While Florida Panther general manager Bill Zito finished taking care of his own by signing Sam Reinhart to a three-year deal on August 11, twelve of his counterparts still have a little work to do in that regard. As we close in on the start of development and training camps around the league, there are 19 restricted free agents looking to put pen to paper.
The list was at a tidy 20 before the Seattle Kraken inked defenseman Dennis Cholowski to a one-year, two-way contract yesterday. Cholowski could very well see time with the Charlotte Checkers in 2021-22.
The unsigned players range from the brightest of the league’s young stars to skaters who will likely spend this season toiling in the AHL. Two of the Vancouver Canucks’ prized possessions, Elias Pettersson and Quinn Hughes need new, lucrative deals, as does Calder Trophy-winner Kirill Kaprizov of the Minnesota Wild. As far as Florida’s direct rivals in the Atlantic Division, Ottawa’s Brady Tkachuk and Buffalo’s Rasmus Dahlin are the biggest names still needing to come to terms.
NHL restricted free agents
Boston Bruins: Zach Senyshyn
Buffalo Sabres: Rasmus Dahlin
Detroit Red Wings: Givani Smith
Edmonton Oilers: Kailer Yamamoto, Cooper Marody
Minnesota Wild: Kirill Kaprizov
New York Islanders: Kieffer Bellows, Otto Koivula, Anaoly Golyshev
Ottawa Senators: Brady Tkachuk, Logan Brown
San Jose Sharks: Noah Gregor
St. Louis Blues: Robert Thomas
Vancouver Canucks: Elias Pettersson, Quinn Hughes
Vegas Golden Knights: Nolan Patrick, Dylan Coghlan