We’re well into the dog days of the hockey offseason, and most of the action is fading into the past. So, this is a good time to look back and see how NHL teams did so far this summer. Since I’m in a good mood (with the weather being nice and all), let’s dive into at least one thing that every team did that was good.
Carolina Hurricanes (best NHL Offseason to date)
The Hurricanes were one of the busier teams in the summer. The two deals that stood out were the Logan Stankoven extension, a bargain eight-year deal, and the Nikolaj Ehlers signing, a move that caps off a strong offseason. Now, the Hurricanes have a forward group that can lead them on a playoff run to potentially emerge from the East.
Columbus Blue Jackets
They didn’t do much, and their big signing (Ivan Provorov) is a big red flag. So, the Dmitry Voronkov two-year deal is their best move; it keeps a young forward who is only getting better after he was on the trade block for weeks.
New Jersey Devils
The Connor Brown and Evgenii Dadonov signings give the Devils two depth forwards who can score. This team needs depth scoring and Brown, as another plus, also does a lot.
New York Islanders
The Islanders are a breath of fresh air. Their new general manager (GM), Mathieu Darche, is a full 180 from Lou Lamoriello, and with the hire comes plenty of optimism. That and drafting Matthew Schaefer while rebuilding the farm system overnight.
New York Rangers
Mike Sullivan was the best coach available this offseason. While the Rangers are heading towards a rebuild or retool, they made the best hire of the offseason. Give Sullivan time, and he’ll lead the Rangers to a deep playoff run.
Philadelphia Flyers
The Flyers drafted size and added physicality to their pipeline. This is highlighted by their selection of Porter Martone with the sixth pick. The club also added some natural skill with the Trevor Zegras acquisition. Suddenly, the Flyers look like a team on the rise.
Pittsburgh Penguins
The Dan Muse hire isn’t a home run per se but the Penguins gave him a great staff to work with. Nick Bonino is a great assistant who just retired and will work well with the players, while Todd Nelson is coming from an American Hockey League (AHL) background, where he’s had plenty of success. So, this is the ideal staff for a rebuild.
Washington Capitals
They didn’t do much this offseason, so the Hendrix Lappiere signing takes the cake. Now, that doesn’t sound splashy. However, he’s a young forward who can contribute regularly to the NHL roster next season.
Boston Bruins
There was plenty of talk about the Bruins trading their pick. Instead, they made the wise move and drafted James Hagens. For a team that might tear it down at the trade deadline, Hagens is a good building block for the future as a dynamic center.
Buffalo Sabres
The Sabres didn’t have a great offseason so far and look like a team that’s only going to further extend their playoff drought. That said, bringing Jarmo Kekelainen into the front office was a smart move. The former Blue Jackets GM has an eye for developing young players and will help bring some NHL regulars to the lineup. Oh, and they reached a compromise two-year deal with Bowen Byram,
Detroit Red Wings
Since Steve Yzerman took the GM job, he’s struggled to find stability in the net. John Gibson might be past his prime but the trade gives the Red Wings, at the very least, one reliable option to split starts with.
Florida Panthers (best NHL status quo offseason)
Everyone was convinced that either Aaron Ekblad, Brad Marchand, or Sam Bennett would walk. The Panthers re-signed all three skaters to keep the band together for another presumptive Cup run.
Montreal Canadiens
The Canadiens are a young team that’s only getting better. The Noah Dobson deal takes the defense to the next level. Now, the Canadiens have minimal weaknesses and can challenge for the Cup.
Ottawa Senators
This was a quiet summer for the Senators, where they didn’t make many big trades or additions. The Jordan Spence addition was one of the few moves they made, and it adds a young defenseman to an already great unit.
Tampa Bay Lightning
The Lightning didn’t have much room to work with, so they made a few low-risk signings. Pontus Holmberg and the speedy Jakob Pelletier are two who come to mind as they add depth to the forward unit.
