TORONTO– After 16 seasons, over 1,100 points, and two Stanley Cup championships could this have been the last time we saw Steven Stamkos captain the Tampa Bay Lightning?
Back in 2016 offseason, Stamkos and the Lightning agreed on an eight-year deal with an Annual Average Value (AAV) of $8.5 million per season. At the conclusion of that deal he ranks first in goals (555), points (1,137), and games played (1,082)
If it were up to both parties, Stamkos would finish out his career in Tampa and try to get one more ring before he calls it a day.
“This city means a lot to me. I love coming to the rink every day and I love interacting with our fans. Everything that is hockey in this city is amazing and I love it,” Stamkos said.
Even as a 34-year-old, the Markham, Ontario native had his seventh 40-goal season to go along with 81 points. It still seems like Lightning GM Julien BriseBois will need to be creative if he wants to bring Stamkos back.
Should Tampa be unable to bring him back, plenty of teams would throw plenty of money at him for a championship run.
Here are three of the most likely destinations for Steven Stamkos this off-season.
Tampa Bay Lightning
Staying in Tampa is undoubtedly the obvious choice in this situation but BriseBois will need to be creative to fit Stamkos under the cap.
NHL salary cap website PuckPedia currently shows that the Lightning have only $4,465,000 in space after incurring all of Ryan McDonough’s contract after making a move to re-acquire the defenseman in May.
The Lightning only have 19 players on the books heading into the offseason with eight players, including Stamkos, heading into July as UFA’s.
Locking up core pieces like Anthony Cirelli, Braydon Point, and Mikhail Sergachev over the past few seasons has certainly made winning a “must” for the coming years but its not clear if that will include their captain or not.
While Stamkos might ask for a number in the ballpark of $8 million it seems unlikely that number will be able to fit for Tampa while also plugging other spots in the lineup.
One comparable that comes to mind in recent memory is Claude Giroux deal with the Ottawa Senators ($6,500,000 for three years) which equated to 7.88% of the salary cap in 2022.
With the cap going up, as well as the inflation of contracts, a contract that is roughly 8% of the team’s salary would equal out to $7,040,000, which should be the magic number for BriseBois to sign their captain at.
This would means that a player like Tanner Jeannot, who currently earns $2,665,000 for next season and is on an expiring deal, would make the most sense to move out to make the money work for the Lightning.
prediction: $21 million over 3 years ($7 million AAV)
Detroit Red Wings
After falling just short of clinching their first playoff berth in eight seasons, the Detroit Red Wings are looking to bolster their offence in the off-season to help supplement the likes of Dylan Larkin, Lucas Raymond, and Alex DeBrincat.
The Red Wings’ first area of priority should be extending their young studs in Raymond and Moritz Seider to long-term deals as the two have burned their entry-level deals.
Steve Yzerman is heading into the offseason with almost $30 million in cap space, but only 13 players currently signed for next season, but apart from the two young stars, they have spaces who can be filled in with young talent (Berggren, Edvinsson) while bringing in a player in the likes of Stamkos can help guide this team back to relevancy.
Detroit might also want to consider that potentially tempting away a talent from a divisional rival could also be benefit the team more than what Stamkos could potentially bring on the ice by weakening a Lightning team who were close to the playoff fringes last season.
Let’s also not forget the aforementioned general manager of the Red Wings just so happens to be someone who knows Stamkos very well.
This destination might not be the most likely scenario, but it could be something to keep an eye on.
Prediciton: $31 Million for four seasons ($7.5 million AAV)
Utah Hockey Club
New owner Ryan Smith is set to be in quite the position this offseason, with his newly relocated Utah Hockey Club expected to potentially make an impact in free agency as they have by far the most cap space of any team at $43.5 million.
For the team to ingratiate themselves into their new city, Smith has seemingly made it sound that Bill Armstrong and his team will have the chequebook open come July 1st.
With only 11 players currently on the teams roster and those include the likes of Clayton Keller, Nick Schmaltz, Dylan Guenther, Logan Cooley, and Sean Durzi, Utah has pieces in place that could benefit from the likes of more established free agents coming in and injecting talent into the team.
The most glaring area for the team in Utah should target is on their defence, with the likes of Brandon Montour or Sean Walker who should be able to come in and help quarterback their power play and bring stability to a backend that hasn’t been such over the past few seasons.
This could also mean that they might be looking at bringing in someone who is a proven winner and someone who can be leaned on to help mentor the young pieces at Utah’s disposal.
The thought of moving out west to a city that is very different than the likes of Tampa might not make Stamkos too eager to move his young family unless he is prepared to start a new chapter in his life.
For Ryan Smith and his new organization getting Stamkos could cost more money in the short-term by being able to outbid other team’s who might be constrained to their dwindling amount of salary space, the potential of starting to build a successful hockey club for the coming decades could very well start by bringing in the Lightning captain.
PREDICTION: $32 million over four years ($8 Million aav)
If there was one prediction to be the most likely option for Stamkos to accept, staying with the Lightning would be the most predictable outcome, however the Utah offer might be the most intriguing simply for what it could do to the NHL’s newest market. While the Detroit offer seems to be more of a pipe dream than reality.
BD Sports 