Chris Kreider is heading into the market as an unrestricted free agent after clearing unconditional waivers on Thursday, a move that lets the Anaheim Ducks terminate his contract by mutual consent.
For the Ducks, it’s a clean financial reset. The deal opens up $6.5 million in cap space for a club that needed relief, and ESPN’s Emily Kaplan reported that Kreider would now prefer to return East.
Kreider, 35, gave Anaheim a productive season before this split. He scored 22 goals and finished with 50 points in 75 games, then added two goals and seven points in 12 playoff games before the Ducks were bounced in the second round.
“I want to thank Chris for his efforts last year and recognize the professionalism he and his representatives demonstrated throughout this process,” Ducks general manager Pat Verbeek said in a statement released by the team. “Our rationale here is straightforward: We needed to create salary cap flexibility, and this accomplishes that.
Kreider arrived in Anaheim in June of 2025, when the Ducks acquired him from the New York Rangers for prospect Carey Terrance and a fourth-round pick. He was in the final season of a seven-year, $45.5 million contract that carried a $6.5 million cap hit. The 15-team no-trade clause in that deal mattered, too, and he was set to be paid $4 million in salary before walking away from it.
The 6-foot-3 winger leaves with a strong career resume. Drafted 19th overall by the Rangers in 2009, Kreider has 348 goals and 632 points in 958 NHL games between New York and Anaheim. He was part of the Rangers team that reached the Stanley Cup Final in 2013-14, their first trip there since 1994, and his biggest offensive year came in 2021-22, when he piled up 52 goals and 77 points in 81 games.
Kreider also represented the United States at the 4 Nations Face-Off in 2025, though he did not make the Olympic team earlier this year.
The Ducks’ cap maneuver also puts a spotlight on Cutter Gauthier, who had been waiting on a new deal as a restricted free agent. With Kreider off the books, Anaheim should have more than $15.5 million in cap space, according to PuckPedia.
Gauthier’s number has only climbed this summer. The Ducks matched the five-year, $90 million offer sheet the Philadelphia Flyers gave Leo Carlsson in July, and since then Connor Bedard signed a five-year deal with a $15 million cap hit, Macklin Celebrini agreed to an eight-year extension at $18.8 million, and Cale Makar topped that with an eight-year extension carrying a $20.4 million cap hit.
Speaking at the NHL/NHLPA media tour in Las Vegas on Wednesday, Carlsson said Kreider understood what the move meant for the team.
“Chris, he’s leaving, but he’s also really happy for me, as well,” Carlsson told Mark Lazerus of The Athletic. “It’s a hard business.”
Gauthier led the Ducks in scoring last season with 41 goals and 69 points in 76 games, becoming just the third player in franchise history to hit 40 goals, joining Teemu Selanne and Corey Perry. He followed that with four goals and 12 points in 12 playoff games before Anaheim was eliminated in the second round.
Gauthier is among the remaining restricted free agents, alongside Columbus Blue Jackets forward Adam Fantilli and Carolina Hurricanes blueliner Alexander Nikishin, and he was not eligible for an offer sheet this summer.
In Other News...
Rangers Bottom-Six Battle Just Got More Complicated After Tolvanen Signing
Eeli Tolvanens one-year deal with the Rangers adds another layer to a bottom-six competition that was already going to be tight as camp settles into roster decisions. A $1.5 million cap hit is manageable, but the real effect is on how the club sorts out its forwards, especially when it comes to who is on the opening-night roster and who may have to start in Hartford.
The signing also sharpens the pressure around the fringe of the lineup, where several players are fighting for limited spots and the margin for error is thin. With line combinations still being sorted and waiver rules very much in play, the Rangers suddenly have more to weigh than just who fits best on paper, and less room to keep everyone they might want to keep. [Read more 🡒]
Rangers Prospects Have An Early Chance To Force Tough Camp Decisions
The Rangers are getting an early look at their next wave this week, with prospects headed to Allentown, Pa., for two rookie games against the Flyers. It is a useful first checkpoint for a 26-man camp roster built mostly from drafted and signed prospects, along with a couple players who have already seen limited NHL action. Before the real camp battles begin, this is the kind of setting where young players can start separating themselves and putting a little pressure on the decisions that follow.
For several of the rookies, this will be their first game action in the organization, including a big chunk of this years draft class. Jay Leach, hired recently to coach Hartford, is also making his organizational debut while handling rookie camp practices and games, which gives the Rangers another fresh eye on a group trying to make a first impression. The results in September do not settle anything, but they can shape the conversation fast, especially for prospects who know they are already on the clock. [Read more 🡒]
Rangers May Have A Will Cuylle Extension Blueprint At Last
The Bruins may have handed the Rangers a useful reference point in the case of Fraser Minten, whose new long-term deal came after a strong season and a clear rise in value. For New York, the comparison naturally turns to Will Cuylle, whose own trajectory has put him in the conversation as one of the more important young pieces in the organization. The appeal is obvious: if a player with Mintens profile can be locked in before the market gets even pricier, the same logic could apply to a winger the Rangers already view as part of their future.
Cuylles situation, though, comes with the usual New York complications. The Rangers are still sorting out a roster that needs both flexibility and impact, and any extension discussion has to fit into a cap picture that leaves little room for easy moves. Even so, the broader lesson is hard to ignore. Teams that want to build around homegrown talent usually have to act before the price climbs too far, and the Rangers may now have a blueprint worth studying if they want to keep Cuylle in place for the long haul. [Read more 🡒]