Training camp is calling.
Many NHLers have already returned to their hockey homeland.
And yet (almost) two handfuls of restricted free agents are twisting in the wind.
The last of the unsigned have a lot in common.
Nobody celebrated their 24th birthday. No one had arbitration rights. All are entitled to sign an offer sheet, which is essentially their only leverage not to report for camp or threaten to accept their services abroad.
Here’s where things stand with the remaining RFAs of 2022.
Let’s play hardball.
1.Jason Robertson
Age: 23
Position: Left Wing / Right Wing
Salary cap reached in 2021-22: $795,000
What is the problem? A key reason Jim Nill has decided against re-signing defenseman John Klingberg is that the Dallas Stars GM is looking to invest more of his limited youth spot.
Starting goaltender Jake Oettinger was bridged on September 1 to a three-year, $12 million contract that turned all eyes on Robertson.
The 2021 Calder Trophy runner-up was a godsend as he established himself as a top-line threat and caught up to weakness in aging leaders Tyler Seguin and Jamie Benn.
Nill faces a compelling question: Are you trying to lock away so much of Robertson’s prime now in hopes he’ll look like a steal later on, like he did with a young Klingberg and 2021 RFA Miro Heiskanen? Or go with a bridge deal and risk giving Robertson increased leverage later?
With injured goaltender Anton Khudobin buried on LTIR, Nill has about $7 million here to work with.
“These RFA deals will often sit and wait, that’s the nature of things,” Stars owner Tom Gaglardi said on the Cam & Knit Podcast. “We have the cap space sitting and waiting for these guys. So no, we’re not worried about that.
“These talks are happening. I can’t tell you a deal is imminent.”
Gaglardi seems to love the player but hate the trend.
“A kid in the third year of their starter deal scores 40 goals and now wants to make $7 million,” Gaglardi said. “If you want to work with this player, he will take you higher. … The stars take all the money and the guys in the middle get squeezed.”
I wonder what Gaglardi thinks of the extensions by Tage Thompson and Tim Stützle.
2. Sean Durzi
Age: 23
Position: defense
Salary cap reached in 2021-22: $809,166
What is the problem? A wonderful return play from trading with Jake Muzzin, Durzi made noise as a rookie staffer for the Los Angeles Kings in 2021-22.
With three goals and 24 assists in 64 games for the playoff team, the Mississauga, Ontario native proved that patient AHL development can pay off.
Durzi’s playmaking spurred the Kings’ power play, especially when Drew Doughty went down injured and the right shot averaging 19:35 ice time made the most of his NHL opportunity.
GM Rob Blake moves in silence but is reportedly engaged in discussions with Durzi’s agent. The deal remains in the works.
3. Alex Formenton
Age: 22
Position: Left wing
Salary cap reached in 2021-22: $747,500
What is the problem? Formenton started the summer after a breakout-platforming campaign in which he broke out with 18 goals and 32 points and proved he can contribute further down the roster as a first-time full-time NHLer.
However, the two-way game of the attacking winger is still in need of improvement.
Ottawa Senators GM Pierre Dorion – one of the undisputed stars of the offseason – has the option to sign Formenton on a longer contract if he so desires, but the executive is said to still be looking for more help on the blue line.
During a radio appearance with TSN 1200 on August 26, Dorion said he was in positive talks with Formenton’s agent and expected the forward to be signed before the camp opens later this month.
4.Barrett Hayton
Age: 22
Position: center / left wing
Salary cap reached in 2021-22: $894,167
What is the problem? Unlike most franchises with players on the unsigned list, the Arizona Coyotes have room for the cap.
GM Bill Armstrong can’t help but cry when negotiating with the fifth overall winner of 2018 and with young talent being essential to get things moving in the desert this should be a no-brainer.
“I don’t think the sides are far apart. Should be done before camp,” longtime Coyotes insider Craig Morgan tweeted.
Hayton has been slow to commit to a top-five pick, but is trending in the right direction, posting career highs in games played (60), goals (10) and assists (14) last season.
We would suggest a bridge because we believe Hayton has more to prove. But the Coyotes have a track record of putting terms on guys in their early 20s (Clayton Keller, Nick Schmaltz, Lawson Crouse, Jakob Chychrun) in hopes those deals will look like bargains later on.
5. Mikey Anderson
Age: 23
Position: defense
Salary cap reached in 2021-22: $925,000
What is the problem? LA’s Blake has held talks with Anderson’s camp and the sides have “exchanged various proposals,” according to Kings insider John Hoven.
