8 NHL Teams Best Positioned to Win the Offseason
The start of the NHL offseason is here. Free agency opens on July 1 and we've got potential buyouts and the NHL draft before that to keep us locked in.
We are already seeing some teams sign potential free agents to new deals. And with everything moving so quickly, it's time for some of our own forecasting.
Which teams are going to come away as the offseason champions? Does winning the offseason guarantee success? No, it doesn't. Very far from that, in fact.
Last summer, it was easy to crown the Nashville Predators as the winners of the offseason when GM Barry Trotz went all-in on some of the biggest free agents like Steven Stamkos, Jonathan Marchessault and Brady Skjei.
The Washington Capitals also went big and it paid off in the regular season when they had the best record in the Eastern Conference.
However, neither team came away with the Stanley Cup, and the Predators had one of the worst records in the league.
A great summer can set up a team for big things to happen, but pulling it off is a lot more difficult. This summer will be particularly fascinating thanks to the salary-cap upper limit jumping to $95.5 million and everyone looking to unseat the Florida Panthers as two-time champions.
So who has the best means to win the offseason? Let's examine a few of the candidates.
Winnipeg Jets
1 of 8
Being the Presidents' Trophy winners and not coming away with the Stanley Cup is a common occurrence, but it's not often that having that distinction also comes with a boat load of salary-cap space to rectify the situation.
The Jets will have nearly $26.5 million in cap space to work with this summer and the notable RFAs they have to re-sign include Gabe Vilardi and Dylan Samberg. There's also UFA-to-be Nikolaj Ehlers who may have to be replaced, too.
Regardless, that gives them a substantial amount of cash to spend to upgrade their roster in a way that can help them get to the Stanley Cup Final and potentially win it all.
It's rare to have a team that is among the best in the league to have that much financial flexibility. If GM Kevin Cheveldayoff can make the right moves, winning the offseason would be easy because it won't take much to make the Jets more intimidating.
Chicago Blackhawks
2 of 8
Chicago has the chance to make substantial improvements in its efforts to improve and get the franchise going in the right direction for Connor Bedard.
The Blackhawks' young players are growing up with the 2023 No. 1 overall pick and that's a good thing.
Frank Nazar, Kevin Korchinski and Alex Vlasic are part of that while a few others are waiting in the wings. They’ve already re-signed Ryan Donato to a four-year, $16 million contract, and they’ve got the No. 3 pick this year.
On top of that, with the number of picks and prospects they do have, they could swing a trade or two for more veteran-like players who can help upgrade their attack or defense.
San Jose Sharks
3 of 8
The Sharks have one of the more exciting young teams with Macklin Celebrini, Will Smith and William Eklund up front and Sam Dickinson on the way for their defense corps.
They've also got the No. 2 pick in the draft, which figures to net them either defenseman Matthew Schaefer or forward Michael Misa.
The Sharks also have the most cap space available this summer out of anyone in the NHL at $41 million. It’s a staggering amount of money, and with how shallow the top talent is in the free-agent pool, the number of draft picks and ability to take on money makes them an X-factor when it comes to trades.
GM Mike Grier has numerous means available to him if he decides to get aggressive to help his team climb the standings. If that means taking a swing for a guy like Jason Robertson, Bo Byram or J.J. Peterka, so be it.
This summer could be a big one for San Jose to go from being a young team learning to a young team growing and building toward the playoffs.
.png?w=256 "NHL Mock Draft")
.jpg?w=256 "Kucherov Landing Spots")
.png?w=256)
New York Islanders
4 of 8
New Islanders GM Mathieu Darche has quite the job ahead of him to get the team straightened up and back into the mix for the playoffs. They need a lot of help and also need to get their prospect pool refilled.
Former GM Lou Lamoriello left an aging roster with more than a few questionable contracts, and one of the first things Darche could do to get things turned around is to use buyouts to address those issues.
The Isles could stand to free up money because they’ll have nearly $21 million in cap space to use this summer but have six RFAs to re-sign including defenseman Noah Dobson, who will command a sizable raise given his point production and value to the lineup.
The easiest/toughest decision Darche has to make is who to take with the No. 1 pick in the draft. Whether it’s Erie defenseman Matthew Schaefer or Saginaw forward Michael Misa, they’re going to get a future star to join Mathew Barzal and Bo Horvat.
There's a lot of work ahead, but there's also a lot of potential to get things turned around in a way that will excite the fanbase.
