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Yzerman has kept contracts short and sweet.. 17 open roster spots are currently listed on Capfriendly Here is Detroit’s page. the only team (currently) spending less on their roster is Seattle at $0.
This time around, GMs have smartened up a little when it comes to expansion. They’re buying out contracts to protect younger players. A lot of contracts haven’t been signed so players don’t have to be protected. It’s almost (almost) like Vegas was a bit of a wake up call. The market is being filled, and a contender could grab Suter at a low tag. Yandle was bought out as well. For teams against the cap, those options are worth looking at for a contending roster. Unfortunately, Detroit doesn’t have one yet.
Landeskog may be headed to free agency. Eichel is available. Reinhart is available. Calgary has been rumored to be shopping Gaudreau and Monohan. Teams are trying to move players to avoid losing them for nothing. There is a lot of action. It would be fun to be in the thick of it.
How about offer sheets in a flat cap world? Pettersson? Is it feasible that a team with enough space could grab Eichel, Landeskog AND Pettersson? Hamilton as a free agent Dman? Ok, probably not. But there are some players there that could really move the needle for a team ready to make a big push.
Yzerman may still make some big moves. He’s savvy, stealthy and never stops working. The team could look a big step better after this summer. It’s not worth derailing a rebuild by overspending trying to rush it (see Buffalo). It’s just the most wide open time that I can remember. There are a lot of players available that can make an impact. If they’re smart, a GM with a team ready to make some noise will get some deals done in this environment.
IF Detroit were to make a big swing, who would you grab? Eichel isn’t really affordable, but would you give it a shot? Reinhart? Would you see what Landeskog is looking to get? There may be plenty of players who would be willing to be deadline flips if they can’t find a spot. Let me know, and as always I’ll see you in the comments.
Check out some of my previous posts Yzerman has kept contracts short and sweet.
I will be featuring the writings of Kevin Allen for a summer reading program this year. It’s tough to break up the summer months, and the one on one formats that Kevin has perfected is not only a pleasure to read but gives insight that isn’t easy to come by. I’ll be starting with Chris Chelios “Made in America….