Snapshots: Zadorov, Rodrigues, Laine, Canucks
On top of Johnny Gaudreau opting to get the open market, defenseman Nikita Zadorov will also be doing so, reports Pierre LeBrun of TSN and The Athletic (Twitter link). The 27-year-old had a career-high 22 points last season but also averaged a career-low in ice time at 16:55 per game. A veteran of over NHL games 500 games between the regular season and playoffs, Zadorov is a well-known commodity around the league and will have interest from teams looking to shore up the left side of their back end in free agency.
Elsewhere around the NHL:
- Pending UFA forward Evan Rodrigues has changed representation to Darren Ferris of Quartexx, PuckPedia reports (Twitter link). After bouncing around the previous two seasons, the 28-year-old had a breakout year in 2021-22, collecting 43 points in 82 games with Pittsburgh while spending plenty of time in their top six. After being on one-year deals the past three years, Rodrigues should be able to secure a multi-year commitment this time around.
- While Patrik Laine is a year away from being eligible to test unrestricted free agency, Blue Jackets GM Jarmo Kekalainen told reporters including Brian Hedger of the Columbus Dispatch that there is mutual interest in getting a long-term extension done with the winger. Laine is coming off his first career point per game season, notching 26 goals and 30 assists in 56 games and received his $7.5MM qualifying offer. He’s eligible to file for arbitration if an agreement can’t be worked out in the coming days.
- Canucks president Jim Rutherford told CHEK TV’s Rick Dhaliwal (Twitter link) that the team will not be looking to re-sign pending UFA forwards Alex Chiasson, Brad Richardson, and Brandon Sutter right away but could circle back at some point this summer. Chiasson had 13 goals in 67 games last season, a decent return on a league minimum deal while Richardson won over 58% of his faceoffs in 2021-22. Sutter, meanwhile, missed all of last season with long COVID symptoms and there’s no word yet on whether or not he’ll be able to play in 2022-23.
Offseason Checklist: Colorado Avalanche
With the offseason in full swing, it’s time to examine what each squad will need to accomplish over the coming weeks. Last up is a look at the Avalanche.
Generally speaking, a team that wins the Stanley Cup shouldn’t need to make a whole lot of changes. Evidently, that’s not the case in Colorado as they have a new starting goalie (Alexandar Georgiev) and a new GM (Chris MacFarland with Joe Sakic moving up a rung) in just a couple of weeks after beating Tampa Bay. MacFarland will have a few items to check off in the coming days as well.
Replace Defensive Depth
Sakic added defenseman Josh Manson at the deadline as a rental and while he didn’t have the exact same role he had in Anaheim (his minutes were more limited), he was a key role player in the postseason. He’s likely to become an unrestricted free agent and there’s a decent chance he’ll move on. Ryan Murray and Jack Johnson, who signed with Colorado last summer, are also set to become unrestricted free agents tomorrow and certainly aren’t locks to return.
That leaves Colorado with six blueliners that saw regular action last season and one of those (Kurtis MacDermid) is more of a winger than a defenseman at this point. Another, Bowen Byram, has shown plenty of promise but has dealt with multiple concussions in his young career and had to take a step back to recover last season. While the Avs will certainly be hoping that he’ll be able to stay healthy, expecting that to be the case would carry some risks.
With that in mind, MacFarland will need to add (or re-sign) at least one defenseman if not two to stay on the safe side. These players likely won’t command long-term deals (especially since they’ll want to keep some flexibility for the future) and will be earmarked for the third pairing but that extra depth will be necessary to hedge against in-season injuries. Fortunately for Colorado, while there aren’t many impact defenders available on the open market, there are several depth ones that are in the range that they’re going to want to pay.
MacKinnon Extension Talks
It’s quite possible that the biggest item on Colorado’s list this summer is to do something that won’t even affect their team for next season. Nathan MacKinnon will officially enter the final year of his contract on Wednesday, making him eligible to sign a contract extension. Prior to stepping aside as GM, Sakic recently indicated his intention of trying to get a deal done with his captain and there’s little reason to think that will change with MacFarland at the helm.
