Veteran enforcer Ryan Reaves is high on the Toronto Maple Leafs' wish list with the free-agent market set to open on Saturday, TSN's Darren Dreger reports.

Reaves is available following the expiration of the one-year, $1.75-million contract he signed with the New York Rangers last summer. The 36-year-old spent the 2022-23 campaign split between Broadway and the Minnesota Wild, where he was traded in November.

The Maple Leafs have approximately $11.5 million in cap space to work with this summer when factoring in long-term injured reserve candidates, according to Cap Friendly. However, Toronto only has 17 players signed for next seasons as it stands and has decisions to make on a group of key unrestricted free agents including Ryan O'Reilly, Noel Acciari, Michael Bunting, Alexander Kerfoot, Justin Holl, and Luke Schenn.

Starting goaltender Ilya Samsonov is also due for a new deal as a RFA.

Reaves has appeared in 828 career games across 13 seasons split between the St. Louis Blues, Pittsburgh Penguins, Vegas Golden Knights, Rangers, and Wild. He's managed 129 points along with 1,023 penalty minutes over that span.

This past campaign, the Winnipeg native collected five goals, 10 assists, and 196 hits in 73 appearances.

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Several restricted free agents were not issued qualifying offers by Friday's 5 p.m. ET deadline, making them eligible to sign anywhere when the market opens Saturday at noon.

Here's a group of notable players whose sudden availability has added a new layer of intrigue to this weekend's free-agent frenzy. The entire list can be accessed here.

Puljujarvi, the Edmonton Oilers' No. 4 pick in 2016, was unable to get his career on track after being traded to the Carolina Hurricanes. He failed to score in 24 games (regular season and playoffs) with the Canes and was even a healthy scratch at times in the postseason despite the team's injuries.

Gurianov, the 12th pick in the 2015 draft, has mostly been a bust to this point. He enjoyed one 20-goal season in 2019-20 but managed just 17 points in 66 games this season between the Dallas Stars and Montreal Canadiens.

Hajek was a key part of the return in the trade that sent Ryan McDonagh to the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2018. He never reached his potential in New York, though, appearing in just 33 games over the last two campaigns for the Rangers.

The Canucks passed on retaining Bear and Dermott, who are both just 26. Bear played a top-four role this season but suffered a shoulder injury while playing for Canada at the World Championship and is out six months as of mid-June. Injuries limited Dermott to just 28 games across parts of two seasons in Vancouver after the club surrendered a third-round pick for him in March 2022.

The Coyotes are working to sign Fischer, according to Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman, while the Devils announced they will try to sign their trio at a lower cost.

(Cap source: CapFriendly)

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Jeff Paterson from the Rink Wide: Vancouver podcast sits in for Blake Price and discusses the Canucks free agency targets on defence and at third-line centre, as well as the decisions to not qualify defencemen Ethan Bear and Travis Dermott. The guys talk development camp, which starts Sunday, and this week's entry draft, as well as important long weekend games for the B.C. Lions and Whitecaps. Rick Dhaliwal stops by with more on free-agent defencemen Carson Soucy and Ian Cole, as well as tidbits on a potential Tyler Myers trade, and free-agent check-ins on J.T. Compher, Ryan O'Reilly, Nick Bjugstad and Teddy Blueger. Rick tells us that goalie David Rittich might well land with the Canucks, and why defenceman Cal Foote will not be joining his father Adam, a Canucks assistant, in Vancouver. Former Vancouver Canucks right-handed defenceman Frank Corrado provides his analysis of Canucks' RHD picks Tom Willander and Hunter Brzustewicaz, and his contract predictions for UFAs like Soucy. Presented by Applewood Auto Group.

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The Vegas Golden Knights signed playoff hero Adin Hill to a two-year contract extension carrying an annual cap hit of $4.9 million, the team announced Friday.

Hill was scheduled to hit the open market as an unrestricted free agent on July 1. His previous deal was worth $2.175 million per season.

The Golden Knights are now approximately $2.2 million over the $83.5-million salary threshold but have $5 million available in long-term injured reserve candidates, according to Cap Friendly. Vegas also signed forward Ivan Barbashev to a five-year, $25-million extension after winning the Stanley Cup earlier this month.

Hill was acquired from the San Jose Sharks last August for a fourth-round pick. He appeared in 27 regular season games, then was thrust into the starter's role after Laurent Brossoit was injured in the second round of the playoffs. Hill took the job and ran with it, posting an 11-4 record with a .932 save percentage and 2.17 goals against average to help the Golden Knights capture their first-ever championship.

