As we get closer to July 1st, we're going to see what looks like a robust list of free agents start to trickle down. Every year, we see teams ramp up their UFA negotiations before their rights become open to everyone. Many teams believe players will become more expensive when the bidding starts, and if they truly want to keep their player, they want to do it prior to July, and hopefully, in May.
The New York Islanders are looking at a new front office. After letting Lou Lamoriello go, the Islanders hired Mathieu Darche from the Tampa Bay Lightning. He's already making moves, saying he will keep Patrick Roy as the head coach. On Friday, the Islanders announced they were keeping an important free agent in house.
Kyle Palmieri re-signs with the New York Islanders, which removes a target of the New Jersey Devils.
More reporting found that Palmieri, who played with the New Jersey Devils from 2015 until he was traded along with Travis Zajac to the Islanders in 2021, was actually signed to this deal for a while. Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet reports that the deal, which comes with a $4.75 million average annual value, was agreed upon while Lamoriello was still in seat. Darche decided to honor the terms that were previously discussed according to the report.
The Devils would have loved to pair with Palmieri again, but they might have walked away from the price. Palmieri is worth a deal close to $5 million, but it would hold the Devils hostage on other deals they want to make. Palmieri would not turn the Devils into a Stanley Cup contender on his own, so using all their excess cap space on him wouldn't make a ton of sense.
It's a sad end to any possibility that Palmieri returns to New Jersey. The rumors have been there for a long time, as Palmieri reportedly really likes the area, but he chose to stay at the team he called home since he was traded in 2021.
The Devils will pivot to other free agents. We don't think they will pursue the top players, like Mitch Marner or Sam Bennett, because they need more than one player to enhance the offense of this roster. They need a top-down approach to fixing their forwards, and we could see a ton of movement.