While there’s still business to be done, most of the major moves are over with by now. Today we’ll be providing a run down of where teams stand, along with notes on what they have left to do. We’ll start with the Atlantic division. For our purposes, lists of arrivals, departures, re-signings, and remaining restricted free agents will include players without NHL rookie eligibility. Cap numbers and roster sizes are per CapFriendly.
Boston Bruins
- Key Arrivals: David Backes (UFA-Blues), Anton Khudobin (UFA-Ducks), Riley Nash (UFA-Hurricanes)
- Key Departures: Maxime Talbot (UFA-KHL), Chris Kelly (UFA-Senators), Jonas Gustavsson (UFA-Oilers), Lee Stempniak (UFA-Hurricanes), Loui Eriksson (UFA-Canucks), Matt Irwin (UFA-Predators), Landon Ferraro (UFA-Blues), Brett Connolly (UFA-Capitals)
- Re-Signings: Torey Krug, John-Michael Liles, Tyler Randell, Colin Miller
- Unsigned RFAs: None
- Projected Cap Space: $6,732MM
- Roster Size: 21 (11F, 8D, 2G)
- Notes: The Bruins lost a lot of depth this off-season, but should survive. They’ll be able to give greater roles to players like Frank Vatrano and Ryan Spooner. Should they produce as expected, that should more than make up for the losses.
Buffalo Sabres
- Key Arrivals: Dmitry Kulikov (trade-Panthers), Justin Falk (UFA-Blue Jackets), Kyle Okposo (UFA-Islanders), Derek Grant (UFA-Flames), Anders Nilsson (trade-Blues)
- Key Departures: Mark Pysyk (trade-Panthers), Carlo Colaiacovo (unsigned UFA), David Legwand (unsigned UFA)
- Re-Signings: Johan Larsson, Jake McCabe, Casey Nelson, Marcus Foligno
- Unsigned RFAs: Rasmus Ristolainen, Zemgus Girgensons
- Projected Cap Space: $8.15MM
- Roster Size: 23 (14F, 6D, 3G)
- Notes: Still in the building stage, the Sabres aggressively pursued new talent this year. It’s hard to tell where they are now, but they’re coming off a giant leap forward. Still, look for most of their improvement to come from younger players breaking out.
Detroit Red Wings
- Key Arrivals: Joe Vitale (trade-Coyotes), Thomas Vanek (UFA-Wild), Frans Nielsen (UFA-Islanders), Steve Ott (UFA-Blues)
- Key Departures: Pavel Datsyuk (trade-Coyotes), Brad Richards (retired), Kyle Quincey (unsigned UFA), Joakin Andersson (UFA-Sweden)
- Re-Signings: Brian Lashoff, Riley Sheahan, Drew Miller, Alexey Marchenko, Darren Helm, Danny DeKeyser, Luke Glendening, Petr Mrazek, Teemu Pulkkinen
- Unsigned RFAs: None
- Projected Cap Space: $0
- Roster Size: 24 (16F, 6D, 2G)
- Notes: That roster size will shrink at camp. The NHL limit is 23, so look for the Red Wings to demote at least two forwards. The team is going to look very different without Pavel Datsyuk, and GM Ken Holland hopes he can continiue using veteran depth to make up for aging and retiring legends. Dylan Larkin will also help.
Florida Panthers
- Key Arrivals: Jared McCann (trade-Canucks), Keith Yandle (trade-Rangers), Reto Berra (trade-Avalanche), Mark Pysyk (trade-Sabres), Colton Sceviour (UFA-Stars), James Reimer (UFA-Sharks), Jonathan Marchessault (UFA-Lightning), Jason Demers (UFA-Stars)
- Key Departures: Erik Gudbranson (trade-Canucks), Rocco Grimaldi (trade-Avalanche), Dmitry Kulikov (trade-Sabres), Quinton Howden (UFA-Jets), Dylan Olsen (unsigned UFA), Brian Campbell (UFA-Blackhawks), Jiri Hudler (unsigned UFA), Willie Mitchell (unsigned UFA), Al Montoya (UFA-Canadiens)
- Re-Signings: Jaromir Jagr, Greg McKegg, Aaron Ekblad, Vincent Trocheck, Reilly Smith, Derek MacKenzie, Logan Shaw
- Unsigned RFAs: None
- Projected Cap Space: $4.329MM
- Roster Size: 24 (14F, 7D, 3G)
- Notes: Nobody had a busier off-season than the Panthers. They’re now analytically inclined, incredibly young, and defending Atlantic Division champions. The team will look scary as players start to break out. They prefer puck movers on defense, like Yandle and Demers, over more physical guys, like Gudbranson and Kulikov. If it works out, the Panthers are looking primed for a Cup run.
