $6.4 million through 2027 (UFA)
Gibson has been a workhorse for a Ducks team that hasn’t qualified for the playoffs in six years and is likely still facing growing pains. With 23-year-old Lukas Dostal starting to bloom behind him, Anaheim is willing to clear some room in the crease by finding Gibson another opportunity. His numbers make that much easier said than done — Gibson’s yearly save percentage is going in the wrong direction, and he’s signed for three more seasons at a pricey cap hit — but there are also a lot of teams looking for goaltenders right now.
16. Trevor Zegras, Anaheim Ducks
2023-24 stats: 6 goals, 15 points, 17:05 ATOI, minus-1
Age: 23
Contract: $5.75 million through 2026 (RFA)
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The 23-year-old forward oozes offensive talent and is coming off a season that he’d just as soon forget. Zegras played only 31 games because of time missed due to a groin injury and surgery on a broken ankle, while also dealing with trade rumors in the months before the deadline. He even saw roommate Jamie Drysdale dealt away to the Philadelphia Flyers. There’s work to be done on repairing and building up the relationship between the team and Zegras if he isn’t traded away this offseason. He’s piqued the curiosity of a couple of teams.
17. Reilly Smith, Pittsburgh Penguins
2023-24 stats: 13 goals, 40 points, 16:08 ATOI, plus-3
Age: 33
Contract: $5 million through 2025 (UFA)
He arrived in a trade last summer just days after winning the Stanley Cup in Vegas and the fit never seemed right. Smith finished with his lowest per-game goal, assist and point totals since 2016-17 and heard his name in speculation leading up to the trade deadline. The veteran brings plenty of experience and a strong two-way game, and he is one year out from unrestricted free agency.
18. Jeff Skinner, Buffalo Sabres
2023-24 stats: 24 goals, 46 points, 16:00 ATOI, minus-2
Age: 32
Contract: $9 million through 2027
A prime candidate for a buyout if a trade doesn’t materialize (or Skinner elects not to waive his no-movement clause), the 32-year-old appears headed for a fresh start. He’s seen a sharp decline in production, going from an 82-point campaign two years ago to 46 this past season, but he remains a good shooter and skater. The devil will be in the details of how the money gets moved around and what cap figure is attached to the player on the other side of a potential move.
19. Mike Matheson, Montreal Canadiens
2023-24 stats: 11 goals, 62 points, 25:33 ATOI, minus-24
Age: 30
Contract: $4.875 million through 2026
With two years left on the contract of the left-shot defenseman, the Canadiens are in position to gauge the marketplace and see if anything out there makes sense. Matheson is a strong skater coming off a 62-point season, so they’d be selling high if they chose to do so. Montreal has several prospects in the pipeline who are defenseman and may not be on the same timeline as an organization with a player who is due to be hitting free agency at age 32 in 2026.
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20. Jack Campbell, Edmonton Oilers
2023-24 stats: 1-4-0, 4.50 GAA, .873 save percentage
Age: 32
Contract: $5 million through 2027
Campbell has quietly been along for the ride during the Oilers’ run to the Stanley Cup Final — skating with the Black Aces and keeping himself in playing shape just in case he’s needed. The organization will explore options to move the veteran goaltender following a season where he went from opening night starter to making 34 appearances for AHL Bakersfield. While a buyout is possible, a trade of his $5 million annual cap hit would be more palatable.
Note: This board is based on what we’re hearing from NHL sources and will be adjusted as new names enter the conversation or gain prominence, so check back.
Others we’re watching who don’t quite crack the top 20 at this point: Pavel Buchnevich, St. Louis Blues; Leon Draisaitl, Edmonton Oilers; Mario Ferraro, San Jose Sharks; Andrew Mangiapane, Calgary Flames; Jean-Gabriel Pageau, New York Islanders; Timothy Liljegren, Toronto Maple Leafs.
(Illustration by Dan Goldfarb / The Athletic, with photos of Mitch Marner, Linus Ullmark and Martin Necas from Mark Blinch, Josh Lavallee and Mitchell Leff / Getty Images)