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Andrew Mangiapane, Washington Capitals (Jess Starr/The Hockey Writers)

Oilers Got Good Value With Mangiapane & Frederic Deals

Originally posted on The Hockey Writers | By Matt Parks | Last updated Jul 2, 2025 3:15 PM ET

The NHL free agent market opened on Tuesday, as teams try to fill needs and bulk up their rosters ahead of the 2025-26 season. The Edmonton Oilers were fairly quiet on Day 1, due to their limited cap space. However, they made a few moves leading up to July 1, including trading Evander Kane to the Vancouver Canucks and re-signing pending unrestricted free agent Trent Frederic to an eight-year extension with a $3.85 million cap hit.

They also traded Viktor Arvidsson and his $4 million cap hit to the Boston Bruins for a fifth-round pick in 2027. There was no salary retention on the Kane and Arvidsson deals, allowing Edmonton to shed just under $9.2 million of salary.

Ahead of free agency, the Oilers had roughly $4.7 million to add to their forward group. Unless they traded Adam Henrique, they didn’t have enough to land one of the bigger fish like Nikolaj Ehlers or Brock Boeser, who re-signed with the Vancouver Canucks on Tuesday, so they shifted their attention to a cheaper middle-six forward.

That brings us to Andrew Mangiapane. The Oilers signed the 29-year-old forward to a two-year contract with a $3.6 million cap hit on July 1. He’s coming off a down season, recording 14 goals and 28 points in 81 games with the Washington Capitals, but he has had success in the past with the Calgary Flames. He had three seasons with 17 or 18 goals, and one incredible season in 2021-22, in which he scored 35 goals. He can score goals in a middle-six role, so this was a good move by Edmonton. The 5-foot-10, 183-pound winger added quality value on a day that saw some questionable contracts handed out.

NHL Free Agency Saw Some Crazy Deals

Some major contracts were handed out to start the free agent period. Tanner Jeannot was the most mind-blowing among forwards, signing a five-year deal with the Boston Bruins with a $3.4 million cap hit. Jeannot had seven goals and 13 points in 67 games last season with the Los Angeles Kings. He scored 24 goals in 2021-22, but has only netted 20 goals combined since then. Not only is his $3.4 million cap hit high for what he brings, but he also got term, which will likely age like milk.

The Philadelphia Flyers also signed Christian Dvorak to a one-year deal with a $5.4 million cap hit. The newest Flyer has hovered around the 28 to 38-point mark throughout his nine-year career, and the cap hit is steep for a 30-point producer, but at least Philadelphia isn’t locked in long-term.

Frederic’s deal was met with mixed reviews, but seeing what transpired on July 1, that deal is looking better and better. Then adding Mangiapane to the mix for $3.6 million on a two-year contract was a tidy piece of business from general manager Stan Bowman. If it doesn’t work out, Edmonton can trade him next offseason, like they did with Arvidsson. There was great value in these signings, which Edmonton needed given its salary cap situation.

Oilers Were Patient & Didn’t Overpay

The Oilers were patient and didn’t overpay for free agents, including their own. Most notably, they let Connor Brown and Corey Perry walk. Brown signed a four-year deal with a $3 million cap hit with the New Jersey Devils, and Perry signed a one-year contract with a $2 million cap hit with the Kings. Brown was a solid player for the Oilers, but Edmonton wasn’t in a position to offer him what he wanted.

The Oilers must get younger, and if they were going to bring Perry back, it needed to be for $1 million. Edmonton couldn’t afford to bring the 40-year-old back for any more than that. He chose the money, and Bowman was smart to walk away despite his incredible production during the playoffs. Father Time is undefeated, and Perry will regress significantly soon. He was a great addition, but it was time to move on.

Bowman didn’t panic and throw money at a player out of desperation. He waited until the end of the day and got a solid player on a reasonable contract. They have Frederic and Mangiapane at $7.4 million a season rather than Brown and Perry at $5 million. That’s a good trade-off, and it accomplished management’s goal of getting younger.

Did you like the Mangiapane signing, and did the Oilers get good value on him and Frederic based on the market? Keep following The Hockey Writers throughout the offseason.