Will this summer see an increase in Steven Stamkos free-agent rumors? Did the Ducks nearly trade Matt Beleskey? Do the Blue Jackets have too many forwards?
Another “Summer of Stamkos”?
Tampa Bay Lightning captain Steven Stamkos’ contract talks will be closely followed this summer.
THE TAMPA TRIBUNE: Erik Erlendsson reports there will be significant attention paid to Steven Stamkos’ contract talks this summer with the Tampa Bay Lightning. Stamkos was the hot topic of speculation as a restricted free agent during the summer of 2011. He has one season remaining on his contract and will be eligible for unrestricted free agency in July 2016. Bolts management can re-sign him as early as July 1 of this year. Erlendsson suggests there will be plenty of talk out of Toronto linking Stamkos (a Markham, Ontario native) with the Maple Leafs. Stamkos, meanwhile, insists he enjoys playing and winning in Tampa Bay.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: In January, Stamkos said his plan is to re-sign with the Lightning. It’ll likely take a deal comparable to the eight-year, $10.5 million per season deals signed last summer by Chicago Blackhawks stars Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane to keep Stamkos in Tampa Bay. Rest assured Lightning management will do everything it can to ensure their captain and franchise player is re-signed this summer. Still, Erlendsson makes a good point. The longer Stamkos goes without being re-signed this summer, the more speculation will grow suggesting he wants to sign with the Leafs and return to his hometown. I doubt that’s Stamkos’ intent but it won’t prevent his name being tied to the rebuilding Leafs, who can certainly afford to toss big money at him if he becomes a UFA in 2016 and would do so willingly if he expressed a desire to join them.
Ducks almost dealt Beleskey?
NICHOLS ON HOCKEY: Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reported last week it sounded as though the Anaheim Ducks either came close to re-signing winger Matt Beleskey or trading him at the deadline. Beleskey is eligible for UFA status in July and has already scored a career-high 21 goals.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: It appears the Ducks decided to retain Beleskey for the upcoming playoffs. Re-signing him could depend upon his postseason performance.
Blue Jackets face decisions at forward.
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH: Aaron Portzline reports the Blue Jackets face decisions this summer over their glut of forwards. Portzline writes, “The Blue Jackets listened to trade offers for center Artem Anisimov and right wing Cam Atkinson, but none of the offers were deemed worthy of deal. Yet.” He claims they’ll continue to entertain offers in the off-season and will likely trade a forward or two.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: The Jackets recently re-signed Atkinson to a three-year, 10.5 million extension, though that could also make him attractive for clubs seeking players with term remaining on their contracts. Anismov has a year left on his contract and is eligible for UFA status in 2016. His future could depend upon his plans after next season and willingness to remain with the Jackets. Their plans could also depend upon the cost of re-sign RFA forward Matt Calvert and pending UFA Mark Letestu.
With the way the Leafs fortunes have gone south I guess it’s only logical to expect the rumors (and wishful-thinking) to ramp up this summer in the hopes of bringing something positive back north.
I am probably the only Leaf fan on this thread that hopes the Bolts give him the 10.5 mill a year before the Leafs do…
the Leafs have absolutely no depth right now and could do with a couple years of high picks to fill the cupboards. Signing Stamkos at this point to that kind of money assures there wont be much for other UFAs snd Stamkos in his prime would be good enough to improve the Leafs to a 7th 8th 9th place team for the foreseeable future assuring mediocrity for years to come. Tampa is good because they have great depth good goaltending and Stamkos, Not just because of Stamkos.
Not saying Stamkos is not worth the money or would improve the Leafs just that it would be a waste to get him, Kessel would have to be gone the Leafs still wouldnt have a great D, it would be similar to the Sundin years great center playing with no wingers and no depth.
The Leafs would be Canadas version of the Flyers. Stamkos and JVR = Giroux and Vorachek the rest is just filling.
I wouldn’t compare the flyers to the leafs. They are not in near the dire straights that the leaf organization is in.
Plus, unlike some of the Leafs, their players seem to have bought into the “team” concept.
Ehh yet..keep finnishing in the 6 to 9 spot.
When is the last time the leafs won a series? Yet alone make it to the cup finals?
Easy to kick dirt on a dead team isnt it? I am not saying the Flyers are as bad a team as the Leafs, that being said I dont think anyone would say they are contenders either, snd what happens if results continue the way they have the past couple years missed the year before last early out last year, will make in as a lower seed in the east this year…what happens to teams like that, nvm the Leafs what happens to teams that finnish In the middle of the pack for 4 or 5 years that have some bigger contracts and lets not go all hog wild about the depth of youth the Flyers have their cuppboards arent exactly bursting off the hinges either they are in the bottom 3rd of the league as far as youth goes and its not getting any better. Again yes the Flyers are better…for now, but if you have to compare yourself to the Leafs for some sort of feeling of accomplishment you might not have as good a team as you think…lol
Flyers suck .. Talk about a fan base overvaluing players (Couturier).
