The 2023 free-agent class may have been underwhelming, but 2024 has the potential to be different. Much different. Headlined by high-end talent and plenty of depth, the 2024 crop of NHL unrestricted free agents may be the best we’ve seen in years, even after some notable names have signed contract extensions. Let’s look at some marquee UFAs and present our preliminary top 30.
Star Talent Leads the Way
The 2023 UFA class severely lacked high-end talent. There were good players, but most were second-tier free agents who didn’t earn top dollar or max term. For example, among the 2024 class had Auston Matthews, but hesigneda four-year extension during the summer worth $13.25 million annually. Still, there is plenty of talent without Matthews.
Leading the way is Sam Reinhart, who had a monster career season, totaling 57 goals and 94 points in 82 games. The Florida Panthers were again one of the East’s top teams, and Reinhart’s play was a significant reason. Has he priced himself out of staying in Florida? Time will tell, but he will secure the bag one way or another.
Steven Stamkos has played his entire career with the Tampa Bay Lightning. While I don’t expect that to change, he remains unsigned as of now as he did when he approached free agency in 2016. He’s unlikely to get significant term since he’s 34, but he’s still a point-per-game player. There will be plenty of interest in him if he hits the market.
There isn’t as much talent defensively as there is up front, but there are some intriguing names. Devon Toews was the top UFA defenseman until he signed a seven-year extension worth $7.25 million annually with the Colorado Avalanche. Still, names like Brandon Montour, Brett Pesce and Brady Skjei will interest clubs if they make it to July 1 unsigned.
Related: Jets Re-Sign Hellebuyck and Scheifele to Seven-Year Extensions
Rounding out some of the star talent are Joe Pavelski and Jake Guentzel. Pavelski may be 39, but he just put up a 67-point season. There will be plenty of interest in him on a one-year deal, which adds to his value if he wants to keep playing.Guentzel has been one of the top goal-scorers in the NHL for half a decade, and it’s not a product of playing alongside Sidney Crosby, as he showed after the trade to the Carolina Hurricanes. He will get his money, too.
It’s Not a Top-Heavy UFA Class
Those names may headline the class, but there is plenty of depth behind them, partly because so many players signed one-year deals this past offseason in hopes of cashing in with the cap rising to $87.5 million this summer.
After getting bought out by the Nashville Predators,Matt duch*ene signed a one-year dealworth $3 million with the Dallas Stars. He was one of the Stars’ top players this season and will likely cash in as a free agent on July 1. He’s unlikely to get significant term since he’s 33, so teams will likely be lining up for duch*ene if the Stars don’t retain him.
Another player who took a one-year deal was Tyler Bertuzzi, who signed with the Maple Leafs. Health has been an issue with him, but he played in 81 games this season and was productive, posting 21 goals and 43 points. He’d be the perfect complementary player for teams that need support for their core players.
Aside from some NHLers who signed one-year deals (Vladimir Tarasenko and Jason Zucker, to name a couple more), there are plenty of high-end players entering the final years of their contracts that strengthen the 2024 UFA class.
These NHLers include Tyler Toffoli, Chandler Stephenson, Adam Henrique, Teuvo Teravainen and many more. Of course, some will re-sign with their current teams — as we saw to start the 2023-24 season — or perhaps with the teams that acquired them at the trade deadline in March.
But even then, there is plenty of talent to go around on July 1, with players like Anthony Mantha, Anthony Duclair and Jake DeBrusk just outside the top 20 of a very deep free-agent class. So even if some players re-up with their current clubs, the 2024 UFA class should be one of the best in years.
Without further ado, here’s our preliminary top 30 for 2024. This list will change throughout the offseason until July 1 depending on who re-signs with their current clubs or gets bought out and added to the pool.Rank Player POS Age GP G/GAA A/SV% P Team Previous Cap Hit 1 Sam Reinhart RW 28 82 57 37 94 FLA $6.5 million 2 Jake Guentzel LW 29 67 37 47 77 PIT/CAR $6 million 3 Patrick Kane RW 35 50 20 27 47 DET $2.75 million 4 Steven Stamkos C/RW 34 82 40 41 81 TBL $8.5 million 5 Jonathan Marchessault LW 33 82 42 27 69 VGK $5 million 6 Joe Pavelski C/RW 39 82 27 40 67 DAL $3.5 million 7 Matt duch*ene C 33 80 25 40 65 DAL $3 million 8 Tyler Toffoli RW 32 82 33 22 55 NJD/WPG $4.25 million 9 Sean Monahan C 29 83 26 33 59 MTL/WPG $6.5 million 10 Brady Skjei D 30 80 13 34 47 CAR $5.25 million 11 Teuvo Teravainen RW/LW 29 76 25 28 53 CAR $5.4 million 12 Chandler Stephenson C/LW 30 15 16 35 51 VGK $2.75 million 13 Brandon Montour D 30 66 8 25 33 FLA $3.5 million 14 Adam Henrique C/LW 34 82 24 27 51 ANA/EDM $5.825 million 15 Jonathan Drouin RW/LW 29 79 19 37 56 COL $825,000 16 Nikita Zadorov D 29 75 6 14 20 CGY/VAN $3.75 million 17 Vladimir Tarasenko RW 32 76 23 32 55 OTT/FLA $5 million 18 Shayne Gostisbehere D 31 81 10 46 56 DET $4.125 million 19 Tyler Bertuzzi LW/RW 29 80 21 22 43 TOR $5.5 million 20 Jake DeBrusk RW/LW 27 80 19 21 40 BOS $4 million 21 Max Domi C/LW 29 80 9 38 47 TOR $3 million 22 Elias Lindholm C 29 75 15 29 44 CGY/VAN $4.85 million 23 Anthony Mantha RW 29 74 23 21 44 WSH/VGK $5.7 million 24 Warren Foegele LW/RW 28 82 20 21 41 EDM $2.75 million 25 Brett Pesce D 29 70 3 10 13 CAR $4.025 million 26 Anthony Duclair RW/LW 28 73 24 18 42 SJS/TBL $3 million 27 David Perron RW 36 76 17 30 47 DET $4.75 million 28 Dakota Joshua LW 28 63 18 14 32 VAN $825,000 29 Sean Walker D 29 81 10 19 29 PHI/COL $2.65 million 30 Alexandre Carrier D 27 73 4 16 20 NSH $2.5 million
