Note: big ups to Cap Geek, which is where I pulled this list from. Only looked at UFA forwards, assuming we aren’t in the market for more defencemen or goalies.
This year’s UFA period is set to be boringly terrific. Teams like the Rangers and Leafs will launch into their fortieth straight years of a plan to spend their way into contention though it only works .002% of the time; Florida will try to find at least ten new players who would like to play for a team about to set a record for most years out of the playoffs; and Ottawa will not to sign an aging Russian…or will they! Ottawa has $16M in cap space and there’s almost nothing else to write about in Sens news, so here we goooooooooo!
| Player | Pos | Team | Age | Cap Hit | Should we git im? |
| Richards, Brad » | F | DAL | 31 | $7,800,000 | Dream on. The guy is going to go to the Rangers, who will buy out Drury and bury Gaborik in the minors to make it happen, and then he’ll be traded, bought out or buried three years from now when it’s his deal that prevents New York from signing, oh I don’t know…Stamkos or something. Either that, or the Leafs will throw a billion dollars at this guy to play with Kessel. Or Florida will spend literally all of their $40M in cap space on him.He’s an appealing player, a verifiable no. 1 center, but Ottawa is getting away from high-priced UFAs, and they already have an expensive center in Spezza. It would be awesome to see him in a Sens uniform, but it ain’t happenin’. |
| Gagne, Simon » | F | TBL | 31 | $5,250,000 | For a guy who’s gonna have to take a huge pay cut because of being an injury risk, he’ll probably want to do it for a contender. If Ottawa is willing to pay out some more in years or cash, he might consider sitting in the press box with Milan Michalek for a few years and comparing leg casts. Ottawa should probably stay away from cursed players, though. It will take all summer to exorcise the ghost of Pascal Leclaire. |
| Kovalev, Alexei » | F | PIT | 38 | $5,000,000 | The Sens should sign this guy to a 2 year, $10M deal so that they can trade him for a conditional 7th rounder at a future deadline. It’s called ‘resource management.’ |
| Nylander, Michael » | F | WAS | 38 | $4,875,000 | Michael Nylander should start his own lawn care company. |
| Selanne, Teemu » | F | ANA | 40 | $4,500,000 | Will re-sign with the Ducks or retire. Should sign with Washington, but he won’t. |
| Arnott, Jason » | F | WAS | 36 | $4,500,000 | Ottawa should take a serious look at Arnott, while managing expectations. He’s good for 15 goals and 40 points, but would be an ideal replacement for Mike Fisher. Hard-nosed, two way player and a leader. His price could easily get out of hand, and he probably wants years at his age, but worth monitoring the situation. Every time he scores they should play “What a Man.” |
| Connolly, Tim » | F | BUF | 30 | $4,500,000 | I hate all players who play in or once played in Buffalo, including those who then went on to play for Ottawa. Conolly is pretty good though – young, productive, and not terribly expensive (relatively speaking). I feel like some desperate team will offer him too much, but Ottawa should monitor the bidding. |
| Ryder, Michael » | F | BOS | 31 | $4,000,000 | A depth scorer who will probably re-sign in Boston at a reduced salary, Ottawa might want to throw him a lowball offer and see if he bites. |
| Handzus, Michal » | F | LAK | 34 | $4,000,000 | See Ryder, Michael. A top six forward, but hardly one to put the team on his back. Terrible hair. |
| Sullivan, Steve » | F | NAS | 36 | $3,750,000 | Stevie Sullivan is a godlike player who is beloved everywhere he goes, and Ottawa would be lucky to have him. Much like Arnott, he won’t put up huge numbers, but you have to pay for that kind of character. Is Nashville doesn’t re-sign him, Murray should snipe the dude. |
| Stillman, Cory » | F | CAR | 37 | $3,533,333 | Likely too expensive and old at this point to be the kind of player Ottawa wants, though he is a veteran, and reportedly liked his time in Ottawa. Maybe he offers them a discount? |
