On Saturday, 21 graduating college senior prospects -- including the Penguins' Nikita Pavlychev and Ryan Jones -- went unsigned by the 5 p.m. deadline and are now unrestricted free agents, free to sign with any team.
The players either did not receive an offer from the team that owned their rights, or they could be holding out to test the free agent market and see if a better opportunity arises elsewhere. In the case of Pavlychev, the Penguins offered him an AHL-level contract and not an NHL one, so Pavlychev will test the market to see if he can get an NHL contract in another organization.