Montreal Canadiens
- Key Arrivals: Andrew Shaw (trade-Blackhawks), Shea Weber (trade-Predators), Alex Radulov (UFA-KHL), Al Montoya (UFA-Panthers), Zach Redmond (UFA-Jets), Chris Terry (UFA-Hurricanes)
- Key Departures: Lars Eller (trade-Capitals), P.K. Subban (trade-Predators), Michael Bournival (UFA-Lightning), Ben Scrivens (UFA-KHL)
- Re-Signings: Sven Andrighetto, Mark Barberio, Phillip Danault, Stefan Matteau,
- Unsigned RFAs: None
- Projected Cap Space: $855K
- Roster Size: 25 (14F, 8D, 3G)
- Notes: The attention focused on the Subban for Weber trade, but watch out for Alex Radulov. The KHL has become pretty strong the last few years, and he’s kept dominating it. He’s not a kid anymore, but the Canadiens added a dynamic winger, and will have arguably the NHL’s best goalie back next year. The expectations are high in Montreal, and success will largely hinge on those two.
Ottawa Senators
- Key Arrivals: Patrick Sieloff (trade-Flames), Mike Blunden (UFA-Lightning), Chris Kelly (UFA-Bruins), Derick Brassard (trade-Rangers)
- Key Departures: Chris Phillips (retirement), Patrick Wiercioch (UFA-Avalanche), Alex Chiasson (trade-Flames), Scott Gomez (unsigned UFA), Mika Zibanejad (trade-Rangers)
- Re-Signings: Mike Kostka, Mike Hoffman, Ryan Dzingel, Matt Puempel, Fredrik Claesson
- Unsigned RFAs: Cody Ceci
- Projected Cap Space: $8.78MM
- Roster Size: 22 (14F, 6D, 2G)
- Notes: There were a lot of questions about the Brassard trade, and for good reason. They got older and more expensive with very little reason. It’s easy to wonder if the Senators are just treading more water, even with a new GM and coach.
Tampa Bay Lightning
- Key Arrivals: Michael Bournival (UFA-Canadiens), Cory Conacher (UFA-Switzerland)
- Key Departures: Matt Carle (bought out), Mattias Ohlund (retirement), Jonathan Marchessault (UFA-Panthers)
- Re-Signings: Cedric Pacquette, Tye McGinn, Andrei Vasilevskiy, J.T. Brown, Steven Stamkos, Victor Hedman, Alex Killorn, Vladislav Namestnikov
- Unsigned RFAs: Nikita Kucherov
- Projected Cap Space: $6.591MM
- Roster Size: 20 (12F, 6D, 2G)
- Notes: The story of the off-season was re-signing players like Stamkos, Hedman, and Killorn. If they can get Kucherov signed to a reasonable deal, no Lightning fan will have anything to complain about.
Toronto Maple Leafs
- Key Arrivals: Frederik Anderson (trade-Ducks), Kerby Rychel (trade-Blue Jackets), Matt Martin (UFA-Islanders), Roman Polak (UFA-Sharks)
- Key Departures: Scott Harrington (trade-Blue Jackets), Mark Arcobello (UFA-Switzerland), Stuart Percy (UFA-Penguins), Sam Carrick (UFA-Blackhawks), Brad Boyes (unsigned UFA), Michael Grabner (UFA-Rangers), Pierre-Alexandre Parenteau (UFA-Islanders), T.J. Brennan (UFA-Flyers)
- Re-Signings: Morgan Rielly, Nazem Kadri, Frank Corrado, Martin Marincin, Peter Holland, Josh Leivo. Connor Carrick
- Unsigned RFAs: None
- Projected Cap Space: $435K
- Roster Size: 24 (14F, 9D, 1G)
- Notes: While still re-building, the Leafs added some much needed toughness in Martin, and a legitimate starting goalie in Andersen. Still, look for Toronto’s big moves to be full-time call-ups for their top prospects, like William Nylander, Mitch Marner, and Auston Matthews. After that, don’t sleep on Nikita Zaitsev, a defenseman signed out of the KHL this year.