NHL Free Agency 2015 Kickoff Thread: Sign everyone!

The NHL free agency period formally kicks off today at 12 p.m. EDT, though teams have been allowed to flirt with free agents during this brief window between the draft and today. (And apparently, agents wish the window was longer...of course they do!)

That flirtation window has allowed non-tampering rumblings to emerge about which teams are interested in which players -- including, the Flyers and Oilers both reportedly interested in New York Islanders goalie Michal Neuvirth.

This is your discussion thread for the action-half of the day (it follows up on our morning news roundup thread.) For Islanders news updates, we'll add stories to our Free Agency stream. And don't forget to print out and use your Offseason Wishlist Template, which has spots for all your rage needs.

For breaking news and reports, the curated list of Twitter users at the bottom of this post will keep you up with some of the Isles and NHL banter from us or trusted sources. (And yes, I mean "or" there.)

If you're in an OFFER SHEET EVERYONE frame of mind, here is an awesome list of what teams have the picks to offer sheet at what level:

Here are the teams that can send an offer sheet and at what salary range. pic.twitter.com/TboiHnmjCc

— Days of Y'Orr (@DaysofYOrr) July 1, 2015

What Will the Islanders Do?

The Isles are not expected to be too active, but you never know. Last weekend they "were not expected" to have a first round pick, and they ended up with two.

The roster is already deep at forward, but they have reportedly shopped Michael Grabner around, and they could stand to add a veteran defenseman. Backup goalie is the primary need, though they won't necessarily outspend people to consummate that on Day 1.

Here is a list of the top 40 free agents according to TSN, with quick commentary on a few names as they stood entering the signing period:

Potential Backup Goalies

• Michal Neuvirth
• Thomas Greiss
• Karri Ramo (signed a one-year extension for $3.9 million)
  
• Ray Emery

Productive But Pricey and Unlikely for the Isles

• Justin Williams
• Francois Beauchemin
• Michael Frolik
• Alexander Semin
  
• Matt Beleskey ("6-8 teams chasing, 5-7 year deal expected")
  
• Mike Green
• Paul Martin (a "number of offers ranging from one-year to multi-year," with Sharks believed in the lead)
  
• Zbynek Michalek
• Joel Ward (eight -- eight! -- teams reportedly chasing)
  

Scrap Heap

• Eric Fehr
• Jon Moore
• Brad Richards
• Daniel Winnik
• Blake Comeau
• Martin Erat
• Sean Bergenheim

Tweets from https://twitter.com/LHHockey/lists/isles-and-nhl

Further, SB Nation's free agency hub has stories of the day from all over our network of hockey blogs.

Enjoy!