NHL Free Agents 2024: Rumors, Predictions for Patrick Kane, Steven Stamkos, More UFAs

With just one day remaining until the start of NHL free agency, several teams have pressing questions left to answer.

Will Steven Stamkos return for an 18th season with the Tampa Bay Lightning? Will Sam Reinhart's final game for the Florida Panthers have ended with him lifting the Stanley Cup? And where will veteran winger Patrick Kane be skating next season?

Here's a look at the latest rumors surrounding the league's top UFAs as teams prepare for Monday's potential upheaval.

Patrick Kane became one of the few players in the NHL history to make a successful comeback from hip resurfacing surgery last season after recording 20 goals and 47 points in 50 games for the Detroit Red Wings.

Now the former Chicago Blackhawks star is back on the market, and there are several teams including the Detroit Red Wings that would consider a short-term deal for a proven 20-goal scorer.

The Red Wings currently have about $32 million in cap space, per CapFriendly, but need to earmark some of that money for new deals with RFAs Moritz Seider and Lucas Raymond.

Despite those limitations, general manager Steve Yzerman said Saturday that Detroit is still hoping to re-sign Kane.

"We'd love to get Patrick Kane signed. That's our first priority," Yzerman said, per Helene St. James of the Detroit Free Press. "We're trying to do deals with all these guys that allow us to almost bring them all back, but I'm not sure we'll be able to do that."

Kane was "still in talks" with Yzerman about an extension as of Saturday, Larry Brooks reported for the New York Post.

But the Red Wings aren't the only team that reportedly wants Kane back next season. The New York Rangers, the team Kane left Chicago to join for its 2023 playoff push, want to re-sign the veteran.

Kane "apparently remains the apple of the Rangers' eye after the post-deadline 2023 cameo left folks wanting for more," Brooks wrote Saturday.

Prediction: Kane returns to the Red Wings. Adding him to the roster helped Detroit come within one point of a playoff berth last season, so it has plenty of reason to want to bring him back, and his chemistry with former Blackhawks linemate Alex DeBrincat will be enough reason for Kane to want to return.

After 17 seasons and two Stanley Cups in Tampa Bay, Steven Stamkos has been unable to work out an extension with the team he has captained since 2014.

Will the Lightning be able to bring back their all-time leading scorer, or is Stamkos headed elsewhere after scoring 40 goals for the second time in three seasons?

Tampa Bay Lightning general manager Julien BriseBois said Saturday that the Lightning and Stamkos had not yet agreed to an extension, and that the winger would hit free agency, per Renaud Lavoie of TVA Sports.

Pierre LeBrun previously reported for The Athletic that the Lightning had offered Stamkos something close to an eight-year, $3 million AAV deal, and that the annual salary was too low for the player.

Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman then reported that the Lightning are believed to be targeting 30-goal scorer Jake Guentzel, a winger with the top-line experience to help replace Stamkos.

With the Lightning and Stamkos seemingly trending toward a split, the Nashville Predators could make a bid for the star. LeBrun wrote Wednesday that the Predators are expected to pursue Stamkos.

The Preds haven't made a deep playoff run since their trip to the Stanley Cup Final in 2017, and the addition of an elite scorer and power-play driver like Stamkos would instantly bump them into the conversation at contenders.

The Predators won't be the only team pursuing Stamkos if he hits the open market. TSN's Chris Johnston has predicted that the Red Wings could make a move after freeing up cap space by trading Jake Walman to the San Jose Sharks. Adding Stamkos could be the difference between making and missing the playoffs next season.

Prediction: Stamkos goes elsewhere. The Lightning star has been publicly expressing frustration with the Lightning's extension negotiations since last September, and it doesn't sound like things have gotten any better from there. Their reluctance to offer something closer to $5 million AAV could be a huge boon for a team like the Predators.

Sam Reinhart scored 57 goals in the regular season before helping power the Florida Panthers to the first Stanley Cup in franchise history.

Will he re-sign with his championship club, or cash in on his career-best season on a team with the cap space to make him a bigger offer?

Panthers general manager Bill Zito believes "there's a way" Panthers will be able to bring Reinhart back to Sunrise, NHL.com's Tom Gulitti reported Friday.

"I won't say anything other than we really hope to have him back and we're trying to keep as many of the guys as we possibly can," Zito said. "So, I'm optimistic and we'll see."

The Panthers have 11 players set to become restricted free agents, including Reinhart and blueliner Brandon Montour, and only $19.5 million in free cap space with which to do it, per CapFriendly.

But it sounds like Florida plans to prioritize Reinhart, and it might be a good idea to do so. Even if he is unlikely to repeat his career-best goals total after scoring on 24.5 percent of his shots last season, there are few forwards of his caliber available on the free market.

If Reinhart does attempt to go for the biggest deal available, a team with extra cap space could make him an offer bigger than what the Panthers can put together. The Nashville Predators or Utah Hockey Club have the cap space to outbid the reigning champions.

Prediction: Reinhart stays with the Panthers. He might be able to cash in on a bigger contract on a less cap-strapped team, but sticking around with the club he went to two straight Cup Finals with will be too much of a draw to look elsewhere.