Each offseason brings a familiar deadline for collegiate players whose NHL draft rights are still hanging in the balance. If they haven’t signed with the club that drafted them, or the team that owns their signing rights, they can become unrestricted free agents on August 15.
The process starts once a player completes his fourth season of NCAA competition and notifies the NHL Central Registry that he is no longer enrolled in a college or university. From there, the clock runs out for the team holding his rights.
This year, the biggest name in that group is Cruz Lucius, who belongs to the Pittsburgh Penguins. He played last season at Arizona State University and put up 15 goals and 46 points in 36 games.
Here’s the full list of collegiate players whose draft rights are set to expire in a few days unless they reach an agreement with their current NHL team:
Anaheim Ducks: F Kyle Kukkonen (2021, 162nd overall)
Boston Bruins: D Mason Langenbrunner (2020, 151st overall); G Philip Svedebäck (2021, 117th overall); F Oskar Jellvik (2021, 149th overall)
Buffalo Sabres: F Stiven Sardaryan (2021, 88th overall)
Detroit Red Wings: F Kienan Draper (2020, 187th overall)
Montreal Canadiens: F Jack Smith (2020, 102nd overall)
Nashville Predators: F Adam Ingram (2022, 82nd overall); F Benjamin Strinden (2022, 210th overall); F Sutter Muzzatti (2023, 143rd overall)
New Jersey Devils: F Samu Salminen (2021, 68th overall); D Charlie Leddy (2022, 126th overall)
New York Islanders: D Ryan Healey (2022, 121st overall)
Ottawa Senators: F Tyson Dyck (2022, 206th overall)
Philadelphia Flyers: F Owen McLaughlin (2021, 206th overall)
Pittsburgh Penguins: F Cruz Lucius (2022, 124th overall)
Toronto Maple Leafs: F Joe Miller (2020, 180th overall)
Utah Mammoth: D Cal Thomas (2021, 171st overall)
Vegas Golden Knights: D Noah Ellis (2020, 184th overall)
Washington Capitals: G Chase Clark (2021, 183rd overall); D Joaquim Lemay (2021, 119th overall)
In Other News...
Charlie Lindgren Faces Big Capitals Test As Spotlight Returns
The Capitals are headed into a demanding 2026-27 schedule, with 14 back-to-backs that will keep the goaltending picture front and center for long stretches. For Washington, that means Logan Thompson will need a reliable partner to handle his share of the workload, and Charlie Lindgren remains the backup the team is counting on to steady those nights and keep the net from becoming a nightly concern.
Lindgrens last season was a tough one by his standards, finishing with a .879 save percentage in 21 games, but the organization is still encouraged by the way he has handled difficult assignments. General manager Chris Patrick has spoken positively about Lindgrens effort and his place on the roster, and now the spotlight returns with a simple question for Washington: can the veteran backup turn a rough year into something much more dependable when the calendar gets crowded? [Read more 🡒]
Capitals System Adds A Notable Brother Duo With A Bigger Story
The Capitals organization has added a familiar kind of depth move, with the South Carolina Stingrays bringing in Luke Prokop and Josh Prokop on contracts for the 2026-27 season. It is the sort of transaction that usually sits quietly on the transaction wire, but this one carries a little more weight because both brothers arrive with meaningful pro experience and a track record that stretches beyond the ECHL.
Luke Prokop has already spent time in the AHL and made history as the first NHL-contracted player to come out as gay, while Josh Prokop recently played professionally in Denmark and also has AHL experience. Their arrivals add another brother duo to the Capitals system, a small but notable layer to an organization that already has multiple sibling pairs in the pipeline. [Read more 🡒]