Rangers, Stars do well in free agency
While the first flurries of free-agent movement in the National Hockey League aren’t quite as exciting as in past years, a few teams and players distinguished themselves with their early off-season manoeuvrings — and a few left themselves with work to do.
WINNER: New York Rangers. They landed the biggest prize on the market in Kevin Shattenkirk, who clearly wanted to come home to play on Broadway. The puck-moving defenceman should be a big boost to an already-strong roster, and New York didn’t have to break the bank to get him. The Rangers also resigned Brendan Smith earlier, further bolstering their defence.
LOSER: Montreal Canadiens. They locked up Price, one of the NHL’s elite goalies, but paid an extraordinary price to do so. That reported $84million, eight-year commitment won’t make it easier for the Habs to keep longtime defensive star Andrei Markov and forward Alex Radulov, who combined to score 90 points for Montreal last season, but are now possibly looking elsewhere.
PUSH: Chicago Blackhawks. They got the band back together with the acquisitions of Patrick Sharp and Brandon Saad, but they lost quality players in Niklas Hjalmarsson and Artemi Panarin, along with Marian Hossa’s unfortunate woes.
WINNER: Dallas Stars. After landing Florida star goalie Ben Bishop and defenceman Marc Methot before free agency, GM Jim Nill signed centre Martin Hanzal to add depth down an already strong middle and another 20 goals to their offence.
LOSER: Colorado Avalanche. It’s been a rough nine months in the Rockies. After a horrific 48-point regular season, the Avs lost valuable goalie Calvin Pickard to Vegas in the expansion draft. During the free-agent weekend, Colorado acquired Colin Wilson from Nashville and signed Jonathan Bernier from the Ducks. Meanwhile, Matt Duchene remains squarely on the trading block.
PUSH: San Jose Sharks. Joe Thornton is staying in the South Bay on a one-year deal. But general manager Doug Wilson also paid top dollar in long-term extensions for defenceman Marc-Edouard Vlasic — he got more money than the Ducks’ Fowler — who’s five years younger — and goalie Martin Jones. The Sharks’ core is largely locked in, for better or worse.
WINNER: Nashville Predators. Nick Bonino is a gritty veteran forward who should fit splendidly into a winning core, and Alexei Emelin could slot in well on an already formidable blue line. Even with their free-agent losses, the Western Conference champions probably got better.
LOSER: Washington Capitals. The NHL’s best regular-season team has lost veteran forward Justin Williams and defencemen Karl Alzner, Nate Schmidt and Shattenkirk during the off-season. The Caps kept T.J. Oshie, but only with a headscratching contract.
PUSH: Pittsburgh Penguins. The two-time Stanley Cup champs lost a chunk of their title-winning supporting cast, including Bonino, Chris Kunitz, Marc-Andre Fleury, Trevor Daley and Ron Hainsey. But backup goalie Antti Niemi is on board, and GM Jim Rutherford re-signed defenceman Justin Schultz.