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Copp arbitration hearing draws near & a rumor.

July 19, 2019, 5:34 PM ET [16 Comments]
Peter Tessier
Winnipeg Jets Blogger •Winnipeg Jets Writer • RSSArchiveCONTACT
Andrew Copp and the Winnipeg Jets will have an arbitration hearing on Sunday unless a deal can be reached but it appears the two sides are apart, and by a considerable margin. Elliote Friedman reported today that the Jets have asked for a 2 year deal at 1.5 million per year while Copp via his representation, old Jets favourite Kurt Overhardt, have asked for 1 year at 2.9 million.

To think Andrew Copp is only worth a 500k raise is silly and if that's as far as the Jets have gone in negotiations then perhaps they expect to pay around 2 million per year via arbitration as that would be the mid-point. So why not pay him that now at 3 years?

The first thing to know is the Jets can take a 1 or 2 year deal as it was the player who chose the arbitration route. Copp just turned 25 on July 8th and he would be a UFA at the end of this deal by my estimation so is there risk in not going longer and securing him?

By some estimations Copp could be the 2C this season should Maurice choose to split lines up and have Copp between Ehlers and Laine while dropping Little to play with Lowry and Roslovic or whatever combinations exist with the 3rd and 4th lines.

Consider the RAPM chart from Evolving-hockey.com

Screen Shot 2019-07-19 at 4.24.00 PM

Little is barely holding water and Copp is driving play in comparison so it's his chance to get paid and he should, even 2.9 is not a lot to ask when you'd consider the 7 million dollar man who the Jets traded for to fix the 2nd line chemistry problems.

Screen Shot 2019-07-19 at 4.27.09 PM

So yeah, Copp does good things and he's probably a product of playing with guys who he gelled with but isn't that the idea? Now he gets his turn to get paid and if finding a way to pay him 2.5-2.9M AAV for 3-4 years is too difficult then some other questions have to be asked- like why??


Ideally I'd like to see a 4 year deal around 2.8 AAV and let's see what he can do but that all depends on how the team sees Andrew Copp as a player and where his usage will be. *Glances over a Paul Maurice*


In other news, a few folks who have provided some information in the past have suggested that the Jets have been looking to make a deal or have the option to make a deal but are waiting on the final awards to decide if or how they can do it. That's intriguing especially given the blue line. It's also intriguing because should an arbitration award happen with Winnipeg and Andrew Copp the player cannot be traded.

As it stands there's some interest going into this weekend. Thankfully I'll be driving 13 hours tomorrow and camping in the wilderness, keep me posted okay?
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