| Sturm, Marco » | F | WAS | 33 | $3,500,000 | Sturm is a bit of a curious case. Rampant injuries these past few years resulted in Boston giving him to Washington for literally nothing, and he pressed there without getting much results. A reclamation project, not unlike Marek Svatos, he’s young enough to warrant a look, though like Gagner, if he has to take a cut, why would he do it for a rebuild? |
| Ponikarovsky, Alexei » | F | LAK | 31 | $3,200,000 | Another player whose production fell off a cliff, even on a talented team like LA. He’s big, and has shown stretches of dominance, but has been all but invisible for months. Wouldn’t be surprised to see him try out the KHL next year. |
| Frolov, Alexander » | F | NYR | 28 | $3,000,000 | Another strong KHL candidate, Frolov made a stink out of not being offered much money last offseason, and he sucked in New York. UPDATE: And, he’s signed to the KHL. I’m pretty good. |
| Vrbata, Radim » | F | PHO | 29 | $3,000,000 | An interesting player, who’s flourished under Tippet in Phoenix. At only 29, he’s definitely worth a look, though the thought has been that conditions have to be ideal for him to play well. Somehow those conditions were with the Coyotes. |
| Hejduk, Milan » | F | COL | 35 | $3,000,000 | Hard to imagine him signing anywhere by Colorado, but also hard to understand why Colorado would want him back after this disastrous year. He’s been surprisingly productive at times. How would he look playing on Ottawa’s 2nd line? UPDATE: he just re-signed in Colorado for one year. |
| Cole, Erik » | F | CAR | 32 | $2,900,000 | Another amazing player limited by injuries, Cole is like a less talented but grittier Simon Gagner. Ottawa should definitely take a look, especially if he can be had for a similar salary. CAUTION: he might instantly die. |
| Langenbrunner, Jamie » | F | DAL | 35 | $2,800,000 | Another player in the Arnott / Sullivan mould, Langenbrunner seems like exactly the type that Ottawa should be targeting. He brings leadership and experience, and won’t be too expensive. A horrible year in New Jersey might bring his price tag down some more. |
| Clark, Chris » | F | CLB | 35 | $2,633,333 | I have no idea who this is. |
| Fleischmann, Tomas » | F | COL | 26 | $2,600,000 | Fleischmann will have no shortage of suitors. He’s young, productive, and plays the game tough and well. With Washington laying another playoff egg, I’d expect they might let him walk as part of an overhaul, and if they do, Ottawa should be part of the bidding. Even if he doubles his salary, he’s worth a close look. NOTE: Fleischmann is in Colorado, stupid. |
| Samsonov, Sergei » | F | FLA | 32 | $2,533,333 | I can’t believe Samsonov is only 32. I feel like I’ve been reading about him for fifty years. He should have gone to the KHL a couple of seasons ago. |
| Prospal, Vaclav » | F | NYR | 36 | $2,480,000 | Will become part-owner / 1st liner of a KHL team, like an alternate reality Mario Lemieux. |
| White, Todd » | F | NYR | 35 | $2,375,000 | Wouldn’t it be kind of cool to bring Toddy back? Naw, not really. |
| Miettinen, Antti » | F | MIN | 30 | $2,333,333 | Another solid contributor who Ottawa might be able to take off the market because the Wild must be getting sick of spending to the cap every year and never getting anywhere. Has played extremely well at times with the Wild’s best players; how would he do playing with Spezza? |
| Brunette, Andrew » | F | MIN | 37 | $2,333,333 | No way. Expensive and old. Had a terrible year last year. |
| Kobasew, Chuck » | F | MIN | 29 | $2,333,333 | Sort of faded from the public consciousness, as most players who end up in Minnesota do, but he’s gritty. May be best suited as a 3rd liner, which means Ottawa should pass. |
| Upshall, Scottie » | F | CLB | 27 | $2,250,000 | Young, energetic, and a leader, I can never understand why Philly traded him for that psycho Carcillo, or why the Coyotes traded him after he became such a big part of their team. He isn’t living up to his status as a 6th overall pick (Ottawa, take note of players once picked 6th overall…), but I would love if Ottawa brought him in. Of all of the players I hope come to Ottawa in the off season, Upshall is probably my no. 1. |