It sounds crazy to think now but at the time the 26-year-old signed his current seven-year, $44.1MM deal, there was some risk attached to it. While MacKinnon had shown flashes of offensive dominance, he had also failed to reach 25 goals in a single season. They were paying up with the expectation that he’d continue to improve and provide extra value by the end of the contract. It’s safe to say he has done that and more as only two players in the league have more points than MacKinnon over the last five years. (Both of them play in Edmonton if you’re wondering who they are.)
While the salary cap has flattened out in recent years and still has another couple of years on its current trajectory, MacKinnon is in line for a substantial raise on his next contract. Connor McDavid’s deal represented 16.67% of the Upper Limit when it was signed; that rate applied to the current cap would push MacKinnon just past $13.75MM. Granted, McDavid has been the better scorer but it’s not out of the realm of possibility that MacKinnon checks in around 15% of the cap which would put his next contract around the same $12.5MM AAV that McDavid currently has now. It’s a price tag Colorado shouldn’t be balking at paying either as if he was to somehow hit the open market next summer, several teams would be going after him with that type of money.
At this point, there isn’t a lot to gain from waiting while there’s value in having certainty about costs moving forward as Colorado plans other moves. Accordingly, expect a push to get something done on this front quickly.
Re-Sign Lehkonen
While Manson and some of their other late acquisitions were pending unrestricted free agents, that wasn’t the case for winger Artturi Lehkonen. The extra year of team control was enough for Sakic to justify parting with one of their top prospects in Justin Barron to get him from Montreal at the trade deadline. He certainly made an immediate impact with his new team, logging over 16 minutes a game in their middle six down the stretch and then scored two critical goals in the playoffs with the series-winner against Edmonton and the Cup-winner against the Lightning.
Lehkonen has arbitration rights in his final year of RFA eligibility so expect Colorado to take a run at signing him to a long-term deal that buys out his prime UFA years. Such a move would push his AAV past the $4MM mark even though his highest point total during the regular season is 38 which he put up this year. It’s a high price to pay for a winger that isn’t going to consistently light the lamp but his versatility and penalty killing ability made him an integral part of their team in the playoffs and it’s unlikely they will give him a chance to move on anytime soon.
Replace Outgoing Free Agent Forwards
While Colorado managed to get one prominent free agent off the table on Monday when they signed winger Valeri Nichushkin to an eight-year deal, they’re still set to lose a pair of key free agent forwards in Nazem Kadri and Andre Burakovsky. Knowing the money that they’re going to be paying MacKinnon in 2023-24, they know they’re not going to be able to keep Kadri which creates a big opening down the middle. While Alex Newhook has shown some promise, he’s not really for full-time duty in the top six yet and while J.T. Compher can hold his own when covering for injuries, he’s not the preferred option to take Kadri’s spot either. Adding a proven veteran center on a short-term contract would be huge for the Avalanche.
Then there’s Burakovsky whose 61-point campaign likely priced himself out of what Colorado can afford with Lehkonen effectively taking his spot and role on the roster. But another winger that can at least slot in on the third line with an ability to move up when needed would certainly help lengthen their attack. The Avs have around $14MM to spend this summer with Lehkonen set to take up a sizable chunk of that. Between a new center to replace Kadri and some defensive depth, there might be enough left for that type of winger to help keep one of the top attacks in the NHL three lines deep.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images. Contract information courtesy of CapFriendly.
Free Agent Focus: Buffalo Sabres
Free agency is almost upon us as it’s less than a day away. There will be several prominent players set to hit the open market while many teams have key restricted free agents to re-sign as well. Next up is a look at the Buffalo Sabres.
Key Restricted Free Agent
F Victor Olofsson: The 26-year-old has had some ups and downs in his career and there was a time last season when it looked like Olofsson could be a non-tender candidate when he was struggling. However, he was much better over the final two months of the season, notching 25 points in 28 games to show that he can still be a part of Buffalo’s plans. Olofsson is in his final year of arbitration eligibility so GM Kevyn Adams will be looking to work on a multi-year agreement which likely would fall in the mid-$4MM range. If they can’t work out something in the next few days at least, expect Olofsson to file for arbitration and that will start the clock on working out a deal to avoid a hearing. A one-year pact through a hearing should check in around the $4MM range if it gets that far.
