Six notable NHL UFAs as 2026-27 season begins

The 2026-27 NHL season kicked off on Tuesday night – and it was missing a few notable unrestricted free agents.

With the NHL salary cap continuing to increase, we saw an influx of big-money deals that made for one of the more wild offseasons in recent memory. Yet a few veterans are still on the outside looking in, hoping to get chances to play full-time hockey this season.

Using PuckPedia’s free agent list as a basis, here’s a look at a few notable UFAs – they’re all wingers, interestingly enough – who could still bring value to NHL teams:

Michael Bunting, LW, 31

Bunting had 63 points in his first full NHL season in 2021-22 and has never really come close to matching that. He was best with the Toronto Maple Leafs, but a 21-game stint with the Pittsburgh Penguins to close out 2023-24 (19 points) suggested that he was ready to flourish again. Unfortunately, he struggled the following year and was shipped off to the Nashville Predators, who then flipped him to the Dallas Stars for a very quiet end to 2025-26.

That’s a lot of movement for a forward who isn’t afraid to play on the edge. While consistency has been an issue, the 31-year-old can be defensively responsible in the right situation and loves battling along the boards. He’s more of a bottom-six forward at this point in his career, but he can push himself higher up the lineup if needed. Bunting has a lot to prove at this point, but he might be worth a look for the right team.

Jonathan Drouin, RW, 34

The Colorado Avalanche signed Drouin to a one-year deal in 2023-24 in hopes of reconnecting with Nathan MacKinnon and finding the spark that made Drouin so dangerous as a teenager. It worked; he had 56 points in 79 games. Injuries limited him to just 37 points in 43 games the following year, but it was clear he was capable of quality hockey when healthy. The New York Islanders signed him to a two-year deal last summer, but shipped him off to the St. Louis Blues, who ultimately bought out the final year of his contract.

Drouin’s inconsistency has been a sticking point throughout his career. At his best, he can be a solid secondary contributor who plays with skill. On the other hand, injuries and off-puck play have hampered his potential, which is why he has only played 70 games in a season once over the past seven years. And that’s something teams have to wonder at this point: can he still put up 30-35 points at an inexpensive rate? Or has age caught up to him?

Patrik Laine, RW, 28

If there was ever a player who needed to prove himself the most on a cheap contract, it’s Laine. When he first broke into the NHL, he was one of the most dangerous goal scorers in the league. It felt like it was only a matter of time until he was challenging for 50 a season. Instead, he hasn’t had 30 since 2018-19, with injuries preventing him from playing more than 56 games since before the COVID pandemic. He has proven he can still be a solid goal scorer, having registered over 20 goals in three of his past five seasons. The only times he didn’t reach that mark were when he played fewer than 20 games in a year. But, unfortunately, after zero goals in five games last year, it doesn’t seem like there’s much interest in him right now.

For the most part, he can still be a strong contributor on the power play, but he lacks the pace and reliability to give teams much confidence at this point. He just needs the right opportunity to prove he can still be an everyday NHLer. Laine is a big forward who can still clearly shoot the puck. Maybe in the right situation, he can be a decent depth scorer. But you have to wonder if a trip to Europe could be good for his confidence, and, maybe, we see him earn a more lucrative deal next summer.

David Perron, LW, 38

Perron finished the year with a quiet three goals in his final 16 games with the Detroit Red Wings, but he’s still regarded as a solid veteran presence that teammates like to play with. He was the model of consistency throughout his numerous stints in St. Louis and even gave the Ottawa Senators a nice boost for a couple years, too. At 38, he’s the oldest player on this list, but he could still be a solid depth forward who doesn’t necessarily have to be in the lineup every night to contribute. He has worn a letter before, and that’s something that, in a veteran role, can still be valuable on a contender.

Perron is a creative forward who gets the puck where it needs to be. He’s not as speedy as he once was, and injuries have played a role more often than he probably would hope over the past few years. But around the net, he’s still tough to strip the puck off of and can contribute the odd goal every now and then.

Vladimir Tarasenko, RW, 34

Tarasenko’s NHL value has clearly tanked in recent years. But in his prime, he was a key member of the Blues, and he set a personal best of 82 points in 2021-22. He’s a six-time 30-goal scorer, and while those days are well behind him, he still managed to register 23 goals and 47 points in 75 games with the Minnesota Wild last year. By all accounts, he’s still a very serviceable winger. He made $4.75 million on his last contract – a two-year deal – but we haven’t seen a team take a chance on the 34-year-old yet ahead of the season.

Outside of former Wild teammate Marcus Johansson, who left for Sweden after putting up 49 points as a 35-year-old, there isn’t a single more productive player left on the market. Tarasenko should still be good for 35-40 points in the right situation, but, for one reason or another, remains unsigned. His name has remained in rumors throughout the offseason, but he didn’t go to any training camp on a PTO. Teams could do a lot worse than adding him to their scoring charts, but it might be a bit more difficult to find a competitive team willing to give him a few million at this point.

James van Riemsdyk, LW, 37

van Riemsdyk was once capable of 60 points a year – those days have blasted past him, but he has scored 31 goals over the past two seasons while making $1 million (or less). That’s tremendous value, and while he’s not an all-around threat anymore, and he’s definitely slower than he was in his glory days in Philly or Toronto, JVR still could get it done in a limited scoring-role, and he’s no slouch on the power play, either.

JVR has been on a series of one-year deals over the past three seasons, which isn’t surprising given his age. Maybe he’s not interested in those just-above-league-min contracts anymore; but, dang, it was hard to find the type of value he brought to a lineup at that price. He’s still skating and in good shape, so it’ll be interesting to see if JVR gives it one more kick at the can in a depth role.