NHL free agency: Top UFAs available
Okposo, Backes top this year's class
The 2015-16 NHL season may have come to an end, but July 1 marks the beginning of the next campaign. Teams will try their best to land free-agent players that could turn around their fortunes when the Stanley Cup is once again up for grabs.
Here are a few of the top unrestricted free agents eligible to be signed beginning at noon ET on Canada Day.
All photos courtesy Getty Images; all contract figures courtesy NHLNumbers.com.
Kyle Okposo
Last year's cap hit: $2.8M US
Key stat: The 27-year-old notched his third-straight 20-goal season in 2015-16.
Inside tip on how to land him: Ice, ice, baby.
David Backes
Last year's cap hit: $4.5M US
Key stats: The Blues' captain scored the second-highest amount of power-play goals on the team (8), and tallied a team high in penalty minutes (83).
What he's looking for in a potential team: Must love dogs.
Milan Lucic
Last year's cap hit: $6M US
Key stats: Lucic led all Kings wingers in points (55) and plus-minus (plus-26) last season.
Could anyone convince him to move away from sunny Los Angeles?: Maybe.
Andrew Ladd
Last year's cap hit: $4.4M US
Key stats: The two-time Cup winner has scored at least 20 goals in the last five full NHL seasons.
Is it déjà vu?: It's déjà vu.
Lee Stempniak
Last year's cap hit: $850K US
Key stats: Racked up 41 points in 63 games with the Devils before being shipped to Boston, where he averaged a point every two games with the Bruins.
If he shares one attribute with a rescue dog it's: He's looking for his forever home.
Loui Eriksson
Last year's cap hit: $4.25M US
Key stats: Last season the Swede hit the 30-goal plateau for the second time in his career, and played in all 82 games for a fourth time.
GIF analysis: Never seems lost on the ice, but not so great in the real world.
Radim Vrbata
Last year's cap hit: $5M US
Key stats: A year after his breakout with the Canucks (31 goals, 63 points), Vrbata posted just 27 points in 63 games and a dreadful minus-30 rating.
Do fans regret picking a goal song for him?: Well, with just 13 goals, how you like him now, Canucks fans?
Eric Staal
Last year's cap hit: $8.25M US
Key stats: Zero points in the Rangers' five-game playoff run, and just six points (none on the power play) in 20 regular-season games for New York.
A GIF that encapsulates Staal's season: This should do the trick.
