Welcome to NHL Contracts 101. I’ll be your professor. Look, we’re both hungover, we might as well just get through this.
There are two types of free agents—that is, players who do not currently have an NHL contract and are not unsigned draft picks. They are unrestricted free agents and restricted free agents. Today we’re talking about the latter.
If a restricted free agent reaches the end of his contract on July 1st, and he has not signed an extension, he is free to negotiate with other teams. Those teams can send the player a contract offer.