So, as the playoff head to their zenith, those teams that are not participating are already hard at work on next season. One of the biggest to-do’s? Decide on which roster free agents to sign and which ones to not. The Nashville Predators have had their post-season meetings with the players, coaches and now scouts. Decisions have been made and there’s a good chance initial reach outs have been made to agents. I’ve been working on this one for a few days and might as well throw it on the pile of free agen t blogs that have hit in the past 18 hours…
So, I will put on my GM hat and look at the Free Agents both restricted and unrestricted from the Predators roster. Let’s look at the restricted first… ages listed are as of this writing and salary is listed in actual dollars paid (not cap hit.)
Colin Wilson - Age 25 Last Salary - $2.5m 14/15 stats - 20g/22a, +19, 4 GWG Colin Wilson is coming off of a career year, posting 42 points in 77 games, seeming to embrace the Laviolette system fully. He had stretches of excellent performance surrounded by stretches of disappearing. Another excellent playoff performance certainly increased his value. I fully expect the Preds to qualify him and he will get a larger contract, although I don’t expect this to happen quickly and it may end up going to arbitration.
Craig Smith – Age 25 – Last Salary - $2.0m 14/15 Stats – 23g/21a, +11, 4 GWG A second consecutive 20+ goal season for Smith, although his assist numbers were down from his previous high of 28. He continues to improve his game and continues to show upside. A solid playoff performer who will get a qualifying offer and a new contract. The best result for the Predators in their negotiations with Smith (and Wilson, for that matter) probably needs to be focused on a 3-5 year term. It may cost a little more on the front end, but would keep both in the fold for their most productive years.
Gabriel Bourque – Age 24 Last Salary - $825k 14/15 Stats – 3g/10a, -13, 0 GWG Bourque is a bottom six forward that battles hard for 50/50 pucks, is not afraid to throw the body and does an excellent job in pressuring the puck, a key to head coach Peter Laviolette’s system. He is adaptable and has shown himself to be willing to make the necessary changes asked of him. I would anticipate a qualifying offer, but not a huge raise for this role player.
Calle Jarnkrok - Age 23 Last Salary - $790m 14/15 Stats – 7g/11a, +2, 1 GWG Jarnkrok solidified his third line center role this season, fitting in seamlessly once he got a full Predators training camp under his belt. He is a solid, if slightly undersized, player that just completed his first NHL season. Plenty of head room left in this player’s development, a qualifying offer is a definite and a decent raise may be in order here.
Taylor Beck – Age 24 Last Salary - $550k – 14/15 Stats – 8g/8a, -4, 3 GWG Taylor Beck’s first full NHL campaign was a solid one. This player showed quite a bit of upside in his 4th line role this past season, adding a bit of scoring to the shutdown line. A solid two-way player who even earned a little special teams play as the season progressed. Not a big hitter, but does use his size well, he can be described as hard to play against. A qualifying offer is all but assured, negotiations for a new contract could be interesting.
There are quite a few prospects that are hitting RFA status, ones I would expect to get qualified would be Magnus Hellberg, Austin Watson, Anthony Bitetto to name a few. Now a look at the unrestricted list…
Mike Fisher – Age 34 Last Salary - $4.2m 14/15 Stats – 19g/20a, +4, 1 GWG Fisher came off a tough off season injury, missing the first month of the season buit posted some excellent numbers in his 59 games. Resigning Fisher is a no brainer… the team has said they want him back, Fisher wants to stay… I expect this one to wrap up fairly quickly with a minimum of drama and with a two-three year term.
Matt Cullen – Age 38 Last Salary - $4m 14/15 Stats – 7g/18a, +8, 1 GWG This is a player that I am sure the Predators would be open to bringing back… he was solid in 62 games this season, maybe not $4 million solid, but solid. Most indications are that Cullen is ready to hang ‘em up and return to his home in Minnesota and after 17 NHL seasons… he’s earned it. However with some of the young talent ready to make the next step, if Cullen wants to play one more, it’s a 50/50 shot to be in another market.
Mike Santorelli – Age 25 Last Salary - $1.5m 14/15 Stats – 12g/21a, 0, 2 GWG - With Preds Only 1g/3a, -7, 1GWG The 2004 Nashville 6th round draft pick was reacquired in the fateful February trade that also brought Cody Franson to the Preds. Santorelli’s speed certainly fit into the Predators system, but he struggled to finish his chances, scoring only once in the regular season and once in the playoffs… certainly not the performance Nashville was anticipating. With some of the prospects bubbling in Milwaukee and the signing of Steve Moses, I don’t see Santorelli returning to Music City.
