Anticipation Second Wave of Free Agent Signings Coming in the NHL

It’s been more than 30 days since the last unrestricted free agent was signed in the NHL. The Edmonton Oilers grabbed forward Dominik Kahun and the marketplace has gone radio quiet since November 2, 2020. Knowing that there are a number of talented players still on the NHL UFA market, what’s the reason for such inactivity?

Related: Three Teams In on Mikael Granlund in NHL Free Agency

Let's acknowledge where the NHL is at the moment.

– No 1-way UFA deals have been signed in a month.
– No trades since Canadian Thanksgiving.
– Nothing on the schedule. No games. No camp.

This isn't the offseason, it's the second pause of 2020: https://t.co/rI1H1Gfmlz

— Thomas Drance (@ThomasDrance) December 2, 2020

Thomas Drance of the Athletic took a look at the lack of player movement and names coming off the free agency board. He cites that agents have said that little will happen with so much uncertainty surrounding the NHL right now.

Drance quotes one agent who said, “We want to see what develops out of this. He added, “At this point, it doesn’t make sense to do something until we know what things look like.” So, while everyone waits, there’s not a lot to except speculate.

The good news is that this won’t last forever.

A Second Wave Is Coming

Drance adds that at some point, when things are settled, there will be another run of trades and signings. This could pose for a very busy few days after the NHL and the NHLPA comes to an agreement or the league decides the format of how the 2020-21 NHL season will go.

Noting that the NHL may be deliberately keeping details of what’s coming quiet so that bigger market clubs don’t exploit any new rules and gain a competitive edge, Drance explains:

There is widespread anticipation that once the NHL and the NHLPA come to a revised agreement for the new season, a second wave of offseason activity will begin. This will have to be the case, it seems, since there’s a couple of teams that will need to clear cap space in trades just to be cap compliant. And, of course, there are some very good UFAs still unsigned.

Once the action starts up again, expect names like Mike Hoffman, Mikael Granlund, Ilya Kovalchuk, Corey Perry, Anthony Duclair, and Andreas Athanasiou to come off the board rather quickly. On defense options like Zdeno Chara and Travis Hamonic should move fast.

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