What would it take for the Knights to sign this year’s top free agent?

Welcome to the Summer of Marner.

The NHL’s new year begins July 1 with a star-studded free agency class that should benefit from a rising salary cap. The top name on the market is Toronto Maple Leafs right wing Mitch Marner.

The Golden Knights are expected to be interested in the fourth overall pick from the 2015 draft, who scored a career-high 102 points last season.

How realistic their pursuit is remains the question.

Rising cap

The NHL, with the COVID-19 pandemic in the rearview mirror, is about to experience huge cap growth.

The upper limit last season was $88 million. It will grow to $95.5 million in 2025-26, then $104 million in 2026-27.

That means contracts for star players will hit new levels. Edmonton Oilers center Leon Draisaitl signed an eight-year extension last offseason that had the highest annual average in league history at $14 million.

Draisaitl’s teammate, Connor McDavid, should surpass that if he signs a new deal when eligible July 1.

McDavid, the first overall pick in 2015, leads his draft class with 1,082 points. Marner, 28, is second among the group with 741 points in 657 games.

He picked a perfect time to hit the open market. Marner just wrapped up a six-year, $65.41 million extension with the Maple Leafs with a cap hit of $10.9 million and should be in line for a significant raise.

Any team with cap space would love to add the native of Markham, Ontario. He is a four-time 90-point scorer and is also one of the best defensive forwards in the NHL. Marner has received Selke Trophy votes in seven different seasons.

Is it possible?

The question is whether the Knights can squeeze another star onto their roster.

They have $9.615 million in cap space right now with nine forwards, seven defensemen and two goaltenders under contract. That means they’ll need to make some moves to create room for Marner, given they have to add multiple forwards to fill out the roster. Options include the team’s own pending free agents in right wing Reilly Smith, left wing Brandon Saad and right wing Victor Olofsson.

The Knights can also give center Jack Eichel an extension July 1 that will kick in during the 2026-27 season.

One player who won’t be traded is center William Karlsson. The Knights aren’t interested in moving on from the Original Misfit, according to multiple sources.

The team doesn’t have many other players on significant contracts it would want to move, either, given it just posted the third-best regular-season record in the NHL.

What about Pietrangelo?

One way the Knights could gain flexibility is if one of their players needs to go on long-term injured reserve.

The team has not said any of their players are expected to miss time. But Sportsnet recently reported there are questions about the status of defenseman Alex Pietrangelo.

Pietrangelo, 35, played 71 regular-season games for the Knights but withdrew from the 4 Nations Face-Off in February due to an undisclosed ailment. He has two years left on his contract with an $8.8 million cap hit.

The Knights have not made any comment on Pietrangelo’s status.

The team, of course, could use other avenues to open up more spending power. The Knights have done so before when they’ve wanted to add players.

It’s unclear what levers the team would pull to bring in Marner, but it sets up an interesting two weeks before the free-agent market opens.

Contact Danny Webster at dwebster@reviewjournal.com. Follow @DannyWebster21 on X.