Alexis Lafreniere hasn't been able to find his full potential in New York, and the San Jose Sharks should try and sign him.
Alexis Lafreniere hasn't been able to find his full potential in New York, and the San Jose Sharks should try and sign him.
Alexis Lafreniere was the No. 1 overall pick in 2020 but hasn't found his complete game with the New York Rangers.
The San Jose Sharks could capitalize on this by trying to sign Lafreniere via an offer sheet. As a restricted free agent, the Rangers still control Lafreniere's signing rights.
With a trade of Erik Karlsson on the horizon and some cap space already banked, this could be the perfect opportunity to pry the forward from New York.
Before the Sharks trade EK65, their projected cap space is $5,413,333.
The Rangers recently signed defenseman K'Andre Miller and their last RFA to sign is Lafreniere. They currently have $3,053,418 in projected cap space.
Of course, if the San Jose Sharks were to offer sheet the young forward, it would need to be enough so the Rangers couldn't match the deal.
The Sharks are only eligible to sign Lafreniere with a cap hit of $2,145,062 - $4,290,125. If signed inside this window, San Jose would have to give up a second-round pick to the New York Rangers as compensation.
Given the Rangers' current projected cap space and Lafreniere's potential, offering Lafreniere a maximum of $4,290,125 on a one-year deal seems reasonable.
The player would need to accept the deal, and if that happens, the Rangers would have seven days to match the deal.
In 2021 the Carolina Hurricanes were able to sign Jesperi Kotkaniemi to a one-year $6,100,035 deal, and the Montreal Canadiens did not match the deal. As compensation, the Hurricanes had to give Montreal its first and third-round picks in the 2022 NHL Draft.
Last offseason, the Canes dropped Kotkaniemi's cap hit of $4.82 million on an eight-year deal.
Given the number Kotkaniemi signed via an offer sheet, the San Jose Sharks might be more inclined to get the Karlsson trade done before attempting to offer sheet, Lafreniere. If they do this, they should have more draft capital and can sign the forward to a higher contract.
Lafreniere had 39 points in 81 games for the Rangers last season. He has yet to solidify himself in the top six and only has three career powerplay goals. His steady five-on-five offensive ability has yet to take off due to him consistently being on the third line.
If the Karlsson trade goes down soon, an offer sheet to Alexis Lafreniere should be something GM Mike Grier should do.