- John Klingberg is still unsigned weeks into NHL free agency
- He scored 10 goals for the Sharks last season, his most since 2018-19
- Read below for the teams that fit as a landing spot
John Klingberg is still looking for a job.
Free agency opened on July 1, and weeks later the veteran defenseman has not signed anywhere. The market has been quiet on him for a reason. Klingberg turns 34 this summer and has fought injuries for a couple of years now.
That is a little surprising given how he played. Klingberg put up 10 goals and 27 points in 56 games with the Sharks last season, his most goals in a year since 2018-19, back when he was running Dallas’s power play.
Here’s Klingberg capping a San Jose comeback against Pittsburgh in overtime last December:
The injury history is the sticking point. A serious hip problem wiped out most of his 2023-24 season in Toronto and put his career in real doubt. He is not the guy who logged big minutes for Dallas anymore.
He clawed back, though. A midseason deal with Edmonton in 2024-25 got him going again, and he closed strong in the playoffs. Then he took a one-year, $4 million flier from San Jose and finished second among Sharks defensemen in scoring.
So where does he land? A return to Anaheim reads as the cleanest fit. The Ducks lost John Carlson, Jacob Trouba, and Radko Gudas this offseason and could still use a right-handed puck-mover, per Pro Hockey Rumors. Klingberg already spent part of 2022-23 in Orange County.
Boston has been floated too. The Bruins still have room on the right side and a power play that could use some help from the back end.
Whoever signs him is betting the offense outweighs the defensive warts. Pair Klingberg with a stay-at-home partner on a cheap one-year deal, and that is a gamble plenty of teams can stomach. He is one of the better names left on a thinning free agent market.