The 27-year-old was a third-round draft choice of the Arizona Coyotes in 2015. He's made 101 career regular season appearances while suiting up for three teams over the past six campaigns.

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The Nashville Predators are buying out the final three seasons of Matt Duchene's deal, the team announced Friday.

"This is the continuation of an organizational process that started at the trade deadline - our desire to change the roster, allowing our emerging players the chance to grow and develop while also creating the flexibility to build a team that will become a Stanley Cup contender," incoming general manager Barry Trotz said in a statement.

The buyout will go as follows, according to CapFriendly:

In a weak unrestricted free-agent class, a skilled offensive forward in Duchene will become one of the more intriguing players available when the market opens Saturday.

He inked a seven-year, $56-million contract with the Predators as a free agent in 2019, but his tenure in the Music City has mostly been viewed as a disappointment relative to his cap hit.

Duchene struggled mightily in his first couple seasons with the club before he exploded for career highs in goals (43) and points (86) in 2021-22. The 32-year-old came back down to earth this past season, producing 22 goals and 34 assists in 71 games.

He spent most of his 14-year NHL career as a center, but he's predominantly played on the wing over the last couple of seasons to reduce his defensive responsibilities. Faceoffs are not an issue, as he owns a career 53.3% success rate in the dot.

His underlying numbers over the last three campaigns have remained strong offensively.

Duchene is the second marquee player Nashville has jettisoned recently after the club traded Ryan Johansen to the Colorado Avalanche on Saturday. The team also shipped off longtime defenseman Mattias Ekholm to the Edmonton Oilers at the 2023 trade deadline.

Trotz now has nearly $25 million in cap space to work with in his first offseason at the helm.

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The Edmonton Oilers re-signed winger Mattias Janmark to a one-year, $1-million contract, the team announced Friday.

Janmark produced 10 goals and 15 assists in 66 games with the Oilers last season while playing a third-line checking role. He's proven to be reliable defensively and is an effective penalty killer.

The 30-year-old Swede recorded 76 goals and 107 assists in 486 career games across seven seasons between the Oilers, Vegas Golden Knights, Chicago Blackhawks, and Dallas Stars.

The Oilers also brought back journeyman Derek Ryan on a two-year, $1.8-million deal earlier in June. Edmonton still has work to do to round out the rest of the bottom-six forward group.

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It's the end of an era in Winnipeg.

The Jets are placing former captain Blake Wheeler on unconditional waivers for the purpose of buying out the final year of his contract, the team announced Friday.

"It has been my absolute honor and privilege to be a Winnipeg Jet, to represent this city and this organization," he said.

Here's a breakdown of a buyout for Wheeler, according to CapFriendly:

The buyout will make Wheeler an unrestricted free agent eligible to sign with any team. The Dallas Stars are among several clubs interested in the winger, reports TSN's Darren Dreger. However, Wheeler's camp would prefer a move to the Eastern Conference, per Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman.

The writing had been on the wall for a divorce between the two sides. The club reportedly tried to trade him but was unsuccessful.

Once one of the game's best wingers, Wheeler's production fell to 16 goals and 39 assists in 72 games this past season. His underlying numbers have taken an even steeper decline. He turns 37 in August.

Wheeler recorded a heartfelt goodbye to Winnipeg fans and the Jets organization.

The Jets also honored Wheeler with a tribute video.

Wheeler spent 13 seasons with the organization, including all 12 it's been in Winnipeg since relocating from Atlanta in 2011. He wore the 'C' for six campaigns and is the franchise's all-time leader in games played (897), assists (550), and points (812).

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The Detroit Red Wings are buying out Kailer Yamamoto's contract, reports TSN's Darren Dreger, making the forward free to sign with any team.

Detroit acquired Yamamoto and Klim Kostin from the Edmonton Oilers in exchange for future considerations on Thursday. The Red Wings strongly considered keeping Yamamoto but couldn't make it work, Dreger adds.

The 24-year-old was entering the final year of his contract, which carried a $3.1-million cap hit, according to CapFriendly. With Friday's move, Yamamoto's cap hit will be $433,000 for the 2023-24 season and $533,000 in 2024-25, per PuckPedia.

A first-round pick in 2017, Yamamoto spent his first six NHL seasons with the Oilers. He set a career high with 41 points in 81 games during the 2021-22 season, including 20 goals. Yamamoto was limited to 58 games and 25 points this past season.

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