Sneaky Good 10 NHL Free Agents Your Team Should Go After This Offseason

This summer's NHL unrestricted free agent class potentially will have a lot of superstars out there as part of it. Toronto's Mitch Marner and John Tavares, Detroit's Patrick Kane, Dallas's Matt Duchene and Colorado's Brock Nelson among them. You could mix in Sam Bennett, Claude Giroux, Brad Marchand, Taylor Hall and Aaron Ekblad in there as well. That's a lot of big names who could be in new places in the future.

Those guys are too obvious to pick out to analyze for the future, though, right? We know who they are, what they've done and what they can do. What we're after today are the guys who fly under the radar, the sneaky-good guys who could help your favorite team become a playoff or Stanley Cup contender by helping add something to the lineup that's been absent.

We've picked out 10 players who are set to be UFAs come July 1 (with help from PuckPedia) who could fit that description pretty well. These players can do a little (or a lot) of everything that gives them an edge in depth situations. So let's go and break it all down.

When the Jets landed Alex Iafallo as part of the Pierre-Luc Dubois trade a year ago, they knew they were getting a solid two-way player who'd been through the playoff wars with the Kings before. Ever since then, he's only gotten more assertive on the defensive side of the game.

Iafallo is one of a handful of Jets players who could hit free agency this summer. As a third—or fourth-line winger who can handle the defensive, checking side of the game well but also has some offensive touch (he's good for about 10-15 goals a year), he's a prototypical "glue" guy.

He's been a positive possession player at 5-on-5 throughout his career (only twice having a CF% below 50 percent) and the past four seasons he's had an expected goals-for percentage above 50 percent as well. You want sneaky value? He's your guy.

After a tough season a year ago with Columbus and the New York Rangers, Jack Roslovic found a way to maximize his time on ice to the highest degree with the Hurricanes this season.

Although Roslovic is averaging just under 14 minutes per game, he's put up 21 goals and 17 assists (38 points) through 77 games. He's one goal shy of tying his career-high he set in 2021-2022 with the Blue Jackets and doing it with a team that's a bonafide Stanley Cup contender can only make him shine a little brighter.

Roslovic has always been a fast skater and good on the forecheck, which is part of the reason why he's been so useful lower in the lineup in the past, but when you do all that and provide scoring punch? You should be in demand, and he will be if Carolina doesn't hang onto him first.

If depth scoring is what your team needs, then taking advantage of the Dallas Stars needing to be mindful of the salary cap next year could provide some solid options. One of them is winger Evgenii Dadonov.

Dadonov has 19 goals and 20 assists through 77 games, and for a guy playing an average of 13:29 per game, that's pretty solid output. Classically, Dadonov is good from the slot and the circles with his shot, whether it's the wrister or a slap shot, he wants to fire away.

You're not exactly signing him with defense at the front of your mind, but if a goal is what a team needs, he can do it from lower in the lineup and on the power play. At 36 years old, you know what you're going to get from him, and if that thing is "offense" then you're all set.

It's not always about offense in hockey, sometimes you need a guy to muck it up, get in on the forecheck and kill penalties. But what if you could get a guy who could do both?

The Canadiens have been able to have a lot of success this season on the penalty kill because of Armia. Montréal's PK is the 10th best in the league and Armia has been one of their time-on-ice leaders on the kill (second most among forwards behind Jake Evans). He's helped make it pay off for them as well by scoring three shorthanded goals this season.

He plays third- or fourth-line minutes for the Habs and he knows what his job is in that role. He's recorded 11 goals and 15 assists from that part of the lineup. Being able to threaten offense while killing penalties makes him a valuable role player.

It could be a painful summer in Vancouver when it comes to free agency.

Beloved goal-scoring forward Brock Boeser might be on his way out of town, but everyone is aware of Boeser by now. But if you've watched enough of the Canucks this season, there's a good chance you've noticed Pius Suter a bunch and may not have realized it.

