Honda Mower hard to push

I have a HRX217HXA that I bought new about 7 or 8 years ago. I was going over it to get it ready for this years mowing season, and noticed that the transmission shaft had a small amount of play where it goes through the right rear arm/wheel assembly.

I bought new rear arms for both the left side and right side. I greased the shaft and the new arms as I installed them, but now the mower is noticeably harder to push. It doesn't take a huge amount of effort, but there's definitely more resistance then there was before. I'm sure I put everything back together correctly. I also bought new springs that go under the ratchet keys and new snap rings (they were cheap, I figured I'd replace them for the heck of it).

Is this something that will free up over time? I don't use the hydro drive very often, I normally push the mower when I cut the grass.

Thanks for the help.