Columbus Blue Jackets Extend Jack Roslovic
The Columbus Blue Jackets have signed Jack Roslovic to a two-year, $8MM contract extension, avoiding restricted free agency. The young forward will carry a cap hit of $4MM through the 2023-24 season, after which he will become an unrestricted free agent at the age of 27. Blue Jackets general manager Jarmo Kekalainen released the following statement:
Jack is an offensively gifted player with great speed and vision who has increased his production each season during his NHL career. He has made great strides in his all-around game, especially during this past season, and we are very pleased that he will continue to be an important part of our team as we move forward.
Roslovic, 25, hasn’t quite become the first-line center that some hoped he could be on draft day but did set new career-highs with 22 goals and 45 points this season. Doing that amount of damage with barely over 14 minutes a night is a pretty impressive feat, though he did receive heavy offensive deployment from the Blue Jackets coaching staff to get there.
Still, there is even more upside yet to unlock in the talented center, and this contract brings very little risk on the Blue Jackets’ end. The team had some cap space to play with even considering Patrik Laine‘s upcoming deal, and a $4MM cap hit will be easily moved if they aren’t competitive by the time the deal is set to expire. It’s perhaps not ideal to be walking him directly to unrestricted free agency but Columbus is focused on the young core and will need to pay Cole Sillinger and Kent Johnson in the same summer.
The short term allows for lots of flexibility down the road, and some earning potential for Roslovic if his offensive output continues to improve. Should he hit the open market at 27 with a few 20+ goal seasons under his belt, there will be many teams clamoring to add him on a long-term deal. Columbus is giving themselves a way to cash in at that point if the right deal is there, or work out an extension if the group is competitive at that point.
Notably, this contract is going to be brought up in other RFA negotiations this summer around the league. There are many other players who have similar production to Roslovic, whose previous high was just 12 goals, and likely wouldn’t have normally been looking for a $4MM hit. Nicolas Roy, for instance, had six fewer points for the Vegas Golden Knights and is also a 25-year-old pending RFA. Pavel Zacha with the New Jersey Devils had 36 points in 70 games and has a longer history in the league, despite being the same age.
Other wingers like Denis Gurianov, Kasperi Kapanen, and Lawson Crouse have all had their own 20-goal seasons at some point, and are in the same age group. Roslovic’s contract could be a template for a safe extension that gets them to the open market or ammunition for the player to try and get a longer-term deal.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
2022 King Clancy Trophy Nominees Announced
The NHL has announced the 31 nominees for the King Clancy Memorial Trophy, annually presented to “the player who best exemplifies leadership qualities on and off the ice and has made a noteworthy humanitarian contribution in his community.” Last year’s winner was Pekka Rinne of the Nashville Predators.
Each team submits one nominee. This year’s are:
Anaheim Ducks: Ryan Getzlaf
Arizona Coyotes: Andrew Ladd
Boston Bruins: Nick Foligno
Buffalo Sabres: Jeff Skinner
Calgary Flames: Mikael Backlund
Carolina Hurricanes: Jordan Staal
Chicago Blackhawks: Connor Murphy
Colorado Avalanche: Nazem Kadri
Columbus Blue Jackets: Jack Roslovic
Dallas Stars: Jason Robertson
Detroit Red Wings: Alex Nedeljkovic
Edmonton Oilers: Darnell Nurse
Florida Panthers: Aleksander Barkov
Los Angeles Kings: Cal Petersen
Minnesota Wild: Matt Dumba
Montreal Canadiens: Jake Allen
Nashville Predators: Luke Kunin
New Jersey Devils: P.K. Subban
New York Islanders: Anders Lee
New York Rangers: Chris Kreider
Ottawa Senators: Nick Holden
Philadelphia Flyers: Scott Laughton
Pittsburgh Penguins: Bryan Rust
San Jose Sharks: Matt Nieto
Seattle Kraken: Jaden Schwartz
St. Louis Blues: Ryan O’Reilly
Tampa Bay Lightning: Victor Hedman
Toronto Maple Leafs: Wayne Simmonds
Vancouver Canucks: Bo Horvat
Vegas Golden Knights: Max Pacioretty
Washington Capitals: Garnet Hathaway
Winnipeg Jets: Josh Morrissey
Oliver Bjorkstrand Enters COVID Protocol
Dec 27: According to Aaron Portzline of The Athletic, Roslovic, Carlsson, and Andrew Peeke were all back at practice today after previously being in the protocol. Unfortunately, Oliver Bjorkstrand has taken their place and is now unavailable.
