The Contract Each Team Would Most Like To Trade: Part I
Nearly every team has one of those players: a top talent they were excited to sign and never thought could do anything but help them. In hindsight, history shows that more often than not, expensive, long-term free agent contracts don’t work out. It may look good at first (or it may look bad right away to the outside observer), but players struggle to make their value last throughout a lengthy contract. Those contracts come back to bite teams and are hard to get rid of. As teams begin to finalize their rosters at this point in the off-season, many are struggling to make everyone fit under the salary cap and are regretting these past signings that exasperate a cap crunch that can be tough for even a mistake-free club. Here are the contracts that each team would most like to trade, from Anaheim to Dallas:
Anaheim Ducks: Corey Perry – three years, $25.875MM remaining
Corey Perry is no doubt a fan favorite in Anaheim. The big winger is a career Duck who has always played with an edge and a knack for finding the back of the net. However, the former 50-goal scorer has just 19 and 17 in the past two years respectively to the tune of $8.625MM per year. His lack of speed is apparent to even the most inexperienced hockey fan and he has drawn criticism from both GM Bob Murray and coach Randy Carlyle for the drop-off in his skating ability and production. The Ducks aren’t quite up against the salary cap just yet, but have three restricted free agents still unsigned and some big decisions on the horizon. Things are about to get tight in Anaheim and, as much as Ducks fans may not want to hear it, trading Perry away in the right deal would be the easiest solution.
Arizona Coyotes: None
The Coyotes trade for bad contracts, as the perennial salary cap floor dwellers rarely sign or acquire an expensive, long-term deal with an actual asset who may not be worth it.
Boston Bruins: David Backes – three years, $18MM remaining
On July 1st, 2016, it was leaked that Boston would sign David Backes to a one-year, $6MM contract and the Bruins were praised for bringing the veteran forward in as a hired gun. That celebration was short-lived, as the report was soon corrected to being a five-year deal with the same yearly salary and many questioned adding a 32-year-old with 727 games to his credit on a contract of that length and value. Two years later, the doubters have been proven right for the most part. Backes has not been bad in Boston (71 points in 131 games) and injuries have certainly affected his game, but it appears that his 50-point upside and Selke-caliber high-energy play are a thing of the past. Backes doesn’t have a defined role with the Bruins going forward and, as a team that doesn’t need the extra leadership and locker room presence and does need as much cap space as it can get, Boston would be better off if Backes were elsewhere.
Buffalo Sabres: Zach Bogosian – two years, $10.286MM remaining
The Sabres are finally trending in the right direction and have even used other teams’ bad salary cap situations to bring in some nice players this off-season. Buffalo themselves are in fine shape with the cap. However, there is still one contract that is bringing them down and that is Zach Bogosian. If Bogosian was fully healthy, his cap hit of just over $5.1MM would not be too bad. The 28-year-old defenseman has been a very capable two-way player in his career. Unfortunately, he just hasn’t been healthy enough during his time in Buffalo to be worth that salary. Bogosian played in only 18 games last year due to injury – and when he did play it showed that he wasn’t 100% – and has never topped 64 games in a season with the Sabres. The team has several young defenseman that could use as much ice time as possible and a beat up Bogosian isn’t helping anyone in Buffalo. Chances are the Sabres could still get a good return for the rearguard if he does show signs of being back at full-strength.
Calgary Flames: Troy Brouwer – two years, $9MM remaining
Calgary is in a really difficult salary cap situation with little space as is and five restricted free agent situations still to sort out. The team simply can afford to be paying Brouwer $4.5MM in each of the next two years for what he brings to the table. Many were skeptical of the Brouwer contract when signed and they were correct. The veteran power forward has only 25 and 22 points respectively in his first two years in Calgary, including just six goals last season, and at 32 years old he is unlikely to improve. Brouwer has even lost some of his trademark physical edge and recorded a career-low average time on ice last season when he was simply a non-factor in most games. With multiple players filing for salary arbitration, the Flames have been awarded an extra buyout period and it would not come as a shock to see Brouwer fall victim to it.
