When the final pick of the 2024 NHL draft is selected, there could be less than 48 hours before the first unrestricted free agent formally switches teams in the offseason.
July 1 is when the "frenzy" begins, but the chaos should precede that for weeks. There are prominent players seeking new contracts, teams jockeying to solve significant lineup problems via trade and a salary cap that jumped a little higher than expected as a catalyst for even more player movement.
How much more will be entirely contingent on the teams.
"It depends on what some of these teams are going to do in the next two, three weeks contractually with their own players," New Jersey Devils GM Tom Fitzgerald said. "Do some guys hit the market or not?"
After conversing with NHL team executives and player agents over the past few weeks, here's a glimpse of how they see the offseason landscape.