vendredi 5 juillet 2013

NHL free agency promises more free spending



Source : Cbc.ca



As NHL teams rush to reach deals with potential free agents (even as others scramble to reduce payrolls to the $64.3-million US salary cap for the 2013-14 season) the money that has been spent in the last month has been mind-boggling. 

From the time Patrick Bordeleau inked his three-year, $3-million extension with the Colorado Avalanche back on June 6, up until Jordan Leopold's two-year, $4.5-million extension with the St. Louis Blues on Wednesday, there have been a whopping 21 players signed to 58 years and $172.65 million worth of contracts.

Thirteen more players, to a tune of 70 years and $106.02 million, have been given their freedom with compliance buyouts.

Will this free spending continue when the free-agent signing period begins at noon ET on Friday? Why not? Who would not want to add players like Danny Briere, David Clarkson, Nathan Horton and Jarome Iginila, to name a few.

We'll publish a full list of free agents once it's released on Friday, but for now here are our 10 most intriguing unrestricted free agents:
  1. Jarome Iginla -- He's 36, but durable, and although his production has dipped slightly, only Alex Ovechkin (371) and Ilya Kovalchuk (309) have scored more goals than Iginla's 280 since the 2004-05 cancelled season.
  2. Danny Briere -- He's looking to stay in the East. He's 35 years old and his production has dipped to 22 goals over the last two seasons, compared to 60 in the two seasons before that. But he always has been a big playoff performer.
  3. Ilya Bryzgalov -- Will anybody be willing to take a risk on this strange soul? His two-season stint in Philadelphia was a disaster, but he's only two years removed from his best days in Phoenix and only 33 years old.
  4. Andrew Ference -- At age 34, he has played the best hockey of his career in the past two seasons. Not big, but he does play physical. He is a top-four defender who can help out on the power play and penalty kill.
  5. Valtterri Filppula -- The 29-year-old Finn is two years removed from his most productive season of 23 goals and 66 points. Can he flourish on another team after playing behind Pavel Datsyuk and Henrik Zetterberg in Detroit? 
  6. David Clarkson -- Since his junior coach Peter DeBoer arrived in New Jersey, the 29-year-old forward has scored 45 goals in 128 games. He's a power forward who goes to the net, certainly a desirable commodity in today's game.
  7. Stephen Weiss -- It's hard to believe the Toronto native already is 30 years old. He was limited to 17 games last season because of wrist surgery. He has only seven games of playoff experience after nine seasons in Florida. 
  8. Nathan Horton -- At 28, Horton has scored 20 or more goals in six of his nine NHL seasons. He wants a quieter hockey market to continue his career after two trips to the Stanley Cup final with Boston in the past three years.
  9. Daniel Alfredsson -- With the news on Wednesday that the Bruins have contacted the long-time Senators captain, it will be interesting to see what transpires with the 40-year-old Swede. He won't leave Ottawa, will he?
  10. Manny Malhotra -- After being shelved in Vancouver by general manager Mike Gillis, the hard-working 33-year-old forward wants to continue his career. He's good in the faceoff circle and a solid penalty killer.
Team
Payroll
Cap Space
Roster Size
Philadelphia
$67,578,522
-$318,522
24
Minnesota
$65,598,868
$2,451,132
21
San Jose
$62,331,667
$2,643,333
20
Pittsburgh
$60,173,333
$4,126,667
19
Boston
$60,733,810
$5,153,690
19
Carolina
$57,912,500
$6,397,500
17
Los Angeles
$57,796,894
$6,638,106
17
Anaheim
$57,779,167
$7,490,833
20
Vancouver
$56,802,778
$7,497,222
16
Columbus
$60,833,809
$7,991,191
21
Washington
$55,834,295
$8,465,705
19
Tampa Bay
$55,765,477
$8,534,523
19
Montreal
$57,973,333
$9,024,167
20
Chicago
$55,109,295
$9,545,705
18
Detroit
$54,602,879
$10,707,121
20
Nashville
$54,411,310
$11,248,690
20
Colorado
$55,658,333
$11,351,667
22
Buffalo
$51,449,524
$13,700,476
19
Dallas
$51,052,777
$13,857,223
19
NY Rangers
$50,906,667
$14,155,833
17
Edmonton
$54,186,667
$14,935,833
17
St. Louis
$49,907,500
$15,825,000
20
New Jersey
$47,337,500
$16,962,500
19
Florida
$52,052,875
$17,069,625
20
Calgary
$47,874,583
$17,421,667
19
Phoenix
$45,941,667
$18,358,333
14
Toronto
$45,579,167
$19,020,833
13
Ottawa
$43,500,833
$22,074,167
19
Winnipeg
$41,607,500
$23,917,500
14
NY Islanders
$32,337,333
$32,812,667
15

Aucun commentaire:

Publier un commentaire