And their management has been the absolute worst when it comes to contracts and trades.
Last thing Flyers fans should do is look down at any team …
At least the Flyers have depth of talent. Cap problems n suspect D though.
@Shticky
For a team who’s made the playoffs 17 times over the past 20 seasons, the cupboards are bound to dry up. Management has made some colossal mistakes etc. But we’ve seen a changing of the guard and an influx of prospects and draft picks over the course of the last two seasons.
I don’t think any Flyers fan is claiming they’re contenders, a few years away from that. But unlike the Leafs, they retool on the fly and stay competitive.
The only person comparing the Flyers to the Leafs is you, in a total troll comment at that. You seem so quick to jump on anyone critiquing the Leafs or any of their personnel but seem to have no regard for other franchises.
The NHL is a better place when both the Leafs and the Flyers ice competitive lineups. Let’s hope we’re not so far away from a healthy playoff rivalry.
@Dino Rondelly
“The Flyers suck” Maybe you should take your own advice and take a look at where your franchise has been in the last 20 years before you make quick judgements.
Every GM in the league is guilty of a bad trade, signing or mishap. It’s the nature of the beast. You’d think a Leafs fan would understand that better than anyone.
Depth? They are almost literally a 3 or4 player team Giroux Voracek Simmonds Mason. After that there isnt much of anything else, back up goalie is terrible cant win a game, D is rough beside maybe MDZ who they got off the trash heap and Streit who can put up dome points still but has never been defensively very good, outside 3 or 4 guys (one of them being a franchise type guy) they are avg at best. Very simmilar to what the Leafs would be with a franchise center. They are 2 games above .500 5th in the weakest divison in hockey.
@ Shticky….the two teams are not even close…..and you know it.
The Flyers have had a couple of down years, yes, and yet they have still made the playoffs more often than not. They do have more depth than the Leafs on the ice, and your comments show the troll you truely are. They are stacked at “d” in the minors, and have 4 bluechip guys coming, asd well as a great goalie prospect in Stolarz.
I think a team having Giroux, Vorachek, Simmonds, plus Couturier (if you don’t see how much he does, you don’t really know hockey Dino) Schenn, Read in it’s top 9 does have depth, more than your beloved Leafs. They are missing a top line winger, a true second line winger to play with Schenn. Lets not forget they are also a young core.
The Flyers have a plan, a direction since Hextall became the gm. Homer has screwed us with the contracts and terms, and Hextall is cleanng up this mess. It is going to take years, and most Flyers fan know this.
The Leafs on the other hand…do they have a direction? Kessel has not been an $8 million player….is he going or staying? Phanuef? same thing…..Do you have a goalie prospect? What about your d prospects? What’s that? a third liner playing first line center, and every Leaf fans favorite player Kadri is now a scratch for missing as meeting, a la Kane……
The Leafs are a phucking mess…in every aspect…from management, to coaching, to the cap, to the players, to the prospects.
Granted..there is one or two who are the exception, but most of the team is a car wreck.
Not even close.
Troll on, Schitty, troll on
Sportsnet on Sean Couturier
There isn’t a team in the league that couldn’t use Couturier. He plays brutal defensive minutes, taking on top opposition and a pile of defensive zone starts and yet he also manages to chip in offensively. His point totals are often spoken of as being somewhat disappointing, but given the context it’s frankly remarkable that he scores even as much as he does.
Not sure how pointing out how a team with a franchise center and a couple decent wingers doesnt necessarily make it an elite or playoff team is trolling…
Stamkos and Kessell with JVR would better. K can sure pass and they can all score. After that there is not much salary left? The year after it is JT so the leafs can only sign guys for 1 mill apiece to fill out the forwards. The D will all have to be young guys with Polack to show them how to compete.
I concur, signing Stammer right now wouldn’t be a wise move, the leafs are a hell of a lot further away from playoffs let alone a cup team than one good piece…we need to improve up and down the line up.
“Stammer?”
Yes George, its a nickname most hockey pundits and announcers use when referring to Stamkos. You might want to look into a cable package.
Stamkos isnt one good piece .. he is a franchise player. You dont not grab a player like him because you are in a rebuild. A player like him is what every rebuilding team would sell the farm for.
