The Toronto Maple Leafs have landed arguably the best remaining unrestricted free agent, signing winger Tyler Bertuzzi to a one-year contract worth $5.5 million, the team announced.
Bertuzzi is coming off a down season, as he recorded just eight goals and 22 assists in 50 regular-season contests split between the Detroit Red Wings and Boston Bruins. However, he was excellent in the postseason despite Boston's first-round exit, tallying five goals and five assists in seven games.
The 28-year-old enjoyed a career year in 2021-22 when he racked up 30 goals and 32 assists in 68 games with the Red Wings. His underlying numbers over the last three campaigns are strong offensively but poor defensively.
Evolving-Hockey
Bertuzzi brings an element of sandpaper to his game, as he racked up 18 hits during the playoffs. He's also known as a pest of sorts. For example, during Round 1 against the Florida Panthers, he stole Nick Cousins' stick and snapped it on the bench.
The Sudbury, Ontario, native is the nephew of former NHLer Todd Bertuzzi.
Bertuzzi will likely slot in at left wing on one of Toronto's top two lines centered by Auston Matthews and John Tavares. Tavares spent some time on the wing last season after Ryan O'Reilly was acquired at the trade deadline, but the Bertuzzi addition likely means the captain will move back to the middle on a full-time basis.
The Maple Leafs have less than $1 million remaining in cap space after the deal with a roster of 12 forwards, seven defensemen, and two goalies. Netminder Ilya Samsonov is the club's lone remaining restricted free agent of significance. Shedding Matt Murray's contract - either via trade or the second buyout window - is the most likely path to creating cap space.
Rodrigues signed a one-year deal with the Colorado Avalanche worth $2 million last offseason. He tallied 16 goals and 39 points in 69 contests in Denver.
The soon-to-be 30-year-old had a breakout campaign with the Pittsburgh Penguins in 2021-22, scoring 19 goals and 43 points in 82 games. Across stints with the Buffalo Sabres, Penguins, and Avalanche, he's accrued 69 goals and 168 points in 385 games.
Rodrigues has been effective in the postseason as well, scoring four goals and 11 points in 16 career playoff games.
The Panthers traded Anthony Duclair and his $3-million cap hit to the San Jose Sharks on Saturday.
The signing leaves Florida with just $362,499 of cap space, per CapFriendly.
The Detroit Red Wings signed forward Christian Fischer to a one-year contract worth $1.25 million, the team announced Sunday.
The Arizona Coyotes didn't tender a qualifying offer to Fischer on Friday, making him an unrestricted free agent. He scored 13 goals and 26 points in 80 games last season.
Fischer has spent his entire NHL career with the Coyotes. The 26-year-old totaled 56 goals and 111 points in 398 games with Arizona after being drafted by the team 32nd overall in 2015.
The Red Wings have just over $9 million of cap space after the signing, per CapFriendly.
The opening day of free agency is in the books, and while a tight salary cap limited many teams from spending lavishly, there's still plenty to chew on from Saturday's signings.
Below, we identify early winners and losers of this year's frenzy.
Winner: Hurricanes
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The Carolina Hurricanes have been a model franchise since Don Waddell took over as general manager and Rod Brind'Amour was hired as head coach for the 2018-19 campaign. The club has made the playoffs in each season, earning two Eastern Conference Final appearances.
But while postseason results can sometimes come down to good or bad fortune, the logic behind Carolina's personnel decisions is always sound. Its savvy cap management puts the club in positions to be aggressive in the right moments. Saturday was no different.
The team landed arguably the best free agent available in Dmitry Orlov - a two-way, top-pairing-caliber defenseman. His $7.75-million cap hit was the highest handed out on the day, but he's worth it. And while he'll turn 32 later in July, the two-year deal carries very little risk for Carolina. The Canes could now move one of Brady Skjei or Brett Pesce - both are in the last year of their deals - or keep them and have arguably the NHL's best blue line.
Carolina also filled a need to round out its top-six forward group by signing Michael Bunting from the Toronto Maple Leafs on a three-year deal at a fair $4.5-million cap hit.
The club then brought back its stellar goalie tandem of Frederik Andersen and Antti Raanta for a combined $4.9 million. Pyotr Kochetkov, who'll likely start the year in the AHL, is now arguably the best third goalie in the league.
With Jordan Staal and Jesper Fast also retained prior to the start of free agency, the Hurricanes have virtually no holes and still a bit of cap space to play with.
