Happy Tuesday y'all!

What a start to the postseason! Minnesota coming in hot and Dallas with a great bounce back, the back and forth in Tampa Bay, Vegas bullying Utah, Philadelphia dominating the battle of Pennsylvania, the comeback in Buffalo. It has been exciting thus far and we have only just begun!

With the end of the regular season, half of the league has turned their focus to the draft and free agency. I'm going to look at a few free agents and who they lined up with in 2025-26 and what team would be a good fit for said free agent.

Alex Tuch, RW – Buffalo Sabres

Tuch still has a lot to play for as, if you haven't heard, Buffalo is in the playoffs for the first time in 15 years. The Syracuse native had 33 goals and 33 assists in the regular season and grew up a Sabres fan so it would be tough to see him leave, but with the rising cap and depending on how he does in the postseason, he could cash out big time as he is one of the key names in free agency. This is especially true since he signed a long-term contract for his second deal, he has been underpaid for the majority of this one.

He found most of his success this season with Tage Thompson and Peyton Krebs on Buffalo's top line, but was on their second power-play unit for most of the campaign. Tuch is a big boy, and Thompson is just as big. Those two big boys, with the speed and skill they possess, are tough to find. Paired with a playmaker like Krebs has made this one of the top lines in the league for the last two months of the season.

It would be difficult to find another situation like this, especially if he is going to cash in and take on a big chunk of a team's cap. Being a Sabres fan growing up and with how the team finished the regular season and made the playoffs, I can't see Tuch leaving. He and Sabres management will find a deal that makes both sides happy to keep him in the fold.

Alex Ovechkin, LW – Washington Capitals

The league's all-time leading goal scorer had 32 goals and 32 assists in the 2025-26 season, but he will be 41 before the next season starts. Obviously at this stage, you know what kind of player you are getting with Ovechkin; a pure offensive winger whose defensive starts you can count on one hand. All Ovi needs is to play with a defensively responsible center who can pass the puck. Dylan Strome had that title this year, but with the Capitals trying to push the youth movement, and the number of young bucks they have, maybe they do the unthinkable and not offer him an extension?

If that were the case, we know a lot of his fellow countrymen like it down in Florida. Neither of those teams would be able to offer him a ton of money, but he could be a middle six winger with all the power-play minutes. Imagine him on an extra man unit with Nikita Kucherov with the Lightning or on a powerplay with Aleksander Barkov and Sam Reinhart, Ovechkin could hit 900 goals next year. 

Anthony Mantha, LW/RW – Pittsburgh Penguins

You can tell this is a depleted free agency class when Mantha was the third leading scorer for forwards going into the summer. The winger signed a one-year prove-it deal with the Penguins last offseason and he will be 32 years old at the start of the 2026-27 campaign. The big key for him this season was his ability to play (almost) a full season, which led to a career high across the board in goals, assists, and points. The line of him, Evgeni Malkin, and Justin Brazeau was one of the biggest on record and with their size, speed, and skill, they were able to dominate others and that led to a career year for Brazeau, as well as a resurgence for Malkin.

Mantha has an incredible shot and great speed for a player of his size. Given his age and band-aid boy certification, I think it is more important for him to find an organization that has a top training staff than compatible linemates. He will most certainly receive a payday; his new team will just have to manage how he is deployed and keep him fresh throughout the season.

If you have any offseason questions, feel free to reach out on Twitter, @LAM1926. Have a great week everyone!