Other RFAs: G Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, F Brett Murray, F Arttu Ruotsalainen
Key Unrestricted Free Agents
D Will Butcher – Few players have seen their stock plummet as much as Butcher has in recent years. After making the All-Rookie team in 2018, things have gone downhill from there. The 27-year-old has had a very limited role the last couple of seasons between New Jersey and Buffalo but still put up nine points in 37 games in 2021-22. He’s only four years removed from reaching 30 points back in his sophomore year. While his market isn’t going to be the strongest, there will be teams looking to add some low-cost offensive depth on their back end and the potential upside of a rebound will result in some interest on a one-year deal.
D Colin Miller – There are some parallels with Butcher in the sense that he’s a few years removed from his best year but his production has dropped considerably since then. Miller is coming off a tough year on the injury front as well, missing 30 games between injuries and a stint in COVID protocol and with only 14 points in 38 games, his market is going to be similarly limited as well. Again, teams will be looking to shore up their depth and Miller did log nearly 19 minutes a game last season so there will be some interest in a short-term pact, albeit at a much lower price tag than the $3.875MM he made the last four seasons.
D Mark Pysyk – After playing very limited roles in the previous two seasons with Florida and Dallas which included time on the wing, Pysyk returned to Buffalo and reclaimed a spot on their back end, spending most of the year on their third pairing. At this stage of his career, the 30-year-old is likely going to be going year-to-year but as a right-shot defender that can play up front in a pinch, he should have some teams showing interest at a deal a little above the league minimum.
F Cody Eakin – Eakin’s days of being an impact energy player are largely gone but he can still kill penalties and win faceoffs having won a career-high 56% of his draws in 2021-22. As far as fourth-line centers go, those are two elements that teams often look for. It would be surprising to see the 31-year-old come close to the $2.25MM that he made in each of the last two years – the market for role players has dipped since then – but Eakin should have some suitors from teams looking for some cheap depth down the middle.
Other UFAs: F Drake Caggiula, D Brandon Davidson, G Aaron Dell, F John Hayden, G Michael Houser, F Mark Jankowski, F Ryan MacInnis, D Ethan Prow, D Jimmy Schuldt, G Malcolm Subban (expected to re-sign), G Dustin Tokarski
Projected Cap Space
Cap space won’t be an issue for the Sabres who have over $30MM in cap space right now and that’s even after adding in Ben Bishop’s contract that they took on from Dallas earlier this summer. Olofsson is the only free agent of note to re-sign so Buffalo has the cap space to be aggressive in the market or to take on more contracts to add additional assets. That said, they typically have been a budget team so it remains to be seen how much of that $30MM they’ll be able to use.
Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images. Contract information courtesy of CapFriendly.
Predators Agree To Eight-Year Contract With Filip Forsberg
July 11: The Predators have now officially announced the contract, with Poile releasing the following statement:
We are very pleased to announce Filip’s signing today. As one of the best offensive players in our history, we are thrilled to have Filip as a part of our team for the next eight seasons. His talent, competitiveness and leadership are critical to our future as we continue to strive for our goal of winning a Stanley Cup. We believe that Filip, like Pekka Rinne before him and like our captain, Roman Josi, is doing now, will write a legacy with the Predators that fans will remember forever. Additionally, we’d like to wish Filip and his fiancée Erin all the best as they get married later this month. We appreciate having them both in our SMASHVILLE family for the next eight years.
July 9: Filip Forsberg isn’t leaving Nashville anytime soon as the team announced (Twitter link) that they’ve agreed to an eight-year contract with the winger. While financial terms weren’t officially disclosed, 104.5 The Zone’s Dawn Davenport was the first to report (Twitter link) that the deal is worth around $70MM; Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli confirms (via Twitter) that the deal carries an $8.5MM AAV which is worth a total of $68MM.
TSN’s Pierre LeBrun reported Sunday morning on the financial structure of the Forsberg deal. It is as follows:
- 2022-23: $10MM
- 2023-24: $10MM
- 2024-25: $10MM
- 2025-26: $10MM
- 2026-27: $4.5MM base salary, $3MM signing bonus
- 2027-28: $4MM base salary, $3MM signing bonus
- 2028-29: $4MM base salary, $3MM signing bonus
- 2029-30: $3.5MM base salary, $3MM signing bonus
Interestingly, the deal does, in fact, come with some protection against movement. Per LeBrun, the deal has a full no-movement clause throughout, and a modified no-trade clause for the final two seasons of the contract.
