A handful of NHL veterans are on professional tryouts to prove why they deserve another contract. Six players between the Ducks, Oilers, Stars and Senators have a real shot, writes Carol Schram.
Even before the flat cap, professional tryout offers were standard operating procedure for many NHL teams.
Unsigned players could help increase the level of competition at training camp as they showed their stuff and tried to earn a contract for the upcoming season. For teams, having an extra body or two in the mix is helpful in meeting the league's requirements to have at least eight veteran players in the lineup for exhibition games without overtaxing stars or putting them at risk of injury.
While you might expect these PTO deals have risen in popularity in recent years as GMs continue to navigate the constraints of the flat salary cap, the number of deals actually peaked in the first couple of years of the capfriendly.com data collection:
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This year, 47 players came to camp on PTO agreements. As of Sept. 27, six have already been released, so 41 remain.
If we can go by past seasons, around 10 players could earn contracts — mostly by the opening day of the regular season on Oct. 10, but possibly later.
Of the PTOs remaining, here's a look at some of the players who could have a real shot at earning a roster spot.
Anaheim Ducks: Scott Harrington (D), Zack Kassian (RW)
Perhaps no team still has more questions about how its opening-night lineup will shake out than the Anaheim Ducks, under first-year coach Greg Cronin.
Will RFAs Trevor Zegras and Jamie Drysdale agree to terms on new deals and get into the lineup? And which of the Ducks' dazzling youngsters will do enough to push for an NHL spot? Defensemen Pavel Mintyukov, Olen Zellweger and Tristan Luneau are all in the mix, as is super Swede Leo Carlsson up front.
The Ducks also have in excess of $17.56 million in projected cap space, per PuckPedia — more than any other team. A good chunk of that is likely being earmarked for Zegras and Drysdale, but GM Pat Verbeek could still swing a trade or make a waiver acquisition from a cap-strapped team in order to help fill out his lineup.
With all that being said, Harrington and Kassian may be able to stick. At 30, Harrington is a dependable defenseman who finished last season in Anaheim after being plucked off waivers in late February.
And while Kassian's offensive output last season dipped to just two goals, he could serve as a formidable intimidator who can help free up open ice for the Ducks' younger prospects as they look to establish themselves at the NHL level.
Dallas Stars: Jordie Benn (D)
Jordie Benn's NHL career has now spanned six cities over 12 years. But it all began in Dallas for the 36-year-old, who climbed into the NHL from the AHL's Texas Stars back in 2012.
A stay-at-home defenseman with good size at 6-foot-2, Benn has spent the last few years mostly filling teams' seventh and eighth spots on the blueline. He offers reliability, good practice habits and locker-room leadership, with the ability to step in and fill holes when injuries or other issues crop up, but a blueline logjam in Toronto last season saw him spend some time back in the AHL.
A contract with the Stars would bring Benn back full circle. He'd return to the stomping grounds of his wife and the mother of his two children, Jessi, and reunite on the ice with brother Jamie, who enters his second decade as the Dallas captain this fall.
Edmonton Oilers: Brandon Sutter (C) and Sam Gagner (RW)
Chosen just five spots apart in the first round back in 2007, Brandon Sutter and Sam Gagner are two 34-year-olds who are looking to tap into their Alberta roots by earning contracts with the Edmonton Oilers.
Sutter and his iconic hockey-playing family, of course, have deep roots in nearby Viking and Red Deer. After missing two full seasons with symptoms related to long COVID, Sutter is hoping that his veteran savvy and effectiveness on the faceoff dot and the penalty kill could make him a useful bottom-six presence for the Cup-craving Oilers.
The fact that he's 6-foot-3, a right shot and has broken 20 goals twice in his career doesn't hurt his chances, either.
As for Gagner, he's coming off double hip surgery after reaching 1,000 career NHL games last season with the Winnipeg Jets. Originally drafted sixth overall by the Oilers, Gagner hasn't been healthy enough to take part in pre-season games, so the cap-strapped Oilers can take their time on making a decision on him, potentially even sending him to the AHL for a period of rehab.
For Sutter, there's nothing easy about getting back to NHL levels after a long absence, especially amid the respiratory issues that can be part of long COVID. But in two pre-season games so far, he has looked effective and energetic — a real possibility to potentially bump a player like Derek Ryan or Lane Pederson from that fourth-line spot down the middle.
Remarkably: if Sutter does land a deal, he'll be the first member of his multi-generational hockey-playing family ever to suit up for the Oilers. Is it time?
Ottawa Senators: Josh Bailey (RW)
One week before his 34th birthday, the lifelong New York Islander is seeking a new gig after he was traded and then bought out of the final year of his previous deal last June. Bailey is another forward with more than 1,000 games on his resumé. And while he peaked at 71 points in 2017-18, his best hockey may have come during the Islanders' two most recent long playoff runs, especially his 20 points in 22 games in the 2020 bubble.
Apparently not a favorite of Lane Lambert, Bailey took some healthy scratches during the late stages of his tenure with the Islanders. But with a reputation for versatility and a defensive conscience, he could be a valuable veteran presence on a less-expensive deal with a Senators team that's looking to take the next step — although salary-cap space is at a premium with Shane Pinto still looking for his next contract.