The New Jersey Devils pulled off a rare move by tendering an offer sheet to another team's RFA. The Utah Mammoth have seven days to decide whether to match the contract for Barrett Hayton.
The New Jersey Devils tendered an offer sheet to Utah Mammoth RFA Barrett Hayton on the opening day of free agency.
The offer sheet is for one year at $4,775,000.
Utah has seven days to decide whether or not to match the contract. If the Mammoth pass on it, New Jersey must provide a 2027 second-round draft pick as compensation.
Hayton had 10 goals and 25 points in 67 games with the Mammoth this past season. The center recorded a career-high 20 goals and 46 points in 2024-25.
With Utah trading for center Vincent Trocheck and re-signing Kevin Stenlund on Wednesday, Hayton fell down Utah's depth chart.
In New Jersey, Hayton could potentially slot in on the third line.
Offer sheets are uncommon in the NHL. The last ones came in 2024 when the St. Louis Blues signed Dylan Holloway and Phillip Broberg from the Edmonton Oilers, which decided not to match the deals and picked up a second-rounder and third-rounder as compensation.
The previous team to match an offer sheet was the Carolina Hurricanes in 2019. They matched a five-year, $42.27-million contract for their top center, Sebastian Aho, instead of letting him go to the Montreal Canadiens.
Utah has the room to match Hayton's contract and still have about $3.7 million in cap space left over, according to PuckPedia.
The Devils, meanwhile, would still have about $3 million in cap space if their offer sheet is successful.
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