Earlier this offseason, Sabres winger Victor Olofsson and his representatives expected a trade to be coming at some point before training camp. However, Lance Lysowski of The Buffalo News suggests that a move involving the 28-year-old is a lot less likely now thanks to the Achilles injury to Jack Quinn that will keep the youngster out for at least the first two months of the season. Olofsson is now in the final year of his contract which carries a $4.75MM AAV which, in itself, makes a trade difficult despite coming off a year that saw him collect 28 goals, a new career high. With Quinn out for a while, Olofsson could lock down a spot a little higher in the lineup after seeing time on the fourth line last season which would give him a chance to be a productive piece for Buffalo in the early going in 2023-24.
More from the Atlantic:
- A pair of Red Wings in defenseman Moritz Seider and winger Lucas Raymond are eligible for contract extensions this summer. MLive’s Ansar Khan assessed both players to try to determine a rough idea of what a max-term agreement for each would look like. In Seider’s case, Dallas blueliner Miro Heiskanen’s deal which carries an AAV of $8.45MM is a good comparable and a deal around that price point could keep him below Dylan Larkin’s $8.7MM price tag which could be a soft ceiling. Meanwhile, Khan feels that Montreal’s Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield whose AAVs are just below $7.9MM might be the right spot for Raymond. GM Steve Yzerman has a little over $54MM in commitments on the books for 2024-25 per CapFriendly which means that Detroit has more than enough wiggle room to do long-term agreements with both youngsters if they so desire.
- Earlier this offseason, Tampa Bay hired Joel Bouchard as their new head coach with AHL Syracuse, taking the place of Benoit Groulx. Speaking with Herb Zurkowsky of the Montreal Gazette, Bouchard indicated that he wasn’t actively seeking another coaching position at this time and that he never interviewed for the job; it was simply offered to him by Lightning GM Julien BriseBois. This is his third different AHL coaching position after spending time previously with Laval and San Diego.
“… Bouchard indicated that he wasn’t actively seeking another coaching position at this time and that he never interviewed for the job; it was simply offered to him …” It’s a good thing Ralphie was working the elevator, otherwise he might have been Shanghai’d for it.
If the Wings give that kind of money to Raymond then clearly, Stevie Y. is losing his judgment.
Certainly Seider will receive some big money in his next contract. But Raymond went backwards last season, and the Wings need to establish if he is going to be a consistent 20+ goal scorer, or not? Raymond’s upcoming season is going to totally determine what the payout is. If he scores fewer than 20 goals, I can’t see an offer greater than 4.0 million AAV over 3 seasons.