Carolina Hurricanes: Scott Darling – three years, $12.45MM remaining
The argument here is not that the Hurricanes should trade Darling because they need the cap space but that they should trade Darling because they need a better starting goaltender. Carolina is in fine salary cap shape, but so long as Darling is making more than $4MM per year, the team is likely to stick with him as the top guy. They have already committed to giving him another chance as the starter next season. Unfortunately, Darling’s first season in Raleigh hardly convinced anyone that this contract would work out. Moving from backup to starter, Darling seemed to crumble under the pressure even behind a stout defense, posting an .888 save percentage and 3.18 GAA as one of the worst keepers in the NHL. Perhaps his play will improve in year two, but the Hurricanes can’t be happy with the early results.
Chicago Blackhawks: Brent Seabrook – six years, $41.25MM remaining
When the Blackhawks made Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews the highest paid players in the league back in 2014, who would have figured that a different contract would be causing the team problems? Brent Seabrook’s eight-year, $55MM extension is already a nightmare for Chicago with the bulk of the contract still to come. Seabrook is a fine defenseman, but that doesn’t cut it when you’re paid like one of the top defenseman in the league, but your play is slipping and your team is finishing last in the division. This past season especially, it was clear that Seabrook has lost a step. Both his scoring and checking have diminished and he no longer resembles the player who was regularly posting 40+ points and garnering Norris Trophy votes. Seabrook will turn 34 later this season and it seems guaranteed that this contract only gets worse unless the team finds some way to trade him.
Colorado Avalanche: Erik Johnson – five years, $30MM remaining
The Avalanche have one of the lowest payrolls in the league with superstar Nathan MacKinnon locked up long-term at a reasonable rate. Their distance from the cap ceiling this season makes egregious contracts with just one year remaining – like streaky starter Semyon Varlamov and invisible forward Colin Wilson – somewhat tolerable. However, several major contributors are set to be restricted free agents after next season, Colorado will need to add another goaltender, and could still stand to add another difference-maker up front. Things could get tighter for the Avs moving forward and the one contract that could become a problem is Erik Johnson. Johnson eats up minutes and plays a defensively sound game, but the veteran defenseman is injury prone and does not create enough offense to warrant a $6MM cap hit. If the Avalanche were offered a reasonable deal for Johnson today they may not take it, but this time next year that same deal will be far more attractive.
Columbus Blue Jackets: Brandon Dubinsky – three years, $17.55MM remaining
The Blue Jackets pay Brandon Dubinsky like a second-line center and last season got fourth-line production from the veteran. Yes, Dubinsky has had his fair share of injuries, but a consistent 40+ point scorer dropping to just 16 points on the year was alarming. Columbus is no longer a small market team still figuring things out; the Jackets are a contender and like most contenders are close to the salary cap limit. The team can’t afford to have Dubinsky continuing to produce at this level while costing them $5.85MM against the cap. They hope that he bounces back this year, but even a slow start could have Columbus taking their best offer.
Dallas Stars: Martin Hanzal – two years, $9.5MM remaining
It may be too early to judge last summer’s Martin Hanzal contract, but if Dallas was offered a re-do right now, they would take it. Hanzal’s first season with the Stars was a disaster. Injuries limited him to just 38 games and even when active he contributed only ten points – a 22-point pace over a full season – and somehow finished with the second-lowest plus/minus rating on the team. If Hanzal gets healthy, which is a big if, he could return to form next season, but if not the Stars could be quick to deal him away. The team desperately needs to bounce back from a devastating slump that cost them a playoff spot and have been rumored to be interested in big (expensive) names all off-season. That plan doesn’t mix well with a $4.75MM player who brought almost nothing to the team last year.
