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Unrestricted free agents across the NHL can't yet sign a contract with a new team, but they can start fielding offers.
It's been long reported that New Jersey Devils forward David Clarkson is going to cash in this off-season for a variety of reasons. One is teams always overpay in free agency, and with this being such a weak free agent class, Clarkson will be in even higher demand than usual.
Several media outlets (TSN, The Bergen Record, etc.) have reported that Lou Lamoriello offered Clarkson a big contract but that he turned it down and decided to test the market to get a feel for what's out there.
Apparently, Clarkson's asking price for inquiring teams is ridiculously high. By ridiculous I mean at least $1 million more than what he's worth per season on a max-length contract. If you haven't heard, Clarkson and his camp are rumored to be asking for a seven-year contract, which is the maximum length, worth $6 million per season.
To put that in perspective, Taylor Hall, Milan Lucic, Daniel Sedin, Henrik Sedin, Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane and Henrik Zetterberg, among others, are players with a $6 million cap hit or just above.
Clarkson is a good player, but he doesn't belong in that group. That probably won't stop an interested team like the Toronto Maple Leafs from offering him a contract like that, though.
Lamoriello has said all along he'd like to bring Clarkson back and still hasn't ruled it out, but he's noted in several interviews that the Devils can only offer so much within reason.
$6 million is not within reason.
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With Cory Schneider now a member of the Devils, Johan Hedberg's days on the team are numbered.
Lamoriello will likely try and trade Hedberg to a team looking for a backup (Nashville or Philadelphia, perhaps) and if he can't move him, he'll likely buy him out.
Either way, we'll know what the Devils plans are by tomorrow afternoon. If the Devils don't place Hedberg on waivers by noon eastern time, he can't be bought out this off-season without counting against the cap.
Look for that tomorrow if he's not moved prior.
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I take an in-depth look at the Cory Schneider trade.
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