Offer Sheets

An offer sheet is a contract offered to a restricted free agent (RFA) by a team other than the player's current team. If the player signs the offer sheet, their original team has the right to match the terms or receive compensation in the form of draft picks if they choose not to match.

Offer Sheet Eligibility Rules

Restricted Free Agent Status

Only players classified as restricted free agents (RFAs) can sign offer sheets. Typically, RFAs have completed their entry-level contracts but haven't accrued enough NHL seasons or reached a certain age to become unrestricted free agents.  Only RFA's can receive offer sheets, players who have not yet qualified for RFA status (known as 10.2.c players) are not eligible for offer sheets.  To qualify for RFA status (and eligible to receive an offer sheet), a player must have the following experience:

Age means a Player's age on September 15 of the calendar year in which he signs his ELC, regardless of his actual age when he signs.
A player aged 18 or 19 earns a year of professional experience by playing ten (10) or more NHL Games in a given NHL Season, and a Player aged 20 or older (or who turns 20 between September 16 and December 31 of the year in which he signs his
ELC) earns a year of professional experience by playing ten (10) or more Professional Games under contract in a given League Year.

Qualifying Offer Received

To retain RFA rights, a team must extend a qualifying offer to the player. If no qualifying offer is provided, the player becomes an unrestricted free agent and is no longer eligible for an offer sheet.

Compensation Requirements

If the original team does not match an offer sheet, they receive draft pick compensation based on the annual average value (AAV) of the new contract. Higher-value contracts result in greater compensation.

Matching Period

After an offer sheet is signed, the player's current team has 7 days to decide whether to match the offer or accept draft pick compensation.

Compensation Draft Pick Rules

Teams must use their own original draft picks as offer sheet compensation—they cannot use picks acquired from other teams. If multiple picks from the same round are owed, teams are granted extra years to fulfill the requirement (e.g., owing two picks from the same round gives the team three drafts to deliver them).

Check out the Offer Sheet Tracker to review which teams currently meet the necessary compensation ranges.