Tough Guy Paydays Among Day 1's Top Storylines of NHL Free Agency

At last — back to normal. For the first time since 2019, the new NHL calendar year is beginning on July 1. With it comes the first day of free agency, awkwardly bolted onto a Canadian holiday that marks the beginning of summer.

Even the hockey world's favored news-breaking tool, Twitter, decided to take most of the day off. But despite all that, deals got done. In fact, a lot of deals got done.

By the end of Day 1 of the free agency period, more than 150 new contracts had been registered — the most in years. And even with cap space at a premium, the total value of those deals ran to more than $600 million.

One thing that was not unusual: most of the top talent took care of business well before July 1.

And that's not just players like David Pastrnak, Bo Horvat and Dylan Larkin, who re-upped in-season. Remember back to last September, when Nathan MacKinnon signed an eight-year extension in Colorado with a cap hit of $12.5 million? That kicks in now. So does Jonathan Huberdeau's $10.5-million deal in Calgary.

This year, we didn't have a one-that-got-away scenario like Johnny Gaudreau's surprise signing for seven years in Columbus. And while the rumor mill had tamped down expectations that Auston Matthews would sign his new contract extension on the first day he was eligible, we didn't get a big Sebastian Aho extension in Carolina, either.

The Hurricanes did do some significant business on Saturday, though. They handed out the biggest AAV of the day for a new signing, bringing in arguably the best-available defenseman in Dmitry Orlov at a cap hit of $7.75 million.

But remember when Carolina balked at matching the seven-year contract with the $9-million cap hit that New Jersey offered to Dougie Hamilton in 2021? This time around, GM Don Waddell was able to offer up just a two-year term to get his man.

And with the promise of untold riches ahead when cap growth returns starting next season, that might be OK by both parties. Vladislav Gavrikov actively campaigned for a short term when he signed his two-year extension with the Los Angeles Kings at a cap hit of $5.875 million early in June.

Carolina also won the bidding for 27-year-old Michael Bunting. The bargain top-six forward from the Toronto Maple Leafs signed on for three years at $4.5 million per season. Two years ago, he went from $737,500 to $950,000 a year when he signed as a free agent with the Leafs.

And while Aho remains on Waddell's to-do list, the Canes did re-up a number of players from their current roster. After captain Jordan Staal agreed to return for four years at an economical $2.9 million a year on June 25, that left room for goaltenders Frederik Andersen and Antti Raanta and forward Jesper Fast to also sign new deals.

The Max Pacioretty gamble is now officially over, as the 34-year-old signed with Washington for $2 million plus another $2 million in potential bonuses. Veteran Paul Stastny, at 37, did not ink a new deal on Saturday. And trade-deadline acquisition Shayne Gostisbehere did a tidy piece of business when he signed a one-year deal with Detroit at $4.125 million.

That was the tip of the iceberg for Steve Yzerman. He also handed out three years at $3.4 million per season to defenseman Justin Holl and gave one of the big forward contracts of the day to J.T. Compher, who got five years and a tidy $5.1-million AAV.

Yzerman also scooped up Klim Kostin, Daniel Sprong and a pair of inexpensive goalies — Panthers' playoff hero Alex Lyon and James Reimer.

That $4-million range was the sweet spot for the Tier 2 crop of blueliners — everyone below Orlov — who signed on Day 1. Pittsburgh pilfered Ryan Graves from New Jersey with pretty big cash: six years at $4.5 million per season. Radko Gudas parlayed his high-profile playoff run with Florida into three years at $4 million a season with Anaheim — the best payday of the 33-year-old's career. And John Klingberg's quest for a long-term home now moves to a third team since he left Dallas a year ago. After playing in Anaheim and Minnesota, he inked a one-year deal at $4.15 million with Toronto.

After Day 1, the defense market has been basically picked clean. Matt Dumba remains unsigned, and the 28-year-old rightie should command a decent asking price. After that, you're looking at the likes of Travis Hamonic or Caleb Jones.

Up front, character and toughness overshadowed pure skill on many teams' shopping lists.

Brad Treliving put his stamp on the Toronto Maple Leafs by bringing in Ryan Reaves for three years. The Boston Bruins reunited with Milan Lucic. The Philadelphia Flyers brought in rugged Garnet Hathaway. Even Colorado got in on the act, re-upping with character guy Andrew Cogliano while committing a total of $15 million over six years to Miles Wood on a deal that looks a bit like the economy-model version of the Lightning's 2022 contract with Nick Paul (seven years, $3.15-million AAV)

In Nashville, new GM Barry Trotz continued the renovation of the Predators with $4.5 million a year over four seasons for 2019 Conn Smythe winner Ryan O'Reilly, two years at $3.185 million per season for Gustav Nyquist and three years at $2.75 million for heart-and-soul defenseman Luke Schenn — a 33-year-old who has resurrected his reputation to such an impressive level that he'll make more next season than he did in the last three years combined ($2.5 million).

Earlier this week, the Chicago Blackhawks got busy upgrading their forward group around Connor Bedard, bringing in quality veterans Taylor Hall, Nick Foligno and Corey Perry. And in their quest to ice a competitive team and build excitement in their market that could help them stay in the desert permanently, the Arizona Coyotes made a handful of significant forward signings on Saturday when they committed to Jason Zucker for one year at $5.3 million, Alex Kerfoot at $3.5 million and Nick Bjugstad at $2.1 million.

And in addition to Gudas, the Anaheim Ducks swept in with a finalized deal on one of the more pedigreed UFAs of the day. Two-time Cup winner Alex Killorn won't get to play his 1000th career game in Tampa. But the nearly 34-year-old, who's coming off career highs of 27 goals and 64 points, will have four years of job security and a cap hit of $6.25 million as he helps lead Trevor Zegras, Mason McTavish, Leo Carlsson and company into the Ducks' next era. That's a tidy raise from Killorn's last deal with the Lightning, a seven-year pact worth $4.45 million a year.

The biggest unsigned names are a pair of iconic duos — Kane and Toews, plus Bergeron and Krejci. In all four cases, their futures will depend on how much they feel they can take on, and whether they really want to come back.

Tyler Bertuzzi and Max Domi both fit the smash-mouth model that's in vogue right now, and could very well be weighing their options. Vladimir Tarasenko is more of a pure scorer and should also find a home.

Will they be gone by the end of the weekend, or will we see more player movement through the summer? Seems like an Erik Karlsson trade is still very much in play, as is a deal for Alex DeBrincat, just to name a couple of front-burner options that could still change the landscape significantly before teams convene for training camp.

Right now, the managers, agents and players must all be aching to get their situations settled so that they can enjoy some well-earned off-season downtime.