Loser: Maple Leafs
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It’s difficult to discern Brad Treliving's intended vision for the 2023-24 Maple Leafs after Saturday's festivities. Toronto added size and toughness in Ryan Reaves, but having the enforcer under contract until he's nearly 40 is an unnecessary gamble. Reaves is highly respected by teammates and equally feared by opponents, but after losing Bunting, Ryan O'Reilly, Noel Acciari, and Alexander Kerfoot, Toronto needed to spend on forwards who could fill the gaping holes. Reaves isn't that guy and is a defensive liability to boot.
Speaking of defensive liabilities, Treliving inked one of the league's biggest by luring John Klingberg on a one-year, $4.15-million contract. Klingberg's offensive chops might give Toronto's power play a boost, and the Leafs did need a player other than Morgan Rielly to transport the puck from the back end. However, they let a much cheaper version of Klingberg bolt in Erik Gustafsson, who possesses a very similar tool kit but signed with the New York Rangers for only $825,000.
The Leafs added $5.5 million to next season's books and still need to find help up front and re-sign RFA netminder Ilya Samsonov with only $6 million to work with. Treliving could've silenced many critics with an extension for Auston Matthews or William Nylander on the first day of eligibility, but he didn't make that happen, either.
Winner: Stars
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Jim Nill is off to a great start in his bid to repeat as general manager of the year. The savvy executive took advantage of Nashville buying out Matt Duchene and inked the nine-time 20-goal scorer to a one-year agreement at an extremely palatable $3 million. Duchene took a step back from his 86-point breakout in 2021-22 but still managed a respectable 56 in 71 contests for an ineffective Predators attack.
Duchene doesn't need to carry the offensive load in Dallas, but his arrival makes an already dangerous group that much deeper. The Stars are in win-now mode and got significantly better Saturday without breaking the bank.
Loser: Islanders
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Lou Lamoriello is officially off his rocker.
The New York Islanders' 80-year-old general manager made a bevy questionable long-term commitments Saturday to keep his team together.
Ilya Sorokin: eight years, $66 million (extension)
None of the cap hits are egregious; it's the length that should have Isles fans worried - even in a rising-cap environment. Sorokin is one of the game's best netminders, but having a goalie locked up for top dollar through his age-36 season could backfire. Mayfield, who's already slow, is signed through his age-37 campaign; Engvall, whose game lacks intensity, is inked through his age-33 season; Varlamov is locked up through his age-38 campaign.
It'd be one thing to keep all these players together in the middle of a dynasty, but the Islanders were already one of the oldest teams in the league and barely squeaked into the playoffs last season. It's hard to imagine them escaping mediocrity anytime soon.
Winner: Rugged defensemen
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It pays to be big.
As the NHL continues to open up, speed and skill is on display more than ever. However, Saturday provided evidence that big, physical defensemen will always be valued.
Though a stagnant cap has limited spending league-wide, several rugged blue-liners still managed to cash in. Among them are the aforementioned Mayfield, Ryan Graves (six years, $27 million), Radko Gudas (three years, $12 million), Justin Holl (three years, $10.2 million), Connor Clifton (three years, $10 million), Carson Soucy (three years, $9.75 million), Luke Schenn (three years, $8.25 million), and Niko Mikkola (three years, $7.5 million).
All of these players are either giants - like the 6-foot-5 Graves and Soucy - or play much bigger than their size with extreme aggressiveness - like Gudas and Clifton.
Loser: NHL players and fans
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This year's free-agent class was labeled a dud off the bat, and nothing transpired Saturday to make the 2023 frenzy memorable beyond some brief buzz on social media. Financial restrictions across the league heavily limited player movement and prevented any big-ticket deals, and there were no contracts to generate excitement for the average fan. Only six deals featured cap hits north of $5 million. No players signed for a new team at the maximum term of seven years. The ramifications of a flat salary cap are well known by now, but its strain on the NHL's economy has taken away most of the luster from what's supposed to be one of the most thrilling days on the league's calendar.
It's foolish to compare NHL money to NBA money, but it's difficult to ignore the chasm between the two leagues when it comes to free-agency excitement. The NHL gave out more than $640 million across 160-plus signings, which is nothing to scoff at, but the NBA has surpassed $1.8 billion since opening its market Friday. The NHL is a long way from reaching those kinds of figures, but much-needed increases to the cap next year should at least make for a more exciting product.
Winner: Junior hockey reunions
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Fans could see two of junior hockey's most dynamic duos reunited in the NHL in 2023-24.
The Edmonton Oilers signed Connor Brown to a very team-friendly one-year, $775,000 deal (with $3.225 million in performance bonuses). Brown and Connor McDavid dominated the OHL together with the Erie Otters from 2012-14. Brown actually led the league with 128 points in 2013-14.
