46 players could become free agents Saturday if not signed
46 prospects who were drafted by NHL teams could become free agents on Saturday if they're not signed by teams.
Although a lot of fans thought that the NHL Entry Draft marked the beginning of a team's off-season, June 1st is actually a big date for teams. A team has a predetermined window of time to negotiate to sign a prospect exclusively after selecting that player in the draft. Whether a player was drafted from North America or Europe determines which chronology applies.
But teams have to decide whether to sign the player or let their rights expire on June 1st of the expiration year. This gives the player the option to sign a contract elsewhere or, depending on his age, reenter the NHL draft. Less than twenty-four hours left until this year's deadline, and several players are still unsigned.
Some of the prospects on this list have signed deals to play overseas and have no zero of playing in the NHL. While others recently completed their Junior hockey seasons. The following list is provided by
Cap Friendly Anaheim Ducks Connor Hvidston
Ben King
Albin Sundsvik
Boston BruinsReid Dyck
Buffalo SabresJakub Konecny
Mats Lindgren
Albert Lyckåsen
Carolina HurricanesZion Nybeck
Chicago BlackhawksMichael Krutil
Colorado AvalancheGraham Sward
Ivan Zhigalov
Dallas StarsDaniel Ljungman
Detroit Red WingsJan Bednar
Tnias Mathurin
Theodor Niederbach
Edmonton OilersJeremias Lindewall
Florida PanthersLiam Arnsby
Elliot Ekmark
Kasper Puutio
Los Angeles KingsJuho Markkanen
Kasper Simontaival
Minnesota WildServác Petrovský
Montreal CanadiensJared DavidsonCédrick Guindon
Petteri Nurmi
Miguël Tourigny
New Jersey DevilsJaromír Pytlík
New York IslandersAlexander Ljungkrantz
Matias Rajaniemi
New York RangersMaxim Barbashev
Oliver Tärnström
Pittsburgh PenguinsNolan Collins
Thimo Nickl
San Jose SharksMason Beaupit
Seattle KrakenKyle Jackson
St. Louis BluesLandon Sim
Tampa Bay LightningNick Malík
Toronto Maple LeafsBrandon Lisowsky
Utah HCFilip Barklund
Elliot Ekefjärd
Jérémy Langlois
Vancouver CanucksViktor Persson
Vegas Golden KnightsPatrick Guay
Washington CapitalsJake Karabela
Oskar Magnusson
Winnipeg JetsAnton Johannesson
It will be fascinating to see if any of these players get offers for contracts later on, or if their rights are just rejected. Time will tell, but this is the start of what I anticipate to be a hectic season.
Previously on HockeyUnplugged
POLL |
MAI 31 | 137 ANSWERS 46 players could become free agents Saturday if not signed Who wins the Stanley Cup? |
Edmonton Oilers | 57 | 41.6 % |
Dallas Stars | 10 | 7.3 % |
Florida Panthers | 58 | 42.3 % |
New York Rangers | 12 | 8.8 % |
List of polls |