Dec 19: As the spread of COVID across the NHL rolls on, with over 100 players currently in the league’s protocol, the latest additions come from the Columbus Blue Jackets’ locker room. The team has announced that forwards Boone Jenner and Jack Roslovic and defenseman Gabriel Carlsson have entered the NHL COVID Protocol.
The Blue Jackets additionally made the decision to cancel practice on Sunday, citing an “abundance of caution”. However, there has been no indication that any plans have changed surrounding their travel plans with a road game in Buffalo coming up on Monday. While other teams have been shut down when multiple COVID placements occur, it seems that Columbus will move forward as planned.
However, they will do so without several key players. Jenner is not only the captain of the Jackets, but also leads the team with 11 goals and 324 face-off wins. Roslovic may have been the top candidate to replace Jenner but will also be out for an indeterminate amount of time. As for Carlsson, the depth defenseman has taken on greater importance with Adam Boqvist and Dean Kukan sidelined by injury, but will now join them on the shelf.
Coaching Notes: Vincent, Hakstol, Boudreau, Tocchet
New Columbus Blue Jackets head coach Brad Larsen is adding to his staff. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports that the Blue Jackets are set to hire Manitoba Moose head coach Pascal Vincent as an assistant to Larsen. Vincent had previously left Paul Maurice‘s Winnipeg Jets staff in favor of being the head coach for their AHL affiliate, but seemingly is back to being open to an NHL assistant role. Vincent has spent the past decade with the Jets organization and the previous dozen years as a head coach and GM in the QMJHL. With an impressive resume, Vincent may see this Columbus opportunity as a way to get his name out there beyond the confines of Winnipeg in hopes of attracting NHL head coach attention of his own down the road. Vincent will re-unite with Jack Roslovic in Columbus; he previously coached him as a prospect with the Moose but he has now become the No. 1 center for the Blue Jackets. That relationship should be mutually beneficial for the pair.
- The big coaching news of the day was of course the hiring of Dave Hakstol as the first head coach of the expansion Seattle Kraken. And while Hakstol’s role will be in the locker room and not the front office, GM Ron Francis will certainly take his opinions into consideration. After all, it was the Florida Panthers, the former team of Vegas’ inaugural head coach, Gerard Gallant, that were swindled the worst by the Golden Knights in the last Expansion Draft. Florida traded Reilly Smith and a fourth-round pick so that Vegas would select Jonathan Marchessault over the likes of Alexander Petrovic and Mark Pysyk. While no teams should be fooled so badly this time around, Hakstol’s knowledge of the Toronto Maple Leafs and Philadephia Flyers – not to mention the numerous University of North Dakota alumni around the league – could come into play. The Flyers in particular are expected to have many well-known names exposed in the draft, some of whom played their best seasons under Hakstol, and the coach may know exactly how to target the team.
- The Maple Leafs now have a vacancy on their coaching staff in the wake of Hakstol’s departure, but the club’s fans think they have already figured it out. Yahoo’s Thomas Williams writes that there has already been an outpouring of support for veteran coach Bruce Boudreau to be hired as the team’s newest assistant. The Toronto native and former Maple Leafs player spoke out this off-season as a free agent that he would like to coach his hometown team and fans seem to agree with the match. Boudreau has had a long and successful coaching career and some feel that head coach Sheldon Keefe could use the veteran support on the bench. With that said, Boudreau has never served as an assistant in the NHL and interviewed for the Buffalo Sabres’ head coach vacancy late last month. Despite any personal feelings and fan support, Boudreau will take the top job for the struggling Sabres over a No. 2 role for Toronto.
