With the initial rush of NHL free agency over, people are beginning to turn their attention to each team development camp, trying to catch a glimpse of the next stars of the NHL. However, despite this shift in focus, plenty of big-name NHL stars are looking for a home for next season. Here are the top three remaining NHL free agents.
Vladimir Tarasenko
After one of the most wild and strange free agency sagas, Vladimir Tarasenko remains a free agent. Now with everything that happened it’s no surprise he remains on the open market. Tarasenko essentially started over. All the talks he had during the initial stages of free agency mean nothing as Tarasenko is represented by a brand new agency. So expect him to be a free agent for a long time.
Tarasenko had a decent year last season, scoring 18 goals with 32 assists giving him 50 points. Now due to him waiting this long, his contract will probably be diminished. It was reported he wanted a long-term deal with an average annual value of over 5.5 million. However, he probably won’t get anywhere close to that. He’ll most likely be looking at a two to three-year deal, maybe topping out at an average annual value of five million. Just like I stated in my post breaking down the whole situation, the Hurricanes, and Senators remain the favorites. The Senators probably have a slight edge now considering they were able to trade Alex DeBrincat. Another team to watch is the Rangers, but they will have to create cap space in order to sign him.
Matt Dumba
It’s been sad to watch Matt Dumba play over the past couple of seasons. Just a few years ago, he seemed to be a budding star in the NHL. He was all but a lock to be a first-pairing defenseman one day, with a very balanced attack. He could be a force on offense but also play really good defense. However, that has not been the case for Dumba. He was never able to develop into that player. Worst of all, over the past couple of seasons his abilities have been declining. This decline in his ability is the main reason he is one of the remaining free agents.
Teams are very hesitant to give Dumba a contract because they don’t want to sign him and he’s washed. Now you might be wondering with all these concerns why is he one of the top remaining free agents? Well, that’s because he has the potential to be a top-four defenseman. Even with the decline in his play, he’s still a right-handed shot, something lots of NHL teams want, and can be a major upgrade to any team’s defensive unit. He can also drastically improve any team’s special team unit. When you really break it down he’s a high-risk, high-reward type of player. The most likely teams to take a shot on Dumba are the Penguins, and a reunion with the Wild. The Sharks can be considered a dark horse, but they would have to trade Erik Karlsson first.
Patrick Kane
At first glance, the fact that Patrick Kane is still on the open market surprising. The guy is the best American-born hockey player in NHL history. He should’ve been one of the first free agents to sign. However, the reason why Kane hasn’t signed is due to him being injured. He underwent hip resurfacing surgery back in June. Now this shouldn’t come as a shock to anyone. It was the worst-kept secret in the league last season, that Kane was playing hurt. However, because of this surgery, he’s expected to miss the start of the season. In the best-case scenario, he’s back in October. Worst case scenario he’s out until at least December, maybe longer.
This kills any value that Kane might have. There are major questions surrounding him. How long will he be out? What type of player is he going to be when he comes back? Is he still going to be a superstar-caliber player? All of which are fair questions to ask. There are two paths Kane can go down. One he signs a two-year deal and goes on long-term IR when he signs. Or two he signs a one-year deal, with a low average annual value, proves he can still be a great player, and gets a long-term deal next year. Now his agent has come out and said that Kane isn’t expected to sign until the beginning of the season, so it’s next to impossible to predict where he might sign.
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