Lightning Round: The best free agents still on the market

The 2022 free agent frenzy has come and gone, yet there are still some relatively big names still looking for teams. While there is no real hurry for the players to sign, after all camps don’t open up for a couple of months, they would want to make sure to sign before teams go in other directions and cap room begins to dwindle. With the news of Matthew Tkachuk (and possibly Patrick Kane) possibly entering the trade market, that may affect how some teams use the rest of their cap room.

The biggest name is probably Nazem Kadri. The soon-to-be 32-year-old forward is coming off of a career season where he posted 87 points (28 goals, 49 assists) in 71 games during the regular season. He added another 15 points (7 goals, 8 assists) in the playoffs (Lightning fans may remember his Game Four overtime winner). While he might not be a top line player at this stage of his career, he is an excellent fit for a team looking for someone to produce on their second line.

On the defensive side, it’s kind of odd that John Klingberg hasn’t found a home yet. There are plenty of teams that need a top-pair defenseman and Klingberg can fill that role. The Swede will be turning 30 in a couple of weeks so he has plenty of years of chewing up more than 20 minutes a game ahead of him.

Some more intriguing names that are still on the market include Paul Statsny, Phil Kessel, and Danton Heinen.

Lightning / NHL News

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