Keep an eye out for Part II of this three-part series coming soon…
Looking Ahead To The Incoming Seguin Saga
Superstars in their prime never reach free agency. That’s what was the common belief leading up to the summer of 2016, when Steven Stamkos still didn’t have a contract extension with the Tampa Bay Lightning. Even as the months went by, Stamkos was always expected to re-sign like so many other stars had done before him. People knew to not get excited about a potential big name NHL free agent, as so often they would sign a team-leading contract extension well in advance and never even flirt with the open market. Stamkos though was different. The star center certainly flirted, even going out for dates with his potential suitors by taking meetings during the free agent negotiation window. Maybe there was a change coming in the NHL, and Stamkos would upend the apple cart by leaving Tampa Bay for another team with massive contract offer.
And then, during one of the wildest days in recent NHL history, he didn’t.
Stamkos re-signed with the Lightning for a reasonable, below-market contract extension after seeing what else was out there and the NHL landscape returned to normal. The still relatively young forward chose the only franchise that he’d ever played for and a chance to compete for the Stanley Cup over the bigger dollar signs (at least in terms of pre-tax salary) offered elsewhere. Perhaps we witnessed the first cracks in the system with the Stamkos decision, but the outcome remained the same: superstars in their prime never reach free agency.
But this year something did change. John Tavares, probably the player most closely linked to Stamkos throughout his hockey playing career given their similar backgrounds, age group and NHL impact, was unsigned when the free agent bell rang on July 1st. A long, winding negotiation with the New York Islanders that had included an entire organizational face lift a few weeks prior ended without Tavares following the established hockey model of re-signing with the franchise you helped shape, and suddenly 30 other teams were (theoretically) in the running to add a star player in his prime for nothing more than money. Tavares wouldn’t last long on the open market, as his hometown Toronto Maple Leafs would quickly announce a seven-year, $77MM contract for their local hero. Whether the decision had to do with money, front office structure, Stanley Cup contention or just home cooking won’t ever be really known, but one thing was clear this July; the NHL free agent landscape had been changed.
Now suddenly a player in his prime could make it to free agency, and wasn’t necessarily expected to stay true to the team he currently played for. We perhaps saw the effect immediately when Artemi Panarin announced that he didn’t currently want to discuss an extension with the Columbus Blue Jackets, despite speaking highly of the organization and coaching staff. There doesn’t seem to be an animosity between the two sides but Panarin, now unburdened by the idea that a star player has to negotiate an extension early, decided he can wait to make a decision at a later date. The Blue Jackets are understandably worried about that situation, with rumors surfacing that they have at least considered a trade as a potential outcome for Panarin over the next year. They won’t want to be caught holding his empty jersey on July 1, 2019 without anything to show for it.
Where the Tavares example really becomes interesting though is with a more comparable player than Panarin, and one that is now less than a year away from perhaps inking his own $80MM+ contract. Tyler Seguin, the top line center for the Dallas Stars and second-overall pick from 2010, is now three weeks into the final season of his current six-year contract without an extension to be found. Seguin, 26, was born just a little more than a year after Tavares, just down the road in Brampton, Ontario. While Tavares was playing his final season of junior hockey for the Oshawa Generals and London Knights, Seguin was in his first for the Plymouth Whalers. Though Seguin would eventually drop behind Taylor Hall at the top of the 2010 draft board, his future potential was extremely well regarded by scouts all across the league as a potential top line center. What he’s turned into is perhaps even more impressive.
In each of last five seasons since being traded to Dallas, Seguin has recorded at least 26 goals and 72 points putting him among the NHL leaders for offensive production on yearly basis. In fact, his 384 points during that time is 12 more than the 372 that Tavares has registered during the same time, though it does come in nine more games played. Seguin is undoubtedly one of the top players in the NHL despite his checkered history with the Boston Bruins and their eventual decision to move on from him, and could be considered an even better free agent target than Tavares was this summer.
