NHL Rumor Roundup: Can The Sabres Re-Sign Tuch? Will The Penguins Move Rust Or Rakell?
Re-signing Alex Tuch is the Buffalo Sabres' priority, but he could be expensive to retain. Meanwhile, Bryan Rust and Rickard Rakell could face an uncertain future with the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Video Transcript
I'm Lyle Richardson of the Hockey News.
In today's NHL Rumor Roundup column, one of the topics that I'm looking at is gonna be what the offseason might hold for the Buffalo Sabres following their second-round elimination by the Montreal Canadiens.
Now, despite the end of their postseason, this season has to be considered a success for the Sabres after spending fifteen years in the wilderness before finally qualifying for the playoffs and then following that up by eliminating the Boston Bruins in the first round.
They've proven that they are going to be a force to be reckoned with going forward.
Meanwhile, General Manager Jarmo Keklinen will be spending the offseason trying to find ways to improve his team.
But one of the things he has to address is finding a new contract for Alex Tuch.
The thirty-year-old power forward is slated to become an unrestricted free agent on July first after completing a seven-year contract worth an average annual value of four point seven five million.
So he's due for a significant raise.
It's been rumored that the Tuch camp wants a contract comparable to the one that Adrian Kempe signed last fall with the Los Angeles Kings, which was an eight-year deal worth an average annual value of ten point six two five million.
Meanwhile, it's thought that the Sabres would prefer signing him to something closer to the eight-year contract that Nick Schmaltz got with the Utah Mammoth, which is worth an average annual value of eight million.
Now, there's obviously room here for both sides that they could be able to perhaps meet somewhere in the middle.
But if Tuch decides to go to the free agent market, he's among the few notable stars still available, and he would definitely get himself a significant raise, but he probably won't end up with a team that has such a promising future like the Sabres.
