Friedman: Some NHL teams believe Capitals are ‘aggressively pursuing’ Artemi Panarin, but will only do trade with a contract extension in place

Artemi Panarin is currently the hottest trade topic in the NHL. The Russian star appears to have played his last game with the New York Rangers as the team holds him out for “roster management reasons” ahead of the league’s break for the 2026 Winter Olympics.

The Washington Capitals have been rumored to have interest in acquiring Panarin from the beginning of his supposed availability, although top hockey insider Elliotte Friedman called them an unlikely landing spot on Thursday.

However, Friedman has new information a day later that puts the Capitals squarely back in the market, and even as one of the top teams still looking to get a deal done with the Rangers.

Friedman discussed the confusing information being peddled around the league and went over where he believes Panarin’s market stands now on Friday’s episode of Sportsnet’s 32 Thoughts Podcast.

“I have heard a lot of conflicting information,” Friedman said. “You call some people who are pretty plugged in, and they’re like, ‘That’s the exact opposite of what I have heard.’ Or they say, ‘That’s not exactly what I’ve heard. Some of it is the same, but some of it is different.’ And by the end of the conversation, I began to wonder if some teams were being told different things than other teams just to try to keep the information as quiet as possible, or if people are just flat out lying to me, who knows.”

Friedman made it clear that Panarin and agent Paul Theofanous prefer to have a contract extension in place as part of any trade, and that the magic number for that contract is $50 million. However, Panarin is not expected to have a strong preference regarding term, so teams could spread that $50 million over three to six seasons to better suit their salary cap situations.

The top insider then delved into the specific teams that have been mentioned as interested in the high-scoring winger. He started with the Colorado Avalanche and Dallas Stars, who are believed not to have interest in extending Panarin, which likely takes them out of the proceedings.

Friedman then moved to teams like the Los Angeles Kings, Seattle Kraken, Florida Panthers, Anaheim Ducks, Minnesota Wild, Philadelphia Flyers, and the Vegas Golden Knights, who he believes share some interest in Panarin but have significant doubts regarding their actual candidacy. He labeled each team as “unlikely” suitors.

Friedman then rattled off who he seems to believe are the genuine contenders, including the Capitals, San Jose Sharks, Carolina Hurricanes, and Detroit Red Wings. Each team would be interested in extending Panarin, with the Capitals particularly insisting on getting one done before making any deal.

“Washington, I’ve heard they’re only doing this with an extension,” Friedman said. “Rental does not interest them. I’ll say this, some other teams think the Capitals have been aggressively pursuing this. So, we’ll see. I’m counting them as legit.”

Per PuckPedia, the Capitals are set to have $35.73 million in cap space next summer. Beyond determining Alex Ovechkin’s future, the team has few other major contract situations to sort out, aside from finding common ground with veteran defenseman John Carlson. The only other potentially consequential big salary cap decision would come with Connor McMichael as a restricted free agent again.

Given the amount of space they’ll have, the Capitals could be the most flexible team with the length of Panarin’s contract, potentially even signing him to a shorter three-year extension with a higher average annual value. According to The Fourth Period’s David Pagnotta, that’s exactly what the Caps would prefer, but coming at a $36 million price tag, which is much lower than what Panarin reportedly wants.

As for the current campaign, Panarin’s cap hit is just over $11.6 million, and the Capitals have $7 million in space available. However, with cap accruing, the Caps are set to have $12.9 million in space at the deadline. The Rangers could also be asked to retain money on the final year of Panarin’s contract.

Trade activity in the NHL is expected to pick up ahead of the league’s Olympic-break roster freeze at 3 pm on February 4. Friedman believes the Rangers will want to get a trade completed before then. After the freeze, the league’s official trade deadline is set for 3 pm on March 6.