- Patrik Laine is still unsigned with the 2026-27 season underway
- Two teams have picked up the pace on the former 44-goal scorer this week
- Read below for who is calling, what is holding it up, and the question teams keep asking
Patrik Laine might not be a free agent for much longer.
According to Finnish NHL broadcaster Antti Mäkinen, the Detroit Red Wings and Los Angeles Kings have been the most active teams chasing the unsigned winger over the past week. Mäkinen, who is close to Laine, shared the update on the Kimanttia podcast.
Mäkinen was asked where things stand now that the regular season has started.
“The situation is that a few teams have been active within the past week. The active teams lately have been the Detroit Red Wings and the Los Angeles Kings,” Mäkinen said.
We posted the news Saturday morning, along with a reminder of how long Laine has been away:
Nothing is close to done, though. Mäkinen described both clubs as sitting in stand-by mode and explained what each one is dealing with.
“Detroit has quite a few fires to put out before they can get to Laine’s case. With L.A., Kevin Fiala has been out for a long time, so they might have room on the power play and things like that,” he said. “They sent a message that now we’re waiting.”
Those fires in Detroit are not hard to spot. Dylan Larkin got booed by his own fans in Friday’s home opener after his offseason trade request, and Simon Edvinsson is still unsigned and back in Sweden. The Wings then got shut out 2-0 by the Rangers.
Los Angeles has its own hole up front. Fiala has not played since breaking his leg at the Milano Cortina Olympics in February, and the Kings said in September he needed another procedure tied to that surgery. The Kings opened their season with an 8-4 loss in Colorado.
Then there is the question that keeps following Laine around. Mäkinen talked about how teams view what he brings to a dressing room.
“That’s a question mark for a lot of clubs, what kind of aura he brings with him. He has grown. He has surely done some negative things in the room in previous years,” Mäkinen said. “Now the situation has changed. He’s no longer in that window where he’d be seen as a star player.”
Listen to the full Kimanttia episode (in Finnish):
Laine is training on his own, per Mäkinen, and ready to jump if an NHL door opens.
Now 28, he has not played an NHL game since Oct. 16, 2025. Laine hurt his core muscle five games into last season with Montreal, had surgery, and never returned to the lineup even after he was medically cleared in January. He finished 2025-26 with one assist.
His four-year, $34.8 million contract expired this summer, and he has been on the unsigned list ever since. The shot is still there. Laine scored 20 goals in 52 games for the Canadiens in 2024-25, and he has a 44-goal season on his resume from his Winnipeg days.
Whichever team moves first gets a former No. 2 overall pick without giving up a single asset.