The 27-year-old has spent parts of the last ten seasons with the Predators after they acquired him at the trade deadline from Washington in 2013 in exchange for Martin Erat and Michael Latta in a trade that worked out a whole lot better for Nashville than it did for the Capitals. Since then, Forsberg has become a consistent scorer for the Preds and has been a key cog on their top line for several years.
While Forsberg has been pretty steady in the goal-scoring department having notched at least 20 goals in each of his first six seasons (and produced at a 20-plus-goal pace in 2020-21), he found a new gear this past season, scoring 42 goals while chipping in with 42 assists, both career highs by a considerable margin. That was good enough to finish third on the Predators in points behind Roman Josi and Matt Duchene with their goal output – which ranked 12th in the league – helping to propel them to the postseason with the team only being in the middle of the pack in goals allowed.
The timing for that jump in production couldn’t have been better for Forsberg as it placed him as one of the top free agents of this year’s class, giving him plenty of leverage in contract talks. That has allowed him to earn a $2.5MM raise from his previous contract and plenty of job security since he’ll be signed through the 2029-30 season. It will be interesting to see if he was able to get any form of trade protection in the contract as that’s something that GM David Poile has historically been extremely hesitant to hand out over the years.
Nashville is clearly looking to remain in the playoff picture after adding Ryan McDonagh earlier this offseason and keeping Forsberg in the fold will certainly help their chances of reaching the postseason again. They have a little over $9MM left in cap space per CapFriendly with RFA winger Yakov Trenin the most notable still to be signed so it’s possible that the Predators could look to add another impact player this summer if they intend to spend close to the $82.5MM salary cap.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Maxime Lagace Re-Signs With Tampa Bay
July 11: The Lightning have officially announced the contract, confirming that it is a one-year, two-way deal.
July 10: Goaltender Maxime Lagace has decided not to test free agency next week. Instead, CapFriendly reports (Twitter link) that he has agreed to a one-year, two-way deal to remain with the Lightning. The deal pays $750K in the NHL, $250K in the minors, and has a total guarantee of $350K.
The 29-year-old joined Tampa Bay last summer after spending 2020-21 in Pittsburgh’s organization. He spent the bulk of the year as the starter with AHL Syracuse, posting a 2.31 GAA and a .910 SV% in 36 games. Lagace also got into a pair of games with the Lightning, making it the fourth time in the past five years that he has seen NHL action.
Lagace will be expected to reprise his role as the starter with the Crunch with Andrei Vasilevskiy and Brian Elliott holding down the top two spots with the big club. With the team parting ways with Amir Miftakhov earlier this summer, Lagace only has Hugo Alnefelt to split time with in the minors as things stand; Alexei Melnichuk is a restricted free agent that Tampa Bay will need to decide by 4 PM CT tomorrow whether or not to qualify him.
Five Key Stories: 7/4/22 – 7/10/22
While the big roster shuffle will come next week as free agency opens up, it was still a very busy week around the NHL with the draft and some big trades among the key stories.
Draft Day Splashes: The Canadiens were hosting the draft, the first held in-person since 2019. GM Kent Hughes make a pair of notable decisions on the opening day of the festivities. First, he opted to take winger Juraj Slafkovsky with the first-overall pick, staying away from Shane Wright, long viewed as the consensus top pick who instead went fourth to Seattle.
Before Wright’s pick was announced, however, Montreal swung a pair of trades to find a new center. First, they traded defenseman Alexander Romanov along with a fourth-round pick to the Islanders for the 13th selection and then flipped that with a third-rounder to acquire Kirby Dach. Dach, the number three pick in 2019, has struggled so far in his career which led to Chicago dealing him away and taking Frank Nazar with the first-rounder but Montreal believes the 21-year-old still has top-six upside. Romanov, meanwhile, is a nice addition to New York’s back end and will certainly give them a boost in terms of physicality. Both Dach and Romanov are restricted free agents this summer.
