NHL free agency is just 12 days away. The Stanley Cup Champion has not been decided yet, but that hasn't stopped other teams from gearing up for the start of the offseason. Rumors are beginning to circulate that link Hurricanes forward Jake Guentzel with the Vancouver Canucks.

According to Frank Seravalli, the Canucks are expected to make a strong play to sign Jake Guentzel during free agency.

Guentzel is one of the hottest commodities on the NHL free agency market. In fact, Daily Faceoff ranks him as the second best free agent on the market in their Top 75 Pending Free Agents ranking.

Vancouver will not be the only team pursuing the former Stanley Cup winning winger. Any number of teams could find themselves in the running if they can clear enough cap space or don't have other players they need to extend. Some of the top competition for Vancouver could include the Toronto Maple Leafs, Florida Panthers, Washington Capitals, and New York Rangers.

That said, Vancouver is expected to be the most likely team to sign Guentzel. The Canucks boasts the best mix of money and opportunity for Guentzel, allowing him to play a major role on the team right away.

Vancouver's X-factor could be coach Rick Tocchet. Guentzel played for Tocchet as an assistant coach in Pittsburgh. He may wish to play for his old coach again, especially if Vancouver is the best landing spot in terms of cash and ice time.

Guentzel has developed into one of the NHL's top players. He ranks as one of the league's better players in terms of goals (198), points (410), and points per game (1.03) over the last six seasons.

Previewing the top available players ahead of NHL free agency: Reinhart, Guentzel the best available players

Carolina Hurricanes center Jake Guentzel (59) is congratulated by his teammates after scoring a goal during the third period against the Boston Bruins at TD Garden.
Bob DeChiara-USA TODAY Sports

The free agent market is quickly taking shape.

There have already been a few moves that have impacted free agency prior to July 1st. The Carolina Hurricanes re-signed Jalen Chatfield to a three-year contract. There's also Dallas Stars forward Joe Pavelski, who announced he will retire after 18 seasons.

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This year's free agency class features a small handful of stars at the top, followed by several solid starters.

Here are the top 10 players on Daily Faceoff's Top 75 Pending Free Agents list:

  1. Sam Reinhart – RW
  2. Jake Guentzel – LW
  3. Steven Stamkos – LW/C
  4. Brady Skjei – LD
  5. Brandon Montour – RD
  6. Jonathan Marchessault – RW
  7. Elias Lindholm – C/RW
  8. Chandler Stephenson – C
  9. Matt Roy – RD
  10. Patrick Kane – RW

Reinhart and Guentzel are the top prizes of free agency.

Guentzel is expected to command a contract worth at least $65 million. AFP projects a seven-year contract worth $9.3 million per year for Guentzel.

Reinhart could easily return to the Florida Panthers, it would make sense for them to retain one of their key starters. However, if they decide to let Reinhart walk, Florida could use the money they save to pursue Guentzel instead.

Patrick Kane is another interesting name to watch. Kane is not expected to return to the Red Wings, and his old team in Chicago does not seem interested in bringing him back. It will be interesting to see where Kane ends up.

We can't wait for the NHL's free agency period to finally arrive on July 1st.