It’s still early in the 2024-25 NHL season, but it’s never too early to look at what the upcoming free-agent class may look like. Research shows that 75-80 percent of teams in a playoff spot at American Thanksgiving make the postseason. If your team is well out of it by then, perhaps you want to start looking ahead to the 2025 offseason. Or if your favorite team is a playoff contender, maybe you want to get an idea of what the upcoming trade deadline will look like.
Related: The NHL’s Top 100 Prospects — Preseason Rankings
The 2025 free-agent class does not look as strong as 2024’s, even though some stars headline the group of the 2025 UFAs. That’s because some of those big names on next year’s UFA board will likely re-sign with their current teams, making it just an OK year for free agency.
Don’t Expect Some of the Top UFAs to Hit Free Agency
We might as well get it out of the way, but even though Igor Shesterkin will be a UFA come July 1, chances are he will re-sign with the New York Rangers. There have been numbers floated around about what his next contract will look like, but it should come in at the $11 million average annual value (AAV) range. He’s No. 1 on our list until he signs, but don’t expect that to last as we get closer to July 1.
Mikko Rantanen is in a similar situation with the Colorado Avalanche. Odds are he will re-sign with the Avalanche, but as Elliotte Friedman hinted at on the Nov. 18 episode of 32 Thoughts, Rantanen and his camp may be waiting to see what the cap ceiling will be, as it could rise to as much as $97 million for the 2025-26 season.
Aaron Ekblad is also entering the final year of his contract. There seems to be less noise around him than Shesterkin and Rantanen, but it’d be a surprise if he’s playing anywhere but Sunrise, Florida, for the next seven to eight years of his career.
Lastly, there’s Mitch Marner. The rumors around Marner have died down since the summer when there was speculation the Toronto Maple Leafs could move one of their Core 4 players after losing in the first round of the playoffs again. If I had to guess, Marner will be a Maple Leaf next season, especially since John Tavares’ $11 million cap hit comes off the books.
Those four players remaining with their current teams would put a big dent in the 2025 class. There are some intriguing second-tier options, but they’re complementary players who make sense if you’re a playoff contender who already has the right core to build around.
Some Versatility on Defense, Goalies Looking Weak
There’s no premier defenseman in this year’s UFA class, unless Ekblad doesn’t extend with the Panthers, but some capable blueliners are slated to become UFAs. Are you looking for a high-end shutdown defender? Then Vladislav Gavrikov or Marcus Pettersson may be for you. Are you looking for more of a two-way presence? Then Jakob Chychrun or Dmitry Orlov might be the right fit.
Shesterkin hitting free agency would change the goalie market, but there aren’t many desirable names otherwise. Adin Hill headlines the group of goalies who could be starters, but most of the names who might be available (Frederik Andersen, Alexandar Georgiev and Karel Vejmelka, to name a few) are 1Bs. If you’re a team that needs a starting netminder, you’ll likely have to look to the trade market.
For now, we’ll begin with a top 20 to give you an idea of next year’s free-agent class. This list will expand as the season progresses, especially once we pass the trade deadline in early March. Player stats will be added once the season concludes, but contract details are already provided in the list below (via CapWages). Without further ado, here’s our preliminary top 20 UFAs for 2025.
| Player | Age | Position | Current Contract (Cap Hit) |
| 1. Igor Shesterkin | 28 | G | $5,666,667 |
| 2. Mitch Marner | 27 | RW | $10.903 million |
| 3. Mikko Rantanen | 28 | RW | $9.25 million |
| 4. Aaron Ekblad | 28 | D | $7.5 million |
| 5. Nikolaj Ehlers | 28 | LW | $6 million |
| 6. Brock Boeser | 27 | RW | $6.65 million |
| 7. Brock Nelson | 33 | C/LW | $6 million |
| 8. Jakob Chychrun | 26 | D | $4.6 million |
| 9. Claude Giroux | 36 | RW | $6.5 million |
| 10. John Tavares | 34 | C/LW | $11 million |
| 11. Matt Duchene | 33 | C/LW | $3 million |
| 12. Marcus Pettersson | 28 | D | $4,025,175 |
| 13. Brad Marchand | 36 | LW | $6.125 million |
| 14. Dmitry Orlov | 33 | D | $7.75 million |
| 15. Gustav Nyquist | 35 | LW/RW | $3.185 million |
| 16. Frank Vatrano | 30 | LW/RW | $3.65 million |
| 17. Adin Hill | 28 | G | $4.95 million |
| 18. Vladislav Gavrikov | 29 | D | $5.875 million |
| 19. Kyle Palmieri | 33 | RW | $5 million |
| 20. Jamie Benn | 35 | C/LW | $9.5 million |