Day Two Also Busy: Sometimes, the second day of the draft can come and go without much fanfare. This wasn’t one of them as Detroit swung a move to get a head start on their free agent shopping, acquiring the rights to Ville Husso from St. Louis for a third-round pick and then quickly signed him to a three-year, $14.25MM extension. It’s a nice raise for the 27-year-old who was on a league minimum contract the last two seasons but a well-earned one as he impressed in 40 games this past season. The Flyers then added to their back end, picking up Anthony DeAngelo from Carolina for a trio of draft picks, quickly agreeing to a two-year, $10MM contract after. The 26-year-old impressed in his only season with the Hurricanes, notching 51 points in 64 games, effectively pricing himself too high for what they can afford with several other notable free agents. Meanwhile, the Oilers could soon be adding some cap space as reports surfaced that veteran defenseman Duncan Keith is expected to retire this week after a 17-year career that featured two Norris Trophies and three Stanley Cups. The move will give Edmonton more than $5.5MM in cap space for next season while removing that amount from Chicago’s cap due to salary cap recapture penalties.
DeBrincat To Ottawa: Prior to the start of the draft, the Senators made a big splash on the trade front, acquiring winger Alex DeBrincat from Chicago in exchange for the seventh and 39th picks. The 24-year-old is coming off his second career 41-goal season and has one year left on his deal with a $6.4MM AAV. However, it’s worth noting that he’ll be owed a $9MM qualifying offer in 2023; GM Pierre Dorion indicated an intention to try to work on a long-term extension with DeBrincat in the coming weeks and it wouldn’t be surprising to see them try to push for a number that comes in a little below that amount. Meanwhile, Chicago used the picks on defenseman Kevin Korchinski and center Paul Ludwinski as they continue to sell off pieces as they embark on a full-scale rebuild.
Sharks Hire Grier: It took until just before the draft but the Sharks found their next general manager, appointing long-time NHL winger Mike Grier to the position. That makes him the first Black general manager in NHL history but not the first GM in his family as his brother Chris is currently the GM of the NFL’s Miami Dolphins. Grier spent three of his 14 NHL seasons in San Jose and will now be tasked with trying to shed some onerous contracts and bring in some extra young depth to the organization. His first move was to trade down from the 11th selection, swapping with Arizona for picks 27, 34, and 45.
Forsberg Sticks Around: While it took a lot longer than many expected, the Predators and winger Filip Forsberg were eventually able to work out a new eight-year, $68MM contract that carries a full no-move clause for the first six seasons. The 27-year-old has spent his entire ten-year NHL career with Nashville and has been a fixture on their front line for many of those. Forsberg is coming off a season that saw him hit new benchmarks in goals (42) and assists (42) despite missing 13 games which gave him plenty of leverage heading into discussions. He used it well as he gets a $2.5MM increase compared to the AAV of his previous deal and the maximum term of an agreement, ensuring he’ll remain the Predators for a long time to come.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Blackhawks To Non-Tender Dylan Strome
A fairly thin free agent center market is about to get a notable addition as Mark Lazerus of The Athletic reports (Twitter link) that the Blackhawks will not be tendering Dylan Strome a qualifying offer by Monday’s deadline. That means he will become an unrestricted free agent on Monday.
The move shouldn’t come as much surprise as Chicago has had the 25-year-old available for quite some time now with no takers. That’s more due to his cost than his performance, however. Strome’s qualifying offer of $3.6MM was more than what the Blackhawks were willing to pay and even if they were willing to go that high, the fact he had salary arbitration eligibility would almost certainly have pushed the price tag even higher which other teams around the league were certainly aware of.
Strome is coming off a bit of an up-and-down season. He got off to a tough start but over the final two months of the season, he averaged nearly a point per game in 28 contests while logging more than 20 minutes a night on the top line. Overall, he had 22 goals and 26 assists in 69 games, setting a new career-high in goals in the process.
For the criticism he has received over the past few years, the 2015 third-overall pick had a decent run overall in parts of four seasons with the Blackhawks, recording 60 goals and 94 assists in 225 games. While that type of production doesn’t quite live up to the draft billing, that’s still a solid performance for a secondary scorer. Between that and the fact it’s a thin center market, Strome should be able to generate considerable interest when the market opens up on Wednesday.