Though it certainly hasn’t taken up much space on talk radio in many NHL markets given Seguin’s relatively low-key reputation—playing in Dallas will do that to some players—it will before long. The Tavares negotiations were a daily concern for Islanders fans all season, with those from other markets drooling at the opportunity that could present itself if the Long Island captain ever made it to free agency. Should Seguin remain unsigned by the start of the season you can expect the same, perhaps with even more fervor given that there is now recent precedent of a player of his ilk getting to the open market. There’s no doubt that Seguin could change the fate of a franchise looking to contend in 2019-20, and his star should be considered no less bright than that of Tavares or Panarin.
As with almost any pending free agent, it’s important to note that Seguin has never indicated that he would not re-sign with Dallas or that he dislikes the organization in any way. In fact there is plenty of reason to expect he will eventually ink an eight-year extension with the team and play out the majority of his career in Texas. After what has happened this summer though, you can’t blame anyone for thinking their team may get a chance in a year’s time at adding one of the very best players in the NHL. After all, superstars in their prime now sometimes reach free agency.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
Snapshots: Eaves, Bjork, Kunin
The Anaheim Ducks look to be getting back a familiar face next season as general manager Bob Murray told a group of season ticket holders today that he expects veteran Patrick Eaves to return and play a full season, according to the Orange County Register’s Elliott Teaford.
After coming over in 2016-17 during a trade deadline deal, Eaves proceeded to ink a new three-year, $9.45MM extension that summer only to miss all but two games last season after being diagnosed with Guillain-Barre syndrome. However, he is expected to return to the Ducks next season to add to their veteran core, although the team might now lose Ryan Kesler, who has been limited with a hip injury from last season and could miss part or even all of next season.
“I’m more confident that Patrick Eaves is going to play for the full season than I am of Ryan Kesler at the moment, although ‘Kes’ says he’s going to be fine,” Murray said during an event with Ducks season-ticket holders at Bolsa Chica State Beach.
Eaves, 34, came off a 32-goal season in 2016-17 between the Dallas Stars and the Ducks and could provide significant help to an offense that has aged quickly over the last season or two.
- Ty Anderson of 98.5 The Hub writes that one forgotten player among the Boston Bruins is Anders Bjork, who underwent shoulder surgery in the middle of his rookie season. The 21-year-old prospect out of Notre Dame put up just four goals and 12 points in 30 games, but Anderson notes that Bjork was considered to be the team’s top prospect just a year ago behind Charlie McAvoy. Bjork will attempt to win a spot on the team’s top-six this year. “I definitely think the games I got were helpful,” Bjork said. “I learned a ton, just tried to soak it all up when I was playing those games, and even just practicing and being around, tried to soak up as much as I could. I think I’m going to use that as an advantage for going into camp next year and trying to learn from the guys I watched, especially the young guys — what worked and what didn’t.”
- Dane Mizutani of twincities.com writes that the Minnesota Wild’s 2016 first-round pick Luke Kunin, who suffered a torn ACL injury on Mar. 4 and had surgery in April, says that he intends to lace up his skates this week, but isn’t sure he will be ready by the time training camp comes around. “I’m not going to put a timeline on it or anything like that,” Kunin said. “Obviously, I would love to be ready by training camp. That’s my goal. I want to play. That said, at the end of the day, it’s up to the doctors and what they say as far as how it’s going. It’s one of those things that I know I can’t rush. Just trying to stick with it and trust the process.” Kunin split time this season with Minnesota and the Iowa Wild. He posted two goals and four points in 19 games at the NHL level, but was likely to get brought back for the team’s stretch run at the end of the season before being injured.
Snapshots: KHL, Steelheads, Buchberger
According to Igor Eronko of Sport-Express, Philip Holm has signed with the Nizhny Novgorod Torpedo of the KHL, ending his North American career before it ever really took off. After signing last summer with the Vancouver Canucks, Holm played in one NHL game and was eventually traded to the Vegas Golden Knights in exchange for Brendan Leipsic. Given no NHL playing time in Vegas, he’s decided to go to the KHL where he should receive plenty of minutes and be able to show off his offensive upside. Holm was given a qualifying offer meaning the Golden Knights will retain his rights.