- Of course, Boudreau is not the only candidate for the Sabres’ job, as Rick Tocchet is also among the names who interviewed for the position. Tocchet interviewed multiple times with the Columbus Blue Jackets, New York Rangers, and Seattle Kraken, only to lose out on all three jobs. He has reportedly only interviewed once with Buffalo, who may not have been his top choice at first, but they are the only landing spot left, as the other remaining NHL head coach position is the post he vacated with the Arizona Coyotes. Tocchet is clearly a well-regarded and sought-after coach, so now that they are his last hope at a top job this season, perhaps the Sabres and Tocchet will get serious about a potential match.
Trade Deadline Primer: Columbus Blue Jackets
Although we’re just two months into the season, the trade deadline is already a month away. Where does each team stand and what moves should they be looking to make? We continue our look around the league with the Columbus Blue Jackets.
The Columbus Blue Jackets franchise is nothing if not hopeful. After 17 years of remaining faithful, the team finally won a playoff series in 2019 and then won another in 2020. Even though their play this season has been disappointing at times, they are still in the running for the fourth and final playoff spot in the Central Division and have a non-zero chance of catching the upstart Chicago Blackhawks and holding off the Dallas Stars.
With that said, this Blue Jackets team is in the bottom third of the league in goals for per game, goals against per game, power play, and penalty kill. Even if they sneak into the playoffs, even if they again wondrously upset the Tampa Bay Lightning, this is not a team with title hopes this year. This is not a team buying at the deadline.
Besides, the Blue Jackets already made their big move this season: the acquisition of two new core pieces in Patrik Laine and Jack Roslovic. Columbus may not be playing up to their expectations this season, but it has been an odd year – and for this team in particular – and the Blue Jackets are probably best served to just take it easy at the trade deadline. Just as this is not a contending roster, it is equally not a roster in need of a rebuild. Columbus should stay the course. If they receive outstanding offers for their impending free agents or term depth players, they should consider. If they are faced with the opportunity to add a term depth player of their own, they should consider. By and large though, the Blue Jackets should focus on the group they currently have and see if they can sneak into the postseason. This is not a year for Columbus to do anything drastic.
Record
11-12-6, .483, 5th in Central Division
Deadline Status
Opportunistic Seller
Deadline Cap Space
$1.571MM in full-season space ($7.01MM at the trade deadline), 0/3 retention slots used, 43/50 contracts used per CapFriendly.
Upcoming Draft Picks
2021: CLB 1st, CLB 3rd, CLB 4th, CLB 5th, NJD 5th, CLB 6th, CLB 7th
2022: CLB 1st, CLB 2nd, CLB 4th, CLB 6th, ANA 7th
Trade Chips
The Blue Jackets are sitting on a pair of prime time impending free agents, but unlike 2019, when Columbus couldn’t bear to let Artemi Panarin and Sergei Bobrovsky go without loading up and going for a run, the team has a different reason this time around to think twice about parting ways with their most valuable pieces. Nick Foligno and David Savard bleed Jackets blue. The former is the captain and the latter is a career Blue Jacket and the longest tenured player on the team. There is certainly some discussion in the front office about whether it is really worth it to part with either player. Of course, much of that also revolves around extension talks. If this is the end of Foligno and/or Savard in Columbus anyway, then the team should trade them. However, if either one wants to remain with the club in the future, likely re-signing after expansion, it could be better for all parties if they held on to them. Foligno especially, as the locker room leader for a team that is still within reach of a playoff spot, has value on the team this season, perhaps more than he would to any other team in the league. Foligno is also having a down year offensively and may not command a great return. Savard, on the other hand, is extremely valuable to a great many teams as an experienced shutdown defender on the right side. Yet, he also fits perfectly as a complement to the Blue Jackets’ more offensive-minded, puck-moving top pair and the team surely hopes that he wishes to remain in that role moving forward.