Again I agree he is a franch8se guy but I think if he was to sign, amd you end up trading the farm to put guys around himthe window closes really fast, Id rather build properly, no saying the Leafs dont draft a center over the next uear or 2 that d3velops in to a good 1st line center, Stamkos good? Probably not unless they win a lottery but it doesnt cost 10-11 mill and grows with the rest of the team. Along woth whatever youth and picks they get from guys that are still going to be moved…all moot points I am sure after having a taste of the success that the Bolts should be looking at over this year amd next no one short of being insane would leave, to go anywhere else let alone Toronto.
I see your argument, but lets be honest Tampa is going to have a small window as well. Two years before they have to start spending money to keep their team or grow it.
Tampa has done a great job of filling the cupboards with Stamkos in the fold, plus they drafted Drouin 3rd overall in 2013. That being said I think he’d be an idiot to leave Tampa, but c’mon man.
That was in response to Shticky, Idk why it didn’t post under your first comment..
Tampa has beeen able to add guys like Filpula Stralman as UFAs because as of yet Stamkos contract has not hindered anything, they have one of the best goalies in the game on a relatively cheap contract and have been drafting well for years while Stamkos was developing, if the Leafs were by some miracle able to sign him he would be in his prime on a team without all that surrounds him in Tampa and at 10.5 mill per it would be difficult at that point to add much around him, and he would improve the team to the point that drafting to fill positions would not be an easy task is all I am saying.
I don’t know if Iam a Leafs fan LOL, I am a huge Hockey fan, but what I do know is Stamkos gave a very BLUNT interview this past week, expressing his desire to stay in Tampa and that he enjoyed everything about it including the weather,his love for the outdoors on off days and ( the light media attention ) was also a bonus, he wishes to stay in Tampa long term.
The Leafs can offer him $12 – 14 million a year, he does not want to go to the Leafs, this year was not a good sell to his thought process.
Not going to happen !
Being a Hockey fan Id rather see Stamkos in a place where he can succeed, and be one of the best in the world…In Tampa.
Lets be honest here.
@shticky thanks for the war on ice and nhl numbers, much appreciated. BTW I would think at this point all leaf fans would want their team to fall as far as possible in the standings. Where an early second round pick is like a first round pick in this year draft.
Well why fall in the standings if you can land Stamkos? I think if the leafs were able to get Stamkos that would be a no brainner. 50 goals scores don’t grow on trees. They pick him up and players will come to play with him and all Toronto’s problems are solved in one move. Even if they move out kessel. Yet I don’ think the leafs are as bad as everyone else. I just think they are playing a system designed to force a tank.
I don’t think a team in the league will turn down the chance to land Stamkos. His name on your Jersey alone will generate loads of cash. I also don’t think Tampa will let him go with out a fight or that he wishes to go else where.
Stamkos is not going to Toronto, why would he go from a decent team/playoff team to one that hasn’t been in the playoffs but once in the last 10? years. No offense Leaf fans, JMO but this makes no sense.
Who plays D for peanuts?
Stamkos gonna stop pucks too
Easy to say unless you watch the games. Then, it’s downright nauseating.
Saying the Leafs have a shot at Stamkos because he’s a pending UFA is about as realistic as saying the Penguins will trade Crosby for Bernier straight-up because the Penguins could use a young goalie… and I’m a Leafs fan.
At least the Sun has some headlines to sell in the dog days of July though.
No actually a free agent signing of a player that can sign with any team is a lot different then a team trading a franchise player for a suspect goalie. I could give you examples but I am out of crayons.
Shticky, We’ve been drafting pretty high ourselves lately. Reilly, Nylander and whoever we get in the top 5 this year (and probably next) are very good prospects. I don’t think complimenting him with high end talent will be a problem here, especially where we plan on finishing this year and next. Either way, signing Stamkos to any team should never be a bad idea, he’s an elite player. You don’t say no to a guy like that unless you can’t afford him. Again, I don’t see him coming here, but you don’t say no if he wants to.
Right we are draftingrelatively high now but these guys dont necessarily develop in a year or 2 and if the majority of young guys are forwards outside Rielly where is the D? way too many holes to be throwing that kind of money at 1 player and expecting it to make a difference, figured the Leafs may understand this by now. That Tampa team for the most part has develloped around one another, thats why they are good now. 2 years time Stamkos is 27, Reilly 22 Nylander 20 this years picks 20 Next years pick 19.getting right back to what haunts Toronto throw money at a problem and hope it works out, year 2 in a rebuild sign a guy for 10-11 mill? Does this not seem like a movie we have already seen?
I could hit you with trade proposals and projected line ups but none of that matters. After two years of tanking, previous high picks, and the prospects and picks Kessel and/or Phanuef presumably bring in, we will have the need, money and stocked enough cupboards to justify signing him. This isn’t Brad Richards, you give Stamkos whatever he wants and pray he doesn’t get injured. Because players like that don’t come around very often.