In the meantime, this will be the second center selected third overall to leave Chicago in less than a week after the Blackhawks moved Kirby Dach to Montreal back at the draft. GM Kyle Davidson is embarking on a full-scale rebuild and in a short stretch, the team is parting with a pair of young players that were viewed as potential long-term cogs just a couple of years ago.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Snapshots: Gibson, Dahlen, Brink, Oilers
With the Maple Leafs being one of the teams that still need to add a starting goaltender, some have speculated that Ducks goaltender John Gibson could be a potential trade option for them. However, his agent Kurt Overhardt told Sportsnet 590’s Nick Kypreos (Twitter link) that Gibson has “no interest” in playing in Toronto and is committed to staying in Anaheim. Gibson has five years left on his deal with a $6.4MM AAV with a ten-team no-trade clause so even if the Ducks were inclined to move him this summer, the 28-year-old may be able to block a move.
Elsewhere around the NHL:
- While Sharks winger Jonathan Dahlen had a decent rookie season with 12 goals and 10 assists in 61 games, Sheng Peng of San Jose Hockey Now reports that the team is considering non-tendering him by tomorrow’s deadline. Even though he has only been in the NHL for one year, this is his fourth year on an NHL contract which gives him salary arbitration rights. While Dahlen couldn’t command a significant increase on his league-minimum salary from this past season, San Jose likely will want to keep the last few spots on their roster at low salary slots so whatever raise he could get from an arbitrator may be more than they can afford to allocate.
- Flyers winger Bobby Brink has sustained a hip injury during offseason workouts that might require surgery, Anthony SanFilippo of Crossing Broad was first to report (Twitter link). No timeline for a return is known yet but SanFilippo suggests the injury is severe enough that it could run into the start of next season; Olivia Reiner of the Philadelphia Inquirer adds (via Twitter) that the 21-year-old will see a specialist in a few days and that the team will have a better understanding of how much time he’ll miss by the end of the week. Brink had four assists in 10 NHL games down the stretch while logging over 15 minutes a night.
- The Oilers announced (Twitter link) that they’ve tendered qualifying offers to forwards Tyler Benson, Ryan McLeod, Jesse Puljujarvi, and Kailer Yamamoto. That means that defenseman Filip Berglund and forwards Brendan Perlini and Ostap Safin will go non-tendered. Those three will become unrestricted free agents later this week. Of the unqualified players, only Perlini has NHL experience and had four goals and an assist in 23 games this past season while Berglund has already signed in Sweden.
Offseason Checklist: Tampa Bay Lightning
With the offseason in full swing, it’s time to examine what each squad will need to accomplish over the coming weeks. Next up is a look at the Lightning.
Tampa Bay came close to making it three straight Stanley Cup titles before falling to Colorado in the Final last month. With the majority of their core still intact and their biggest offseason move already made when they sent Ryan McDonagh to Nashville to free up cap space, GM Julien BriseBois’ to-do list for the rest of the summer is fairly simple.
Re-Sign Or Replace Rutta
Part of the reason for the McDonagh deal was to free up cap space to re-sign two of their pending free agents. One of those is defenseman Jan Rutta. The 31-year-old has been a serviceable depth player for the Lightning over the last four seasons and played a regular role for the first time in 2021-22, suiting up in a career-best 76 games while chipping in with 18 points. He’s coming off a two-year deal with a $1.3MM cap hit and after showing he can handle a full-time spot, he should be able to beat that on the open market.
While Tampa Bay would certainly like to keep him around and have had discussions on a new deal, BriseBois also has to consider that McDonagh’s minutes need to be replaced. Rutta held his own playing 16 minutes a game but McDonagh logged 22. Can Tampa Bay fill those extra minutes internally with someone like Cal Foote or will they need someone that’s capable of taking on a bigger role? While BriseBois has stated his intention to keep and work with Philippe Myers (who came over in the McDonagh swap), it’s unlikely that they can count on much from him after the way this past season went. If Rutta and Foote can’t cover bigger roles on the third pairing to help offset the loss of McDonagh, BriseBois may have to go for a more prominent blueliner which would certainly take them out of the running for their other UFA of note.