Fortunately for Columbus, they aren’t without other valuable rentals if Foligno and Savard stay put, albeit to a lesser extent. First-time Blue Jackets Michael Del Zotto and Mikhail Grigorenko could be nice depth additions for contenders, as could bottom-six center Riley Nash. None of them have had especially noteworthy seasons, but are useful additions nonetheless. Del Zotto especially is affordable and experienced – a nice acquisition for a cap-strapped team in need of skill on the blue line.
Among term players, there are certainly already some calling for the trade of Max Domi. The off-season acquisition, who signed a two-year extension with the team, has been nothing short of underwhelming this season. However, is there any upside to trading him now? Domi, who already has a reputation for not lasting long with teams, may be at the lowest point in trade value in his career. Especially in a cap-strapped climate, the Blue Jackets would almost certainly not get back fair value. The optics would also be bad, as counterpart Josh Anderson has found immediate success with the Montreal Canadiens. Columbus would be much better off to hold on to Domi and see if he can improve next season before making a decision on his future. Unless, of course, someone blows them away with an offer. Domi was expected to fill a hole down the middle for Columbus, so any deal to move him out right now should aim to bring another talented center in.
Despite a recent extension in February, there is a more logical reason to potentially move defenseman Dean Kukan. Kukan has missed some time this season, but has played well when healthy. As one of the top candidates to be selected by the Seattle Kraken in the 2021 NHL Expansion Draft, the Blue Jackets may choose instead to get value back for the blue liner if there is interest. Of course, they may also just hold out hope that Seattle goes in a different direction.
Of course, the big move that Columbus could make is to break up their young goalie tandem. With both Joonas Korpisalo and Elvis Merzlikins set to hit free agency after next season, there is some question as to the viability of retaining both beyond that point. Either one would certainly draw interest on the trade market, though a deal is more likely in the off-season. Specifically, when it comes to Korpisalo, there may be limited demand around the league for adding an eligible goalie prior to the expansion draft rather than after. His market would likely be improved in the summer. If the Blue Jackets decide to make a big change in net at the deadline rather than waiting for the summer, it is more likely to be Merzlikins on the move.
Others to Watch For: D Scott Harrington ($1.633M, UFA 2022), D Gabriel Carlsson ($725K, RFA 2022), D Adam Clendening ($700K, UFA), F Ryan MacInnis ($700K, Group 6 UFA)
Team Needs
1) Draft Picks and Prospects – Unfortunately, the Blue Jackets are still feeling the effects of their all-out approach at the 2019 trade deadline, as well as some other moves they have made. They have not had many high-value picks over the past two years and are still without some key selections moving forward, including a second-rounder this year and a third-rounder in 2022. With many of their top prospects having graduated to the pros as well, Columbus has a young NHL roster, but a lacking pipeline. In fact, The Athletic’s Scott Wheeler ranked it 27th overall in the league, which would be easier to swallow if the team was performing better. Whether by picks or by prospects, the Blue Jackets need to try to replenish the system.
2) A Term Forward – The shrewd GM that he is, don’t be surprised to see Jarmo Kekalainen try to address the Expansion Draft ahead of the deadline. Assuming their most likely protection scheme and choices, the Blue Jackets are currently short one forward to meet the exposure quota that the draft demands, unless they re-sign Nash or Grigorenko, UFA’s they could instead trade, or Kevin Stenlund, who would also need to play regularly down the stretch to meet the games played criteria. Those options aren’t ideal and the Blue Jackets could just as easily find a player to trade for at a low price who covers them for expansion, but could also play a role next season if not selected. Although Columbus shouldn’t be a typical buyer at the deadline, an additional forward could also help in their continued pursuit of a playoff spot, especially if they move one or more of their impending free agents up front. Again, center is the team’s biggest positional need, but not necessarily the priority here in adding a player they plan to expose in expansion.