Former Canucks top prospect Nicklas Jensen will also be remaining in the KHL next year, after agreed to use his one-year option with Jokerit. Jensen scored 37 points to lead Jokerit last season, after failing to carve out a role with the New York Rangers in 2016-17. A talented offensive forward who has dominated the AHL at times, Jensen is now 25 and may not get another chance at the NHL level in his career.
- The Dallas Stars have reached a two-year agreement with the Idaho Steelheads to continue their minor league partnership, extending a long affiliation with the ECHL club. The Steelheads have won two Kelly Cups during their partnership with the Stars, and will be looking for another one in 2018-19 after going 44-20-8 last season. One of the most successful ECHL teams (and before that WCHL teams) in history, Dallas will continue to supply them with talented players for at least the next two seasons.
- Kelly Buchberger is the latest New York Islanders assistant coach to find work elsewhere, hired as head coach of the Tri-City Americans of the WHL. When Barry Trotz was brought in as the new head coach of the Islanders it was expected he would bring an entire new staff, and Buchberger has found a nice landing spot as the bench boss of the Americans. Tri-City has been to the WHL playoffs in 14 of the last 15 seasons, though they are still looking for a championship; Buchberger will be asked to take them there.
Dillon Heatherington Re-Signs With Dallas Stars
After helping the Texas Stars to the Calder Cup Finals and making his NHL debut, Dillon Heatherington has re-signed with the Dallas Stars. The 23-year old defenseman wan’t eligible to file for arbitration and has instead signed a one-year two-way contract. He will be a restricted free agent once again next summer.
Heatherington made his NHL debut this season, suiting up for six games with Dallas and recording his first point. He also made quite the impact on the fan base by getting into two fights in his first three games, including coming to the defense of Antoine Roussel in late January. Heatherington isn’t known for his fighting ability having only four majors in his AHL career, but showed he was quite willing to do anything it took to make an impact for the Stars. That willingness to engage physically could lead to more NHL opportunities down the road for the 23-year old, but it’s not clear if he’ll get that chance right away.
The Stars did lose Greg Pateryn this summer and Dan Hamhuis remains an unrestricted free agent, but also brought in Roman Polak and could be ready to give some even younger players a full-time role. Julius Honka and Miro Heiskanen don’t bring the same kind of presence the 6’4″ Heatherington can provide, but are excellent puck movers and could be elite possession players in the NHL. If Heiskanen doesn’t make the club or goes through some struggles to adjust to the North American game, Heatherington will be waiting to step into the lineup. Unfortunately for Dallas the 23-year old is now waiver eligible, meaning he’ll have to clear in order to be sent down at the beginning of the season. There’s a real chance he could be claimed at that point given his solid performance and relatively high draft pedigree—50th-overall in 2013—so the team could choose to keep him around as a depth option even if they don’t have a full-time role for him.
Central Notes: Seguin, Parise, Trouba
The Dallas Stars have a tough road ahead of them. With new inspiring head coach Jim Montgomery ready to take the reins in Dallas, the team is eager to force their way to the top of the Central Division, but they also know that if the team can’t sign star Tyler Seguin to an extension sometime this year, everything they’ve worked for could fall apart.
The 26-year-old star is coming off a career-high 40 goals, but has also seen his team not reach the playoffs in three of his last four seasons. On top of that, Seguin has not signed an extension as of yet, something that could have happened on July 1. NHL.com’s Mike Heika writes that while Seguin has been careful about what he says about his next contract, he has expressed his love for the city.
“My focus is I have another year with the Dallas Stars, so there is no real thought of thinking of other teams or thinking of free agency,” Seguin said. “My focus is getting ready to play this year … I love it here. My objective is I want to win a championship here. I love Dallas, it’s home to me. So that’s my No. 1 goal.”
