When July 1st rolls around every year, excitement around the NHL goes through the roof. Top players are available for nothing but money and fans want their favorite team to shell out the dollars and cents to improve the club. Unfortunately, the deals that are made on the unrestricted free agent market are so often flawed and doomed to fail. Teams overpay for over-the-hill veterans or lock up players already in their prime for far too long. Former NHL GM Brian Burke has long held the belief that more mistakes are made on the first day of free agency than any other.
Every year we get a reminder of just how tricky the free agent market is. In 2017 we saw players like Karl Alzner (five years, $23.1MM), Patrick Marleau (three years, $18.8MM) and Kevin Shattenkirk (four years, $26.6MM) all sign contracts that would be regretted down the road. Alzner has spent time in the minors after clearing waivers, Marleau has already been bought out of the last year of his deal and Shattenkirk could potentially face the same fate later this summer if the New York Rangers are desperate for cap space.
Just one year after the 2018 frenzy and there are already several deals that look like mistakes. Jack Johnson’s long-term deal (five years, $16.3MM) has Pittsburgh Penguins fans shaking their heads, while the Calgary Flames can’t find a spot for James Neal (five years, $28.8MM). Ilya Kovalchuk (three years, $18.8MM) looks like a shadow of what he once was.
Given the history of failure in this period, you can only assume that there will be teams deeply regretting things they did just a few days ago. Even just a year from now they might be trying to buy out some of the contracts they signed, or shipping them somewhere else to free up room. Which will be the worst? Which contract will be so unbearable a year from now that fans will be hollering for its removal? Cast your vote below and make sure to leave a comment explaining why:
Only contracts signed July 1, 2019 have been included
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I’d say there’s three or four potential ones. Anton Stralman is a great guy veteran leader and a solid middle pairing defender, but he might be breaking down. Zuccarello and Myers are fine players, but each got too many years and too high of an AAV. Bobrovsky is extremely risky, but I think that’s more do to health rather than a potential decline in performance.
Brandon Tanev is borderline, but I think his deal was just more unnecessary rather than bad. Even if they get three or four years down the road and he’s not providing value, it won’t be hard to move him with a sweetener or two.
Varlamov as well. His market should’ve been topped out at two years max. There’s no reason he should’ve gotten a better deal than Lehner or Mrazek.
Technically not a UFA but his UFA rights were traded. Hayes might be the worst contract given this offseason.
Varlamov is really not that good. i cant see him being a $5 million a year player.
Wasnt a UFA but Kevin Hayes contract was a huge yikes
It might not be the worst contract, per se, but…
The worst combination of contract with the team that gave out the contract is Mats Zuccarello to the Wild. That team is going nowhere slowly.
The worst contract outright is Varlamov but the team gave the same money and more term to a bad goalie as the much better goalie they already had. $5 million a year and he won’t even be able to earn it opening the bench door because he’ll be hurt.
In order
Hayes
Tanev
Bobrovski (in 4 years)
Myers
Leblanc (when he scores 50pts again and wins 5mil from arbitration and the Sharks can’t keep him)
I still say the worst contract down the line will end up being the one for Erik Karlsson due to his inability as of late to stay on the ice. He has shown to of had shoulder issues as well as knee and ankle problems and last year missed 25 games. Now they have locked him up for eight years and 92 million keeping him until he is He will be 37 when the contract is over. This will turn out to be a huge mistake odds are will get traded by year for if they can find a team that can soak Up 11.5 annually.
Hayes might be pretty bad, but i dont think it will look ad bad as some of the other ones one year in
Varlamov is the worst contract by far. He was barely a .500 goalie had high 2’s low 3 GAA the last 5 years and you sign him to that ridiculous contract for 4 years!