Poll: Grading The Jets-Blue Jackets Trade
For a season that wasn’t supposed to have a lot of notable trade activity, there was certainly a big trade made on Saturday with the Jets acquiring center Pierre-Luc Dubois and a 2022 third-round pick from the Blue Jackets in exchange for wingers Patrik Laine and Jack Roslovic with the latter soon agreeing to a two-year, $3.8MM bridge deal.
It’s a swap of two star players that were looking for a change of scenery. The deal allows both teams to acquire a top talent in return but given their disenchantment where they were, it’s also fair to wonder if this will be the ideal fit for everyone involved. Both Laine and Dubois have a new home but are they in a more preferable spot than they were before?
For Winnipeg, adding Dubois should put to an end to GM Kevin Cheveldayoff’s attempts to add another impact center, a process that started with the acquisition of Paul Stastny in 2018, was continued a year later with Kevin Hayes before ultimately re-acquiring Stastny this offseason. With Bryan Little’s playing future in serious jeopardy and Stastny’s contract up, they needed a longer-term solution. Dubois can be that player although he’ll move from a top-line role down to the second line with Mark Scheifele ahead of him on the depth chart.
Meanwhile, Columbus gets one of the top goal-scorers in the league in Laine and a young roster player in Roslovic, one who was drafted as a center and will presumably get an opportunity to play down the middle. However, they lose a year of team control moving from Dubois to Laine, who is owed a $7.5MM qualifying offer this summer while being eligible for salary arbitration. While Winnipeg retained on his salary in the deal to get his price tag nearly identical to Dubois, that certainly won’t be the case for long.
How do you feel both teams made out in this blockbuster? Vote in the polls below to award your grades.
(Poll links for the Jets and Blue Jackets for app users.)
Blue Jackets Place Brandon Dubinsky On LTIR
It might seem like a strange time to do it, but the Columbus Blue Jackets announced they have placed veteran forward Brandon Dubinsky on long-term injured reserve.
The team, who hadn’t needed to place the forward on LTIR up until now, were forced into the roster move as the contract of Jack Roslovic, who the team acquired along with Patrik Laine Saturday in the Pierre-Luc Dubois trade, took effect today, meaning the team would have been over the salary cap by just over $100K if they didn’t move Dubinsky to LTIR.
Dubinsky hasn’t played since the 2019 playoffs as he’s been hampered with a chronic wrist injury and likely will never play again. He missed the entire 2019-20 season. The 34-year-old is in the final year of a six year, $35.1MM contract with a $5.85MM AAV. The veteran signed the extension after a 16-goal, 50-point season with 234 hits back in the 2013-14 season. The deal looked good for the first year or two, but the forward’s offense saw a decline after that, posting just six goals in his third and fourth years with just six goals each and spending most of his time in the bottom-six.
