When the NHL’s 2026-27 season begins, most, if not all, players will have something to prove. Whether it’s rookies trying to make their mark or veterans still trying to win a Stanley Cup, there’s no shortage of NHLers who need to demonstrate their value.
However, some big-name players in particular have something more to prove. Most of whom are joining a new team, earning an elevated role, signing a new contract or working toward a new deal.
In alphabetical order, here are six of those players,
BOWEN BYRAM, D, CHICAGO BLACKHAWKS
If Bowen Byram’s acquisition by the Chicago Blackhawks from the Buffalo Sabres didn’t put enough pressure on the 25-year-old defenseman – Chicago traded the fourth-overall draft pick in exchange for Byram – he signed a massive contract extension paying him $12.5 million beginning in the 2027-28 season. And that contract extension has instantly, drastically ratcheted up expectations on Byram, even if his salary doesn’t rise exponentially until after this coming campaign.
The Blackhawks will be paying Byram like a superstar, but the best single-season numbers he’s produced thus far in his career are 31 assists and 42 points. That’s not truly elite. So Byram must either evolve into a No. 1 D-man for Chicago, or hear all sorts of criticism of his new deal.
DARNELL NURSE, D, SAN JOSE SHARKS
Darnell Nurse’s tumultuous career with the Edmonton Oilers ended July 1 when he was traded to the San Jose Sharks essentially in a salary dump. The 31-year-old blueliner is on a contract paying him $9.25 million for four more seasons.
Although many Oilers fans are glad Nurse is gone, he generated six assists in 10 games at the 2026 IIHF World Championship – and that’s what Sharks GM Mike Grier wants to see from Nurse.
The Sharks are moving straight ahead into a new generation for the franchise, but their D-corps needed experience, and that’s what Nurse brings. He’s no superstar D-man, but he still has good hockey left in him. Nurse is now under pressure to show what he can do after a change of scenery.
DARREN RADDYSH, D, TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS
Darren Raddysh emerged as a high-impact defenseman this past season, producing 22 goals and 70 points in 73 games with the Tampa Bay Lightning. The 30-year-old converted that into a stunning pay raise after the Bolts traded his signing rights to the Toronto Maple Leafs in late June.
But Raddysh must demonstrate he can generate that type of offense and impact year in and year out and that 2025-26 wasn't a fluke.
Raddysh’s new contract pays him an average of $8.5 million per year for the next eight seasons. Considering he’ll turn 31 in February, that’s a significant gamble by the Leafs.
Raddysh doesn’t need to lead the league in scoring, but he does have to consistently contribute an above-average amount of points. If he can’t, the Maple Leafs are going to find Raddysh’s contract an albatross.
JASON ROBERTSON, LW, DALLAS STARS
Jason Robertson entered this off-season as one of the most high-profile RFAs – and the Dallas Stars had to either allow Robertson to go into arbitration or sign Robertson to some sort of deal for the 2026-27 campaign. And that latter move is what transpired when Dallas signed Robertson to a one-year, $12-million contract. But Robertson’s new contract walks him to being a UFA next summer.
Thus, Robertson has great motivation for this coming season. At 27 years old, he’ll want to hit a home run with his next contract. Whether that comes with the Stars or a different team is to be determined, but consistent 40-goal-scorers like Robertson don’t come along every day, and now he must prove he’s worth a long-term investment.
BRADY TKACHUK, LW, FLORIDA PANTHERS
As the centerpiece of one of this off-season’s biggest blockbuster trades, Brady Tkachuk joins brother Matthew to form one of the NHL’s most-frightening sibling acts.
The price the Florida Panthers paid to acquire Brady Tkachuk from the Ottawa Senators wasn’t small, but now he must prove Florida GM Bill Zito was right to give him his best chance at a championship.
Tkachuk has two years left on a contract paying $8.2 million per season, and he now has to show that scoring over 30 goals and 70 points, feats he reached in two separate seasons, is something he can do again. The Panthers are challenged to make the playoffs in the hyper-competitive Atlantic Division, but the 26-year-old has to show he’s an elite performer.
ALEX TUCH, RW, WASHINGTON CAPITALS
Not only did Alex Tuch get a gigantic raise on the $4.75 million he made this past season in Buffalo, but his new salary of $10.5 million per season makes him the Washington Capitals’ highest-paid player next year.
Tuch has produced at least 30 goals in three of the past four years, but nothing less than a 30-goal campaign in 2026-27 will satisfy Washington fans who want their team back in the post-season after the Caps failed to get there in 2025-26.
Tuch is now 30 years old, and he’s got to keep his nose to the grindstone as the Capitals move into a new generation. The Caps will depend on Tuch to put up solid offensive numbers, and his contributions as Washington’s power forward will go a long way toward determining how successful the Capitals will be next season.
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