Offseason Update: June 30 – July 6

While July 1 didn’t bring the free agent fireworks that we’re used to due to this year’s unique offseason schedule, there were a few notable moves made by NHL GMs in the past week. Let’s take a look.

Best Overall Acquisition – Victor Arvidsson (LAK)

We saw the first trade of the offseason and, with it, possibly the best move of the offseason so far. The Los Angeles Kings traded a pair of draft picks to Nashville to acquire forward Viktor Arvidsson from the Predators. Arvidsson projects as a 2nd line forward next season and comes with a reasonable cap hit. With the addition, the Kings saw the largest increase to 21/22 team point percentage projection of offseason to date with an increase of 0.005 (the previous high was EDM re-signing Ryan Nugent Hopkins for +0.004).

Best UFA Signing – Nick Bjugstad (MIN)

The Minnesota Wild came to terms on a one year pact with Nick Bjugstad, with a cap hit of just $900k. Bjugstad was utilized in a depth role in 2021-2022,, yet his projected impact is that of a 3rd line forward. Combined with the frugal cap hit, Bjugstad looks like a great value signing by the Wild with an impact per $1M triple that of many typical veteran contracts.

Best RFA Signing – Joel Eriksson Ek (MIN)

The Wild sweep the best free agent categories in this update, with Joel Eriksson Ek returning to Minnesota for 8 years at at cap hit of $5.25M. While the signing doesn’t impact our team projection since we assumed that all RFAs would return with their current teams, this deal looks like it will be a reasonable cap hit for Eriksson Ek next season. The impact per $1M comes in slightly above the 50th percentile for value and his total projected impact is that of a high end 2nd line forward. Only 24 years old, there is a chance that further development in Eriksson Ek’s game could make this a better value contract a couple of years out and he will only be 32 when the deal expires, limiting risk of an albatross contract toward the end.

Best Goaltender Acquisition – Scott Wedgewood (NJD)

I’ve put goaltending into it’s own category for the simple reason that a single goaltender can have a much larger impact on the team projections than a single skater. This is simply due to the number of players on the roster. With only two players contributing to goaltending effects, the opportunity for larger impacts due to a single move is much greater.

The Devils re-signed Scott Wedgewood to a one year deal at $825k. He will likely fill a backup or third string role by the start of the season and his addition to the roster gives the Devils a huge boost to their overall projection based on the current roster.

Best Depth Signing – Christian Wolanin (LAK)

The Kings re-signed pending UFA defenseman Christian Wolanin to a one year deal and get a second spot in this week’s review for the best depth signing. Wolanin was deployed in a depth role last season, which he split between Ottawa and LA, and he will likely be utilized in a similar fashion next season. The Kings look like they added a depth piece with an incredibly valuable contract. Wolanin’s impact above replacement per $1M of 0.80 is huge and his overall impact is suitable for a 2nd or 3rd pair defenseman. While the team projection isn’t affected since it uses only the top six defensemen, the Kings now have a player on a league minimum cap hit that can create competition at the bottom of the lineup and fill in when injuries strike.