NHL FREE AGENCY ROUNDUP: Ryan O'Reilly spurns the Maple Leafs, Matt Duchene joins Dallas
The typically chaotic start to NHL free agency seemed not as crazy as it has in the past - as a miniscule cap increase led to many teams offering smaller contracts to players.
Take 2019 for example - where five players signed contracts with new teams for a total price tag of $30million or more.
Cut to this season - in which the salary cap only increased by $1m. As a result, there was not a single player who signed with a new team for more than $30m. The closest was defenseman Ryan Graves, who inked a six-year, $27m deal to join the Pittsburgh Penguins.
It was that cap inflexibility that resulted in great players signing less lucrative deals for shorter term as teams became averse to locking themselves into immovable contracts.
But still, there were plenty of big names that made some surprise moves and some teams decided to reach for players to boost their short-term potential. Here, Mail Sport looks at a few of the more significant deals.
Ryan O'Reilly to the Nashville Predators for four-years, $18m ($4.5m AAV)
A Nashville team that missed the playoffs now seems to be gearing up for a postseason push after some top moves they made on the first day in free agency.
Not only did they sign middle-six depth in Gustav Nyquist and a strong defenseman in Luke Schenn, but their gamble at the top center spot paid off.
Earlier in the week, the Preds bought out the contract of Matt Duchene in the hopes they could get a first-line center under a less-expensive contract.
They got just that in former Toronto Maple Leafs forward Ryan O'Reilly. The 32-year-old is actually a perfect example of the impact of the cap's miniscule increase.
Back in July of 2015, O'Reilly inked a seven-year, $52.5m deal with the Buffalo Sabres. Between then and now, he was traded to St. Louis where he won the Stanley Cup and the Conn Smythe as playoff MVP. He also grabbed the Selke Trophy as the best defensive forward and earned three All-Star Game appearances.
Even with all those accolades to his disposal, he still signed a contract to earn only $18m over the next four years - where he'll be 36-years-old when it expires.
Under normal circumstances, it's likely O'Reilly would have gotten a much richer deal. Instead, he's off to a Nashville team looking to get back into the playoff picture.
Joonas Korpisalo to the Ottawa Senators for five-years, $20m ($4m AAV)
When the Senators last splashed the cash for a goaltender, they gave Matt Murray a four-year, $25m contract extension during the pandemic-altered 2020 free agency window.
Murray ended up getting traded to the Maple Leafs and is currently a backup to Ilya Samsonov.
Ottawa must be hoping that the same thing doesn't happen for Joonas Korpisalo, who spent parts of the last season with the Los Angeles Kings and the Columbus Blue Jackets before signing with the Senators on Saturday.
Korpisalo will not have much competition for the spot in Ottawa as he had in Los Angeles - with Anton Forsberg and Mads Sogaard backing him up.
Whether or not the addition of Korpisalo is enough to finally bring the Senators back to the playoffs for the first time since 2017 remains to be seen.
Dmitry Orlov to the Carolina Hurricanes for two-years, $15.5m ($7.75m AAV)
Boston's gamble did not pay off for them - and now the Carolina Hurricanes can take advantage of that.
After the Bruins couldn't move enough players to keep Orlov in Beantown, Carolina was able to pick up the Russian defenseman for a $7.75m cap hit - the highest of any new signing so far.
It was one of three big moves the 'Canes made on Saturday. In addition to Orlov, they brought back goaltender Frederick Andersen on a deal that will only cost them $3.4m in cap space. It's a questionable move, especially considering Andersen put up one of the worst save percentages of his entire career last season.
Finally, Carolina brought in Michael Bunting - a solid third-liner who had two great seasons in Toronto. He's known to both draw penalties from opposition and take penalties as well - which may lead to issues in closer games (as seen in the playoffs).
Matt Duchene to the Dallas Stars for one-year, $3m
After getting bought out in Nashville, Matt Duchene took something of an upgrade by betting on himself and moving to Dallas.
The Stars made it all the way to the Western Conference Finals but they fell in six games to the eventual champions - the Vegas Golden Knights.
