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NHL free agency 2023 tracker: Canucks sign forward Pius Suter to 2-year deal

Follow along for the latest signings, news, rumors, trades and more from NHL free-agency season.

Yahoo Sports Staff
·14 min read

The NHL free agency period opened on July 1 and teams wasted little time bolstering their rosters for 2023-24 and beyond.

This year's class wasn't one of the most loaded ones in recent memory, but still featured a number of impact players including Dmitry Orlov (2-year, $15.5-million deal with Hurricanes), Ryan O'Reilly (4-year, $18-million contract with Predators, Tyler Bertuzzi (1-year, $5.5-million deal with Maple Leafs) and others who found new homes amid a strange landscape featuring plenty of short-term contracts for some pretty big-name players.

With the draft in the rearview, only a couple of impact free agents left and the cap situations much more clear for many clubs, attention will now mostly shift to the trade market and the few gems available there.

Here are the latest notable signings from across the NHL:

Canucks ink centre Pius Suter to two-year deal

Free agent forward Pius Suter has signed a two-year contract with the Vancouver Canucks, the team announced Friday.

The deal carries an average annual value of $1.6 million. The 27-year-old Swiss centre spent the last two seasons with the Red Wings, tallying 29 goals and 31 assists in 161 games with Detroit.

Suter broke into the NHL with the Chicago Blackhawks as an undrafted rookie ahead of the 2020-21 season, where he put up 14 goals and 13 assists in 55 contests.

Leafs take flier on Martin Jones

The Toronto Maple Leafs added goaltending depth on Wednesday by signing Martin Jones to a one-year contract worth $875,000.

Jones comes to the Maple Leafs after a rough season with the Seattle Kraken that saw him produce an .886 save percentage in 48 games.

The 33-year-old is in the middle of a rough stretch of his career, as his save percentage has topped .900 just once over the last five seasons. His GSAA since 2018-19 (-49.49) ranks dead last amongst all NHL netminders.

Dumba heads to the desert

Defenseman Matt Dumba agreed to a one-year, $3.9-million deal with the Arizona Coyotes on Sunday, leaving the Minnesota Wild after spending the first 10 years of his career with the franchise.

Dumba is coming off the worst offensive season of his career, scoring just four goals and 14 points in 79 games for the Wild while skating 21:17 per night.

Matt Dumba will hit NHL free agency again at the end of next season. (Photo by Bruce Kluckhohn/NHLI via Getty Images)
Matt Dumba will hit NHL free agency again at the end of next season. (Photo by Bruce Kluckhohn/NHLI via Getty Images) (Bruce Kluckhohn via Getty Images)

Ducks ink star forward Troy Terry to long-term deal

The Anaheim Ducks announced a long-term extension for one of their homegrown stars on Wednesday, with star winger Troy Terry and the club reportedly coming to terms on a seven-year pact.

According to The Athletic's Eric Stephens, Terry will earn $7 million annually on his new deal. Terry and the Ducks were scheduled to have their arbitration hearing on Tuesday, with the forward asking for $8 million and Anaheim countering at $4.5 million.

Terry was the Ducks' most productive player on a per-game basis in 2023-23, posting 23 goals and 61 points in 70 games. Linemate Trevor Zegras tied Terry for the team lead in goals and led the Ducks in scoring with 65 points in 81 games.

A fifth-round pick of the Ducks in 2015, Terry is coming off his second straight 60-point season and is one year removed from a 37-goal campaign. The 25-year-old represented the Ducks at the 2023 NHL All-Star Game.

McLeod, Oilers agree on 2-year extension

The Edmonton Oilers signed Ryan McLeod to a 2-year, $4.2 million ($2.1M AAV) contract extension on Wednesday.

McLeod, 23, registered 23 points in 57 games in a bottom-six role with the Oilers last season, adding five assists in 12 playoff games. The Mississauga, ON., native was selected by Edmonton with the 40th overall pick in the 2018 NHL Draft.

Wild lock up Gustavsson for 3 years

The Minnesota Wild inked goaltender Filip Gustavsson to a three-year, $11.25 million contract ($3.75M AAV) extension on Monday.

Gustavsson went 22-9-7 with three shutouts for the Wild last season. The 25-year-old finished second in the league in both goals against average (2.10) and save percentage (.931).

He is coming off a two-year, $1.575 million contract he signed with the Ottawa Senators in August 2021.

Bahl, Devils agree on two-year contract

The New Jersey Devils announced on Monday that they have re-signed defenseman Kevin Bahl to a two-year, $2.1 million contract extension.

Bahl, 23, registered eight points in 42 games with the Devils last season. The 2018 second-round pick is coming off an entry-level contract he signed with the Arizona Coyotes.

