Getty Steven Stamkos celebrates a goal at the bench
The NHL will enter free agency on July 1, which will allow players whose contracts have expired to freely negotiate, and sign, contracts with other teams. Teuvo Teravainen, Jonathan Marchessault, and Steven Stamkos will all be entering free agency as unrestricted free agents (UFAs) this year.
As an unrestricted free agent, these players can potentially negotiate higher-paid contracts with cup-contention teams. Or, they can fall by the wayside and find themselves either with a less-than-ideal contract or without a contract at all. For teams, it’s a great way to snag high-caliber players without having to part ways with draft picks or other capital in a trade, and an opportunity to reevaluate their rosters and part ways with underperforming players without having to shop them around.
GettySteven Stamkos shoots the puck in first period versus the New York Islanders
Could Steven Stamkos Return as Lightning Bolts Captain?
It’s hard to picture Steven Stamkos anywhere but the Tampa Bay Lightning. After all, not only has he won two Stanley Cups with the team in back-to-back seasons (2019-20, 2020-21) but he’s been a part of the organization for 16 seasons and has helmed it as captain since 2014. Stamkos has only ever played for one NHL franchise, and it’s the Lightning; he was drafted first overall by the team in 2008.
His expiring eight-year contract was signed in 2016, with a total cap hit of $8,500,000, but he may be hard-pressed to sign a contract for that same amount of money this go around. The Lightning have already bolstered their roster with Ryan McDonagh, and as a result, are a bit squeezed for cap space. According to CapFriendly, the team has just over $5 million to spare, although the Lightning still have plenty of time to free up some cap space by moving contracts to re-sign Stamkos if need be.
Stamkos has won the Maurice “Rocket” Richard Trophy twice (2011-12, 2009-10), and the Mark Messier NHL Leadership Award once, just this past season. He’s the face of the Lightning franchise and has always been a strong presence on the ice for the Lightning’s postseasons. In the 2023-24 playoffs, Stamkos posted 5 goals and 1 assist for 6 points in 5 games. In the regular season, Stamkos had 40 goals and 41 assists for a total of 81 points in 79 games.
GettyTeuvo Teravainen skates during first period versus the Colorado Avalanche
Teuvo Teravainen Possible Re-Sign For Hurricanes?
Teravainen was an essential part of the Hurricanes’ rebuild when the team sought to fill their ranks with young talent to gain traction in the postseason. Now, the past few seasons have seen Teravainen and the Hurricanes claw their way ever closer to the Stanley Cup. Teravainen has established himself as an intelligent playmaker over the past 11 seasons he’s spent in the NHL, but it’s unclear if he’ll choose to re-sign with the Hurricanes or try his luck elsewhere.
Teravainen was drafted 18th overall in 2012 by the Chicago Blackhawks, but after a middling few years with the Blackhawks, Teravainen was dealt in a trade to the Hurricanes alongside Bryan Bickell in exchange for draft picks and cap space in 2016. Since then, Teravainen has been a breakout star for the Hurricanes and signed a five-year contract with the team with a cap hit of $5,400,000.
This past season Teravainen totaled 25 goals and 28 assists for 53 points in 76 games. In the postseason, he posted 2 goals and 4 assists for 6 points in 11 games.
GettyJonathan Marchessault celebrates after scoring a goal
Jonathan Marchessault Among Seven Vegas Players Without a Contract
When the Vegas Golden Knights entered onto the scene in 2017 as the NHL’s then-newest expansion team, their roster was a rag-tag group of players snagged in the expansion draft. Marchessault, who went undrafted into the NHL, soon became one of the Golden Knights’ stars. In 2019 Marchessault signed a six-year contract with the Golden Knights for a cap hit of $5,000,000.
Marchessault isn’t the club’s only UFA that could be interested in re-signing; the team has seven unrestricted free agents, and a restricted free agent (Pavel Dorofeyev) that the Golden Knights will have to choose who they’re able (and willing) to bring back. Marchessault has a Conn Smythe Trophy under his belt and won the Stanley Cup with the Golden Knights in the 2022-23 season.
This season, Marchessault totaled 42 goals and 27 assists for 69 points in 82 games. In the postseason, Marchessault scored 2 goals and 2 assists for 4 points in 7 games.
With cap space to worry about, a slew of other UFA contracts to be signed, and a long-term future to build a roster towards, who knows if these top three unrestricted free agents will return to their teams? But as free agency approaches in less than a month, preliminary contracts with their pre-existing teams are running out of time to be offered, negotiated, and ultimately, signed.