NHL
There’s an interesting debate in the NHL right now over whether this will be the “summer of offer sheets” or not.
Certainly the fact that the St. Louis Blues pulled off the double sheet last year with Philip Broberg and Dylan Holloway helps improve the odds, especially given how they’ve contributed to the Blues’ midseason resurgence this year.
Advertisement
But the Blues were the perfect candidate to go after two of the Edmonton Oilers’ young players, as they had both picks and cap space when they tendered the two offer sheets in mid-August last year. They were also a team that nearly made the playoffs the previous season and had clear roster needs to address.
Let’s face it, though: Not every NHL team is well-positioned to attempt an offer sheet right now. In fact, after the giant pick purge that was the trade deadline, seven teams don’t have a first-rounder in 2026, 10 don’t have their second-rounder and seven don’t have their third.
The Tampa Bay Lightning and Toronto Maple Leafs have even traded their 2027 first-round picks, too, which further diminishes their ability to go the offer sheet route.
With that in mind, I thought an interesting thought experiment would be to look at which teams are in the best spot to get aggressive this summer. There are typically four (or sometimes five) factors that go into considering an offer sheet for the front offices involved, so we’ll rate teams by these categories and see who comes out on top.
Offer sheet compensation in the NHL involves giving up various levels and quantities of draft picks, from a max of four first-rounders for a high-priced talent (an estimated more than $12 million AAV in the summer of 2025) down to just a third-round pick (for players making under $2.5 million). Teams need to have their own picks, not ones they’ve acquired from other teams, and for this exercise (and simplicity’s sake) we won’t include the possibility that they could reacquire their picks to attempt an offer sheet.
With the cap going up 8.5 percent to $95.5 million next season, more teams are going to be flush with spending money going into free agency this summer. But not every team will have the kind of extra room, after signing their own RFAs and adding some UFAs, to get aggressive with an offer sheet.
Advertisement
A San Jose- or Chicago-like rebuilding team could theoretically make an offer sheet, but would it be worth it if they ended up giving up a top-10 lottery pick or two? (Ask the Leafs of 15 years ago.) So we’ll eliminate teams projected to bottom out next year, focusing more on clubs like the Blues, who have a shot to contend (or at least be decent) in 2025-26.
Most teams need something to add to their rosters, but this consideration eliminates the few rosters where a major need isn’t so pressing that the front office would go the offer sheet route.
And the possible wild-card fifth factor would be: Is it a desirable location for free agents to sign, as any RFA inking an offer sheet would have to want to go to the acquiring team?
I’ve gone through and looked at how all 32 teams stack up in these categories and have my (very official) ranking below.
L.A. was one of the first teams that came to my mind when I thought about doing this exercise. They’re a good team — eighth in the league standings — and they have all of their picks for 2026.
They also have a need up front for another scorer, as goals have been rather hard to come by. How good would Matthew Knies or JJ Peterka look on this team? (Or any of the other forwards here.)
Plus, there’s plenty of pressure on the Kings to finally break through in the postseason after getting beaten by the Oilers so many years in a row. Anze Kopitar and Drew Doughty are aging but still effective, but how long is their window open?
Adding another high-end talent with some of their $20 million-plus space makes a lot of sense, whether they find it in UFA or going the offer sheet route.
Utah underwhelmed in the standings this year and the biggest reason was that they struggled to score. But they’re likely not that far from being a consistent playoff team, as their young cast should continue to improve.
Salt Lake City has the makings of a desirable free-agent destination, too, and the Hockey Clubbers have all of their picks (plus a bunch of extras they’ve acquired over the rebuilding desert years). Their roster appears basically set in goal and on D; what they really need is, like L.A., to take a run at some more scoring talent.
Advertisement
And they have more than $20 million to play with and no big free agents of their own to worry about re-signing. So expect them to be in on the big UFAs — and maybe RFAs, too.
This would be a lot of fun.
Montreal is clearly a young team on the rise, as they’ve ripped off an 11-4-4 stretch lately to get close to a surprise playoff berth. Nick Suzuki has taken a nice step, to the point he could finish top 15 in scoring, and Lane Hutson is ready to dominate far earlier than expected.
The Habs not only have all their picks, they also have close to $20 million in cap space and not many free agents of consequence going out the door.
One complicating factor: Their biggest need is down the middle and there’s not a whole lot of centers available as RFAs. But if they strike out on July 1, getting creative with an offer sheet on another top-six forward could be the right move for a front office that has quietly made a lot of them lately.
If not the Kings, why not down the road in SoCal?
Yes, the Ducks break our no teams with bad records rule, but they took a step forward this year and some of their kids appear ready to make a higher impact in 2025-26.
This would be a risky play for Anaheim, but this is their seventh consecutive season out of the playoffs. At some point, they have to start building up — and a big offer-sheet swing might help.
The Ducks have to be careful, however, as RFA netminder Lukáš Dostál could be a target from elsewhere given his strong season.
No, Calgary isn’t always considered a hugely desirable landing spot by some players’ standards. But they scored near the top of the league in most of the other categories here, and with Dustin Wolf in goal, they shouldn’t be bottoming out in the standings anytime soon.
Advertisement
A rebuild doesn’t seem to be on the table, either, not with a new building on the way in 2027.
They have a handful of their own RFAs such as Connor Zary and Matt Coronato to sign, but even after getting that business done, they should have at least another $15 million or so to get aggressive in free agency. And they have needs on left defense and up front, given they sit second last in goals per game and have an aging cast down the middle.
It’s going to take something bold for Calgary to get out of the West’s mushy middle. An offer sheet certainly qualifies.
Another team in a smaller Canadian market. The difference in Winnipeg is that the team is clearly a contender, especially with Connor Hellebuyck locked up on such a reasonable contract.
The Jets are going to be absolutely swimming in cap space, too, potentially with more than $30 million. The trouble is that at least some of that space could come as the result of losing key players to UFA, with Nikolaj Ehlers and Neal Pionk at the top of the list.
They’re going to have to fill out their roster through free agency and trades, and with the UFA market so competitive, they may strike out there. Which could be where an offer-sheet play makes sense.
It’s worth noting they don’t currently have their 2026 second-rounder, however, so they’d have to make due with the other avenues for making this play. Or beg the Penguins for the pick they gave up for Luke Schenn back.
The Devils have all their picks and are clearly in contention mode, especially considering they should be healthier next year than this one. So they feel like a perfect candidate here.
New Jersey still needs to sign RFA Luke Hughes — who isn’t offer-sheet eligible — so that’s one pressing offseason concern after the second half he’s had. That will leave the Devils without as much cap space as all of the other teams listed here, which means their offer-sheet play would have to be more targeted.
Advertisement
But they’re well-stocked on the blue line and in goal; an upgrade at wing would make the most sense to fill out what’s already a solid roster.
The Flyers make me a bit nervous, given how much they struggled this season. They currently have the sixth-worst record in the league, and if you’re throwing around first-round picks, you definitely want to finish a lot higher than that next season.
But a high percentage of their issues have been in goal, where they have the lowest even-strength save percentage in the league and all three of their netminders have posted an .881 mark or worse. (All three are in the NHL’s bottom six in goals saved above expected among goalies with 15 games played.)
If Philadelphia can find an upgrade in net, I like a lot of the rest of their team and think they could surprise with a few savvy additions. They likely have $15 million to $18 million to play with after signing their own RFAs and a lot of players signed, so one big play for a free-agent addition could be the right course of action to push their rebuild ahead and give Matvei Michkov more to work with.
But moving out their 2026 picks for help up front would certainly be bolder than what the Blues did last summer.
Honorable mentions: Columbus Blue Jackets, Detroit Red Wings, Pittsburgh Penguins, Vegas Golden Knights
Other teams with all their picks: Boston Bruins, Chicago Blackhawks, Nashville Predators, Seattle Kraken
(Top photo of Lukáš Dostál and Clayton Keller: Gary A. Vasquez / Imagn Images)
James Mirtle is a senior writer covering the NHL for The Athletic. James joined The Athletic as the inaugural editor in Canada in 2016 and served as senior managing editor of The Athletic NHL for four years. Previously, he spent 12 years as a sportswriter with The Globe and Mail. A native of Kamloops, B.C., he appears regularly on Sportsnet 590 The Fan and other radio stations across Canada. Follow James on Twitter @mirtle
