Top 30 2024 NHL Unrestricted Free Agents

The 2023 free-agent class may have been underwhelming, but 2024 has the potential to be different. Much different. Headlined by high-end talent and plenty of depth, the 2024 crop of NHL unrestricted free agents may be the best we’ve seen in years, even after some notable names have signed contract extensions. Let’s look at some marquee UFAs and present our preliminary top 30. 

Star Talent Leads the Way

The 2023 UFA class severely lacked high-end talent. There were good players, but most were second-tier free agents who didn’t earn top dollar or max term. For example, among the 2024 class had Auston Matthews, but he signed a four-year extension during the summer worth $13.25 million annually. Still, there is plenty of talent without Matthews. 

Leading the way is Sam Reinhart, who had a monster career season, totaling 57 goals and 94 points in 82 games. The Florida Panthers were again one of the East’s top teams, and Reinhart’s play was a significant reason. Has he priced himself out of staying in Florida? Time will tell, but he will secure the bag one way or another.

Steven Stamkos has played his entire career with the Tampa Bay Lightning. While I don’t expect that to change, he remains unsigned as of now as he did when he approached free agency in 2016. He’s unlikely to get significant term since he’s 34, but he’s still a point-per-game player. There will be plenty of interest in him if he hits the market. 

There isn’t as much talent defensively as there is up front, but there are some intriguing names. Devon Toews was the top UFA defenseman until he signed a seven-year extension worth $7.25 million annually with the Colorado Avalanche. Still, names like Brandon Montour, Brett Pesce and Brady Skjei will interest clubs if they make it to July 1 unsigned.

Related: THW’s 2024 NHL Free Agency Tracker

Rounding out some of the star talent is Jake Guentzel. He has been one of the top goalscorers in the NHL for half a decade, and it’s not a product of playing alongside Sidney Crosby, as he showed after the trade to the Carolina Hurricanes. He will get his money, too.

It’s Not a Top-Heavy UFA Class

Those names may headline the class, but there is plenty of depth behind them, partly because so many players signed one-year deals this past offseason in hopes of cashing in with the cap rising to $87.5 million this summer.

After getting bought out by the Nashville Predators, Matt Duchene signed a one-year deal worth $3 million with the Dallas Stars. He was one of the Stars’ top players this season and will likely cash in as a free agent on July 1. He’s unlikely to get significant term since he’s 33, so teams will likely be lining up for Duchene if the Stars don’t retain him.

Another player who took a one-year deal was Tyler Bertuzzi, who signed with the Maple Leafs. Health has been an issue with him, but he played in 81 games this season and was productive, posting 21 goals and 43 points. He’d be the perfect complementary player for teams that need support for their core players.

Aside from some NHLers who signed one-year deals (Vladimir Tarasenko and Jason Zucker, to name a couple more), there are plenty of high-end players entering the final years of their contracts that strengthen the 2024 UFA class. 

These NHLers include Tyler Toffoli, Chandler Stephenson, Adam Henrique, Teuvo Teravainen and many more. Of course, some will re-sign with their current teams — as we saw to start the 2023-24 season — or perhaps with the teams that acquired them at the trade deadline in March.

But even then, there is plenty of talent to go around on July 1, with players like Anthony Mantha, Anthony Duclair and Jake DeBrusk just outside the top 20 of a very deep free-agent class. So even if some players re-up with their current clubs, the 2024 UFA class should be one of the best in years. 

Without further ado, here’s our preliminary top 30 for 2024. This list will change throughout the offseason until July 1 depending on who re-signs with their current clubs or gets bought out and added to the pool.

Rank	Player	POS	Age	GP	G/GAA	A/SV%	P	Team	Previous Cap Hit
1	Sam Reinhart	RW	28	82	57	37	94	FLA	$6.5 million
2	Jake Guentzel	LW	29	67	37	47	77	PIT/CAR	$6 million
3	Patrick Kane	RW	35	50	20	27	47	DET	$2.75 million
4	Steven Stamkos	C/RW	34	82	40	41	81	TBL	$8.5 million
5	Jonathan Marchessault	LW	33	82	42	27	69	VGK	$5 million
6	Joe Pavelski	C/RW	39	82	27	40	67	DAL	$3.5 million
7	Tyler Toffoli	RW	32	82	33	22	55	NJD/WPG	$4.25 million
8	Sean Monahan	C	29	83	26	33	59	MTL/WPG	$6.5 million
9	Brady Skjei	D	30	80	13	34	47	CAR	$5.25 million
10	Teuvo Teravainen	RW/LW	29	76	25	28	53	CAR	$5.4 million
11	Jeff Skinner	RW	32	74	24	22	46	BUF	$9 million
12	Chandler Stephenson	C/LW	30	15	16	35	51	VGK	$2.75 million
13	Brandon Montour	D	30	66	8	25	33	FLA	$3.5 million
14	Adam Henrique	C/LW	34	82	24	27	51	ANA/EDM	$5.825 million
15	Jonathan Drouin	RW/LW	29	79	19	37	56	COL	$825,000
16	Nikita Zadorov	D	29	75	6	14	20	CGY/VAN	$3.75 million
17	Vladimir Tarasenko	RW	32	76	23	32	55	OTT/FLA	$5 million
18	Shayne Gostisbehere	D	31	81	10	46	56	DET	$4.125 million
19	Tyler Bertuzzi	LW/RW	29	80	21	22	43	TOR	$5.5 million
20	Jake DeBrusk	RW/LW	27	80	19	21	40	BOS	$4 million
21	Elias Lindholm	C	29	75	15	29	44	CGY/VAN	$4.85 million
22	Anthony Mantha	RW	29	74	23	21	44	WSH/VGK	$5.7 million
23	Warren Foegele	LW/RW	28	82	20	21	41	EDM	$2.75 million
24	Brett Pesce	D	29	70	3	10	13	CAR	$4.025 million
25	Anthony Duclair	RW/LW	28	73	24	18	42	SJS/TBL	$3 million
26	David Perron	RW	36	76	17	30	47	DET	$4.75 million
27	Sean Walker	D	29	81	10	19	29	PHI/COL	$2.65 million
28	Matt Roy	D	29	81	5	20	25	LA	$3.15 million
29	Alexandre Carrier	D	27	73	4	16	20	NSH	$2.5 million
30	Jordan Martinook	LW/RW	31	82	14	18	32	CAR	$1.8 million