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Chris Drury wasn’t able to land Jake Guentzel at the trade deadline this season. The Rangers general manager might try to make it happen again when the free-agent market opens on Monday.

League sources have indicated that the 29-year-old Guentzel is a Rangers’ target in free agency despite the former Penguins and Hurricanes wing hoping to command around $8.5 million annually on a seven-year deal when the market opens.

Those same sources, who were granted anonymity so they could speak freely about the process, indicated that the talk around Guentzel and the Canucks is very real, and colleague Pierre LeBrun reported the Hurricanes still haven’t given up on re-signing him. Those outside wrinkles for the Rangers come in addition to their internal one — how to fit Guentzel into their tight salary-cap window.

The Rangers were in on Guentzel talks at the trade deadline but came up short, with Pittsburgh trading the point-per-game winger to Carolina for a fairly mid-level package of prospects, a second-round pick and veteran forward Michael Bunting. Guentzel scored three times in the six-game Rangers win in the second round and he has 11 goals in 13 career playoff games against the Rangers.

Of the available top-six forwards this free-agent period — that list currently includes Steven Stamkos, Jonathan Marchessault, Sam Reinhart, Tyler Toffoli, Jake DeBrusk and Patrick Kane — Guentzel appears to hold the most interest for the Rangers.

The Rangers’ biggest obstacle is the salary cap. Drury has around $12.8 million of cap space with which to work, according to CapFriendly, but a chunk of that will go to restricted free agents Ryan Lindgren and Braden Schneider. So, as currently situated, the Rangers don’t have the flexibility needed.

That could change this weekend in Las Vegas. The Rangers are believed to be shopping Kaapo Kakko, who signed his $2.4-million qualifier last week. If that money comes off the books the Rangers could sneak in under the cap with Lindgren and Schneider combining on around $6 million in cap hits and Guentzel in the $8.5 million range.

But that doesn’t leave much wiggle room for 2024-25 and a long-term deal for Guentzel puts the Rangers in a real bind for 2025 and beyond. So Drury, as he has in the past, will have to get creative if he wants to add Guentzel.

A Kane reunion in the cards?

Kane is worth keeping an eye on as free agency nears, especially if the Rangers don’t clear the space needed to go for Guentzel. The 35-year-old’s half-season Rangers stint in 2022-23 didn’t go as planned, with the Rangers failing to make it out of the first round and Kane looking compromised by his hip injury. He has at least some interest in rewriting his ending with the Rangers and could be a cheaper option than the likes of top free agents Guentzel and Reinhart, who will command more money with longer term.

The Rangers could likely afford Kane right now without any other moves, especially if Kane sees a reunion with the Rangers as unfinished business after his injury-hampered stint in 2022-23, when he played through a badly damaged hip following his trade from the Blackhawks and wasn’t able to be consistently productive.

Kane is likely seeking a two- or three-year term though the Rangers might prefer a one-year deal with over-35 performance bonuses that wouldn’t affect this year’s cap, leaving Drury free to add elsewhere around his lineup or preserve some space heading toward the 2024-25 trade deadline, where he’s been very active the last three seasons.

The dominoes will fall fast on Monday and surely the Rangers will have a good idea of where things are heading with Guentzel by then.

Zegras interest?

A report linked the Rangers to a potential Trevor Zegras trade as the Ducks are listening to offers for the 23-year-old forward who has two years left on his deal at a $5.75 million cap hit. We haven’t heard anything that concrete linking the Rangers to Zegras, who grew up in Bedford, barely a 15-minute drive to the Rangers’ practice facility.

What we can say is that Zegras, who trains in the offseason at Prentiss Hockey Performance alongside Chris Kreider, has had the Rangers as his ideal destination for a long time. Ducks GM Pat Verbeek has had some decent interest from at least one team — believed to be the Flyers — but is asking for a very expensive return for Zegras, who had an injury-plagued 2023-24 and finished with 15 points in 31 games.

The cost certainty on Zegras this season and next would be workable for the Rangers, but whether the fit is there might be in question.

Trouba’s future

Another way the Rangers could open up space to sign Guentzel is by moving Jacob Trouba, either in a trade or via a buyout. They could always go the waiver route too, as they did with Barclay Goodrow, but it’s unlikely anyone’s willing to take on the full $8 million AAV this season and next remaining on Trouba’s deal.

A buyout would save the Rangers $ 4 million this season and next against the cap while adding $2 million in dead space for 2026-27 and 2027-28, according to CapFriendly. Drury, if he were to consider moving on from his captain, would probably prefer to retain half of Trouba’s salary in a trade rather than add those two extra years of cap hits.

Trouba still has a no-move clause until July 1, after which he has a 16-team no-trade clause. The Rangers could sign Guentzel and then move Trouba after July 1 to be cap-compliant for next season since teams are allowed to be 10 percent over the cap until opening rosters are set in October.

There’s no indication as of yet that the Rangers are entertaining a Trouba move. If Guentzel is the guy Drury wants, though, we can simply quote the GM from his postseason availability: “Nothing’s off the table.”

Shesterkin’s next deal

The elephant in the room for the Rangers is how much they will have to pay to Igor Shesterkin on his next deal. Drury and Shesterkin’s rep, Rick Komarow, aren’t saying whether they’ve talked yet (they surely have) about an extension, which can be signed after July 1.

It is believed that Shesterkin, entering the final year of his deal on a $5.667-million cap hit, is not feeling pressured to extend before next season begins. League sources have not thrown around any numbers but this one likely will be more about percentage of the salary cap rather than a “we want x-million per” situation.

Connor McDavid’s eight-year, $100-million deal, signed in July of 2017, was 16.67 percent of the cap when it began in the 2018-19 season. Carey Price’s eight-year, $84-million extension with the Canadiens, also signed in July of 2017, was 14 percent of the cap for the Canadiens when it kicked in.

That 14 percent could very well be the starting point in negotiations for Shesterkin’s camp. Based on a projected $92.4-million cap in 2025-26, that’s $12.94 million. It would be the largest deal for a goalie in NHL history and Drury might pass out if he hears that — unless he’s heard it already.

There are some other numbers that Shesterkin’s side will point to in justification: A .928 career postseason save percentage, third among goalies with at least 40 playoff appearances over the last 50 years. A .922 regular-season save percentage, tied for third among goalies with at least 200 appearances over the last 50 years — only Ken Dryden and Dominik Hasek are ahead of him.

So this may not be a quick agreement. It’s very easy to see Shesterkin heading into his walk year without a new deal. And if he performs the way he did down the stretch last season and in the playoffs, that cap percentage number is unlikely to change much. With Alexis Lafrenière and K’Andre Miller also needing new deals after next season, anyone the Rangers add now will have to be weighed against what their best young forward, their best young defenseman and their elite goalie will cost.