Top 5 Remaining Pending UFAs for 2026 After Necas Comes Off The Board

Martin Necas is the latest pending UFA to sign on the dotted line, re-upping on an eight-year deal with the Colorado Avalanche. He joins an ever-growing list of big names dropping off the board for free agency next summer. But there are still some remaining pending UFAs for teams to keep a close eye on.

And as insider Elliotte Friedman noted on an appearance on NHL Network, "Whoever's left, their leverage rises and rises and rises."

With that, let's have a look at the Top 5 remaining pending UFAs, as those contract talks get more and more difficult:

Artemi Panarin, NY Rangers

The Bread Man is already baking with an expiring $11.6M AAV, and though he is 34, not many around the league are expecting him to take any kind of discount on his next deal. The Rangers might even look to trade him by the deadline.

Adrian Kempe, Los Angeles Kings

The price on Kempe, who's in the middle of a strong start to the season, has continued to rise, as Friedman noted, now well into the $11M+ range on an AAV, compared to the $9M area LA was hoping for.

"I think the Kings have to sign Kempe. The good news for them is I think he wants to stay there, but I also believe this has moved into a zone (i.e. price range) that the Kings didn't think they were going to have to go to."

Alex Tuch, Buffalo Sabres

This is another contentious negotiation that's ongoing. The two sides had to cool things off in recent weeks, as the price tag has risen to "staggering" levels. Tuch is a Western New York guy, and is happy to stay in Buffalo, but the recent signings in this new ever-soaring salary cap world have allowed him to ask for what he feels is his new market value. He's off to a great start this season with 11 points in 11 contests while playing his usual solid two-way game.

Rasmus Andersson, Calgary Flames

He's been on the rumor mill as much as anyone the past few months, but not as much for what an extension might look like, as for where the trade winds will take him at next March's deadline (or before).

Sergei Bobrovsky, Florida Panthers

There's been very little drama about this one, as there's no doubt the Panthers want to keep him, and he wants to stay. But what is the right price for a 37-year-old goalie coming off a $10M cap hit and wearing two Stanley Cup rings? The Cats already have a tight cap situation after all the contracts they handed out this past summer to keep the team intact.