Suter wins faceoffs, he plays well in his own end of the ice, and he can help generate offense as well as evidenced by the career-year he's having this season. He's got 24 goals and 21 assists for 45 points and despite all the tumult in Vancouver, Suter is thriving.

His all-around value should make him a valuable player on the market for teams in search of help at center in the middle of the lineup. The Canucks should be one of those teams, too, but they've got a lot to figure out.

One of the more surprising trades made by the Nashville Predators this season came when they sent Dante Fabbro to Columbus.

Fabbro has always been an under-the-radar blue liner, and it always felt like he never got his due, or minutes, because of being behind guys like Roman Josi, Mattias Ekholm and Ryan McDonagh. When things didn't quite pan out and it went south for the Preds, they moved on from Fabbro.

Fortunately for the Blue Jackets, he's done well in Columbus.

The Blue Jackets should want to keep Fabbro, but if he hits the market, the need for solid defensemen around the league should keep his agent's phone ringing. Fabbro had no points in six games with Nashville but put up seven goals and 16 assists in 58 games for the Jackets, putting him a point off his career high.

Fabbro's a right-shot defenseman, which means he would be in demand regardless, but if Columbus lets him get away, he won't be without a team for long.

The goaltending market for free agents this summer is going to be rail-thin, and if teams are hoping to upgrade their tandem by signing someone, they'll need to be quick about it. They also might want to take a look at Alex Lyon first.

Lyon has classically been a No. 3 goalie who's played his way into being a No. 1 or No. 2 by just doing his job better when called upon. He helped get the Florida Panthers to the playoffs two seasons ago, and he helped stabilize the Red Wings' net last season when Ville Husso struggled to both stay healthy and play well.

It hasn't gone quite as well for Lyon this season. His .896 save percentage in 28 games is his lowest since he had a .893 in 2021 with Philadelphia, although that was in just six games. At 32, he's one of the younger options out there, but when it comes to backups and depth, Lyon's been strong in recent years.

It's tough to be under the radar when you starred for Finland at the Four Nations Face-Off and your soon-to-expire contract came with a $5 million cap hit, but here we are with Mikael Granlund.

Granlund blends in well with the Stars' lineup, which has a bunch of guys that can attack the game offensively, but he's had a great season. His 22 goals are two shy of his career high and his 66 points are three points short of his best year. With Dallas, he's put up seven goals and 14 assists (21 points) in 28 games and made their forward group that much deeper.

Granlund may be the ideal player to help out a deep, contending team because his ability to generate offense lower in the lineup to take advantage of matchups makes him more dangerous. That said, he played very well with the Sharks this season in a more prominent role.

When it comes to defensemen who can help generate offense and move the puck up the ice, free agency can make finding the right guy a little tricky. That's why someone like Matt Grzelcyk can solve a team's problems with ease.

Grzelcyk is second among Penguins defensemen in points with 36. He trails Erik Karlsson (53), but he's ahead of Kris Letang (30). He's helped put up points at even strength as well as on the power play. That he's gotten power-play time when up against the likes of Karlsson and Letang speaks volumes to his ability.

Grzelcyk was a steady guy in his years with Boston and he's held his own in a bad year with Pittsburgh and for teams in need of puck mover, point scorer on the blue line, going with Grzelcyk could sneakily make them a lot deeper.

When the Capitals acquired Andrew Mangiapane from Calgary at the 2024 NHL Draft, it was one of those moves that felt like a sneaky great move for a team that was 100 percent going for broke to make the playoffs.

Although Mangiapane's numbers are down this season compared to his previous few with the Flames, the production is still there. His 14 goals and 14 assists in 77 games have come while he's averaged just under 13 minutes a game. With Calgary, he averaged 15:05 per game and had 35 goals three seasons ago.

Even though his goal numbers leveled out, he's still playing his hard, two-way style and helping produce from deeper in the Capitals' lineup. If he gets away from Washington and heads to free agency, he's a guy who will have a lot of teams calling him to fill that role for them and perhaps try to get him back to being a goal hound around the net.