Ryan wouldn’t mind remaining in Calgary
Mike Gould: Calgary Flames forward Derek Ryan said in a text that he’s “really enjoyed playing for the Flames” and that when he’s eligible, he’d have a “great” interest in re-signing with the Flames.
(The 33-year old Ryan has a year left on his deal at a $3.125 million)
A lot of uncertainty and stress for pending RFAs like Drake Caggiula as he may get squeezed by the cap
Mark Lawrence of The Athletic: Back in March Chicago Blackhawks forward Drake Caggiula, a pending restricted free agent, was confident that he would re-sign with the team. Then the pandemic hit and financial uncertainty hit. Re-signing with the Blackhawks isn’t a sure thing any longer due the flattening of the salary cap.
He and his fiancee are having a baby in November, the same month that free agency may open up.
“It’s really stressful,” he said. “It’s hard enough when we’re sitting by our phones just waiting for the call to say, ‘Hey, we need you to come back now.’ That part’s already stressful. Then you add in next year, when you’re a restricted free agent, and you don’t know what the salary cap is, so there’s a good chance that one, two, three or four guys could get moved. There’s a lot of uncertainty right now to begin with, then you add in free agency and it’s very, very difficult.”
There hasn’t been much decision between Blackhawks GM Stan Bowman and any of their pending free agents.
“As far as future signings and contracts and whatnot, I’ve told their agents that at this point it’s premature,” Bowman said. “There are too many uncertainties to know what the salary cap or what the format for the future will be. So we’re going to wait until we have more information.”