Edmonton announced a nice piece of business today. Derek Ryan has been signed for two more season at 900,000 per year. The 36 year old put up 13 goals and 20 points in 80 games this past season for the Oilers.
Honestly there isn't much to dislike about this signing. Yes Ryan is 36 years old meaning he will be 38 when his deal expires but at a 900,000 cap hit that is easy to bury in the minors.
Not that I think they will have to, even if the offense fades a bit from Ryan's game, Derek Ryan has shown he is one of the strongest defensive players in the bottom six in the NHL over his career that only began when he was 29 years old.
This is a player who knows exactly what is expected of him every night and shows up for every shift with the same mentality. He is never out of position and rarely can the finger be pointed at him for a goal against. As I've already talked at length in the short offseason thus far, the Oilers need strong role players who can help the team on every line. Derek Ryan has shown he is that type of player. Also worth pointing out this technically saves the team a bit of cap space as Ryan's previous deal had him earning 1.25 million.
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