2016 NHL Free Agents: Projected Landing Spots for Top Players

The Stanley Cup playoffs are officially underway for 16 teams, while the other 14 teams in the league can officially set their sights on the offseason and start rebuilding.

While there are different objectives heading into the third week of April, all teams should have a talented free-agency class looming in their minds this summer. 

There are some huge names who will be testing the market who many teams would covet in an early attempt to gain momentum heading into the 2016-17 season. 

Let's take a look at two of the top free agents this offseason and predict where they'll end up playing next season. 

Steven Stamkos

Position: Center

2015-16 Team: Tampa Bay Lightning

Contract Expires: After 2015-16 Season

Steven Stamkos of the Tampa Bay Lightning was dealt a bad break when he underwent surgery on April 4 to remove blood clots in his right collarbone with four games left in the regular season. 

The Lightning reported that their captain would be able to return in one to three months. It might not matter how fast he recovers depending on how his team performs in the playoffs, which is why some believe that Stamkos has already played his last game in a Lightning uniform. 

Stamkos has been one of the most electrifying forwards in the sport over his first eight seasons in the league. In the six years in which he's played over 48 games, Stamkos has scored 30 or more goals five times, including a 51-goal season in 2009-10 and 60 in 2011-12. 

Despite his successes and leading the Lightning to a Stanley Cup appearance last season against the Chicago Blackhawks, contract extension talks did not go well this year. 

In January, the Lightning reportedly offered Stamkos an eight-year, $68 million deal, according to Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman, via Erik Erlendsson of the Tampa Tribune. While there was no official confirmation of the offer, it was significantly lower than that of Anze Kopitar's eight-year, $80 million extension he signed with the Los Angeles Kings in January. 

Kopitar (28) is two years older than Stamkos (26) and has scored almost 70 fewer goals than the Lightning center.

Stamkos didn't disclose much about the reported offer when speaking with Joe Smith of the Tampa Bay Times: "I'm not going to comment on that. We haven't talked about that stuff in the media all season long, and I don't know how they get a hold of stuff like that. All the things that we've talked about, it's staying internally, and it'll continue to be that way."

For a player of Stamkos' caliber, he should be making more than a player like Kopitar and more than $8.5 million per year. What should be putting more pressure on the Lightning is the Toronto Maple Leafs' interest in Stamkos. 

It's something Maple Leafs fans would love to see, via Erlendsson:

An Ontario native, Stamkos wants something between $11 and $12 million per year, which is a figure that only the Maple Leafs could offer, according to Sportsnet's Dean Blundell. 

They were able to free up that kind of money thanks to the unloading of big contracts by trading Phil Kessel to the Pittsburgh Penguins and Dion Phaneuf to the Ottawa Senators. 

Despite their last-place status in the Eastern Conference, a big contract offer to play in his hometown might be plenty to lure Stamkos away from Tampa. 

Prediction: Stamkos signs seven-year, $84 million deal with Maple Leafs

David Backes

Position: Center

2015-16 Team: St. Louis Blues

Contract Expires: After 2015-16 Season

Like Stamkos, David Backes was also forced to miss the rest of the regular season with a lower body injury he suffered in the Blues' 5-1 win over the Colorado Avalanche on April 3.

However, unlike Stamkos, Backes was back in the Blues lineup for Game 1 against the Blackhawks, where he scored the overtime winner.

St. Louis' captain isn't as flashy a goal scorer as Stamkos, but he's a consistent, hardworking center who can put up over 20 goals every year and throw his body around:

He's helped lead the Blues to six playoff appearances, though they haven't made it past the second round, which is what prompted them to deal T.J. Oshie to the Washington Capitals before the 2015-16 season. 

If the Blues have another subpar playoff outing, they could be less inclined to bring back Backes. Of course, that all depends on if he's even on the ice.  

According to Jeremy Rutherford of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, the Blues offered Backes a three-year, $16.5 million extension in training camp, which he declined. 

However, both parties told Rutherford that they would like to work out a deal before he hits free agency on July 1. 

Backes' leadership and skill are too valuable for the Blues to let walk no matter how they do in the postseason.

Prediction: Backes signs four-year, $22 million deal with Blues