| Laich, Brooks » | F | WAS | 27 | $2,066,667 | The second half of Washington’s dual pending UFAs, Laich is also a great depth player who the Caps might trim in an effort to overhaul a disappointing would-be contender. He’ll probably be the subject of some intense bidding, but Ottawa should look at bringing him back and then re-sign Bondra out of retirement so we can HAVE IT ALL. |
| Zherdev, Nikolai » | F | PHI | 26 | $2,000,000 | This has got New York Rangers written all over it. Watch him make $5M or something ridiculous. |
| Forsberg, Peter » | F | COL | 37 | $2,000,000 | As well all know, Peter Forsberg died in a mining accident, where to this day he haunts the workers still. If you listen carefully, you can still hear him whispering “comeback.” |
|
Things start to get ugly… |
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| Moreau, Ethan » | F | CLB | 35 | $2,000,000 | 3rd liner. Of which we have plenty. |
| Recchi, Mark » | F | BOS | 43 | $1,950,000 | Kind of awesome. Was sent back in time to save the declaration of independence from aliens. |
| Modano, Mike » | F | DET | 40 | $1,750,000 | Scratched from the line up of the team who chased him all off season. He’s done. |
| Dvorak, Radek » | F | ATL | 34 | $1,700,000 | Bwa-ha-haaaaa |
| Larose, Chad » | F | CAR | 29 | $1,700,000 | Actually…pretty productive in Carolina. Cheap and young. I still sort of hate him though. |
| Tanguay, Alex » | F | CGY | 31 | $1,700,000 | Every year he finds another sweetheart, and no doubt he will again. Lord hopes it’s not in Ottawa, unless he’s willing to sign for another lowball contract. |
| Jokinen, Jussi » | F | CAR | 28 | $1,700,000 | See Larose, Chad. A good player on a bad team masks his potential not-so-goodness, but at less than Chris Neil’s salary? Worth a look. |
| Higgins, Chris » | F | VAN | 27 | $1,600,000 | I think hope is fading for this guy to be a top six player, and he’s not gritty enough to be a checking line player. Maybe Ottawa should sign him so they can throw him into a package for a better player at some point. |
| Draper, Kris » | F | DET | 39 | $1,583,333 | See Recchi, Mark. |
| Ward, Joel » | F | NAS | 30 | $1,500,000 | Whatta guy. Will probably re-sign in Nashville after his heroics in the playoffs this year, unless some idiot GM (Sather) decides to throw a bag of cash at him. |
| Grier, Mike » | F | BUF | 36 | $1,500,000 | On to his fifteenth team in only two seasons. (Not true.) |
| Dupuis, Pascal » | F | PIT | 32 | $1,400,000 | Still can’t believe 1) he’s that young, and 2) he’s been so productive in the Pitts. He’ll re-sign there, I bet. Don’t be cheap, Shero, give that guy an extra half-mill at least. |
| Ruutu, Jarkko » | F | ANA | 35 | $1,300,000 | We gotta move forward, not back. |
| Madden, John » | F | MIN | 38 | $1,250,000 | This guy was once scary. He is no longer. |
| Niedermayer, Rob » | F | BUF | 36 | $1,250,000 | See Grier, Mike. |
| Modin, Fredrik » | F | CGY | 36 | $1,200,000 | I have a soft spot for Modin, but his effectiveness is down to nothing at this point. |
| Prucha, Petr » | F | PHO | 28 | $1,200,000 | Holy shit, he’s only 28! I always thought of this guy as the same sort of player as, uh, Modin or something. Like Vrbata, he’s had some luck in the desert, and might be worth a look at that price. |
| Kopecky, Tomas » | F | CHI | 29 | $1,200,000 | Checking third liner, which we have enough of. |
| Glencross, Curtis » | F | CGY | 28 | $1,200,000 | Calgary sucks. |
| Reasoner, Marty » | F | FLA | 34 | $1,150,000 | Calgary does not suck as much as Florida. |
| Weight, Doug » | F | NYI | 40 | $1,150,000 | Retiring, thank Christ. |
| Marchant, Todd » | F | ANA | 37 | $1,125,000 | Old and ridin’ dirty. |
| Fiddler, Vernon » | F | PHO | 31 | $1,100,000 | What a motley cast in Phoenix. |
