Current:Home > NewsCan Panthers, Oilers keep their teams together? Plenty of contracts are expiring. -InvestSmart Insights
Can Panthers, Oilers keep their teams together? Plenty of contracts are expiring.
View
Date:2025-04-13 23:37:56
The Florida Panthers have won their first NHL championship in their third trip to the Stanley Cup Final.
The Edmonton Oilers hope the future is bright after reaching the championship round for the first time in the Connor McDavid era and pushing back from a 3-0 deficit to force Game 7.
Can they keep their teams together?
The recent champion Tampa Bay Lightning and Colorado Avalanche showed that's more difficult in the salary cap era. But this year's finalists will benefit from the salary cap rising from $83.5 million to $88 million.
Here are the decisions that await the Panthers and Oilers:
What's next for the Florida Panthers?
The big offseason questions will be unrestricted free agent forward Sam Reinhart and defenseman Brandon Montour.
Reinhart, 28, had a career year with 57 goals, had 10 more in the playoffs and works well with Aleksander Barkov. He's due a big raise from this season's $6.5 million but might need to take a slight hometown discount.
Montour, 30, had 73 points in 2022-23 but dropped to 33 after offseason shoulder surgery. He's a coveted right-shot defenseman, but Gustav Forsling appears to have supplanted him as the top blue liner and just got an extension.
Other pending unrestricted free agent defensemen are offseason signees Oliver Ekman-Larsson and Dmitry Kulikov. Aaron Ekblad is entering the final year of his contract.
Among the forwards, trade deadline acquisition Vladimir Tarasenko is on a one-year deal. He has a Florida home and has been a good fit on the third line. Kyle Okposo, also acquired at the deadline, won his first Cup at 36. There are other bottom six forwards on the UFA list.
Anton Lundell is a restricted free agent, and Sam Bennett and Carter Verhaeghe have one year left.
Goalie Sergei Bobrovsky had two more years on his contract. Backup goalie Anthony Stolarz is unrestricted. Spencer Knight, who didn't play in the NHL this season, is in the system.
What's next for the Edmonton Oilers?
No. 2 scorer Leon Draisaitl is heading into his final season and is eligible for an extension. Connor McDavid has two years left on his deal and forwards Zach Hyman, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Evander Kane are signed beyond next season.
Defenseman Evan Bouchard, who has emerged as the Oilers' top defenseman, is eligible for an extension. He'll be a restricted free agent at the end of next season. Philip Broberg, who took big strides in the playoffs, is restricted.
The Oilers have a long list of UFAs. including their impressive third line of Mattias Janmark, Connor Brown and Adam Henrique. Warren Foegele, who had a four-game point streak in the final, is unrestricted, and Dylan Holloway is restricted.
Goalie Stuart Skinner has two years left on his deal at an inexpensive $2.6 million cap hit. The Oilers need to make a decision on veteran goalie Jack Campbell, who spent most of the season in the American Hockey League. Calvin Pickard is unrestricted.
veryGood! (411)
Related
- The White House is cracking down on overdraft fees
- Christina Hall Slams Load of S--t Rumor That She Refuses to Work With Women
- Herbert Coward, who played Toothless Man in 'Deliverance,' killed in North Carolina crash
- Congo rebel group kills at least 19 people in attack on eastern town
- $73.5M beach replenishment project starts in January at Jersey Shore
- King Charles III is admitted to a hospital for a scheduled prostate operation
- Covering child care costs for daycare workers could fix Nebraska’s provider shortage, senator says
- Former prominent Atlanta attorney who shot his wife in SUV pleads guilty to lesser charges
- Toyota to invest $922 million to build a new paint facility at its Kentucky complex
- After 53 years, Baltimore is again a gateway to the Super Bowl as AFC championship game host
Ranking
- Opinion: Gianni Infantino, FIFA sell souls and 2034 World Cup for Saudi Arabia's billions
- South Korean police investigating 14-year-old boy as suspect of attack on lawmaker
- DJ Rick Buchanan Found Decapitated in Memphis Home
- Shiffrin being checked for left leg injury after crash in Cortina downhill on 2026 Olympics course
- What to know about Tuesday’s US House primaries to replace Matt Gaetz and Mike Waltz
- Death of woman who ate mislabeled cookie from Stew Leonard's called 100% preventable and avoidable
- Josef Fritzl, Austrian who held daughter captive for 24 years, can be moved to regular prison, court rules
- Governor drafting plan to help Pennsylvania higher ed system that’s among the worst in affordability
Recommendation
John Galliano out at Maison Margiela, capping year of fashion designer musical chairs
Gov. Evers appoints longtime state Sen. Lena Taylor to be Milwaukee judge
Comedian Mark Normand escorted off stage at comedy club, denies prior knowledge of 'surprise'
Biden calls regional partners ahead of CIA chief’s meeting in push for another Gaza hostage deal
California DMV apologizes for license plate that some say mocks Oct. 7 attack on Israel
Why Sharon Stone Says It's Stupid for People to Be Ashamed of Aging
Why Fans Think Megan Thee Stallion’s New Song Reignited Feud With Nicki Minaj
Family of Ricky Cobb II says justice is within reach following Minnesota trooper’s murder charge