NHL Free Agency 2012: 10 Teams with Money to Spend Next Summer and Who They Want

Next July, free agency will begin once again. There are plenty of high-end players that will become unrestricted free agents on July 1 and teams are sure to be after them. The question is: which teams will have the highest chance of signing those players?

Zach Parise, Alex Semin and Dustin Penner are just three players that will be up for grabs this upcoming July. While their own teams will try to re-sign their free agents, there will be several players that teams will want.

What teams have the most money to spend? Who will they go after? We'll have to wait until July to find out for sure, but here are my predictions on how things will go down.

Anaheim Ducks

Cap Space: $27,185,000

Players Under Contract for Next Season: 12

Notable Free Agents: Teemu Selanne, Francois Beauchemin, Saku Koivu, Sheldon Brookbank, Dan Ellis

Who they will go after: Brad Boyes

You might wonder why I think the Ducks would go after a player such as Boyes, but here's why. If Koivu doesn't return, the Ducks No. 2 centerman will be Andrew Cogliano. While he might be ready for that role, the Ducks are going to need more scoring, and has Boyes shown in his career that he can do that. Give him the right linemates, and he will make them better and they will make him better.

Dallas Stars

Cap Space: $28,350,000

Players Under Contract for Next Season: 12

Notable Free Agents: Sheldon Souray, Nicklas Grossman, Radek Dvorak, Adam Burish

Who they will go after: Francois Beauchemin

The Dallas Stars only have three defensemen under contract for next season: Stephane Robidas, Trevor Daley and Adam Pardy. While it is likely that the Stars will re-sign Souray, Grossman is more likely to be coveted in free agency and other teams might outbid them for his services.

No matter what happens, they need to go out and sign another defenseman. Francois Beauchemin is the most all-around defenseman in the group of free agents, other than Nicklas Lidstrom, and the Stars don't need the more-offensive defenseman and Beuchemin would be a good fit for them.

Winnipeg Jets

Cap Space: $29,536,207

Players Under Contract for Next Season: 12

Notable Free Agents: Johnny Oduya, Chris Mason, Kyle Wellwood, Tanner Glass

Who they will go after: Scott Clemmensen

If Chris Mason chooses to leave in free agency, Winnipeg will be in need of backup goalie. Scott Clemmensen, in my opinion, is one of the most dependable backup goalies in the NHL and he would give the Jets a steady backup ready to step in if Andrej Pavelec stumbles.

Edmonton Oilers

Cap Space: $29,366,667

Players Under Contract for Next Season: 12

Notable Free Agents: Ryan Smyth, Ales Hemsky, Andy Sutton

Who they will go after: John-Michael Liles

Edmonton has one of the best young core of forwards in the NHL. What they don't have is a high-end defense corps. While they have young prospects such as Colten Teubert, David Musil and Oscar Klefbom coming up the turnpike, they need a veteran to make the transition from what the have now to what they will have in a few years. John-Michael Liles is a puck-moving defenseman that could get the puck up to Taylor Hall, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins or Jordan Eberle really quickly. He would be a really good fit for the Edmonton Oilers.

New York Islanders

Cap Space: $29,801,001

Players Under Contract for Next Season: 13

Notable Free Agents: Brian Rolston, Evgeni Nabokov, Al Montoya, P.A. Parenteau, Frans Nielsen, Jay Pandalfo

Who they will go after: Josh Harding

If one thing is clear on Long Island, it is that they need some stable goaltending. Rick DiPietro is always hurt, Nabakov is sure to leave in free agency, and Montoya is not a proven starter.

Josh Harding has been stuck below Nicklas Backstrom in Minnesota and will probably be looking for an opportunity to become a starter elsewhere. Long Island might just be the place for him.

Carolina Hurricanes

Cap Space: $29,838,333

Players Under Contract for Next Season: 16

Notable Free Agents: Jaroslav Spacek, Tuomu Ruutu, Bryan Allen, Tim Gleason, Alexei Ponikoravsky

Who they will go after: Ryan Suter

If Nashville fails to re-sign Ryan Suter, Carolina would be smart to go after him. Suter would immediately give the Hurricanes a franchise defenseman that the franchise has really lacked since the days of Paul Coffey. Suter, no matter how good he is, will always be in the shadow of Shea Weber as long as they are together, and for Suter to take the next step in his career, he must move on. Carolina would provide him with an excellent opportunity.

St. Louis Blues

Cap Space: $31,154,168

Players Under Contract for Next Season: 14

Notable Free Agents: Barret Jackman, Jason Arnott, Jamie Langenbrunner, Carlo Colaiacovo, Brian Elliot

Who they will go after: Shane Doan

St. Louis is a young team on the rise that could very well be contending for a championship in the next couple of years. They brought in Arnott and Langenbrunner for veteran leadership this season and if one or both of them were to leave after the season, they need to be replaced. Shane Doan would give the Blues young guns a mentor and Doan can still fill the net pretty well.

Phoenix Coyotes

Cap Space: $33,462,500

Players Under Contract for Next Season: 15

Notable Free Agents: Shane Doan, Michal Rozsival, Daymond Langkow, Ray Whitney, Adrian Aucoin

Who they will go after: Anyone willing to sign there

Let's face it, players aren't going to be jumping at the chance to play in a market that could very well move in the offseason. They might get a mid-level free agent here and there, but there will be no major moves.

Nashville Predators

Cap Space: $32,149,167

Players Under Contract for Next Season: 12

Notable Free Agents: Ryan Suter, Francis Bouillon, Jordin Tootoo

Who they will go after: Nicklas Grossman

Nashville has problem of signing Shea Weber and Ryan Suter before they can even consider going after anyone else. If they fail to re-sign Suter, Grossman would be a suitable replacement. He would come cheaper than Suter more than likely and he would give Ryan Ellis a few years of development in Nashville before taking a spot in the top four.

Colorado Avalanche

Cap Space: $41,966,667

Players Under Contract for Next Season: 9

Notable Free Agents: Milan Hejduk, David Jones, Matt Hunwick, Jay McClement

Who they will go after: Zach Parise

Colorado has plenty of restricted free agents to re-sign. Matt Duchene, Ryan O'Reilly, and Erik Johnson top the list and most of their available will go to them, but Colorado could surprise a lot of people by going after Zach Parise. If Parise wants to go to a winner, Colorado will only get better with him going to Denver. Any line that has Parise and Duchene will be feared and Parise would be smart to consider a contract offer from Colorado.