Heika writes that one obstacle is the team is hesitant to sign any player to a higher AAV than the deal they gave Jamie Benn back in 2016. Unfortunately, Seguin might easily be able to pass that mark as John Tavares recently signed for an $11MM AAV and with salaries increasing yearly, that could be an issue that Dallas might have to re-examine.
- Dane Mizutani of the Twin Cities Pioneer Press writes that Minnesota Wild winger Zach Parise, who suffered a fractured sternum just three games into the playoffs, says he is 100 percent now and will be ready for training camp. In fact, the 33-year-old feels so good that he has decided to participate in Da Beauty League, a weekly 4-on-4 league, to get himself back into game shape after suffering the injury. Parise, who was one of the top scorers for Minnesota late in the season, including scoring 12 goals over the final 18 games and then three more goals in the first three games of the playoffs, will be a key piece for the Wild to compete for a playoff spot next season.
- Scott Billeck of NBC Sports writes that the Winnipeg Jets are likely going to have to pay up to sign restricted free agent Jacob Trouba and predicts the team will hand him an eight-year deal. The real question is how much will the team have to pay for Trouba, who has developed into one of the best top defensive lines next to Josh Morrissey. Trouba’s numbers may not look impressive, but he had career numbers in assists per 60 minutes at 1.03 and points per 60 minutes at 1.22. Those numbers actually compare to elite defensemen like Victor Hedman, Drew Doughty and P.K. Subban. Those numbers could bring his pricetag to a very high number.
Poll: Where Will Max Pacioretty End Up?
The Montreal Canadiens are looking to move Max Pacioretty as soon as possible. The captain’s contract expires at the end of the coming season and there will not be an extension. The Habs are also unlikely to be contenders this year. As such, Pacioretty is on the trade block and probably on the move soon.
Where could he end up? The first thought is the San Jose Sharks. The Sharks were reportedly close to a deal for Pacioretty at the NHL Draft but couldn’t get it done. Since then, they missed out on John Tavares and are still in need of scoring with cap space to spare.
San Jose was not alone in losing out in the Tavares sweepstakes. Assuming the Boston Bruins are an unlikely destination given their status as Montreal’s biggest rivals, that still leaves teams like the Dallas Stars and New York Islanders as possibilities. The Islanders in particular are in major need of a boost up front and have the young assets to make a deal.
Teams that have previously shown interest in Pacioretty include the Florida Panthers and Nashville Predators. The Panthers already landed Mike Hoffman this off-season and are lacking cap space, but could still potentially make it work. The Predators have significantly more space and some intriguing young pieces to offer and would be a team that Pacioretty certainly wouldn’t mind ending up with long-term.
As always, the Pittsburgh Penguins and Chicago Blackhawks cannot be ruled out. Their respective GM’s are always in on the action and both teams are known to be looking for offensive depth. Would Pittsburgh consider swapping Derick Brassard in a deal for Pacioretty? Could Chicago use their newfound cap space from the Hossa trade to bring in a similar scorer? The answer to both of these questions is a definitive maybe.
Who do you think needs Pacioretty most or can put together the best offer?
Devin Shore Re-Signs With Dallas Stars
The Dallas Stars have avoided arbitration with one of their restricted free agents, inking Devin Shore to a two-year contract that carries a $2.3MM average annual value. Shore was scheduled for an arbitration hearing on July 20th, but will instead re-sign with the Stars for a substantial raise on his expiring entry-level contract.
The biggest question with Shore is how does he fit into the Stars forward group long-term? Drafted and developed as a center, he was mostly moved away from the position during the 2016-17 season and struggled to produce much even-strength offense last year. With just 19 of his 32 points coming in that situation, the Stars will need more from him now that he’s carrying a much larger cap hit. He does have value on the powerplay and penalty kill, but after posting poor possession statistics and a team-worst -30 rating (Martin Hanzal was the next lowest at -14) he’ll need to perform better in the bulk of his minutes.
