NHL free agency tracker: GMs busy with moves before opening day

According to reports, Mitch Marner is heading to the Vegas Golden Knights in a trade and will get an eight-year, $96 million contract. Nicolas Roy will go to the Toronto Maple Leafs in the trade.

The Vegas Golden Knights earlier made a trade with the Nashville Predators to clear up cap space.

The Florida Panthers were also busy, bringing back Aaron Ekblad on an eight-year deal. Reports say Brad Marchand also has a deal in the works, meaning the back-to-back champions’ big three free agents (also Sam Bennett) are returning.

Here’s a look at the busy action on June 30 heading into the July 1 start of NHL free agency:

Patrick Kane returning to Detroit

The Red Wings announced that Kane had signed a one-year deal with an average annual value of $3 million. Per The Athletic, he could earn up to $7 million total thanks to $4 million of potential bonuses — including $2.5 million for playing 10 games.

The longtime Chicago Blackhawks star has recorded 106 points in 122 games with Detroit since signing with the team in 2023.

Mitch Marner traded to Golden Knights, will sign deal, per reports

Marner, the NHL’s top free agent, is headed to Vegas and will sign an eight-year, $96 million contract with the Golden Knights, according to multiple reports. Forward Nicolas Roy will return to the Maple Leafs in the trade. Marner is coming off a 102-point season and has three other 90-point seasons. He’s fifth in Maple Leafs history with 741 points, though he and the team have been to the second round only two times during his time there.

Golden Knights defenseman Alex Pietrangelo also announced on June 30 that he needs to step away from the game for now because of health reasons. ‘The likelihood is low that my body will recover to the standard required to play, but I know this is the right decision for me and my family,” he said.

General manager Kelly McCrimmon said Pietrangelo ‘is dealing with hips that would require bilateral femur reconstruction, with no guarantee of success.’

Panthers reach deal with Brad Marchand, per report

Panthers GM Bill Zito has done it. Not official yet from the Panthers, but Marchand has joined fellow free agents Aaron Ekblad and Sam Bennett in staying with the back-to-back champions. It’s a six-year deal, per Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman, averaging a little over $5 million. Sam Bennett (eight years, $8 million average) and Aaron Ekblad (eight years, $6.1 million) also agreed to team-friendly deals to try to build a dynasty. Marchand, who scored six goals in the Stanley Cup Final, will be 43 when his deal expires.

Blue Jackets reach deal with Ivan Provorov, per report

He’ll get $8.5 million over seven years, per Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman. The Blue Jackets get a deal done with two key free agents after earlier re-signing defenseman Dante Fabbro.

Kings re-sign Andrei Kuzmenko for one year

Kuzmenko was traded twice last season but found a fit in Los Angeles. He recorded 17 points in 22 games during the regular season and averaged a point a game in the playoffs. He’s making less in the new deal ($4.3 million) than last year ($5.5 million cap hit) but has a chance to bump that up next season if he builds on the end of last season.

Oilers reach deal with Evan Bouchard

He’ll average $10.5 million in the four-year contract. He’ll be the third $10 million player on the Oilers, following Leon Draisaitl ($14 million) and Connor McDavid ($12.5 million), who has another year on his contract. Bouchard averaged $3.9 million in his last contract, a two-year bridge deal. During those two years, he totaled 32 goals and 149 points, reaching the Stanley Cup Final both seasons. The four-year deal will allow Bouchard to cash in later as the salary cap continues to rise.

Panthers reach terms with Aaron Ekblad

He’s the second key free agent to return to the two-time champion Panthers. (Sam Bennett was the first and Brad Marchand is the other). Ekblad takes a hometown discount with eight years at a reported $6.1 million, per TSN. He’s on the top pairing with Gustav Forsling and led the Panthers defense in regular season and playoff scoring despite time missed with suspensions. The Panthers had Seth Jones in case Ekblad left, but the team is much better with both on the blue line.

Islanders re-sign Alexander Romanov

The 25-year-old gets eight years at a reported $6.25 million cap hit. The second-pair defenseman blocks shots and is known for his physical play with nearly 900 hits in his career. The Islanders got him locked in after their trade of defenseman Noah Dobson on draft day. New York drafted defenseman Matthew Schaefer No. 1 overall.

Maple Leafs acquire Matias Maccelli from Mammoth

The Mammoth get a conditional 2027 third round pick in return. Maccelli, 24, gets a fresh start after dropping to 18 points in 55 games this past season. But he can provide secondary scoring for Toronto after totaling 106 points over the two seasons before that. If he gets 51 points this season and the Maple Leafs make the playoffs, the third rounder becomes a 2029 second-round pick.

Red Wings trade Vladimir Tarasenko to Wild

Tarasenko has won two Stanley Cup titles but he disappointed with 33 points in his lone season in Detroit while averaging less than 15 minutes a game. He has another year on his contract at $4.75 million, so the Wild get secondary scoring at a reasonable price. Detroit gets future considerations in the deal.

Oilers re-sign forward Kasperi Kapanen

His one-year contract is worth $1.3 million. He scored the series-clinching goal against the Golden Knights in overtime and finished the playoffs with three goals and three assists in 12 games. The Oilers had claimed him off waivers in November.

Predators-Golden Knights trade

The Nashville Predators acquire defenseman Nicolas Hague and a conditional third-round pick from the Golden Knights in exchange for forward Colton Sissons and defenseman Jeremy Lauzon. Nashville will retain 50% of Sissons’ salary. If Vegas wins two rounds in the 2026 playoffs, the Golden Knights will move a second-round pick instead.

Hague was a restricted free agent and Vegas needs to clear out cap space to prepare for free agency. He signed a four-year, $22 million contract with Nashville after the trade. He was the Golden Knights’ second round pick in 2017 and is a physical player with 572 hits. Sissons and Lauzon are entering the final years of their contracts.

Bruins re-sign three players

The Boston Bruins re-signed defenseman Henri Jokiharju (three years, $3 million average), forward John Beecher (one year, $900,000) and goaltender Michael DiPietro (two years, $812,500 average). Jokiharju averaged more than 21 minutes a game and had four assists in 18 games after arriving in a trade from the Buffalo Sabres. Beecher had 11 points in 78 games and DiPietro was the American Hockey League goalie of the year.

June 29 signings

Boston’s Morgan Geekie signed a six-year contract ($5.5 million average) after a breakout 33-goal season.
Ottawa Senators forward Claude Giroux signed a bonus-laden one-year deal with a $2 million base salary. The contract can be worth another $2.75 million in bonuses.
Columbus Blue Jackets defenseman Dante Fabbro will average $4.125 million in his four-year deal.