As is typical in Anaheim, the Ducks sat back and watched the world burn on the first day of free agency. Detroit went ahead and attempted to postpone their inevitable rebuild. The Islanders allowed the master to give the apprentice the only remaining shred of hope that franchise had, after a decade of wandering in purgatory. They then compounded that by offering up a clutch of horrible contracts for some of the lesser players on offer in the free agent class, ensuring that they would remain mediocre for the next half decade.
Perhaps more pertinent to the Ducks themselves, the Vancouver Canucks went ahead and piled up a whole bunch of money and burnt it in a pile on the ground.