1. The deadline for NHL teams to qualify pending restricted free agents came and went on Monday, and a handful of players who were once highly touted are set to enter unrestricted free agency. The Rangers didn’t make any shocking decisions, as the writing had been on the wall regarding Brandon Pirri, Mackenzie Skapski, and Adam Clendening for some time. As for the other 29 teams that had to extend qualifying offers, there were a number of interesting decisions made that the another franchise could benefit from.
Of all of the players set to enter unrestricted free agency earlier than they would have liked, Nail Yakupov is the skater with the most buzz surrounding him.