The New Jersey Devils got their first key piece of offseason business done yesterday, signing Jesper Bratt to an eight-year, $63MM extension. It’s a team-friendly $7.875MM cap hit (in the short-term, at least), which leaves the team still with upwards of $25MM of space this offseason, per CapFriendly. A good chunk of that will end up going to the team’s other star RFA, Timo Meier, who general manager Tom Fitzgerald said today wants to stay with the Devils long-term. While the Devils did file for team-elected salary arbitration yesterday, it’s a safety net more than anything else – Fitzgerald has requested Meier’s agent to hammer out the framework of a max-term, eight-year extension.
Now with seven NHL seasons and nearly 500 games under his belt, the 26-year-old Swiss winger is coming off a four-year, $6MM average annual value deal signed with the San Jose Sharks in 2019. He’s scored 35 and 40 goals in the last two seasons, and he’ll look to get paid like one of the premier goal-scorers in the league on a long-term deal.
While the Devils would prefer to keep a salary hierarchy among forwards under Jack Hughes’ $8MM cap hit, that’s not likely on a long-term deal with Meier. While he won’t earn the eight figures due to him on a one-year qualifying offer, his cap hit across eight years could creep into the high $8MM range.
Another player the Devils have on their offseason list is netminder Mackenzie Blackwood, on whom Fitzgerald says the team will explore all options. Another restricted free agent, Fitzgerald wasn’t sure the team will opt to qualify him, negotiate a contract lower than his $3.36MM qualifying offer, or cut ties with the 26-year-old altogether and trade him.
After another injury-plagued season which saw him post a .893 save percentage in 22 games, he’s decidedly slipped to third on the team’s goalie depth chart behind Vitek Vanecek and Akira Schmid. A trade seems like the most pragmatic scenario here, likely for a draft pick. The team has a well-stocked prospect pool in the crease with names like Nico Daws and others.
It’s been an unfortunate turn of the tide for Blackwood, who a few seasons ago seemed the organization’s goalie of the future – especially in 2019-20 when he posted a .915 mark in 47 games behind a rather weak squad.
Why teams feel they have to go all-8 with every decent (but not foundational) player is so predictable. As soon as they negotiated that limit w/ #NHLPA it was obvious that would be standard. #NHLidiots
I expect half of it is that GMs have owners, fans and the media on their backs today, and don’t give much of a damn how much they might be setting their teams up for disaster down the road. (Heck, at Lou Lamoriello’s age, what’s his incentive NOT to? He’ll be in his grave well before Horvat’s or Barzal’s contracts expire.)
Take this situation here. If Fitzy goes before a microphone and says something like “Bratt just doesn’t have the resume to justify max term at high salary, and so he signed the qualifying offer, and we’ll be looking to unload him,” he’d be lynched.
What is your job? Is it anywhere related to being in the front office of a professional sports team? If not, keep your mouth shut, you look like a fool.
How would feel if people that had no knowledge of how to actually do your job gave you advice online? You’d think they were crazy. This is you.
What is YOUR job? Professional troll? Guess what, troll: this is a comments forum. People comment here. If you can’t handle that, troll, go spew somewhere else.
Yes, and my comment is you are clueless. The NHL isn’t your last place Yahoo team.
I dunno, but to me at least, Meier didn’t seem to be a great fit in NJ. His style is more geared towards a Panthers type team, IMO.
Agreed. They can’t pay everyone like a 1st line 40 goal scorer.
Trade Timo for Anderson and Xhekaj. NJ gets much tougher!
Send him to Pittsburgh. We need a goalie