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Best remaining free agents by position

San Jose Sharks v Arizona Coyotes

GLENDALE, AZ - JANUARY 16: Joe Thornton #19 of the San Jose Sharks awaits a face off during the NHL game against the Arizona Coyotes at Gila River Arena on January 16, 2018 in Glendale, Arizona. The Sharks defeated the Coyotes 3-2 in an overtime shootout. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)

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Most of the big money has already been spent in free agency. Names like John Tavares, James van Riemsdyk, Paul Stastny and James Neal have all found new homes. Although there aren’t many big names left on the market, there are still some quality players left that can help make a team better.

Here’s the best of the rest by position:

Center

Joe Thornton: Everyone expects Thornton to return to San Jose, but as of right now he’s still an unrestricted free agent. The 39-year-old is coming off a knee injury. He had 13 goals and 36 points in 47 games last season. Thornton isn’t the same player he once was, but he can still be a complementary piece on a good Sharks team.

Antoine Vermette: The veteran isn’t as productive as he once was, but there’s still likely going to be in demand over the next couple of days. The 35-year-old had just eight goals and eight assists in 64 games with Anaheim last season.

Daniel Winnik: The 33-year-old plays a very specific kind of role, as he’s an energy forward and penalty killer. Winnik had six goals and 23 points in 81 games with Minnesota last year. There probably won’t be a rush to sign the veteran, but he can still be a useful asset. He’s also capable of playing center and wing.

As you can probably tell, the center market is pretty thin.

Wing

Rick Nash: He’s the only 20-goal scorer left on the market now that James Neal has landed in Calgary. The problem is that the 34-year-old isn’t sure if he wants to keep playing hockey. Nash suffered another concussion after he joined the Bruins, so that’s got to be weighing on him and his huge decision.

Patrick Maroon: The rugged winger split last season with Edmonton and New Jersey and he remained relatively productive, as he accumulated 17 goals and 43 points in 74 games. There probably would have been more interest in his services if he wouldn’t have had to undergo back surgery this offseason. Maroon will still find a nice landing spot in the next few days.

Anthony Duclair: Since he scored 20 goals and 44 points back in 2015-16, Duclair’s career has been a bit of a disappointment. The Coyotes gave him every opportunity to succeed after they got him from the Rangers, but things just never materialized. The 22-year-old was shipped to Chicago last season, but that didn’t help ignite his career either. But he’s still young and a team should roll the dice on his upside.

Defense

Calvin de Haan: The 27-year-old isn’t an offensive juggernaut by any means, but he’s on the right side of 30 and he’s fully capable of serving as an effective number four or five defenseman on a solid team. De Haan was limited to just 33 games last season, but he played in 82 contests the year before that.

Luca Sbisa: Like de Haan, Sbisa also missed a significant amount of time last year. The 28-year-old had two goals and 14 points in 30 games with the Golden Knights. Sbisa is a bottom-pairing defenseman that is capable of moving the puck a little bit.

Dan Hamhuis: The 35-year-old is a defensive defenseman that averaged over 20 minutes of ice time with Dallas last season. He had three goals and 24 points in 80 contests last season, which isn’t awful considering the style he plays.

Alexei Emelin: The Russian blueliner went from being Shea Weber’s defense partner in Montreal two years ago to being a bottom-pairing defender in Nashville. Emelin doesn’t give his team much when it comes to offense or moving the puck up the ice, but he’s a hard-nosed defender that can lay people out.

Goalies

Steve Mason: After signing with the Jets last season, Mason was moved to the Montreal Canadiens late last week. The Habs, who had a ton of cap space, opted to buy out the netminder, so that’s why he’s on the market right now. The 30-year-old had a rough year in Winnipeg. He was plagued by injuries and never really settled into his new city. Some added playing time will do him some good.

Robin Lehner: At 26 years old, Lehner still has time to develop into the number one goalie many expected him to be, but he’s going to have to do it soon. He had a 14-26-9 record with a 3.01 goals-against-average and a .908 save percentage with Buffalo last season. Playing on a decent team could benefit him in a big way.

Kari Lehtonen: His days of being a big money goaltender are over. The 34-year-old hasn’t posted decent numbers in a while, so he’s more of a backup netminder at this point of his career. Finding his next home won’t be easy given his recent performances and age.

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Joey Alfieri is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @joeyalfieri.