COVID Protocol Related Absences: 01/23/21
Each day, the NHL will publicly release the list of players that are unavailable to their respective teams due to being in COVID-19 protocol. The Nashville Predators and Pittsburgh Penguins are still listed as TBA, but the rest of the list is in:
Carolina – Warren Foegele, Jordan Martinook, Jaccob Slavin, Jordan Staal, Teuvo Teravainen, Jesper Fast*
Columbus – Patrik Laine*, Jack Roslovic*
Dallas – Blake Comeau
Detroit – Adam Erne, Robby Fabbri, Sam Gagner, Jon Merrill, Filip Zadina
New Jersey – Jesper Bratt, Mackenzie Blackwood
Tampa Bay – Curtis McElhinney
Washington – Evgeny Kuznetsov, Dmitry Orlov, Alex Ovechkin, Ilya Samsonov
Winnipeg – Tucker Poolman, Pierre-Luc Dubois*
As a reminder, inclusion on this list does not mean that a player has tested positive for Coronavirus or even that they have been confirmed as a close contact to another positive person. Included in the NHL’s list of possible reasons for someone being on the list is are the following:
(1) an initial positive test which remains unconfirmed until confirmatory testing is completed pursuant to the Positive Test Protocol; (2) mandated isolation for symptomatic individuals pursuant to the Positive Test Protocol; (3) required quarantine as a high-risk close contact in accordance with the Positive Test Protocol; (4) isolation based on a confirmed positive test result and/or; (5) quarantine for travel or other reasons as outlined in the COVID-19 Protocol
Players removed today: Mikko Koivu, Columbus Blue Jackets; Anton Forsberg, Winnipeg Jets
Obviously, the big names today are those that swapped teams, as Laine, Roslovic, and Dubois are all listed. Roslovic was already in his hometown of Columbus awaiting a new contract, meaning he has immediately entered the protocol, while Laine and Dubois will also need to travel and face government-imposed quarantines.
Fast becomes the sixth Hurricanes player on the list, taking away another option as they wait out the postponed games.
*denotes new addition
Winnipeg Jets Acquire Pierre-Luc Dubois For Patrik Laine, Jack Roslovic
Morning has arrived and with it the Pierre-Luc Dubois trade that was reported as imminent yesterday. The Winnipeg Jets, considered the favorite late last night, have completed a deal with the Columbus Blue Jackets to add the cornerstone center, as first reported by TSN’s Darren Dreger. The club has parted ways with two disgruntled young pieces of their own: winger Patrik Laine, selected one spot ahead of Dubois in 2016, and RFA center Jack Roslovic, a Columbus native. The Jets also receive a 2022 third-round pick alongside Dubois. Both teams have confirmed the trade.
The Jets have retained 26% of Laine’s salary for the final year of his current contract, according to TSN’s Frank Seravalli, bringing his cap hit down to $4.995MM and making the cap exchange of the two players even given Dubois’ $5MM AAV. Of course, Roslovic will also contribute to the Blue Jackets’ cap and Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports that he has already agreed to a two-year contract. Colleague Chris Johnston believes Roslovic’s new deal carries a $1.9MM AAV; PuckPedia adds that the breakdown is as follows:
2020-21: $1.3MM
2021-22: $2.5MM
The qualifying offer at the end of the deal will be $2.28MM, the lower of 120% of the AAV and the final-year salary. It’s also worth noting that with the contract being signed in-season, the AAV will vary each year. This season, the cap charge will be just under $2.018MM while next season, the charge will be a little under $1.844MM.
There seemed to be too much in common between these two clubs for this not to be the eventual deal that ended the Dubois saga in Columbus. Dubois and Laine are a very similar caliber of player, with almost identical draft billing and both currently playing on bridge deals. Both were also not content with their current surroundings. Then there is Roslovic, who was an unsigned restricted free agent still living at home in Columbus early on this season. Perhaps the most disgruntled of all, Roslovic likely could not be happier with staying home. Dubois also has ties to the city of Winnipeg and the organization as his father, Eric Dubois, serves as an assistant coach for the AHL’s Manitoba Moose and his parents live there year-round.
With that said, Columbus’ own beat writer for The Athletic, Aaron Portzline, was skeptical that Laine and Roslovic would be headed to Columbus without another substantial sweetener alongside Dubois. He noted that the Jets were also thought to be seeking a defenseman, an area of strength on the Blue Jackets’ organizational depth chart. Not only did Columbus succeed in making this deal without giving up a Vladislav Gavrikov but they also held on to young blue liners like Andrew Peeke and Gabriel Carlsson at the cost of a third-rounder.