Mike Ribeiro – Age 35 Last Salary – $1.05m 14/15 Stats – 15g/47a, +11, 3 GWG When Mike Ribeiro called the Predators last July, he had been bought out … not only bought out, but then publically thrown under the bus by his previous team. He had struggled with quite a few demons and was looking for a second chance. He got it in Nashville and made it count. Ribeiro will continue to be paid by Arizona for the next five years ($1.44m for the next two seasons, $1.9m for the next three) so it makes it a little easier for him to accept a smaller contact for the best fit. Ribeiro found a home in Nashville and I expect another contract to be worked out, again, perhaps in the 2-3 season range. That would take him to age 37-38 and most likely to his retirement.
Cody Franson – Age 27 Last Salary - $3.3m 14/15 Stats – 7g/29a, -7, 0 GWG – With Preds Only – 1g/3a, 0, 0 GWG This one just didn’t work, acquired with Mike Santorelli, Franson was expected to provide another weapon from the blueline. The righty / lefty theory put out there is a convenient excuse but the fact is, his lack of speed ended up being exposed, he never really stepped up when needs and he never seemed to fit, no matter where he was put. His lack of productivity drove down his minutes and the death spiral began. There is no way Franson returns to Nashville, which won’t upset many denizens of Pred Nation.
Anton Volchenkov – Age 33 Last Salary - $1m 14/15 Stats – 0g/7a, +4, 0 GWG Anton Volchenkov was brought in to be a vulcanized rubber magnet, a shot blocker, a role he played well but always seemed to be a bit murky. He was a good pairing with Seth Jones to start the season, but halfway through, you saw Victor Barley take the role, then when Franson was acquired… you rarely saw the Russian in the lineup. That being said, Volchenkov does fill a need on this team, depending on how much he wants to return will tell the tale and reports that his agent has had preliminary talks with Nashville gives you the first indicator.
The Preds have two UFA’s in the system, Kevin Henderson and Joe Piskula, I can see Piskula being asked to return.
So there’s some of the decision being made at 501 Broadway over the next month or so… A lot of these decisions hinge on the expectations of signings and prospects like Steve Moses, Kevin Fiala, Pontus Aberg, Viktor Arvidsson and Colton Sissions. Signing Volchenkov may depend on what the team sees coming up from Milwaukee, can Bitetto or Piskula fill the 7th D spot? Then you have to consider the target list Nashville has developed for what looks to be a fairly thin crop of free agents. But is there a gritty, miserable SOB out there that can provide the kind of spark needed for success in the playoffs?
Stay tuned my friends…
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Random Notes
- We’ve got a good SlapShot Radio tonight… we are checking in with San Jose Mercury News Sharks beat writer David Pollak to get an update on the Sharks coaching hunt. We talk with Fox Sports Midwest’s Andy Strickland on the re-signing of Ken Hitchcock in St. Louis and we are talking the director of a new documentary on the wacky times of the California Golden Seals, Mark Greczmiel. That’s all tonight at 7pm CDT on 102.5 the Game.
- OT: Can World Cup soccer get any more bizarre? News breaking this morning that nine FIFA officials, including the president of CONCACAF were arrested in Switzerland for rampant corruption… in other news, water is wet.
- Save the Date – Saturday June 20th… it’s a SlapShot Radio Field Trip! All the info you need is on a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/SlapShot-Radio/250363451666986">the SlapShot Radio Facebook page … come join us for a night of baseball and fun with your hockey family!
- Ken Hitchcock is back for another year in St. Louis. Pencil him in on the hot seat should the Blues stumble out of the gate.
- A hearty and ringing endorsement for Hitchcock came from the Blues captain David Backes… he is quoted by the St. Louis Dispatch as saying “I’ve got no issues with him.… Wow!
- A quick perusal of postings to several different hockey boards show a level of discontent with Team USA shootout hero TJ Oshie… nothing official, but interesting how that has built since mid season.
- Man… when the wheels come off… the wheels come off… the insanity levels of these conference finals just keeps going up. Five goals in the third last night for the Rangers? Yikes! Game seven Friday.
- Will we get a second Game Seven? Possibly… Ducks/Hawks tonight at the UC for game six.
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