Where will Mitch Marner go, and other NHL off-season questions

Jesse Campigotto · CBC Sports

· Posted: Jun 24, 2025 4:26 PM EDT | Last Updated: 4 hours ago

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While the Florida Panthers' Stanley Cup solemnisation goes connected (and connected and connected https://www.nhl.com/news/panthers-continue-celebration-with-beachfront-parade), beforehand offices astir the NHL are rolling up their sleeves for a engaged mates of weeks including the commencement of escaped agency, the draught and surely immoderate trades. Here's what to look for:

Free agency

The yearly feeding frenzy begins a week from today, connected Canada Day, and non-thrifty teams volition person immoderate other currency to propulsion astir this year. The wage headdress for adjacent play is going up by $7.5 cardinal US, to $95.5M. And, provided a caller corporate bargaining statement is reached betwixt the league and the players, the headdress volition emergence to $113.5M by 2027-28.

A brace of Toronto Maple Leafs stars and 3 from the Stanley Cup champion Panthers header the database of pending unrestricted escaped agents poised to currency successful this summer.

Toronto's Mitch Marner is the apical subordinate connected the marketplace aft finishing 5th successful scoring with a career-high 102 points this season. The 28-year-old added 13 points successful 13 playoff games, but the Leafs fell to Florida successful the 2nd circular and their fans enactment a batch of blasted connected Marner for the team's chronic playoff failures. Some would similar Toronto fto the hometown prima locomotion and usage the savings to code their deficiency of depth.

The feeling could beryllium mutual. Marner refused to negociate an hold with the Leafs during the season, adjacent though they were reportedly consenting to springiness him an eight-year woody for $13.5 cardinal per twelvemonth astatine 1 point. On the different hand, Marner reportedly vetoed a commercialized that would person sent him to Carolina for Mikko Rantanen.

The Hurricanes person agelong been considered a apical contender to onshore Marner successful escaped agency, but much precocious the Vegas Golden Knights look to person emerged arsenic the favourite to motion him. A instrumentality to the Leafs feels improbable astatine this point.

Toronto could beryllium saying goodbye to different hometown lad successful John Tavares. The much-celebrated seven-year, $77-million declaration that lured him from New York (remember those bedsheets? https://x.com/91tavares/status/1013468844034179072 ) ne'er wholly panned retired for the Leafs, and Tavares surrendered the captaincy to Auston Matthews successful an awkward nationalist ceremonial past summer. At 34, Tavares remains a productive and liable subordinate (he scored 38 goals this season) and seems to privation to stay. But the Leafs are asking for a hometown discount, truthful something's gotta give.

Florida is besides successful a spot of a hindrance with 3 players who were integral to their 2nd consecutive title eligible to go unrestricted escaped agents connected July 1.

At the apical of the database is gritty Conn Smythe Trophy victor Sam Bennett, who followed his 25 goals successful the regular play with 15 much to seizure the playoff MVP award. All signs constituent to Bennett re-upping, and helium each but promised it with his Wolf of Wall Street content https://www.sportsnet.ca/nhl/article/sam-bennett-hints-at-contract-extension-with-panthers/ astatine 1 of the Panthers' (many) triumph parties, but there's nary woody yet.

Brad Marchand proved to beryllium the cleanable trade-deadline pickup for Florida, scoring 10 goals successful the playoffs portion his prickly playing benignant meshed seamlessly with his caller teammates. It seems similar a large acceptable for some sides, but the Panthers don't privation to interruption the slope connected a 37-year-old, truthful Marchand mightiness person to instrumentality little to stay.

The feline who seems astir apt to permission the Panthers is Aaron Ekblad. He led each Florida blue-liners with 13 playoff points and was 2nd successful crystal clip to Seth Jones (another large deadline pickup), but the Panthers don't look anxious to get into a bidding warfare with him either.

Other interaction players acceptable to deed unrestricted escaped bureau connected July 1 see Winnipeg guardant Nikolaj Ehlers, who had 24 goals for the Presidents' Trophy winners contempt missing 13 games; and Vancouver guardant Brock Boeser, who had 40 goals successful 2023-24 and was reportedly shopped astatine the commercialized deadline. Here's much connected the apical UFAs from Sportsnet. https://www.sportsnet.ca/nhl/article/nhls-top-12-ufas-of-2025-latest-rumours-reports/ 

July 1 is besides an important day for the Edmonton Oilers arsenic Connor McDavid becomes eligible for a declaration hold that day. The world's champion subordinate said he's successful nary unreserved https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/edmonton/connor-mcdavid-won-t-rush-contract-extension-says-winning-is-top-priority-for-oilers-superstar-1.7565924 to re-sign, putting unit connected Edmonton to get a woody done arsenic helium approaches unrestricted escaped bureau adjacent summer. 

Trades

There person already been a fewer https://www.nhl.com/news/2024-25-nhl-trades this month, starting with the Rangers' dealing one-time 52-goal extremity scorer Chris Kreider to Anaheim. Last week, Dallas sent Mason Marchment (22 goals this season) to Seattle, and yesterday Philadelphia acquired talented but frustrating young guardant Trevor Zegras from the Ducks.

Other notable names thought to beryllium disposable via commercialized see Calgary defenceman Rasmus Andersson and goalies John Gibson (Anaheim) and Thatcher Demko (Vancouver), some of whom mightiness beryllium of involvement to the netminder-needy Oilers.

The draft

The archetypal circular goes Friday nighttime successful Los Angeles, followed by rounds 2 done 7 connected Saturday.

The New York Islanders improbably landed the apical pick, overcoming their 3.5 per cent likelihood successful past month's draught lottery. They assertion they're not funny successful trading it, https://www.nhl.com/news/new-york-wont-trade-no-1-pick-in-2025-nhl-draft-mathieu-darche-says truthful expect them to instrumentality defenceman Matthew Schaefer of the OHL's Erie Otters. The 17-year-old is the top-rated imaginable contempt his play ending successful precocious December erstwhile helium broke his collarbone portion playing for Canada astatine the satellite inferior championship.

Other apical prospects see Canadian centre Michael Misa, who led each CHL players with 62 goals and 134 points successful 65 games this play for the OHL's Saginaw Spirit (but for immoderate crushed was not invited to Canada's satellite inferior camp); and Swedish centre Anton Frondell, who played professionally successful his state this season. Here's a mock draught https://www.nhl.com/news/mock-2025-nhl-draft-opinions-vary-after-1st-4-picks from NHL.com.