Coyotes sign McBain to extension, avoid arbitration

The Coyotes have signed forward Jack McBain to a two-year, $3.2 million contract, avoiding salary arbitration. McBain's arbitration hearing was set for July 30, the day the deal was signed.

McBain, 23, registered 12 goals and 14 assists in 82 games with the Coyotes in his first full NHL season.

The Toronto, ON., native represented Canada at the 2023 IIHF World Championships, where he tallied four points on route to a gold medal.

Tarasenko heads to Ottawa

One of the top remaining NHL free agents is officially off the board, as forward Vladimir Tarasenko agreed to a one-year, $5 million contract with the Ottawa Senators on Thursday. The deal also comes with a full no-trade clause.

Tarasenko split the 2022-23 campaign between the St. Louis Blues and New York Rangers. The four-time All-Star was acquired by the Rangers ahead of the trade deadline. He tallied 18 goals and 50 points across 69 games last season.

"Vladimir's a natural goal scorer," said Senators general manager Pierre Dorion. "He's a dynamic player who can score from anywhere in the offensive zone, as well as an underrated playmaker who's made a career out of driving offence for he and his linemates. An established performer in the regular season and in the playoffs, we're thrilled to add a player of his calibre to our lineup."

Coyotes sign top prospect Cooley to entry-level contract

The Arizona Coyotes signed Logan Cooley, the third-overall pick in the 2022 NHL Draft, to an entry-level contract on Thursday.

In his freshman year at the University of Minnesota last season, Cooley finished as the team's leading scorer with 22 goals and 38 points in 39 games. Cooley's 60 points ranked him second in NCAA scoring. He also helped lead the Golden Gophers to the Frozen Four Championship game.

"We are thrilled to sign Logan to an NHL contract," Coyotes GM Bill Armstrong said in a press release. "Logan is an incredibly skilled player who had an excellent season with the Golden Gophers last year. He has established himself as one of the top prospects in the world. He is a very important player for us, and he has an extremely bright future ahead. We look forward to watching him play for the Coyotes for many years to come."

Logan Cooley will make the jump to the NHL next season. (AP Photo/Andy Clayton-King)
Logan Cooley will make the jump to the NHL next season. (AP Photo/Andy Clayton-King) (ASSOCIATED PRESS)

Tony D heads back to Raleigh

The Carolina Hurricanes are signing defenseman Tony DeAngelo to a one-year, $1.6 million contract. DeAngelo was waived by the Philadelphia Flyers on July 14 after one season with the club.

The 27-year-old registered 42 points in 70 games in Philly last season, while clashing with head coach John Tortorella over a slew of healthy scratches in the final stretch of the campaign.

DeAngelo put up 51 points in 64 games in his first stint in Carolina during the 2021-22 season.

A Dunn deal in Seattle

The Seattle Kraken and star defenseman Vince Dunn agreed to a four-year, $29.4 million deal on Friday, avoiding an arbitration hearing set for July 24. The deal will pay Dunn $7.35 million annually.

The 26-year-old broke out for a career-high 64 points last season as he led the Kraken to its first ever postseason berth. Dunn managed seven points in 14 playoff games as Seattle fell to the Dallas Stars in Game 7 of the second round.

Lightning re-up Tanner Jeannot on two-year deal

The Tampa Bay Lightning inked restricted free agent forward Tanner Jeannot to a two-year deal worth an AAV of $2.665 million, the team announced on Saturday.

Jeannot, who the Lightning gave up a decent haul for (defenseman Cal Foote, a 2025 first-round pick, a 2024 second-round pick, and a third, fourth, and fifth-round pick in 2023) in a deadline deal with the Predators this past spring, recorded a goal and four points in 20 regular-season games with Tampa.

Prior to joining the Lightning, the undrafted 26-year-old played two seasons in Nashville, posting 34 goals and 62 points in 152 games.

Fedotov does not honour contract with Flyers, signs KHL deal

Russian goaltender and Philadelphia Flyers prospect Ivan Fedotov has reportedly signed a two-year deal with CSKA Moscow of the KHL, making him the first player to not honour his NHL contract since the NHL dissolved the memorandum of understanding between the two leagues in March of 2022.

Fedotov was selected by the Flyers in the seventh round of the 2015 NHL Draft and signed a one-year contract with Philadelphia in May 2022. However, the contract was tolled from last season to the upcoming season, meaning that it is now due to expire next July.

NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly has stated that, "If Ivan Fedotov plays in the KHL, it will be contrary to his contractual obligations to the Philadelphia Flyers." This saga is especially pertinent after the Flyers drafted highly-touted Russian prospect Matvei Michkov in the 2023 draft. Michkov is expected to come over to North America when his contract with SKA Saint Petersburg ends in 2026.

Last July, Fedotov was reportedly detained in Russia for allegedly evading military service by signing a NHL contract.

Full list of major NHL free agent signings: