As of 1 p.m. ET on June 24, 2026
Wondering who could leave your team?
Wondering who your team could potentially add?
With July 1 approaching fast, the National Hockey League’s free-agent picture is starting to come into focus. Some teams are staring at major decisions with franchise names, veteran leaders, young restricted free agents and depth pieces all sitting without deals beyond this season.
The other part of the picture is money.
The 2026-27 NHL salary cap is set at $104 million, which gives some teams a massive amount of flexibility and leaves others with much tighter decisions. Cap space does not automatically mean a team can spend wildly. Clubs still need to fill roster spots, sign RFAs, manage bonuses and leave room for future moves.
Still, it matters.
A team with $35 million in space can dream differently than a team with $5 million.
The UFA names are the players who can hit the open market if they do not sign before July 1. The RFA names are different. Their teams still have control if qualifying offers are issued, but those players still matter because they can create cap decisions, trade possibilities, offer-sheet conversation and offseason pressure.
Here is the NHL free-agent market by team as of 1 p.m. ET on June 24, 2026.
Anaheim Ducks
Projected cap space: $38.77 million
UFA: Ross Johnston, Jansen Harkins, Jeffrey Viel, John Carlson, Jacob Trouba, Radko Gudas, Petr Mrazek.
RFA: Leo Carlsson, Cutter Gauthier, Ian Moore, Pavel Mintyukov, Olen Zellweger, Tyson Hinds.
Boston Bruins
Projected cap space: $15.42 million
UFA: Viktor Arvidsson, Andrew Peeke.
RFA: Jordan Harris.
Buffalo Sabres
Projected cap space: $21.30 million
UFA: Alex Tuch, Beck Malenstyn, Tanner Pearson, Joshua Dunne, Luke Schenn, Logan Stanley.
RFA: Peyton Krebs, Zach Benson.
Calgary Flames
Projected cap space: $20.53 million
UFA: Ryan Lomberg, Victor Olofsson, Jake Bean.
RFA: John Beecher, Simon Nemec.
Carolina Hurricanes
Projected cap space: $11.11 million
UFA: Mike Reilly, Frederik Andersen.
RFA: Alexander Nikishin.
Chicago Blackhawks
Projected cap space: $30.81 million
UFA: Ilya Mikheyev, Sam Lafferty, Matt Grzelcyk.
RFA: Connor Bedard, Kevin Korchinski, Ethan Del Mastro.
Colorado Avalanche
Projected cap space: $6.98 million
UFA: Joel Kiviranta, Brett Kulak, Brent Burns, Jack Ahcan, Nick Blankenburg.
RFA: Jack Drury, Zakhar Bardakov.
Columbus Blue Jackets
Projected cap space: $32.36 million
UFA: Mason Marchment, Boone Jenner, Danton Heinen, Erik Gudbranson, Brendan Smith.
RFA: Cole Sillinger, Adam Fantilli, Mikael Pyyhtia, Yegor Zamula, Jet Greaves.
Dallas Stars
Projected cap space: $10.14 million
UFA: Michael Bunting, Jamie Benn, Nathan Bastian, Adam Erne, Kyle Capobianco, Alexander Petrovic.
RFA: Jason Robertson, Mavrik Bourque, Arttu Hyry.
Detroit Red Wings
Projected cap space: $29.05 million
UFA: David Perron, Patrick Kane, James van Riemsdyk, Travis Hamonic, Cam Talbot.
RFA: Carter Mazur, Simon Edvinsson.
Edmonton Oilers
Projected cap space: $7.42 million
UFA: Adam Henrique, Jack Roslovic, Kasperi Kapanen, Max Jones, Curtis Lazar, Connor Ingram.
RFA: Colton Dach, Spencer Stastney.
Florida Panthers
Projected cap space: $7.07 million
UFA: A.J. Greer, Noah Gregor, Vinnie Hinostroza, Luke Kunin, Tomas Nosek, Sergei Bobrovsky, Daniil Tarasov.
RFA: Cole Schwindt, Donovan Sebrango.
Los Angeles Kings
Projected cap space: $18.33 million
UFA: Andrei Kuzmenko, Scott Laughton, Mathieu Joseph, Jeff Malott, Jacob Moverare, Pheonix Copley.
RFA: Brandt Clarke.
Minnesota Wild
Projected cap space: $9.42 million
UFA: Vladimir Tarasenko, Nick Foligno, Mats Zuccarello, Marcus Johansson, Robby Fabbri, Zach Bogosian, Jeff Petry.
RFA: Bobby Brink, Daemon Hunt.
Montreal Canadiens
Projected cap space: $10.98 million
UFA: Patrik Laine.
RFA: Kirby Dach, Joseph Veleno, Zack Bolduc, Arber Xhekaj.
Nashville Predators
Projected cap space: $23.22 million
UFA: Erik Haula, Tyson Jost, Kevin Gravel.
RFA: Justin Barron.
New Jersey Devils
Projected cap space: $13.15 million
UFA: Evgenii Dadonov, Zack MacEwen, Dennis Cholowski.