The Kings have about $4 million to put both Anderson and Durzi on the ice. For a franchise looking to build the 2021-22 turnaround, keeping a few promising young defenders in the herd is crucial.
Fun fact: Of all the remaining RFAs, Anderson is the only one to average more than 20 minutes of ice time in 2021-22. He doesn’t impress offensively (eight points in 57 games), but Anderson is delivering positive underlying metrics and has made a significant move to improve his back-end physicality.
6. Rasmus Sandin
Age: 22
Position: defense
Salary cap reached in 2021-22: $894,167
What is the problem? “Negotiations are going nowhere,” Lewis Gross, Sandin’s agent, told us on Aug. 17.
Why the standstill?
“I can not answer that. You know I don’t usually say much (in public) anyway. But they’re not going anywhere right now.”
Gross declined to delve into the details of the Maple Leafs’ final unsigned RFA.
“Negotiating contracts through the media is detrimental to the player’s (and team’s) reputation and traditionally fails to resolve private matters,” wrote Maple Leafs GM Kyle Dubas when briefed on Gross’s comments.
Several factors — money, tenure, and Sandin’s role in a crowded Defense Corps — are at play.
With the training camp only due to open in a few weeks, Gross said it was too early to discuss whether Sandin would attend without a contract.
Sandin is believed to have been offered a deal similar to Timothy Liljegren’s two-year, $2.8 million bridge deal.
With so many veteran left-footed defenders under contract – Morgan Rielly, Jake Muzzin, TJ Brodie (who plays at right) and Mark Giordano – it’s unclear where Sandin fits right away in a lineup he didn’t crack in the postseason after that rehabilitation of a knee injury.
“They’re big parts of our future,” Dubas said at the draft, throwing Liljegren in a response to Sandin’s trial. “You are significantly younger than the other full-time members of our Defense Corps. And we need them to keep taking steps.
“In the case of Rasmus, one of the main areas of focus is getting him set up to stay healthy year-round and giving him the right resources to arm him for that.”
7. Nicolas Haag
Age: 23
Position: defense
Salary cap reached in 2021-22: $791,667
What is the problem? Hague has 42 points and 142 games of NHL experience over the past three seasons in Vegas, establishing himself as one of the league’s most important players.
In late August, GM Kelly McCrimmon stated that signing Hague was his top priority before camp, although Ben Hutton will be ready to handle Hague’s shifts if the 23-year-old steps in.
Goalie Robin Lehner’s move to long-term injury reserve should give McCrimmon the leeway to bridge The Hague.
However, longer-term, McCrimmon walked out of their ELCs with young D-men Brayden McNabb, age four, and Zach Whitecloud, age six, and secured each of their services for less than $2.9 AAV.
8.Ryan McLeod
Age: 22
Position: center
Salary cap reached in 2021-22: $834,167
What is the problem? The worry of signing a McLeod in Edmonton is reportedly minimal.
“He will be. In fact, he may already have a deal in principle and the Oilers are just waiting for the move that creates the necessary cap space for his deal,” said Kurt Leavins of the Edmonton Journal wrote on September 3rd. “Don’t be surprised if he ends up in the $800,000 range at a year.”
Even more reason not to worry: McLeod has already joined the boys for informal team practices in Alberta.
With costly Ken Holland firmly entrenched at the cap after UFAs Jack Campbell, Evander Kane, Brett Kulak and Ryan Murray, there have been whispers of a squad player like Warren Foegele, Jesse Puljujarvi or Tyson Barrie being potential trade contenders to top the cap space to reduce .
9. Adam Ruzicka
Age: 23
Position: center / right wing
Salary cap reached in 2021-22: $801,666
What is the problem? Here’s a question: At this point in his career, do the Calgary Flames consider Ruzicka a full-time NHLer? Or does Brad Treliving see the forward as a “tweener” who only deserves a two-way contract?
If it’s the latter, Calgary could consider signing a more established UFA vet (Evan Rodrigues?) to a short-term contract or PTO, giving Ruzicka a handicap to hurdle for a sport in the bottom six.
The tall, six-foot-tall, 220-pound Slovakian ran more for Calgary (28 games) than the AHL Heat (16 games) last season, recording a respectable five goals, five assists and a plus-eight rating.
Nobody believes that Ruzicka has reached his maximum limit.
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