The puck has dropped on the 2026-27 NHL season, but veteran winger Vladimir Tarasenko is still watching from the outside despite coming off a 23-goal campaign with the Minnesota Wild. The 34-year-old finished with 23 goals and 24 assists in 75 games last season, making his goal tally the highest among unrestricted free agents still available.

Tarasenko and longtime agent Dan Milstein separated late in the summer, according to TSN's Pierre LeBrun. Tarasenko has reportedly worked with several agents over the past four to five years, and LeBrun is unsure whether he currently has representation. While searching for his next NHL opportunity, Tarasenko has been training in Florida alongside fellow free agent Patrik Laine and Carolina Hurricanes player Alexander Nikishin.

The Florida Panthers were one of the teams that made Tarasenko an offer in early July, per LeBrun. However, because the team had no more than $850,000 in available cap space, the proposed contract could not exceed that amount. Tarasenko declined the offer while hoping to find a better fit elsewhere.

A return to Florida is still possible, but LeBrun indicated that the Panthers are unlikely to revisit the situation. If Florida were to pursue Tarasenko again, he would reportedly have to accept the league minimum, assuming the Panthers remained interested.

Tarasenko has previous ties to Florida. He joined the Panthers for 19 games at the end of the 2023-24 season, recording six goals and eight assists. He then contributed five goals and four assists during Florida's Stanley Cup-winning playoff run.

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The Russian winger has 327 goals, 382 assists and 709 points across 906 career NHL games. His 23 goals last season also marked a considerable improvement over his 2024-25 season with the Detroit Red Wings, when he scored 11 goals and added 22 assists in 80 games.

With Tarasenko still searching for a contract, the Calgary Flames have reportedly shown mild interest. David Perron, James van Riemsdyk and Jonathan Drouin are some other unsigned forwards alongside Tarasenko and Patrik Laine.