As the dust settles on the Stanley Cup playoffs, the attention moves to the 2024-25 season. Teams across the NHL take stock of their roster and try to determine the best course of action for the upcoming season. One of the best places for teams to do this is at the start of free agency. With so much player movement and general managers talking, it’s the perfect place for your roster to improve.
This year free agency was no different. So far this offseason, over a billion dollars have been spent. Many star and well-known players were off to new teams. With all this shake-up, there will be major ramifications across the league. Here are the winners and losers from the first day of NHL free agency.
Free Agency Winners
Nashville Predators
Without question, the champions of the offseason are the Nashville Predators. According to TSN free-agent rankings, they signed three of the top four available players. Those players were Steven Stamkos, Jonathan Marchessault, and Brady Skjei. These three are going to change the lineup dramatically. Stamkos and Marchessault will add a scoring threat to the top six, and Skjei will add a reliable defenseman to the blue line. However, these new additions aren’t the only splash they made. They also locked up star netminder Juuse Saros to an eight-year extension.
Now, this is a Predators team that fell in the first round of last year’s playoff. It’s not surprising that Barry Trotz would make a major splash to try and get them over the hump. However, this is a major risk. How many times have we seen a major splash like this and have it blow up in their face? We’ll have to wait for the season to see.
Chicago Blackhawks
The Blackhawks’ successful offseason began during the NHL Awards when Connor Bedard won the Calder Memorial Trophy. The award is given to the best rookie performance. So, this offseason was all about surrounding Bedard with talented players for him to take the next step. First, they brought in two high-profile wingers, Teuvo Teravainen and Tyler Bertuzzi. Both players bring a scoring presence the Hawks need on the top six. They also should slot in nicely on the top line with the Bedard.
These weren’t the only moves the Blackhawks made during free agency. They signed veterans Craig Smith, Pat Maroon, and Alec Martinez to one-year deals. These players will provide veteran leadership to this young roster. This gives Bedard and other young players on the roster people to look up to and get advice, whether it’s about the game or adjusting to life in the NHL. They also could flip these guys at the deadline for draft capital and/or prospects.
Losers of Free Agency
Seattle Kraken
It’s hard to be the next expansion team after the Vegas Golden Knights. Due to how much success they had early on, the Kraken was always gonna have unrealistic expectations. Everyone is going to expect them to be a contender right off the bat, just like the Knights. These expectations were heightened when the Kraken got to the second round in last year’s playoff. They seem like the up-and-coming team in the NHL.
However, after falling short of expectations this season, they were looking for a splash to put them back on track. But looking for that splash caused them to disregard logic and give out some bad deals. They signed Brandon Montour to a 7-year deal with an AAV of 7.14 million, as well as Chandler Stephenson to a 7-year deal with an AAV of 6.25 million. Both of massive overpayments for these players. They are both coming off career years, with very little likelihood they’ll be able to repeat. These are contracts that will haunt Seattle for years to come.
Detriot Red Wings
When Steve Yzerman became the general manager of the Red Wings, everyone thought Detroit would return to the top of the hockey world. Yzerman had just built the Tampa Bay Lighting into one of the best teams in the NHL. Yzerman championed the “Yzerplan” which was supposed to bring the Red Wings back to where they were when Yzerman was on the ice. However, the rebuild has taken longer than expected, and many saw this as a pivotal offseason for the Red Wings.
However, so far the major upgrade this team needed hasn’t been signed yet. Sure, they were able to bring back Patrick Kane. They also brought in five other free agents with Cam Talbot and Erik Gustafsson being the most well-known. However, none of them are the moves needed to put this team over the top. It’s a bunch of depth signings that will fill out the roster. But they won’t bring Detriot back to the playoffs. Something this off-season moves should’ve done.
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