Brown will surely get a chance to play on McDavid's line in Edmonton. He's coming off a lost season due to a torn ACL, but as a hard-working, two-way winger, he could be a great fit at a bargain price.
The Colorado Avalanche brought in Jonathan Drouin on a one-year, $825,000 deal. Drouin, of course, starred for the QMJHL's Halifax Mooseheads alongside Nathan MacKinnon from 2011-13. Drouin, in fact, led the team with 105 points - 30 more than MacKinnon - the last year they played together.
Drouin was in dire need of a change of scenery after a turbulent ending to his tenure with the Montreal Canadiens. But he should be highly motivated to produce if given the chance to play with MacKinnon, making it a low-risk, high-upside signing for the Avs.
Loser: Kings
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Days after taking a significant step toward Cup contention by landing Pierre-Luc Dubois, the wind was taken out of the club's sails by its failure to sign a goalie of significance. The Kings inked veterans Cam Talbot and David Rittich to one-year deals, and they'll join Pheonix Copley to create an underwhelming triumvirate between the pipes for a team with impressive depth at every other position.
Los Angeles lost Joonas Korpisalo to the Ottawa Senators on a pricey five-year, $20-million contract and whiffed on the other available options, including Andersen, Raanta, and Tristan Jarry. Those goalies wouldn't have guaranteed the Kings a Cup but are all better than what Los Angeles brought in. Rob Blake was working with limited cap space, but considering his club ranked 27th in all-situations save percentage last season, stronger reinforcements in the crease should have been a higher priority.
Winner: Alex Killorn
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Killorn's 11-year tenure with the Tampa Bay Lightning came to an end Saturday after playing more than 800 games, winning two Stanley Cups, and ranking top 10 in franchise history across all notable offensive categories. It was a solid run, but the Anaheim Ducks did their best to get Tampa off Killorn's mind, signing him to a shiny four-year, $25-million contract that represents the second-highest cap hit ($6.25 million) doled out on opening day.
Killorn is coming off a career year with 64 points but was universally flagged as a risky signing leading up to July 1 because of his age and inflated stats. Killorn might be in for a bit of a shock come October when he suits up for one of the league's worst teams instead of a perennial powerhouse, but earning a near $2-million raise to live in Orange County for likely the rest of his career is a pretty sweet deal.
To be determined: Penguins
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Kyle Dubas certainly made his presence felt in his first free-agent frenzy as Pittsburgh Penguins president of hockey operations. The Pens were the busiest team of the day, re-signing goalie Jarry (five years, $26.875 million), bolstering the blue line with Graves (six years, $27 million), and adding depth up front with Lars Eller (two years, $4.9 million), and Noel Acciari (three years, $6 million).
Eller and Acciari are both good role players who give the team's bottom-six forward group some much needed purpose. Graves' contract should age well as the cap rises, too.
It's Jarry's contract that's most concerning. He's never posted a save percentage below .909 over his last four seasons since becoming a starter but has only saved 0.43 goals above expected over that time, per Evolving-Hockey, signalling he's basically a league average goalie. Yet, his cap hit is now the 12th-highest among goalies.
If Jarry can be better than league average over the next few years, the Penguins could have one more shot at a run with Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, and Kris Letang. If not, the window is probably firmly shut.
The Philadelphia Flyers signed free-agent forward Garnet Hathaway to a two-year contract worth $2.375 million annually, the team announced Saturday.
Hathaway's previous deal paid him $1.5 million per season. He signed the pact with the Washington Capitals in 2019 but finished it with the Boston Bruins after being traded prior to the 2023 deadline.
The 31-year-old recorded 22 points in 84 games in 2022-23 while averaging over 11 minutes per contest.
The Flyers weren't highly active upon free agency opening Saturday. The club's only other one-way signing was bringing in Ryan Poehling from the Pittsburgh Penguins on a one-year, $1.4-million deal.
The Winnipeg Jets re-signed forward Vladislav Namestnikov to a two-year contract with an average annual value of $2 million, the team announced.
The club is also reuniting with goaltender Laurent Brossoit on a one-year, $1.75-million contract.
Namestnikov recorded eight goals and 17 assists in 77 games between the Tampa Bay Lightning and Jets last season. The 30-year-old can play both center and wing.
Brossoit spent three years with the Jets from 2018-21 and returns to Winnipeg following a two-year stint with the Vegas Golden Knights. The 30-year-old veteran posted a sparkling .927 save percentage in 11 contests with the Knights last season. He owns a .908 mark for his career.
