Steven Stamkos said last week he was disappointed with the lack of contract extension talks. That led to speculation since then on his future with the Tampa Bay Lightning.
Entering his 16th season with the Tampa Bay Lightning, Steven Stamkos seemed destined to spend the rest of his career with the only NHL team he's ever played for. However, remarks made last week by the 33-year-old forward suggest it could be less of a certainty.
During the opening day of training camp last Wednesday, Stamkos expressed his disappointment over the lack of contract extension talks with management.
“It was something that I expressed at the end of last year that I wanted to get something done before training camp started,” he told reporters.
Stamkos is in the final season of his eight-year contract with an annual average value of $8.5 million. He's slated to become a UFA next July.
Lightning GM Julien BriseBois replied that it was in everyone's best interest to have Stamkos finish his career in Tampa Bay. However, he indicated that contract talks with his captain will have to wait until the end of this season.
Stamkos' comments proved to be what Sportsnet's Luke Fox considered to be “the biggest bombshell of training camp.” His colleague Elliotte Friedman called it “a big, big shot across the bow” by the longtime Lightning superstar, adding that back in his 2016 contract negotiations, some of the players close to Stamkos felt that “Tampa wouldn't be crushed if he left.”
The Athletic's Shayna Goldman cited Evolving-Hockey's projection of a three-year deal at an AAV of $7.6 million for Stamkos. However, she pointed out that the Lightning only have $12.4 million in cap space for next season, so management must be careful how they spend it. PuckPedia has Tampa Bay with only $9.36 million in cap space, but the upper limit of the salary cap is expected to increase next year.
Stamkos isn't going anywhere this season, but his future in Tampa Bay could become the subject of season-long speculation.
Correction: Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman said in his Sept. 22 32 Thoughts podcast that “Tampa wouldn't be crushed” if he left. On his Sept. 25 episode (at the 2:20 mark), Friedman indicated that he was referring to Stamkos' 2016 contract negotiations.