The start of NHL free agency season on July 1 is always a wild time and this year did not disappoint in the slightest.
Fans didn’t have to wait long for news, as the start of the 2024 NHL free agency period was dominated by major names and talent who all signed big contracts within the first hour. Given the NHL’s salary cap is going up for the 2024-25 season, it’s no wonder general managers were throwing cash around at a rate not seen in years as the market opened at 12 p.m. ET.
As the dog days of summer roll by, there will no doubt be more free agent signings with some great players still left on the table. But for now, however, it seems as if the big moves have been made as Day 1 wraps up its major business with the expected lull.
That being said, first impressions still matter, as the busiest time in the free agency period has come to an end. Here are the biggest winners and losers of the first day of the 2024 NHL free agency period.
Winner: Nashville Predators
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Acquiring Steven Stamkos, Jonathan Marchessault and Brady Skjei within a manner of hours on Day 1 is an absolute haul for Barry Trotz and the Predators. Plus, locking up goaltender Juuse Saros to a massive eight-year deal means the Predators are done messing around as a rebuilding team. Time will tell if these moves will be the start of a long playoff run in Nashville, but Trotz and the Predators have put the rest of the NHL on notice with these blockbuster moves.
Winner: Recent Stanley Cup winners
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Brandon Montour (seven years, $50 million) and Oliver Ekman-Larsson (four years, $14 million) each got hefty raises with other teams after hoisting the Stanley Cup with the Florida Panthers not too long ago. And highly sought-after free agent Sam Reinhart re-signed in Florida with a major eight-year, $69 million payday, keeping the Panthers’ hopes of a repeat alive. Success sells!
Winner: Philadelphia Flyers
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Sure, the Flyers didn’t make any major free agency moves on Day 1, but they did sign their highly-anticipated 2023 draft pick — Matvei Michkov — to his three-year entry-level deal. Safe to say, Flyers fans are very happy today!
Loser: Tampa Bay Lightning
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Jake Guentzel is a great pickup for Tampa, but the losses of Stamkos and Mikhail Sergachev (via a trade to Utah) officially hammer home that this is an end of an era for the Lightning. It was always going to be hard to re-sign Stamkos with their cap, but it feels like the Lightning could have handled this situation better, especially since their former captain is coming off yet another 40-goal season at the age of 34.
Stamkos should have been a Tampa Bay Lightning for the rest of his career and it’s a shame it didn’t pan out that way.
Loser: Vegas Golden Knights
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Here’s a snippet of who the Golden Knights lost to free agency this summer so far, not including Chandler Stephenson moving on to Seattle.
Not only that, it seems that the Golden Knights didn’t give their all in negotiations for their big piece Marchessault before free agency hit.
We’ve always known the Golden Knights run a tough business. Their shrewdness is a big reason why they won a Stanley Cup two seasons ago. However, how much is too much? The Golden Knights will have a lot of cap space to work with this summer, but scrapping their talented crop of players year-after-year might not be the way to go about it anymore.
Loser: NHL fans
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With free agency now officially open, fan-favorite website CapFriendly will officially shutter its doors soon after the Washington Capitals complete the transaction to buy the salary cap website. Losing such an important bastion of hockey information is an incredible blow to fans and teams alike, making us all the poorer for its loss. Of course, other websites will soon fill the void, but thanks for the memories CapFriendly.
