Ahead of the NHL Draft on Tuesday and the opening of free agency on Oct. 9, TSN.ca keeps you up to date with all the latest rumours and speculation from around the NHL beat.

Hitting the Market?

According to Larry Brooks of the New York Post, the Rangers have yet to decide whether to issue a qualifying offer to forward Ryan Strome after his breakout season with the team.

Strome posted 18 goals and a career-high 59 points in 70 games this past season, but Brooks writes the Rangers may find the roughly $4.75 million he would likely earn in arbitration too rich for them.

The 27-year-old, who is currently listed at No. 16 on the TSN Trade Bait board, is coming off a two-year contract which saw him carry a cap hit of $3.1 million. He was traded to the Rangers early in the 2018-19 season from the Edmonton Oilers in exchange for Ryan Spooner.

Brooks reports that the Rangers have issued qualifying offers to Tony DeAngelo, Alex Georgiev and Brendan Lemieux. The deadline to issue qualifying offers to retain the rights of restricted free agents is Tuesday at 5pm et.

The Rangers, who bought out goaltender Henrik Lundqvist last week, have $23 million in projected cap space this off-season with 13 players under contract.
 


Laine Sweepstakes Heating Up?

Bruce Garrioch of Postmedia writes that multiple teams have interest in Winnipeg Jets star Patrik Laine, with the Montreal Canadiens and Columbus Blue Jackets believed to have made pitches, and the Philadelphia Flyers making an "aggressive push."

Laine, who is listed at No. 2 on the TSN Trade Bait Board, is reportedly available this off-season as the Jets look to improve their blueline and centre depth.

Garrioch writes that a league executive told him he expects the Flyers to see if the Jets are interested in Shayne Gostisbehere as part of the return. Gostisbehere, listed at No. 30 on the Trade Bait board. has three seasons left on his contract at a $4.5 million cap hit and is reportedly on the block in Philadelphia.

Laine, 22, scored 28 goals and posted 63 points in 68 games this season during the regular season. He was limited to just one game during the Return to Play due to injury.

Gostisbehere, 27, had five goals and 12 points in 42 games this season while averaging 18:18 of ice time. He added two assists in five games in the Toronto bubble.

 

Landing Spots

Henrik Lundqvist stated his desire to continue his career on Sunday night, tweeting, "I still love to compete. I still love the game and I still want to WIN!"

Lundqvist is an unrestricted free agent following his buyout from the New York Rangers and TSN Hockey Insider Pierre LeBrun points to the Washington Capitals and Carolina Hurricanes as possible landing spots for the 38-year-old.

A career Ranger, Lundqvist posted a 10-12-3 record with a .905 save percentage and 3.16 goals-against average this past season.

He is ranked No. 44 on TSN's Free Agent Frenzy Top 75.