Morning Chirps: Pridham Changes Plans, Top Free Agent Targets Off the Board

July 1 is here, but today’s free agency frenzy won’t be much of a frenzy at all after many top targets re-signed with their teams. The Chicago Blackhawks extended a trio of qualifying offers, while a prospect is changing his plans for the 2025-26 season.

Blackhawks Chirps

• As reported by Ben Pope of the Chicago Sun-Times, the Blackhawks extended qualifying offers to defenseman Wyatt Kaiser and Louis Crevier, and goaltender Arvid Soderblom. Those players not getting qualifying offers and thus becoming unrestricted free agents are forwards Philipp Kurashev, Cole Guttman, Jalen Luypen, Aku Raty, and Antti Saarela. It’s crazy how fast Kurashev went from being Connor Bedard’s running mate to out of the organization.
• Be sure to check in all day today, as I will be doing a live blog of today’s free agency action. Well, what’s left of the free agency market.
• Blackhawks great Brent Seabrook was added to the Calgary Flames’ Player Development staff. According to the press release, he will be responsible for “working with the NHL Flames and AHL Wranglers’ players in honing their professional development.”
• Ryan Sikes reported that 2024 third-round pick Jack Pridham will no longer attend Boston University in the fall. Instead, he will sign with the Blackhawks and return to the Kitchener Rangers for another season. He scored 27 goals and 54 points in 48 OHL games last season.
• The Rockford IceHogs re-signed forward Jackson Cates to a one-year AHL contract. The 27-year-old had nine goals and 16 points in 64 games last season.
• On this date in 2009, the Blackhawks made their greatest free-agent acquisition by signing Hall of Famer Marian Hossa to a 12-year, $63.3 million deal. He scored 186 goals and 415 points in 534 games, won three Stanley Cups, and has his No. 81 hanging in the United Center rafters.
• Blackhawks Birthday Roll Call, July 1: Les Ramsay, Mike Eastwood, and Adam Berti.

NHL Chirps

• The Vegas Golden Knights acquired Mitch Marner and his newly signed eight-year, $96 million deal. All they had to give up was forward Nicolas Roy. At least the Toronto Maple Leafs get something out of it. Marner took less money than he would likely have received on the open market today. Some will argue that it’s due to Nevada’s lack of state income tax. That is a factor, but players will also take money to play for a team that is committed to winning.  Hannah Kirkell of Vegas Hockey Nowwrites that Marner and Jack Eichel form a “storybook revenge duo.” I saw Storybook Revenge Duo open for the Violent Femmes in ’96.
• It wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows in Sin City yesterday. Alex Pietrangelo and the Golden Knights released statements that the veteran defenseman will miss the 2025-26 season, and his playing days might be over. I’m not saying there are shenanigans involved, but it’s always amusing how Vegas seems to sustain a serious injury after a significant acquisition.
• The Florida Panthers have re-signed all three of their big pending unrestricted free agents. Just days after signing Sam Bennett to an eight-year contract extension, they inked defenseman Aaron Ekblad to an eight-year, $48.8 million contract. Bill Zito didn’t stop there, as he then handed out a six-year, $31.5 million contract to Brad Marchand. You know a general manager is feeling invincible when he gives a six-year deal to a 37-year-old.
• The Edmonton Oilers signed defenseman Evan Bouchard to a four-year, $42 million contract extension.
• Patrick Kane is returning to the Detroit Red Wings for another season. He inked a one-year contract extension with a $3 million base salary and up to another $4 million in performance bonuses.
• Other players who were taken off the free agent market and re-signed with their old teams included Nick Cousins (Ottawa), Steven Lorentz (Toronto), Ivan Provorov (Columbus), and Andrei Kuzmenko (Los Angeles).
• NHL Birthday Roll Call, July 1: Rod Gilbert, Steve Shutt, Shawn Burr, Dan McGillis, Jarome Iginla, Chris Tierney, and Pierre-Oliver Joseph.