With Duchene, they'll add scoring (22 goals, 56 points) to an aging group of players that can all take care of the puck.
The only question remaining is if the Stars can finally go over the top and reach the Stanley Cup Finals - and if Duchene is enough to get them there.
Ryan Graves to the Pittsburgh Penguins for six-years, $27m ($4.5m AAV)
Pittsburgh signed a LOT of pieces at the deadline - agreeing to contracts with six players (one renewal) worth a combined $68.08m.
They brought back goalie Tristan Jarry on a 5x$5.38m deal and signed Detroit castaway Alex Nedeljkovic to back him up.
Additionally, third-line caliber center Lars Eller joined for just less than $5m in total while depth forwards Noel Acciari and Matt Nieto joined the fold.
Then, new general manager Kyle Dubas swung for the fences with Ryan Graves' $27m acquisition.
Graves did well in the past few seasons with New Jersey and will fit in well on the left side with Marcus Pettersson.
Dubas knows that Pittsburgh's Cup window is only just barely open and this acquisition could help bring a final title in the Sidney Crosby-Evgeni Malkin era.
Ilya Sorokin re-signs with the New York Islanders for eight-years, $66m ($8.25 AAV)
The Islanders announced four re-signings all around the same time on Saturday - a little reprieve from the ever changing rosters.
General manager Lou Lamoriello managed to convince defenseman Scott Mayfield and winger Pierre Engvall to stay on the island for the next seven years (Mayfield's deal was worth $24.5m, Engvall's was worth $21m).
Plus, the Islanders kept backup goaltender Semyon Varlamov around with a four-year, $11m deal.
But the league's biggest signing of the day by term, money, and cap hit was the Isles convincing goalie Ilya Sorokin to stay with them on a $66m megadeal.
Sorokin was a Vezina Trophy candidate with New York last season, putting up a top-notch campaign which included a .924 save percentage and allowing an average of only 2.34 goals per game.
It's a good move for the Islanders - and a smart choice to lock down their franchise goaltender.
Milan Lucic and James van Riemsdyk to the Boston Bruins for one-year, $1m each
The Boston Bruins are in something of a budget crisis at the moment. Last year's President's Trophy winners set numerous records for regular season success, but embarrassed themselves by crashing out of the playoffs early.
Boston traded away significant draft capital (two first-round picks and future second, third, and fourth round picks among other assets) to acquire Dmitry Orlov and Tyler Bertuzzi. The former signed with the rival Hurricanes and it's seeming unlikely they'll sign the latter due to the cap crunch.
General manager Don Sweeney already had to part ways with winger Taylor Hall - which many fans took as a sign they'd sign Bertuzzi. But depth in other places appeared to be the goal.
The Bruins watched as the likes of O'Reilly and Duchene signed short term deals for relatively low cash - all while Boston is unsure that first-line center and captain Patrice Bergeron (and 2C David Krejci) will return for next season.
To sit and watch as possible top-line center candidates just walk to other teams is disappointing for some fans to stomach. However, the Bruins made multiple moves to bolster their middle-six and third-pairing depth.
For starters, James van Riemsdyk is typically a scorer that will get you at least 15 goals and between 35-40 points a season. However, the 34-year-old seemed to crumble last year on a Flyers team that was absolutely awful. It's possible he rebounds from that and the Bruins are counting on it.
Additionally, Morgan Geekie should be a great option as a third-line center and right-handed defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk will provide experience and offensive prowess.
However, there was no move that served as better red meat to the Bruins fanbase than when they brought back power forward Milan Lucic.
Lucic was part of Boston's last Stanley Cup winning team back in 2011 - but he was traded to the Kings in 2015 before spending time in Edmonton and Calgary. He's still fondly remembered by many Bruins fans for his physical play and scoring success.
While his game is showing signs of age, and his scoring is slowing down - dipping below 20 points for the first time last season - no one is expecting the same Lucic as the one that first showed up back in 2007. Fans will be happy to see him in black and gold and he'll be welcomed back like a hero.
