NHL Highlights Top Unrestricted Free Agents Before July 1 Market Opens

Q: With a shallow talent pool, which free agent signing will become the NHL's most overpaid player by the end of the week?

Darren Raddysh looks like the strongest bet to become this week’s most overpaid NHL free-agent signing. The case is mostly about market conditions and risk. This is a thin UFA class, the salary cap has jumped to $104 million, and teams have more money than premium options to spend it on. That combination tends to inflate prices, especially for scarce assets such as right-shot defensemen. Raddysh fits that profile perfectly. He is coming off a breakout 70-point season and is widely viewed as one of the best offensive defensemen available. But the warning signs are clear: he is 30, this was his first truly elite offensive year, and much of the value spike is tied to one walk-year surge. Reports and projections in the market have pointed to a deal in the $7 million to $8 million-plus range annually, with long term attached. That is the kind of contract that can age badly if the player settles back toward second-pair production. Other candidates exist. Alex Tuch could command a $10 million-plus cap hit in a weak winger market, and Sergei Bobrovsky would be a major overpay risk if any team gives a 37-year-old goalie long term. But Raddysh stands out because the likely combination of term, cap hit and one-season sample creates the clearest overpayment danger. If teams start bidding aggressively on July 1, Raddysh is the name most likely to define the market’s excess.

3 articles · Updated · NHL.com · Jun 28

July 1 marks the start of the NHL signing period, with NHL.com flagging a broad group of top unrestricted free agents expected to be available when the market opens.
The preview focuses on big-name players across positions and organizes them alphabetically by position rather than ranking them by overall value.
The list serves as an early guide to the market ahead of free agency, pointing teams and fans to the players likely to shape the first wave of signings.