Top 5 NHL stars teams will chase in 2025 free agency window ft. Mitch Marner

The 2024-25 NHL season is over, and the attention now turns to the draft and free agency.

Free agency is set to open July 1 at noon ET, and although the free agency class isn't as good as years past, there still are some star players available.

Ahead of free agency opening, here are five star players that teams will be chasing.

#1, Mitch Marner

Mitch Marner is the top free agent available and one of the best free agents to hit the open market in years.

Marner is coming off a career-high, 102-point season. The star winger is one of the best players in the NHL, and all signs point to him leaving the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Marner will be highly sought after by several teams and is the big fish in free agency.

#2, Nikolaj Ehlers

Nikolaj Ehlers will likely be a consolation prize for a team that doesn't land Mitch Marner.

Ehlers completed his contract with the Winnipeg Jets, and it is likely that he will sign elsewhere in free agency. Ehlers isn't as good of a player as Marner is, but he still is a top-six winger who can add some offense to a lineup.

Ehlers will likely be sought after by every team that doesn't land Marner.

#3, Aaron Ekblad

Aaron Ekblad is the top defenseman available - Source: Imagn

Aaron Ekblad has spent his entire career with the Florida Panthers after being drafted first overall in 2014.

Ekblad is a pending free agent, and the Panthers may not have the cap room to sign him. Ekblad is a hard-nosed defenseman who plays physical, but can also add some offense.

If Ekblad does leave Florida, he will have several NHL teams interested in him.

#4, Brad Marchand

Brad Marchand was traded to the Panthers at the deadline and was a key reason why Florida won the Stanley Cup.

Now, after years of being underpaid, Marchand will look to cash in, in free agency.

Marchand is a leader and can help bring a locker room together. Rebuilding teams to Cup contenders would want Marchand, which will drive up his market.

#5, Sam Bennett

Sam Bennett just won the Conn Smythe as the Playoff MVP and would be higher on this last, but it doesn't seem like he will hit free agency.

If he does, Bennett will likely be the second-most sought-after player. But, during the Panthers' Cup celebration, he claimed he wasn't leaving Florida.

Bennett will get paid handsomely in free agency or if he re-signs with Florida.

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Edited by Cole Shelton