NHL Roundup: Canes offer sheet revenge; Eichel and Sabres met with league; and more
Offer sheets in the NHL are rare, and successful offer sheets are even rarer. The last time one was attempted happened on July 1, 2019. That’s when the Habs went after Hurricanes forward Sebastian Aho.
The Canes did indeed match the offer and kept Aho in Carolina. Apparently, Owner Tom Dundon and GM Don Waddell never forgot the Habs sneak attack.
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NHL Roundup: Hurricanes offer sheet Kotkaniemi
According to Pierre LeBrun, the Canes tried trading for Jesperi Kotkaniemi prior to the move. The 21 year-old signed a 1-year deal with Carolina for $6.1M. If the Habs match they will be roughly $8M over the cap, which is why Carolina did it.
One thing is clear, this was not just a hockey move, it was payback.
In the offer sheet is a signing bonus of just $20. Why? Sebastian Aho wears the number 20 for the Canes. And if that hint was too subtle, well the Hurricanes tweeted the announcement of the offer sheet – in French! To double down on that, their Twitter bio is also in French and reads, “Compte officiel des Hurricanes de la Caroline.”
To take one more shot at the Canadiens, GM Don Waddell basically used the same wording Habs GM Marc Bergevin did when he signed Aho.
Montreal has one week to match the offer. If they don’t, this will be the first successful offer sheet since the Oilers signed Dustin Penner from the Ducks in 2007.
NHL and NHLPA met with Jack Eichel and Sabres
According to Elliotte Friedman, the NHL and NHLPA met with Jack Eichel and the Buffalo Sabres to hear both sides out.
“I found out – there was a meeting in Buffalo, I might have my days off but I think it was Wednesday the 18th,” Friedman reported on his most recent podcast. “The League was there, the Player’s Association, Eichel, and the Sabres. I’m not sure if the doctors were there in person or via Zoom, and everyone put their cards on the table.”
The purpose of the meeting was so that the NHL and PA could hear both sides of the story. “Basically what I heard was there was no resolution,” Friedman noted. “Everyone was dug in and nothing changed, maybe that’s why Eichel made the change (from Peter Fish to Pat Brisson) to try the velvet glove instead of the hammer.”
When the session was concluded the League took the side of the Sabres while the PA backed Eichel. The drama continues.
NHL Division Previews
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