It’s a business decision for the Blues
Dan Rosen of NHL.com: (mailbag) We’ll see if it’s the right move by the St. Louis Blues to let Alex Pietrangelo hit free agency. They are not unhappy with him at all, hitting free agency is just a business decision. With Pietrangelo being 30-years old, they may question locking him up for seven or eight years. It’s been reported that Blues aren’t interested in including a no-movement or signing bonuses in the later years to act as buyout protection. Even if Pietrangelo leaves, they’ll still have Colton Parayko and Justin Faulk on the right side.
Could Pietrangelo get $9 million on the open market?
Jeremy Rutherford and Dom Luszczyszyn of The Athletic: Earlier this week it’s believed the Blues latest offer to Alex Pietrangelo was for eight years at $8 million per season, which according to sources is less than he is willing to take. Signing bonuses and a no-movement is another sticking point.
GM Jim Rutherford when asked about the situation only said through a representative: “We have a long-standing policy not to discuss these matters publicly.”
One agent thinks that Pietrangelo could get $9 million on the open market from a team in a tax-free state, which would be a lot more. When teams start bidding, the price goes up.
Five potential landing spots for Alex Pietrangelo
Matt Larkin of The Hockey News: The St. Louis Blues still need to clear out more cap room if they want to bring pending UFA defenseman Alex Pietrangelo back. Jeremy Rutherford of The Athletic has reported that the Blues have increased their offer to more in the $8 million range from the previously reported $7.7 million.
It’s soundly like Pietrangelo will hit the open market. Potential landing spots for him include:
1. St. Louis Blues
2. Toronto Maple Leafs – Would need to clear salary, Andreas Johnsson and Alexander Kerfoot over William Nylander.
3. Vegas Golden Knights – They may need a frontline center over a defenseman. Have cap issues as well.
4. Calgary Flames – Have five unrestricted free agent defensemen. They also need a starting goalie.
5. Florida Panthers – Will have the cap space but internal payroll could be cut. Will be losing some key UFAs in Evgenii Dadonov and Mike Hoffman.