Re-Sign Or Replace Palat
That other UFA is Ondrej Palat. The winger has been a regular in Tampa Bay’s lineup for most of the last decade, spending a lot of that time as a fixture in their top six. Along the way, he has become a consistent secondary scorer, notching at least 15 goals in seven of the last nine years and dealt with injury trouble in the two he didn’t. That type of consistency is very valuable to teams and an impressive showing in the playoffs that saw Palat finish second to only Nikita Kucherov in scoring. That certainly bolsters his value as we approach the opening of free agency on Wednesday. That’s good news for him but less so for the Lightning.
The 31-year-old is coming off a contract that saw him make an average of $5.3MM over the past five years. If he gets to the open market, a similar price at a similar term is doable. That’s one that Tampa Bay can’t afford, especially knowing they have to keep or replace Rutta as well. Even with Brent Seabrook’s LTIR space, there isn’t enough money for Palat to receive market value and still keep or re-place Rutta. A team-friendly contract is always an option – several have taken a bit less to re-sign in previous years – but with this likely being Palat’s last chance at a big contract, it would certainly be understandable if he wants to see what his other options might be.
If Palat winds up going elsewhere and they need to find a replacement, it wouldn’t be surprising if BriseBois looked for someone on a one-year deal. With several key pieces in need of new contracts soon, a short-term contract would allow give them a boost now and maintain a little bit of flexibility for the 2022-23 offseason. There will be players that don’t like what they have for long-term offers and would certainly view the Lightning as a favorable spot for a ‘pillow’ contract and going that route could give Tampa Bay a capable replacement without needing as long of a commitment.
Extension Talks
Tampa Bay has basically exclusively used short-term bridge contracts with their restricted free agents in recent years. The reason is certainly understandable as they used the lower cost of those contracts to keep their core intact and with two Stanley Cups and a Prince of Wales Trophy in the last three years, it’s hard to say they made the wrong choice. Going that way eventually has its consequences but with that type of recent success they’ve had, it couldn’t have gone much better.
But the consequences of that approach are only a year away. Defensemen Mikhail Sergachev and Erik Cernak along with centers Anthony Cirelli and Ross Colton are all about to enter the final year of their respective bridge deals. All four will have arbitration eligibility next summer. Combined, they’ll have a cap hit of $13.675MM next season. They will cost considerably more than that in 2023-24, likely surpassing the $20MM mark. That’s going to result in the departure of another core player or two no matter what and BriseBois knows that.
While the Lightning could wait to work on these next summer, that’s a lot of big-ticket deals to sign in a short period of time and with arbitration hearings occurring after the bulk of unrestricted free agents have signed, getting into July with even a couple of these still pending wouldn’t be ideal. Having the knowledge of what those players are going to cost before next June and July would be great for planning purposes while also giving those players certainly moving forward. Are they going to get all of them signed now? Probably not but the more they can finalize this summer, the easier it should be next summer.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images. Contract information courtesy of CapFriendly.
Sabres Re-Sign Jacob Bryson
The Sabres have taken care of one of their pending restricted free agents, announcing (Twitter link) that they’ve re-signed defenseman Jacob Bryson to a two-year contract. The deal will carry a $1.85MM AAV with PuckPedia adding (Twitter link) that the deal will pay $1.8MM in 2022-23 and $1.9MM in 2023-24.
The 24-year-old was a fourth-round pick of Buffalo (99th overall) back in 2017 and a strong showing in the second half of the pandemic-shortened 2020-21 campaign helped propel him into a regular role for this past season. Bryson suited up in 73 games, picking up a goal and nine assists along with 73 hits while averaging 18:20 per game, good for fourth among full-time Sabres blueliners.
This contract effectively works as a second bridge deal for Bryson. He had salary arbitration eligibility this summer but the two-year term will still have him RFA-eligible with arbitration rights at its conclusion and a required qualifier of $1.9MM. Now that Bryson has established himself as an NHL regular, this pact will give him an opportunity to play his way into a bigger role; with Colin Miller expected to depart in free agency this summer, Bryson could be in line for a bit more playing time next season although 2021 top pick Owen Power will also be in the mix on the back end.
With this contract done, winger Victor Olofsson is the only full-time Sabre that’s still eligible for restricted free agency. He’s owed a $3.25MM qualifying offer by Monday’s tender deadline and the 26-year-old is also arbitration-eligible. Accordingly, GM Kevyn Adams will be looking to get that deal in place as soon as possible to try to avoid giving Olofsson a chance to file for a hearing.