That improvement might come with the new coaching staff, as Shore was obviously one of the players who struggled under Ken Hitchcock‘s system. Jim Montgomery, who comes in with no previous NHL coaching experience, will need to get the most out of players like Shore if he has any chance of turning things around for the Stars. It’s not clear if Shore will move back to the middle of the ice, but with Blake Comeau and Valeri Nichushkin coming in to add some depth on the wings it seems a distinct possibility.
Shore will still be a restricted free agent at the end of the deal, and will turn 24 in a few days. There is more than enough time for him to grow into a force for the team, but he’ll have to do it in a hurry to remain in their long-term plans and set himself up for a big contract in the summer of 2020. For now we’ll have to wait and see how Montgomery tries to utilize him, before deciding whether this contract is worth it for the former University of Maine standout.
Dallas Stars Sign Adam Mascherin To Entry-Level Contract
Adam Mascherin was selected 38th-overall by the Florida Panthers in 2016, but never signed with the team and re-entered the draft this year. He had to wait a little bit longer this time, falling to the Dallas Stars in the fourth round. Dallas hasn’t wasted any time getting him into the organization though, and announced a three-year entry-level contract for Mascherin today. Already 20 years old, he’ll be able to go straight to the Texas Stars of the AHL should the team feel it’s best for his development.
Mascherin has been one of the biggest offensive producers in the OHL for several years, scoring 110 goals and 267 points in his last 197 regular season games. In his most recent playoffs with the Kitchener Rangers, he added 24 points in 19 games and was a threat every time he touched the ice. Stars fans need to remember though that two of those years have come after he was first eligible to be drafted, and that he was older than many of his competitors. Still, Dallas will bring him into their organization and give him every chance to succeed offensively. Texas was relying on veteran players to carry them to the Calder Cup Finals this season, but will be more youthful this season after players like Curtis McKenzie and Mike McKenna have moved on.
Though he stands only 5’10” Mascherin doesn’t play like a small player and routinely wins board battles and loose pucks with his strength and balance, while carrying a huge offensive load for the Rangers. There’s not a lot he can’t do on the ice, and though there are still some concerns over his skating ability and overall ceiling, getting a legitimate NHL prospect in the fourth round is always a positive. Because he’s older, the Stars will be able to make a determination on him much quicker and get him into their development system right away.
Penguins Re-Sign Jamie Oleksiak
The Pittsburgh Penguins had one arbitration hearing on the books this off-season and it can now be canceled. The team announced that they have agreed to terms on a new contract with defenseman Jamie Oleksiak. It is a three-year extension that carries a cap hit of approximately $2.14MM.
Oleksiak, 25, flourished in 2017-18 after a mid-season trade from the Dallas Stars. The 6’7″, 255-lb. bruiser had always been a difficulty to play against, but his offensive game developed nicely when he was given increased ice time and responsibility on the Pittsburgh blue line. In 47 regular season games with the Penguins, Oleksiak recorded 14 points; he had only managed to score 22 total points prior in 140 games with Dallas. He also took far more shots and carried the puck more often following the trade. Not only did this offensive uptick not come at the cost of defense, but Oleksiak actually improved his physical game with 138 hits with Pittsburgh – more than double his previous career high in any season with the Stars.
Oleksiak set career marks across the board with Pittsburgh and looked at home with his new team. Both sides are likely very happy with the term of this contract, while the salary is a nice bump for Oleksiak after six seasons coming in at under $1MM. The Penguins now have the bulk of their top six – Oleksiak, Kris Letang, Brian Dumoulin, Jack Johnson, and Olli Maatta – signed through 2020-21. The deal does move Pittsburgh ever closer to the cap though; the team is currently projected to enter the upcoming season with just $745K in space with their current 23-man roster. The Penguins likely aren’t done making moves this off-season.