NHL free agency preview: How each team can earn an...

The Carolina Hurricanes are Stanley Cup champions, and the 2026 NHL draft is now complete. Although the flow of trades has already begun, the next wave of player acquisition is set to begin Wednesday at noon ET when NHL free agency begins. All 32 front offices are trying to be the ones on the ice next June lifting the most famous trophy in sports. Here's a guide to how all of them can make the right moves this summer, including their own free agents and salary cap space, as well as players they should target with that money under the cap. Note: Profiles for the Atlantic and Metro teams were written by Kristen Shilton. Ryan S. Clark analyzed the Central and Pacific teams. Stats are collected from Natural Stat Trick, Hockey Reference and Evolving Hockey. Projected cap space as of June 28, per PuckPedia. Draft recap: All 224 picks Grades for all 32 teams Winners and losers Offseason trade grades Key players hitting UFA: F Viktor Arvidsson Key players hitting RFA: D Jordan Harris Cap space: $7.72 million What they should do: Boston has two key areas of need: a top-six winger and a solid right-shot defenseman. The Bruins have (rightly) been in talks with Viktor Arvidsson's camp on an extension -- after the physical veteran pumped in 25 goals and 59 points in 69 games last season -- to maintain some critical depth scoring. But Boston wasn't waiting any longer on him to re-sign, and started addressing their forward position by trading multiple-first round picks to Utah for JJ Peterka on Friday. He's one year removed from a career-best 68-point season in Buffalo but failed to click with the Mammoth after being traded last summer. The Bruins are banking on this change of scenery being more to Peterka's liking. That leaves the back end as a primary focus. If the Bruins want to improve on the right side, then looking to Rasmus Andersson would be prudent. Or, GM Don Sweeney could be better off working the phones and packing up some picks, prospects or even a current roster player to bolster the team's blueline. Overall, the Bruins are fairly well situated though and that should give Sweeney some room to be aggressive in how he continues to improve those two critical positions. 2025-26 result: Lost in the second round Key players hitting UFA: D Logan Stanley, F Beck Malenstyn Key players hitting RFA: F Peyton Krebs Cap space: $13.80 million What they should do: Buffalo is in a great spot coming off their busy week. The Sabres fleeced Chicago last Tuesday in the Bowen Byram trade, finalized a sign-and-trade for pending UFA Alex Tuch, locked-in pending RFA Zach Benson to a seven-year, $52.5 million contract and got a potential replacement for Byram by grabbing Olen Zellweger from Anaheim. So, what's left to do going into free agency? A few things. Krebs -- another pending RFA -- would be worth getting on a short-term, show-me type deal (following his career-best 12 goals and 39 points last season). Then there's the matter of re-stocking up front now that Tuch is officially out of the picture. Anthony Mantha or Mason Marchment are two veteran options who could bring some punch and secondary scoring, although they don't have the same top-end upside as Tuch. GM Jarmo Kekalainen could also be aggressive and target a top center via trade that allows Tage Thompson to slide over to the wing more permanently. Malenstyn is worth signing for another year or two for bottom-six depth, but ultimately Buffalo's focus should stay on improving their top two units. And there's a lingering goalie question, too. Are the Sabres content to stick with last year's tandem of Alex Lyon and Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen or is that an area they could use some of their cap space to see upgraded? The Connor Hellebuyck buzz was loud over draft weekend. Key players hitting UFA: F Patrick Kane, F David Perron, G Cam Talbot Key players hitting RFA: D Simon Edvinsson, F Carter Mazur Cap space: $29.05 million What they should do: If there's a silver lining for GM Steve Yzerman heading into free agency, it's that captain Dylan Larkin gave him plenty of advance notice about wanting to get out of dodge. Yzerman can plan accordingly how he wants to honor that request while also handling some other serious in-house business. He's done just one thing so far: trading top goalie prospect Sebastian Cossa to Utah for the 23rd overall pick, which Detroit used on JP Hurlbert in Friday's first round. There's got to be more on the agenda. Edvinsson deserves a long-term contract reflective of his value as a top-four blueliner in Detroit for the bulk of his prime years. It would make sense for Yzerman to give another year to Kane for how he can still contribute at 5-on-5 and special teams with the added leadership element. Finding an upgrade over Talbot to backup John Gibson -- like Eric Comrie, perhaps? -- would give the Red Wings some peace of mind in the crease. From there, much of what Yzerman can do to improve Detroit upfront hinges on the Larkin deal. Who is

NHL free agency preview: How each team can earn an...

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