Ummmm … Toronto needs a true elite #1 center … That would be Stamkos.
If you sign Stamkos it changes your plan, you dont draft with those picks you trade them to fill out your defense. Not to mention it wont be hard to get good wingers to come play with Stamkos.
Stamkos is exactly what the Leafs would be hoping to draft.
Not saying it will happen, but if he makes it to July 1 2016 the leafs have as good of a chance as anyone.
Dream away….
Stamkosis not leavin TB.
Why do some Leafs dreamers waste time on every Ontario star player will want to play for the Leafs. Players want to win n Hogtown has no clue as of yet. 3-4yrs minimum of pain n rebuilding r ahead
How am I dreaming ?
Does this line seem like I am dreaming? – Not saying it will happen, but if he makes it to July 1 2016 the leafs have as good of a chance as anyone.
Read the comment before you comment.
The conversation is about weather or not a team like Toronto (rebuilding team) should go after a player like Stamkos.
Have to admit, my opinion isn’t useful as I can’t realistically conceive of what it’s like to be these guys. But to riff on Shticky’s comment, doesn’t having a $10.5-$11M cap hit essentially crush *most* teams’ hopes of success? Hard to fill out a lineup like that. And while the Hawks have managed it, I’m curious to see what they look like next year (and beyond).
For a player genuinely interested in team success, why not try and get a contract clause that says, “I’ll take a hometown discount – provided you make us a contender!”
So, in this example, Stamkos could tell the Bolts, “I’m worth $10.5M. I’ll take $8.5M, provided you spend the other $2M on talent, not keep it for profit.” So the clause might say, “The Bolts need to spend a minimum of 95% of the cap or, each year they don’t, Stamkos has an opt-out clause.” (i.e. if the Bolts aren’t spending “his” money on good players, he can just leave)
Anyway, it’s a pipe dream in a salary cap world where everyone claims to be a team player and then just takes max money at the expense of their teammates.
But a poor Canadian kid can dream, can’t he?! 🙂
Thats untrue..many players take a hometown discount for a better chance of winning the cup. Clarkson Vinny etc r all acts of despiration n stupidity.
A well run team eg Detroit get good contracts due to players fairh in management. Ignorre Weiss n Kindl those contracts r befuddling.
You’re right; I’d say the Wings and Canucks are prime examples of people taking hometown discounts. I’m just never sure that it’s due to competition (i.e. pay me less so the team can afford other, better players) than due to location (i.e. it’s a great city, my wife & kids are happy here, etc)
Don’t get me wrong – family & personal values are also great reasons to take a hometown discount! I’m just never certain players actually think “team first” in these decisions.
I’m as much a leafs fan as anyone else is, but lets be realistic here: Stamkos is not going to leave TB, and even if he is he won’t come to Toronto. Yes Toronto would throw whatever money his way but Toronto is in full rebuild mode, and would only be in its second year of that. How would that attract Stamkos to leave a young Cup contender? There’s also the fact that the “allure” of playing in his hometown in Toronto is exaggerated at best. Sure it worked for Clarkson but it wasn’t much of a discount and look how that turned out anyway (yes Clarkson and Stamkos are too very different players). Bottom line is it’s fantasy at best.
This I agree with, chances of him leaving Tampa are slim to none… which is fine by me.
Get ready for really bad hockey – Buffalo VS Leafs this week. I would rather watch the ECHL!
And that’s on the premier SportsNet outlets while the Sens-Bruins tilt is relegated to the second tier outlet.
Arg I dislike sportsnet.
Sportsmet beats CBC hands down. Offers a real choice @ 4pm PST. Not held hostage with Leafs only games finally
I think you need a satellite dish or something. I have never been held hostage to a leaf game. I rarely watch the leafs play.
However it is not the air times I dislike, it’s the sportsnet cast, broadcasting, stage, silly puck thing that turns on some silky TV screen. The set that looks like the Enterprises deflected dish, oh and Nick Kypreos, lol
Wondering if we see a winning team pulling a goalie if its close in the third.
Like to wager on that?
LOL
I’m sure some want to but they can’t have the tank blatantly obvious.
I wouldn’t close the book on the Leafs getting Stamkos at some point. What I wonder is if the Lightning can realistically afford to hand out a $10 million contract (maybe more), when looking down the road a few years, they’ll have to resign other players (Johnson, Palat and Hedman are all due for renewal for 2017-18). When you figure at least one of Phaneuf or Kessel would be moved by next summer, if not this (if the Leafs are going for Stamkos, I’d keep Kessel) summer. Who’s to say the Lightning don’t move Stamkos at this year’s draft for a chance to add McDavid or Eichel, and open up a lot of cap space in the future to fill out their roster and remain competitive.