ALBANY, NY — The NHL’s free agency period began Friday at high noon and the New Jersey Devils were extremely active. The team inked eight players, including defenseman Ben Lovejoy, who won the Cup with the Penguins last season, center Vernon Fiddler, and three of their own free agents: forwards Devante Smith-Pelly and Beau Bennett, and defenseman Jon Merrill.

The team also agreed to deals with defensemen Andrew MacWilliam and Karl Stollery, and right wing Carter Camper.

MacWilliam, Stollery and Camper each signed two-way contracts, meaning they very well could be playing for Albany during the 2016-17 season.

>> Coming

• Carter Camper // One-Year, Two-Way

Camper, who will turn 28 on July 6, spent last season with Hershey (AHL) scoring nine goals and 25 assists for 34 points and 16 penalty minutes in 64 games played. He spent parts of six previous seasons with AHL teams in Binghamton, Springfield and Providence. In 328 career AHL contests, he has 65 goals and 169 assists for 234 points with 82 penalty minutes and participated in the 2011-12 AHL All-Star Game. He has also skated in 38 Calder Cup Playoff games, tallying 15 goals, 20 assists and 35 points with two penalty minutes. He finished second among all skaters with 17 points (nine goals and eight assists) in 21 games during the 2016 Calder Cup Playoffs. During the 2011-12 season, he skated in three games with the Boston Bruins, scoring his first career NHL goal.

• Andrew MacWilliam // One-Year, Two-Way

MacWilliam, 26, spent last season with Manitoba (AHL) scoring one goal and 14 assists for 15 points and 86 penalty minutes in 72 games played. He spent two-plus seasons, 2012-13 through 2014-15, with the Toronto organization. That stint included playing 12 games with the parent club in 2014-15, notching two assists. He was the Maple Leafs’ eighth choice (seventh round) and the 188th overall selection in the 2008 NHL Entry Draft.

• Karl Stollery // One-Year, Two-Way

Stollery, 28, spent last season with San Jose (AHL) scoring six goals and 18 assists for 24 points and 65 penalty minutes in 67 games played. He spent four-plus seasons, 2011-12 through 2014-15, with the Colorado organization before being traded to the San Jose Sharks, March 2, 2015. That stint included playing seven games over two seasons with the Avalanche from 2013-15, as well as playing five NHL games for the Sharks in 2015. Undrafted, Stollery was signed as a free agent by Colorado May 2, 2013.

<< Going

• Pierre-Luc Letourneau-Leblond // Tampa Bay Lightning (Syracuse Crunch) // One-Year, Two-Way

Letourneau-Leblond played in 52 games with the Albany Devils last season, notching one goal and six points. His 131 penalty minutes led the team. The Levis, Que., native has skated in 448 career AHL games, amassing 1,692 penalty minutes while recording 26 goals and 39 assists for 65 points. He has also played in 41 career NHL games with New Jersey, Calgary and Pittsburgh, recording three assists and 101 penalty minutes.

• Matt Lorito // Detroit Red Wings (Grand Rapids Griffins) // Two-Years, Two-Way

Lorito, 25, ranked sixth among AHL rookies in scoring with 54 points (18 goals, 36 assists) while appearing in 71 AHL games with the Devils in 2015-16. Lorito led the Devils in assists and points and tied for second on the club with a plus-16 rating. The native of Oakville, Ont., added three goals and four assists for seven points in 11 games during the 2016 Calder Cup Playoffs.

• Jim O’Brien // Colorado Avalanche (San Antonio Rampage) // One-Year, Two-Way

O’Brien, 27, was Ottawa’s first-round pick (29th overall) in the 2007 Entry Draft. A Calder Cup winner with Binghamton in 2011, O’Brien has 79 goals and 105 assists for 184 points in 322 AHL games with Binghamton, Hershey and Albany. Last season, O’Brien appeared in 56 regular-season contests with Albany, registering 19 goals and 19 assists. He also skated in four NHL contests with New Jersey.

• Mike Sislo // Colorado Avalanche (San Antonio Rampage) // One-Year, Two-Way

Sislo, 28, had a career year in 2015-16, registering 27 goals and 26 assists for 53 points in 57 games with Albany (AHL) while picking up three goals and an assist in 18 NHL games with New Jersey, including scoring his first two NHL goals in the same game — Mar. 17 vs. Minnesota. A native of Superior, Wis., Sislo also represented the Devils at the 2016 AHL All-Star Classic. Sislo has played 304 career AHL games, all with Albany, and has amassed 92 goals and 95 assists for 187 points. He has three goals and two assists in 42 career NHL contests with New Jersey.