The lone un-signed RFA has a new deadline
It was reported over the weekend by Aaron Portzline of The Athletic that defenseman Tim Berni rejected his qualifying offer from the Blue Jackets. Berni had until Saturday to accept the offer.
Berni will continue to be a restricted free agent and the two sides will need to work on a new deal. Per the rules for restricted free agents and qualifying offers, he must sign a deal by December 1st at 5pm EST for the contract to be valid for the season. If left un-signed, Berni would be ineligible to play for the remainder of the season.
Berni played in 59 games last season, scoring one goal, and totaling three points. The 159th pick in the 2018 NHL Entry draft was expected to spend most of his time in Cleveland last season, but as we well know, injuries last season forced a few guys to gain some valuable NHL experience.
We could see Berni returning to Switzerland and playing in his home country, where he played before coming to North America. He plays on an already overcrowded blue line, with several high-quality prospects who are expected to become NHL players. But Berni did play 2/3 of an NHL season, so maybe he feels he could crack the line-up. He has the summer to make a decision.