Plenty of compelling story lines remain
Elite free agents have signed, but much to sort out
The Dallas Stars have to be considered the big (early) winners of the NHL offseason after acquiring a goalie, a top-pairing defenseman and two noteworthy forwards to transform themselves into Stanley Cup contenders.
After signing skillful free agent Alexander Radulov to a five-year, $31.25 million deal Monday, general manager Jim Nill called the Stars’ top-six forward group “as deep and talented as any group in this league.” The Stars’ top six also includes Jamie Benn, Tyler Seguin and Jason Spezza.
Earlier in the offseason, Nill added goalie Ben Bishop, defenseman Marc Methot and center Martin Hanzal to significantly upgrade the roster.
The Stars also hired coach Ken Hitchcock, known for his ability to make his teams harder to play against.
Although the premium free agents are gone, some teams have work to get done before the “Gone fishing ” sign can be hung. Some of the unfinished business:
WILL MATT DUCHENE BE TRADED?
In the middle of last season, the Colorado Avalanche began listening to offers for the center. When a deal didn’t happen before the trade deadline, the Avalanche looked as if they were waiting until the draft to allow more teams to join the bidding process. Smart move. Or so it seemed.
The draft has come and gone, and Duchene remains in Colora- do. Some teams that were interested have moved on to other options. No one seems to know whether the trade will happen.
How frustrating has it become for Duchene? How about Colorado’s fans? Not only have the Avalanche not traded Duchene, they also have not made any moves to improve a roster that finished 30th in points last season.
RE-SIGNING JOHN TAVARES
Next summer, the New York Islanders captain can become an unrestricted free agent. The time to sign him is now. We saw what happened two seasons ago when Tampa Bay Lightning captain Steven Stamkos was in this situation. He was forced to answer questions about it all season. It was a constant annoyance, and sometimes a circus, for Stamkos. (He eventually signed a deal that carries an $8.5 million cap hit.)
The Islanders don’t want to have that happen with Tavares. Los Angeles Kings captain Anze Kopitar is a $10 million a year player. Chicago Blackhawks captain Jonathan Toews averages $10.5 million. Edmonton Oilers captain Connor McDavid is expected to sign a deal soon that will make him the NHL’s highestpaid player at $13.25 million a season, according to Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman.
It’s not as if the Islanders don’t know where they have to go in this negotiation.
VEGAS’ ROSTER REDUCTION
The expansion Vegas Golden Knights have 11 defensemen on their roster, and they are likely to move two or three of them by the start of training camp.
The group includes Jason Garrison, Nate Schmidt, Shea Theodore, Luca Sbisa, Clayton Stoner, Jon Merrill, Colin Miller, Deryk Engelland, Brayden McNabb, Griffin Reinhart and Brad Hunt.
CAPITALS’ CLEAN-UP
General manager Brian MacLellan needs to pull a rabbit out of his hat to prevent the Washington Capitals, the Presidents’ Trophy winners, from falling significantly in the standings. Thanks to salary cap issues, the Capitals have become the biggest losers of the offseason.
After losing Karl Alzner, Kevin Shattenkirk and Nate Schmidt, the Capitals need to add a veteran defenseman. They were forced to trade Marcus Johansson to the New Jersey Devils to make room for Evgeny Kuznetsov’s new contract (eight years, $62.4 million).
Now, they simply don’t have the cap space to plug their holes. The Caps have 15 players signed on their roster and $8.6 million left under the salary cap ceiling, according to Capfriendly.com. They re-signed forward Andre Burakovsky to a two-year, $6 million deal Tuesday, but restricted free agent goalie Philipp Grubauer remains unsigned.
JAROMIR JAGR’S FUTURE
With the Florida Panthers opting to move on without Jagr, will he be back in the NHL 2017-18?
At 45, Jagr is coming off a 16goal, 46-point season during which he earned $4 million in salary and $1.5 million in bonuses. It would seem like it would be difficult to land that type of contract again, given the number of unsigned players and the limited number of dollars to sign them.
Thomas Vanek, Jarome Iginla, Johnny Oduya, Dennis Wideman, Shane Doan and Cody Franson are among the available players.