National Post (National Edition)
‘I know that I’ve done my job’
RESTRICTED FREE AGENT LAINE NOT WORRIED ABOUT APPARENT CONTRACT IMPASSE WITH JETS
Patrik Laine said he knows he’ll be playing somewhere next year, but stopped short of answering the where part. The 21-year-old restricted free agent spoke with Sportsnet’s Chris Johnston on Friday at the Finnish Alumni All-Star Game, saying he’s not worrying too much about his lack of a new contract in the advanced stages of the off-season even if he and the team haven’t spoken much thus far.
“I’m not stressed. I’m not worrying about that at all,” Laine told Johnston. “I know that I’ve done my job as well as I can over these three years.
“I know I’m going to play somewhere next year, so that’s something I’m not thinking about too much. Hopefully, we get it done in the next couple of months and be ready when the puck drops.
The first bit of that last paragraph is enough to throw Jets fans into a fully-fledged frenzy, of course.
Fans would like the young Finn, who has scored 110 goals in his first three seasons in the NHL, to be firmly entrenched in Winnipeg’s lineup later this year.
Laine clarified the comment, at least a little, saying you have to be prepared for everything in the business of hockey.
Famously known for calling Winnipeg “good” in an article he penned for The Players’ Tribune a couple of years ago, Laine said he
has nothing bad to say about the city.
“It’s been good so far, but you never know,” Laine said.
One can read as little or as much as they want to into those comments, but the reality is that Laine is just one of several bigticket RFAs who have yet to resign with their clubs.
It’s a who’s who list of young superstars and includes the likes of Mikko Rantanen, Brayden Point and Charlie McAvoy, along with another Jets star in Kyle Connor.
Connor told the assembled media in Winnipeg on Wednesday that he’d prefer a long-term deal with the Jets, but isn’t ruling out holding out if one doesn’t come to fruition before training camp kicks off next month.
The Jets have had to dance around the salary cap all off-season as they try and work out deals — and enough room to make them — with their two remaining RFAs (not including minor leaguer Eric Comrie.)
General manager Kevin Cheveldayoff currently has about $17.6 million to work with and the Jets currently have 17 players on their roster, a number that will have to get up to 22 before the Jets open the season in the Big Apple in early October.
The impasse certainly hasn’t helped the team shore up any additional depth.
Laine’s comments, like Connor’s on Wednesday, only serve as the latest posturing from both camps.
Restricted free agents without arbitration rights, such as Laine and Connor, at first appear to have no leverage but, in fact, the opposite appears to be true.
The Jets needn’t have the same situation play out as the one the Toronto Maple Leafs had with William Nylander, where the player skips all of training camp and two months of the season before finally signing — and underperforming.
Laine’s down season last year (if you call 30 goals a down season) is obviously in play in negotiations, as is a lingering back issue he divulged as the Jets cleaned out their lockers following a firstround exit from this past season’s Stanley Cup Playoffs.
But Laine played well toward the end of the season and in the playoffs, exhibiting what you’d want to see from a man with power-forward size.
He played at both ends of the ice, becoming more defensively responsible as he appeared to evolve his game.
Laine told Johnston that he’s been working on his skating in the off-season — something he has admitted not doing much of in previous off-seasons — while also spending more time in the gym.
“I’ve been kind of working on everything, especially explosiveness and being quicker on the ice,” Laine said. “I think I’ve made some really good progress during the summer and I think I’ve been skating a lot more this year than I’ve been in the past.”
For now, Laine said, he will remain in Europe until something gets done. sbilleck@postmedia.com
Twitter: @scottbilleck