Toronto Maple Leafs
Matthew Knies at a $7.75 million average annual value (AAV) for the next eight seasons is a steal. The Maple Leafs were expected to make a splash but they took care of the in-house deals, highlighted by this one, making for a strong recovery to Mitch Marner’s departure.
Chicago Blackhawks
After going crazy in the offseason last year, they stayed quiet this time around. That’s a good thing. The Blackhawks are rebuilding and shouldn’t rush things.
Colorado Avalanche
The Brock Nelson extension is a big win for the Colorado Avalanche. They sign the second-line center to a 3×7.5 deal to give their offense two great scoring lines. The Avalanche are no longer a top-heavy team carried by only a few skaters.
Dallas Stars
Like the Penguins, they hired a new head coach and put together a strong staff. The head coach is Glen Gulutzan (what’s old is what’s new) but they also promoted Neil Graham, their AHL coach, to behind the NHL bench, keeping someone who was sure to be out the door if they didn’t do that.
Minnesota Wild
The Wild had a quiet offseason… so far. They must extend Kirill Kaprizov and either sign or trade Marco Rossi. Until then, the best thing they did was bring in veteran Vladimir Tarasenko.
Nashville Predators
The Brady Martin pick at five was a big win for the Predators. They might be staring at a rebuild soon enough and can take their time developing the power forward with future NHL team leadership potential, that is Martin.
St. Louis Blues
The Zachary Bolduc for Logan Mailloux trade was a big win for the Blues. They added Mailloux to their blue line, and with that, a puck-mover who can also step up on defense. The Blues might have one of the best defenses in the NHL next season.
Utah
Everyone was expecting Utah to make a big splash. Instead, their biggest move was acquiring JJ Peterka. That said, the addition gives them a top-six forward to add to a young core that’s only getting better.
Winnipeg Jets
The Jets lost some elite talent this summer but they did a good job replacing it with some depth signings. Jonathan Toews, Gustav Nyquist, and Morgan Barron will all add scoring to the bottom six, which will come in handy come playoff time. There’s some depth to make up for the departure of Ehlers.
Anaheim Ducks
Like Utah, the Ducks were expected to make a splash or a big signing and didn’t. They did, however, make a good pick as they took the most talented player who fell into their lap in the first round. Roger McQueen at 10 could be a steal as an elite top-six forward.
Calgary Flames
The Flames didn’t draft near the top of the first round. That said, they had two picks in the top 32 and took two high-value centers. It’s a big win for a retooling team on the cusp of a playoff spot. The Morgan Frost re-signing will pay off if the former Flyers avoids his customary slow start and go straight into his normal mid-season mode.
Edmonton Oilers
The Oilers had a rough offseason, losing multiple key skaters from the recent playoff runs. They salvaged the summer with the Isaac Howard trade but their big win was the Evan Bouchard deal, keeping the elite scoring defenseman around for four more seasons.
Los Angeles Kings
GM Ken Holland went crazy in free agency, signing multiple veterans well past their prime. One of them was a good addition who will add stability to the unit. Brian Dumoulin isn’t the big-name blue liner but one who provides depth at a reasonable price.
San Jose Sharks
The key for the Sharks, who are still rebuilding, was to avoid doing anything stupid. From a big signing to trading the second overall pick to trading a top prospect, the Sharks avoided all of that to keep a promising rebuild in check.
Seattle Kraken
The Mason Marchement addition is a good one. It gives the Kraken, a team depleted of scoring, a 20-goal scorer. This team is still far from contending but Marchement is a good step in the right direction.
Vancouver Canucks
Keeping Brock Boeser was a big win, arguably the biggest for any team this summer. The Canucks kept one of the top scorers on the market and have the winger to build around. With the other offseason additions, it wrapped up a strong summer for the Canucks.
Vegas Golden Knights
The Golden Knights acquired the best player in the offseason. Sure, it came at the cost of depth but they now have Mitch Marner, and with Jack Eichel and Mark Stone already in the top six, they can both score and defend in their forward group alone.
