Latest On Top 5 Remaining NHL Free Agents

Teams around the league are making their cuts and are in the process of finalizing their rosters. But for those with a need to fill, there are still some notable unrestricted free agents as we quickly approach opening night on the NHL schedule. Here's the latest on the top five:

Vladimir Tarasenko

"I heard that the Florida Panthers and him have been eyeing each other," reported Elliotte Friedman on his 32 Thoughts podcast on Friday. "Makes sense... Played there, won a Cup there. Marchand is hurt for now. I've heard there's some mutual interest."

Tarasenko, 34, recorded 23 goals with the Minnesota Wild last season, playing on a $4.75M cap hit. The Panthers are familiar with the Russian forward, as he was traded there at the deadline in 2024 from Ottawa, and played a solid role in helping the Cats to the first of their back-to-back Stanley Cups. Forward Brad Marchand opted for a last-minute procedure to fix a lower-body problem late this summer and will miss the start of the season. There's no definitive timeline yet for his return. Tarasenko could fill a hole there.

Patrik Laine

Friedman isn't sure what will happen with Laine, as he said this week, "I don't know if picky is the right word, but I think he has certain types of situations he prefers."

Among the teams that had been linked to him during the summer were the Toronto Maple Leafs. This is where we should note that an Instagram sleuth discovered this week that Laine decided to follow Nick Blankenburg on IG. The veteran defenseman is in camp with the Leafs and is expected to make the roster.

Logan Stanley

The behemoth defenseman is still out there after a strong season with the Winnipeg Jets for 59 games. His finish in Buffalo after a trade deadline move wasn't quite as impactful, which potentially hurt his market. It's also felt he overshot things on his asking price early on. There was some thought in the past week that the Sabres could be thinking about a return after they lost two top-four blueliners to injury, but they opted for Matt Grzelcyk instead. 

Michael Bunting

The 30-year-old winger's production dipped last season to 14 goals and 33 points in 74 regular-season games for the Dallas Stars and Nashville Predators. But prior to that, he's been good for in and around 20 goals a year for quite a while.

A few teams had been linked to him ahead of training camp, but nothing, not even a PTO, has emerged for the veteran.

James van Riemsdyk

The 37-year-old veteran was still able to contribute in a specialized role last season, with 15 goals and 31 points with the Detroit Red Wings. A report from Daily Faceoff's Colby Cohen on the Morning Cuppa Hockey Podcast indicates that Van Riemsdyk isn't ready to call it quits just yet.

“I have been talking to Riemer frequently. I could tell you this: he's still skating, he's still in great shape. There have been some teams that have contacted him just to kind of gauge his interests and what he's looking at... No decision has been made for him, (but) I think he's keeping the door open right now."