TAMPA — The Lightning entrance workplace has made a follow in recent times of signing the staff’s high gamers to extensions the summer season earlier than they attain the ultimate 12 months of their contracts.
However proper to the day captain Steven Stamkos left the Lightning after 16 seasons, he was perplexed as to why common supervisor Julien BriseBois didn’t interact him in extension talks the summer season earlier than his stroll 12 months, setting the stage for an acrimonious cut up that ended with Stamkos signing Monday with the Predators.
“Definitely that was the most likely the beginning of it — the beginning of the writing on the wall,” Stamkos stated Monday throughout his first Nashville availability. “, I didn’t fairly perceive why, however I didn’t ask too many questions and simply went about it and performed onerous and didn’t let that have an effect on me.”
BriseBois supplied perception into his technique Monday, saying a precedent not too long ago had been set — significantly below the flat wage cap — for groups to make star gamers play out the ultimate 12 months of their third contracts earlier than discussing a fourth.
In holding their high gamers collectively and joyful, the Lightning have made a follow of signing them to club-friendly bridge offers of their second contract, then rewarding them with richer long-term offers of their third. Beginning the summer season earlier than Stamkos entered the ultimate 12 months of his second contract, the Lightning began to attempt to signal him to an extension. Then-GM Steve Yzerman made him a proposal, however the sides couldn’t agree on a deal and Stamkos didn’t signal a 3rd contract till two days earlier than free company opened.
The Lightning did the identical with Victor Hedman, Nikita Kucherov, Andrei Vasilevskiy and Brayden Level, finishing extensions on a 3rd contract the summer season earlier than the ultimate season of their second deal.
However as Stamkos approached his fourth contract, BriseBois stated the strategy was completely different.
“When you take a look at the final 5 years, give or take because the cap had sort of gotten flat, gamers that have been both positive first-ballot Corridor of Famers like Steven or gamers who’re going to get consideration for the Corridor of Fame that have been 34 years outdated or older that have been up for his or her fourth contract, I feel just one signed a deal a 12 months early, and that was (Kings ahead) Anze Kopitar,” BriseBois stated “The one different one which I discovered that signed earlier than his earlier contract had lapsed was (Capitals heart) Nicklas Backstrom, who signed in January proper earlier than the contract lapse.
“When you take a look at the others ones — Patrice Bergeron, Alex Ovechkin, Evgeni Malkin, Kristopher Letang, Joe Pavelski, Claude Giroux — a few of them stayed with their groups and signed extensions, but it surely was after the contract elapsed. Some like Steven ended up signing someplace else. So, the exception is Anze Kopitar. … I feel it’s the circumstances which is completely different. The cap has been flat for a very long time, and money base will get allotted to youthful gamers.”
Tuesday, BriseBois bucked that pattern with Hedman, signing him to a four-year extension for his fourth contract a 12 months earlier than his present one expires.
Maybe a few of it’s timing.
The cap went up $4.5 million for subsequent season and is projected to leap one other $4 million the next 12 months. Hedman, 33, is coming off a powerful season. His 63 assists and 76 factors have been the second-most of his profession, and his plus-18 ranking final season was a sign he nonetheless performs a powerful two-way recreation. Plus, high defensemen are harder to exchange than scorers, particularly ones with measurement and skating skill.
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