Blackhawks, Red Wings could be poised to make splash
The NHL annual summer free agent signing splurge seems to inspire as many regrets as success stories.
Last summer, the Montreal Canadiens signed Alexander Radulov for one season and wished it were for more. Sam Gagner was a similarly appreciated free agent acquisition for the Columbus Blue Jackets.
But also last summer, the Florida Panthers committed $22.5 million over five years for defenseman Jason Demers and ended up exposing him in the expansion draft last week. The Calgary Flames paid $18 million over four seasons for Troy Brouwer and left him unprotected. (Neither was taken by the Vegas Golden Knights.)
The Edmonton Oilers love their Milan Lucic signing of a year ago.
But would the Detroit Red Wings sign Frans Nielsen (six years, $31.5 million; 17 goals, 41 points, -19 last season) or would the New York Islanders sign Andrew Ladd (seven years, $38.5 million, 23 goals, 31 points last season) if they had a chance for a do-over?
Free agent signings can provide important pieces of the
competitive puzzle — such as Ryan Suter with the Minnesota Wild a few years ago or Anton Stralman for the Tampa Bay Lightning.
But they can cause salary cap headaches. Remember David Clarkson’s deal with the Toronto Maple Leafs? That 2013 contract has gone from the Maple Leafs to the Blue Jackets to the Golden Knights.
A new season of divining which unrestricted free agents can help the most starts Saturday at noon ET. What some teams want:
Chicago Blackhawks: Defense. Defense. Defense. You can bet coach Joel Quenneville is lobbying general manager Stan Bowman about which free agent defenseman he could live with.
Red Wings: They need a veteran defenseman with offensive ability, but that will be hard to find. Could they be interested in Trevor Daley? They might also look at Ron Hainsey, and they have interest in Dan Girardi.
Los Angeles Kings: New general manager Rob Blake’s priority must be adding offensive players, though he is limited by salary cap constraints.
Canadiens: They need a center and a defenseman. Center Joe Thornton is available, and Martin Hanzal might be the fallback option. Nashville Predators: General manager David Poile will be
working over the holidays, looking for a scorer or two to replace James Neal. Players such as Justin Williams or Thomas Vanek have to be on his list. If Mike Fisher retires, the Predators might need another center. New York Rangers: After shedding the Derek Stepan and Girardi contracts, the Rangers are $20 million under the cap ceiling. After escaping cap messiness, the Rangers must decide whether they want to risk becoming entrapped again by bidding heavily on Kevin Shattenkirk. Regardless, they could use another defenseman and possibly a center. Philadelphia Flyers: With Michal Neuvirth sitting as the team’s No. 1 goalie, the Flyers are looking at goalie options.
Lightning: General manager Steve Yzerman is searching for another defenseman, and Shattenkirk is on his list.
Washington Capitals: Having lost Shattenkirk and Karl Alzner to free agency and Nate Schmidt to the expansion draft, the Capitals might want to add two veteran defensemen.
Winnipeg Jets: With the talent the Jets have up front, general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff knows they can contend if they clean up their goals-against average. Winnipeg believes in Connor Hellebuyck, but it needs a veteran goaltender to pair with him.