The Best of the Rest: Who's left in Free Agency

[CarolinaPanthers8789]

FORWARDS

Teemu Selanne Anaheim 73 GP: 31-49-80 Future Hall of Famer might retire after knee surgery; if he plays, he'll be back as a Duck

Vaclav Prospal NY Rangers 29 GP: 9-14-23 Might have to find a new home after Brad Richards signing in New York

Cory Stillman Carolina 65 GP: 12-27-39 Had 16 points in 21 games after returning to 'Canes at trade deadline

Sergei Samsonov Florida 78 GP: 13-27-40 32-year-old hasn't broken 50-point mark since '01-02

Chris Drury N.Y. Rangers 24 GP: 1-4-5 Rangers bought out their captain, now 34, after an injury-plagued season.

Nikolay Zherdev Philadelphia 56 GP: 16-6-22 Incredible skill level but has yet to turn those skills into consistent production

Jarkko Ruutu Anaheim 73 GP: 3-9-12 Feisty forward turns 36 in August and may have to scramble to find a new home

Alex Kovalev Pittsburgh 74 GP: 16-18-34 At 38 and with 428 NHL goals, he may have a hard time extending his career

Kyle Wellwood San Jose 35 GP 5-8-13 Became useful third-liner for the Sharks, but likely to need a new home.

Mike Grier Buffalo 73 GP: 5-11-16 Great depth forward and character guy, but how much is left in the tank at age 36?

J-P Dumont Nashville 70 GP: 10-9-19 Nashville bought out six-time 20-goal scorer, now 33, after a disappointing season.

John Madden Minnesota 76 GP: 12-13-25 Still a useful leader (3 Cups) and checker, but he's now 38

DEFENSE

Nick BoyntonPhiladelphia 51 GP 1-7-8 Former first-rounder, now 32, could still be useful bottom-pair defenseman.

Bryan McCabe NY Rangers 67 GP: 7-21-28 Still has big shot and can help a team on the power play

Scott Hannan Washington 78 GP: 1-10-11 Solid defender at age 32, but lack of offensive skill will limit options and money

Steve Staios Calgary 39 GP: 3-7-10 At 37, he'll have to scramble for a job

Brent Sopel Montreal 71 GP: 2-5-7 Still a good shot-blocker and defender who could help as bottom-pair defenseman

Shane O'Brien Nashville 80 GP: 2-7-9 Plus-22 in last 3 seasons as a bottom-pair defenseman

Jack Hillen N.Y. Islanders 64 GP: 4-18-22 Undersized but skilled defenseman figures to find a home on a team that needs a small, young (25) puck-mover

Karlis Skrastins Dallas 74 GP: 3-5-8 Just turned 37 but would be good bottom-pair defenseman on the right team

Steve Eminger NY Rangers 65 GP: 2-4-6 Has played with six teams in last five seasons but played well in a limited role for the Rangers in 2010-11

GOALIES

Ray Emery Anaheim 7-2-0, 2.28 GAA Played 10 games after recovering from hip surgery; will have to settle for being a backup

Pascal Leclaire Ottawa 4-7-1, 2.83 GAA Former first-rounder (Columbus) has been plagued by injuries throughout his career

Marty Turco Chicago 11-11-3, 3.02 GAA Former All-Star in Dallas was relegated to backup in Chicago last season

Ty Conklin St. Louis 8-8-4, 3.33 GAA Career backup looking for a new home after 2 years with Blues

Martin Gerber Edmonton 3-0-0, 1.30 GAA The 36-year-old Swiss native spent most of the season in the AHL, but won all three NHL starts for the last-place Oilers.

I personally wouldn't mind seeing Stillman, Samsonov, or even Selanne (which would never happen) get a contract offer. I think the Canes have all the right tools to make a push this year and I think they would have been in great shape to do so if Cole was still here. However, Dalpe, Boychuk, Samson, Tlusty, Bowman, and Dwyer are all good young players; but I think that the Canes need to add another veteran winger because Dalpe may have to play big minutes this year and we won't be sure if he is ready until the start of the season. Also the fourth line will consist of two young wings as where I think a wing like Stillman or Samsonov matched with a young wing like Boychuk or Dwyer would work better. I through in Selanne because if they felt like making a push for him you could have Skinner, Staal, and Selanne on your first line and then put Dalpe on the fourth.

Just dreaming you know.

[KillerKat]

I would like a starting 6th defenseman instead of playing a rotation of Harrison and Joslin.

[Stumpy]

I really like Stillman and hope that we bring him back. His points can be replaced pretty easily, but he brought out a toughness in the team that was not there before.