NY Rangers Sign UFA Eeli Tolvanen
The #NYR and UFA F Eeli Tolvanen are closing on a 1 year deal. The deal is expected to be for $1.5M.
— PuckPedia (@PuckPedia) September 1, 2026
12G 36P in 78 GP
Rep'd by @mcurranjr @ORR4HOCKEY https://t.co/5iJxFtPFRO
Tolvanen, who registered 12 goals and 36 points for the Seattle Kraken last season, was one of the top UFAs remaining. Two years ago with the Kraken, the 27-year-old Finnish forward recorded a career-high 23 goals.
It's more than a 50% pay cut for Tolvanen, who came off a two-year, $3.475M AAV on his last deal.
Mentioned Tolvanen a few times earlier this summer as someone the #NYR had expressed interest in as part of their ongoing pursuit of forward help. They waited for price and term to get to a place they were comfortable, now sounds like the deal is close to add another top-9 option https://t.co/CN6DsYntap
— Vince Z. Mercogliano (@vzmercogliano) September 1, 2026
As Rangers insider Vince Z. Mercogliano notes, the Blueshirts waited for the price to come down before pouncing on Tolvanen, and says it's now at a place they were "comfortable" with.
He's been a pretty reliable secondary scorer the past few years, averaging 17 goals a season across the last four seasons. But he's also a strong defensive player for the third line. Despite his 5'10" stature, he also plays a physical game, and has averaged over 200 hits a season for the past three years.
Tolvanen was a first-round pick of the Nashville Predators in the 2017 NHL draft (30th overall). He spent his first 4+ seasons there, and had been with Seattle for most of the last four seasons.