| Talbot, Maxime » | F | PIT | 27 | $1,050,000 | What a shit disturber. |
| Torres, Raffi » | F | VAN | 29 | $1,000,000 | Lord, I hope not. Probably signs in Ottawa for $3M or some shit. |
| Rissmiller, Patrick » | F | FLA | 32 | $1,000,000 | There’s going to be a lot of these types of guys available from here on out – maybe some glory days here and there, maybe some nostalgia to keep us warm at night, but I’m mostly gonna start cutting corners. These are the types of players you don’t sign because we already have Greenings and Condras in the system. |
| Bradley, Matt » | F | WAS | 32 | $1,000,000 | |
| Fedotenko, Ruslan » | F | NYR | 32 | $1,000,000 | |
| Voros, Aaron » | F | TOR | 29 | $1,000,000 | |
| Jones, Ryan » | F | EDM | 26 | $975,000 | |
| Eager, Ben » | F | SAN | 27 | $965,000 | I would sign this guy in a heartbeat. Heart-and-soul player, and a real pain in the ass. He’ll get a raise fer sure. |
| Picard, Alexandre » | F | PHO | 25 | $868,219 | Not the one we traded for and then traded away. (I think.) |
| Rupp, Michael » | F | PIT | 31 | $825,000 | See the cutting of corners. |
| Sutherby, Brian » | F | DAL | 29 | $812,500 | |
| Leino, Ville » | F | PHI | 27 | $800,000 | Played well in Philly, I bet he stays there. Or Sather comes in and blasts him in the face with money. |
| Gordon, Boyd » | F | WAS | 27 | $800,000 | See the cutting of corners. |
| Svatos, Marek » | F | OTT | 28 | $800,000 | I think Ottawa’s had a hard-on for this guy for years. They were always linked to him in trade rumours, and he’s so young and cheap it’s hard not to say “Sure, Gomer, where’s the beef?” and just give him another year. People who think this way should remember that he scored negative 5 goals in Ottawa. |
| Goc, Marcel » | F | NAS | 27 | $775,000 | See the cutting of corners. |
| Hordichuk, Darcy » | F | FLA | 30 | $775,000 | |
| Nichol, Scott » | F | SAN | 36 | $760,000 | |
| Godard, Eric » | F | PIT | 31 | $750,000 | |
| Sjostrom, Fredrik » | F | TOR | 28 | $750,000 | |
| Eaves, Patrick » | F | DET | 27 | $750,000 | Wouldn’t that be funny! We could start expecting him to be a top 6 player again and then, when disappointed, trade him at the deadline. |
| Belanger, Eric » | F | PHO | 33 | $750,000 | See the cutting of corners. |
| Morrison, Brendan » | F | CGY | 35 | $725,000 | |
| Asham, Arron » | F | PIT | 33 | $700,000 | |
| Winchester, Brad » | F | ANA | 30 | $700,000 | |
| Bergenheim, Sean » | F | TBL | 27 | $700,000 | See Ward, Joel, and the impending pay day from short-sighted GMs. Good for him. |
| Andersson, Jonas » | F | VAN | 30 | $675,000 | See the cutting of corners. |
| Boulton, Eric » | F | ATL | 34 | $650,000 | |
| Wellwood, Kyle » | F | SAN | 27 | $650,000 | I don’t want to live in a world where Wellwood wins a Stanley Cup. |
| Miller, Drew » | F | DET | 27 | $650,000 | Who are all of these people? |
| Murray, Andrew » | F | CLB | 29 | $625,000 | |
| Glass, Tanner » | F | VAN | 27 | $625,000 | |
| Carter, Ryan » | F | FLA | 27 | $625,000 | |
| Shannon, Ryan » | F | OTT | 28 | $625,000 | Sure, he’s earned himself another payday – maybe even one at slightly more than league minimum. Murray, re-sign the little ragamuffin! |
| Ellis, Matt » | F | BUF | 29 | $625,000 | Who? |
| LoVecchio, Jeff » | F | FLA | 25 | $605,000 | What? |
| Lundmark, Jamie » | F | NAS | 30 | $600,000 | Where? |
| Halpern, Jeff » | F | MTL | 35 | $600,000 | Ugh? |
| Parrish, Mark » | F | BUF | 34 | $600,000 | Guh? |
| Cullen, Mark » | F | FLA | 32 | $600,000 | Bah? |
| Hall, Adam » | F | TBL | 30 | $600,000 | Tah? |
| Konopka, Zenon » | F | NYI | 30 | $600,000 | This guy is fucking badass. I always pick him up in my pool for the penalty minutes. I don’t really feel the need for enforcers, but if we need one I’d get this guy. |
That’s basically where I gave up, because from here on out it’s like the Island of Lost Toys, and I expect most of these players will find themselves leading the Atomic Barracuda Barrels of the Germanic Series in secondary assists.
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