While a good portion of last season’s pending UFAs did not hit the market, we still saw some notable NHL players find new homes.
With it now being November, let’s look at how the top UFAs of this past off-season are performing early on with their new teams.
While Mitch Marner technically became a Golden Knight before the start of free agency due to a sign-and-trade, he certainly deserves to be mentioned.
Moving on from the Toronto Maple Leafs hasn’t hurt Marner early on, as he has recorded three goals, 11 assists, 14 points and a plus-8 rating in 12 games so far this season. The 28-year-old’s also posted four points in his last three games, and he’s averaging 1:05 of penalty-kill time.
Last season in Toronto, Marner had two goals and 13 points in his first 12 games, so the production is similar so far, but all eyes will be on how he contributes in the playoffs.
Things have not gone to plan for Nikolaj Ehlers early on with Carolina.
In 12 games with the Hurricanes, Ehlers has recorded just five points. The 29-year-old finally scored his first goal on Nov. 4 against the New York Rangers.
Ehlers’ average ice time of 16:58 is the highest he’s had since the 2021-22 season, and his 2.83 shots per game are slightly more than his average of 2.52 last season, when he scored 24 times in 69 games. But his 2.9 shooting percentage right now is drastically low, and he would have had about four goals and nine points by now if he had his career average shooting percentage of 11.7 percent.
When looking at Ehlers’ four 60-point seasons with the Winnipeg Jets, it should only be a matter of time before he heats up again.
Vladislav Gavrikov, 29, was the Rangers’ big off-season addition, as they are expecting him to be a major part of their group. So far, Gavrikov’s start has been solid.
In 14 games so far, the left-shot blueliner has recorded one goal, three points, 21 blocked shots and a plus-5 rating. While he is having a slow start offensively for the Rangers, he was primarily brought in to bring more defensive stability to New York’s blueline. So far, he’s providing that on New York’s top pairing with Adam Fox.
Mikael Granlund signed a three-year, $21-million contract with the Ducks this past summer, and he’s delivering on his $7-million cap hit so far.
In eight games, Granlund has two goals and eight points. He starred in a dramatic 7-5 win over the Boston Bruins on Oct. 23 when he put up two goals and three assists for a career-high five-point night.
Granlund, 33, also leads the Ducks’ regular faceoff-takers in faceoff win percentage, at 51.9 percent. But he has not played since Oct. 25 against the Tampa Bay Lightning due to a lower-body injury.
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