Even though the New York Rangers aren’t expected to wade into the deep end of the free-agent pool, they’ll be eagerly looking at everyone who becomes available when NHL free agency begins at noon ET on Tuesday.
The Toronto Maple Leafs took one of the bigger chips off the board on Friday when they re-signed center John Tavares to a four-year contract with an average annual value of $4.38 million. Tarvares’ return keeps one of Toronto’s two key unrestricted free agents with the Leafs, but the other one looks like he’ll be somewhere else next season. Forward Mitch Marner is at the top of the list of potential UFAs who can sign with any team.
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The Rangers, who have about $12.2 million in cap space and need to sign unrestricted free agent forward Will Cuylle, will likely do more looking than shopping unless they make a trade to free up more money. Defenseman K’Andre Miller has been mentioned as a trade possibility.
Here are 10 of the top players who will hit unrestricted free agency, barring a late signing or two.
Related: Why Rangers draft history since 2000 not pretty without 1st-round pick
Mitch Marner, RW (Toronto Maple Leafs)
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The 28-year-old right wing is the top free agent on the board after posting career highs in assists (75) and points (102) this past season, finishing fifth in the League scoring race. The two-time NHL First-Team All-Star is a better playmaker than goal scorer. He’s expected to command at least $12 million per season on as long a contract as he wants. The Maple Leafs haven’t made much of a push to sign him, and his market could be slightly limited because teams like the Rangers probably don’t have the cap space. Whoever signs him will be getting one of the League’s top players in the prime of his career.
Sam Bennett, C (Florida Panthers)
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Bennett led all postseason scorers with 15 goals and won the Conn Smythe Trophy as MVP of the Stanley Cup Playoffs after the Florida Panthers won their second straight Stanley Cup championship. He’s also coming off a career-best 51-point season, including 25 goals. He’s still headed for free agency — but expect the Panthers to make a push to sign him before Tuesday as general manager Bill Zito tries to keep the band together for another Cup run.
Brad Marchand, LW (Florida Panthers)
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Money or a perfect fit? That’s the question facing Marchand as he decides on his next career move. The longtime Boston Bruins forward came to Florida just before the NHL Trade Deadline in March, used the remainder of the regular season to get healthy and excelled on the Panthers third line in the playoffs, putting up 20 points (10 goals, 10 assists), including six goals in the Final. At 37, he’ll be looking for one last payday but might be better off taking a little less money and staying put.
Aaron Ekblad, D (Florida Panthers)
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Ekblad is a career Panther; Florida took him with the No. 1 pick in the 2014 NHL Draft. He’s a solid first-pair right-shot defenseman who could command upwards of $7 million on the open market. But Zito showed last year when the Panthers let Brandon Montour walk in free agency after excelling during the first Cup run that he was willing to make tough decisions. Ekblad might also be willing to take less to stay.
Vladislav Gavrikov, D (Los Angeles Kings)
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The Rangers have been linked to Gavrikov, who’s coming off an excellent season with the Los Angeles Kings and would fill a big hole on the left side of New York’s No. 1 defense pairing. But Los Angeles would like to keep him if the money works – the reported asking price is seven years at $8 million per. He averaged 23 minutes a game in 2024-25, had a career-high 30 points (five goals, 25 assists) and finished plus-26, by far the best mark of his career.
Brock Boeser, LW (Vancouver Canucks)
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The Rangers and most of the rest of the NHL could use a player like Boeser, a six-time 20-goal scorer who had 40 in 2023-24. Vancouver did try to trade him during this past season as free agency approached but felt making the playoffs was a better plan, though they failed to do so anyway. Published reports say Boeser, who’s coming off a three-year contract with an AAV of $6.65 million, could be in line for a six-year deal worth more than $8 million. His scoring touch could help the Rangers, but not at that price.
Nikolaj Ehlers, LW (Winnipeg Jets)
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Ehlers is coming off his eighth 20-goal season, and his 63 points were one short of his career high. At age 29, he should still have several productive years remaining. The Jets are hoping the recent addition of center Jonathan Toews might induce Ehlers to re-up with the team that won the Presidents’ Trophy as regular-season champion. The Jets still have to extend top-line left wing Kyle Connor, so Ehlers could wind up playing elsewhere in 2025-26.
Ivan Provorov, D (Columbus Blue Jackets)
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If the Rangers can’t land Gavrikov, Provorov could be an acceptable substitute – with the added benefit of weakening a division rival. He’s coming off a solid 33-point season (seven goals, 26 assists), finished plus-11 and averaged 23:21 of ice time while playing all 82 games for the third straight season. The 28-year-old Russian figures to get a lot of interest if the Columbus Blue Jackets don’t re-sign him first.
Patrick Kane, RW (Detroit Red Wings)
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A healthy Kane is still a productive Kane, and he showed in Detroit last season that he’s far removed from the injury-plagued player Rangers fans saw at the tail end of 2022-23. Kane’s 59 points were the most he’s had since 2021-22, and even at 36 he can provide a jolt to any struggling power play. He has serious defensive limitations but could be a good fit for any team that can play him in sheltered minutes and offer lots of power-play time – something the Rangers might be able to do with Chris Kreider gone to the Anaheim Ducks.
Jake Allen, G (New Jersey Devils)
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The goalie market is a thin one, so the Rangers are more than happy to have Igor Shesterkin and Jonathan Quick manning the crease for the third straight season. Allen isn’t going to carry a No. 1 load, but he’s a dependable second banana who can step into the top job if the starter goes down (as Jacob Markstrom did last season for the Devils). His 13-16-1 record this past season was belied by a 2.66 goals-against average and .908 save percentage.
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