RFA: Arseny Gritsyuk, Paul Cotter.
New York Islanders
Projected cap space: $10.68 million
UFA: Anders Lee, Carson Soucy, Tony DeAngelo, Adam Boqvist, David Rittich.
RFA: Marc Gatcomb.
New York Rangers
Projected cap space: $25.70 million
UFA: Jonny Brodzinski, Conor Sheary, Jonathan Quick.
RFA: Braden Schneider, Vincent Iorio.
Ottawa Senators
Projected cap space: $19.58 million
UFA: Claude Giroux, Lars Eller, Nick Cousins, Nick Jensen, Dennis Gilbert, James Reimer.
RFA: Arthur Kaliyev, Jordan Spence, Leevi Merilainen.
Philadelphia Flyers
Projected cap space: $32.48 million
UFA: Carl Grundstrom, Rodrigo Abols, Luke Glendening, Garrett Wilson, Noah Juulsen.
RFA: Trevor Zegras, Nikita Grebenkin, Jamie Drysdale.
Pittsburgh Penguins
Projected cap space: $37.86 million
UFA: Kevin Hayes, Anthony Mantha, Noel Acciari, Connor Clifton, Ryan Shea, Stuart Skinner.
RFA: Yegor Chinakhov, Arturs Silovs.
San Jose Sharks
Projected cap space: $46.27 million
UFA: Ryan Reaves, John Klingberg, Nick Leddy, Mario Ferraro, Vincent Desharnais.
RFA: Philipp Kurashev, Collin Graf, Zack Ostapchuk, Michael Kesselring, Shakir Mukhamadullin.
Seattle Kraken
Projected cap space: $22.59 million
UFA: Jaden Schwartz, Eeli Tolvanen, Jamie Oleksiak, Matt Murray.
RFA: Jacob Melanson, Mackie Samoskevich.
St. Louis Blues
Projected cap space: $22.91 million
UFA: Oskar Sundqvist, Justin Holl.
RFA: Connor McMichael, Jonatan Berggren, Matthew Kessel.
Tampa Bay Lightning
Projected cap space: $13.17 million
UFA: Oliver Bjorkstrand, Corey Perry, Mitchell Chaffee.
RFA: None listed.
Toronto Maple Leafs
Projected cap space: $18.80 million
UFA: Calle Jarnkrok, Troy Stecher.
RFA: Matias Maccelli, Nicholas Robertson, Jacob Quillan, Emil Andrae, Samuel Ersson.
Utah Mammoth
Projected cap space: $13.33 million
UFA: Alexander Kerfoot, Kevin Stenlund, Kevin Rooney, Kailer Yamamoto, Ian Cole, Nick DeSimone, Vitek Vanecek.
RFA: Barrett Hayton.
Vancouver Canucks
Projected cap space: $21.99 million
UFA: Evander Kane, Teddy Blueger, Derek Forbort.
RFA: Pierre-Olivier Joseph.
Vegas Golden Knights
Projected cap space: $4.63 million
UFA: Colton Sissons, Brandon Saad, Reilly Smith, Cole Smith, Rasmus Andersson, Jeremy Lauzon, Ben Hutton, Dylan Coghlan.
RFA: Pavel Dorofeyev, Akira Schmid.
Washington Capitals
Projected cap space: $23.23 million
UFA: Alex Ovechkin, Brandon Duhaime, David Kampf, Trevor van Riemsdyk.
RFA: Hendrix Lapierre.
Winnipeg Jets
Projected cap space: $21.06 million
UFA: Gustav Nyquist, Jonathan Toews, Colin Miller, Jacob Bryson, Eric Comrie.
RFA: Cole Perfetti, Isak Rosén.
The Teams With the Most Room
On paper, the teams with the biggest projected cap space are the San Jose Sharks, Anaheim Ducks, Pittsburgh Penguins, Philadelphia Flyers, Columbus Blue Jackets and Chicago Blackhawks.
That does not mean all of them will spend aggressively. Some rebuilding teams may use cap space to take on contracts, add picks, or target younger players. Others may look at this as the moment to speed things up.
Either way, those teams have options.
The Teams With the Tightest Decisions
At the other end, the Vegas Golden Knights, Colorado Avalanche, Florida Panthers, Edmonton Oilers and Minnesota Wild are working with much less projected space.
That is where the hard choices come in.
Can they keep their own UFAs? Can they sign their RFAs without moving money out? Do they need to trade from the roster before making a bigger addition?
That is the difference between having interest in a player and actually being able to afford him.
The Bottom Line
This is where the offseason starts to get interesting.
Some of these names will be re-signed before July 1. Some RFAs will never come close to the open market. Some veterans may be brought back on shorter deals. Others could become cap casualties, trade chips or surprise targets once free agency opens.
The cap space only adds another layer.
Every fan looks at the list two ways.
Who could my team lose?
And who could my team steal?
As of now, this is the market every NHL front office is staring at.