All things considered, the Blue Jackets make out very well in this trade. Dubois is a tough piece to give up, but there is a very strong argument to be made that Laine is the best player in the deal. The big, sniping winger has notched 140 goals and 250 points in 306 NHL games, finishing in the top ten league-wide in goal scoring twice in just four seasons. The 2017 All-Star is one of the most dangerous shooters and power play assets on the planet and should help to bring along some of Columbus’ young centers. That now includes Roslovic, who is 23 years old just like Dubois and Laine and a first-round pick as well. The young pivot has shown flashes of high-end ability and will finally land a permanent top-nine role in Columbus. Of course, the final judgement on the deal will have to wait a couple of years. The Blue Jackets have struggled to retain top talent and head coach John Tortorella has a history of clashing with players, so how contract negotiations play out between the team and Laine (and potentially Roslovic as well) will dictate how successful this move was for Columbus’ long-term success.
As for Winnipeg, the team adds yet another skilled center to a roster that was already deep on the wing and now has the talent to match down the middle. Dubois has recorded 159 points in 239 NHL games, not including a 2020 postseason where he tallied ten points in ten games and averaged nearly 23 minutes per night. While Dubois will miss some time with a mandatory 14-day quarantine, Laine was out of action on injured reserve anyhow. Once Dubois joins the Jets, who have the second-best record in the North Division early on, the team could be primed for a strong season and playoff success. They also will have nearly two seasons to evaluate Dubois before he needs a new contract. The hope in Winnipeg is that playing closer to family and having more sustained success will be enough to keep Dubois content and committed to the club long-term.
While many sources believed that the Jets were the most likely team to wind up completing a deal for Dubois, they were not the only team still in pursuit. Friedman reported last night that the Anaheim Ducks, Calgary Flames, and Montreal Canadiens were still very much in the mix. He added that the Ducks, a team chock full of talented prospects, were thought to have significantly improved their offer recently. Well-off contenders like the Tampa Bay Lightning and Colorado Avalanche were even been linked to the young forward, who has the makings of a long-term top-six center. In fact, TSN’s Frank Seravalli says that it is easier to name the teams who were not interested in Dubois and assume all other at least kicked the tires. That list of non-suitors includes the Carolina Hurricanes, Chicago Blackhawks, Edmonton Oilers, Florida Panthers, Nashville Predators, Toronto Maple Leafs, and Vegas Golden Knights. Practically anyone else could have still made a competing offer in time, but with Laine and Roslovic on the table for the Jets, Winnipeg was always likely to come out on top.
Penguins Showing Interest In Jack Roslovic
The list of remaining restricted free agents that aren’t playing overseas begins and ends with Jets winger Jack Roslovic. He has made his preference for a trade known but as of yet, nothing has come to fruition and so he sits at home while hoping for his fortunes to change. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports in the latest Saturday Headlines segment (video link) that the Penguins are among the teams that are quite interested in bringing Roslovic in.
The 23-year-old hasn’t quite lived up to his first-round billing after being the 25th overall pick back in 2015 but he has become a serviceable middle-six winger and managed to put up career highs offensively last season despite the pandemic with 12 goals and 17 assists in 71 regular season games while chipping in with a pair of assists in four postseason contests. A natural center, Roslovic could still shift back down the middle which would only boost his long-term value.
Considering the situation, a short-term bridge deal of one or two years makes the most sense for both Roslovic and whoever winds up signing him, be it Winnipeg or someone else. It’s hard to see him checking in at much more than double his previous salary which would put him in the $1.65MM to $2MM range or so.
What will make a trade tricky for Pittsburgh is that they don’t have that much cap room to add Roslovic without subtracting someone from their roster first or as part of the deal and with this being a year where moving money and making trades is going to be more difficult than usual, it’s not an insignificant factor. Pittsburgh has gotten off to a bit of sluggish start (though they got their first win today) but it appears that GM Jim Rutherford is already looking to add to his roster with an eye on Roslovic, just as long as they can afford his next contract first.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.