Vegas Golden Knights
5 of 8
The always big-spending Golden Knights go into the summer with nearly $10 million in cap space to work with. That may not seem like a lot, but it’s basically a fortune for Vegas.
That said, the Golden Knights have a lot of names to get signed to fill out the roster since they have 18 NHL players under contract, according to PuckPedia.com, and $10 million to spend on at least five players to have a 23-man roster is not a lot.
Such supposed limitations have never worried Vegas, though. It's a perpetual wild card when it comes to the offseason because it will make moves and worry about how to get under the cap later.
That means if the Golden Knights want to sign Mitch Marner, they will. If they want to swing a trade to add a player or two they think will get them back to the Stanley Cup Final, they won't think twice about it.
Vegas operating in the "just win, baby" style of management makes it a constant threat to shake things up and that cannot be discounted.
Anyone could be moved if it means adding someone the front office thinks will get the team another title.
Carolina Hurricanes
6 of 8
After watching the Hurricanes advance to the Eastern Conference Final and seeing them realize how close they are to getting over the hump, this summer feels like the time when GM Eric Tulsky will seize the opportunity to help get them back to the Stanley Cup Final for the first time since 2006.
After all, Carolina showed during the season it will make the big move. It did so with Mikko Rantanen and did it again when it sent him to Dallas when it realized things weren't going to work out.
The Hurricanes are in need of a big-time scorer up front, and with Mitch Marner potentially free on July 1 to sign, they will be heavily in the mix to take him to Raleigh.
Even if it isn't Marner, the ‘Canes have the ammo and a GM with enough savvy to make the big play via trade to get a difference-maker for the roster.
This is their time to make that big play and go for the Cup because they have the roster capable of getting there, but they need just a bit more if they are going to get past the Panthers in the East.
They've got more than $28 million in cap space to play with and that's plenty for them to make a bold move.
Utah Mammoth
7 of 8
Watching Utah Mammoth GM Bill Armstrong come out swinging at last year's draft was exhilarating.
After years of needing to be tight with money because of the situation with the Arizona Coyotes, having the financial wherewithal to make moves to help his team grow upon moving to Salt Lake City was huge.
Adding Mikhail Sergachev and John Marino via trades addressed a desperate need on the blue line.
After watching Utah do that a year ago and seeing how much it improved and got back into the race for the playoffs, the team is ready to strike again.
The Mammoth have the No. 4 pick in the draft which gives them a big chip to use to make a trade and add another difference-maker, be it a forward or defenseman.
They also have more than $20 million in cap space and only RFA Jack McBain to get re-signed. That will leave them a lot of fun money to make use of to improve the roster.
Armstrong showed he's not afraid to be bold. And with everyone in the league looking to make big moves with more money, it will give him ample opportunity to take advantage of it.
Dallas Stars
8 of 8
Stars GM Jim Nill doesn't sleep in the offseason, he just waits...and he's at it again this year.
Dallas re-signed center Matt Duchene to a four-year, $18 million and also traded winger Mason Marchment to Seattle for a 2026 third-round pick and a 2025 fourth-rounder that belonged to them previously.
Not coincidentally, Marchment's $4.5 million cap hit is exactly what Duchene's new cap hit checks in at.
Moves like this are done with an eye to the future and how their cap situation will shape up. Trading Marchment still keeps them around $4.96 million under the cap this season, according to PuckPedia.com.
Superstar forward Jason Robertson and young defenseman Thomas Harley are headed into the final year of their contracts before becoming restricted free agents and that means big extensions are on the way if Dallas is going to retain them.
July 1 is the first day the Stars can extend the two of them, and if they're going to do that, they've got a better idea of what their team will look like and what the budget will be. Moving Marchment and locking in Duchene makes the depth chart clearer and the budget constraints they’ll have in the years ahead quite clear.
They have a couple of defensemen (Matt Dumba, Ilya Lyubushkin) making around $3 million who could be moved to free up more money this year, but if this is the core Dallas intends to move ahead with, the boundaries are quite clear now.
With Mikko Rantanen locked in at a hefty cost, though, the possibility of moving Robertson isn't completely erased.
.png?w=480 "NHL Mock Draft")
.jpg?w=480 "Kucherov Landing Spots")
.png?w=480)
.png?w=600 "B/R NHL Staff Second-Round Predictions 🏒")
