The way free agency works there is NO way that you can get him to sign on the dotted line at 1.7 mill/year. He hasn't even reached his prime yet and he put up solid numbers last year. You are definitely talking 2.5-3 mil/yr to get him locked up, and it would probably need to be long term.
I agree with how much he will cost. Even though its his first NHL season, he's still going to be looking to cash in, regardless of what team he signs for. He has a pretty hard shot from the point and isn't afraid to throw the body around. We lack players like him on our back end and if we're able to bury Redden, he would be a great replacement for the present and future.
I'm not the best with value, but does anybody with 2.75M over 3 years will get it done?
He really came out of nowhere this year and looked pretty good. In some games of the Phi-Bos series, Boychuk got more ice time than both Chara and Pronger, which is pretty unreal.
Boychuk played very well the entire season. Boston battled injuries on defense all season. Boychuk was also dinged up this season. Capgeek brought up his situation three weeks ago. It takes one team to give him ridiculous money. Jeff Finger money. $3.5 million. 4 years. $14 million. Righted handed shot. Shoots the puck hard. Plays tough. 26 years old. Finger money is what his agent should be shooting for.
Boychuk played very well the entire season. Boston battled injuries on defense all season. Boychuk was also dinged up this season. Capgeek brought up his situation three weeks ago. It takes one team to give him ridiculous money. Jeff Finger money. $3.5 million. 4 years. $14 million. Righted handed shot. Shoots the puck hard. Plays tough. 26 years old. Finger money is what his agent should be shooting for.
I would definetly give him that kind of money...he is a good player with a lot of "jam", Tort's favorite word.
Seriously, banish Redden to hell and sign this kid and bring in another mean ******* on the backend and we have something in the makinig.
Boychuk played very well the entire season. Boston battled injuries on defense all season. Boychuk was also dinged up this season. Capgeek brought up his situation three weeks ago. It takes one team to give him ridiculous money. Jeff Finger money. $3.5 million. 4 years. $14 million. Righted handed shot. Shoots the puck hard. Plays tough. 26 years old. Finger money is what his agent should be shooting for.
$2 mil is about what he would get if he were an RFA. With teams bidding for him he's going to get a bit more. A young top 4 d-man with edge and some offensive ability going into his prime with the potential to get better--he's attractive to just about any team out there that's planning on doing some shopping this off season.
People have to understand that this guy has a total of 56 total NHL regular season games. 56. He also has a total of 13 NHL playoff games. He isn't a veteran at 26. I would stay away at anything over 3 million/season, he has boom or bust potential. If he booms he is worth more than 3 million/season. If he busts, we are looking at another Jeff Finger situation, tough call.
I don't think Boychuk will get that much in free agency. There are a lot of proven dmen on the market this year.
Lidstrom
Niedermayer
Kubina
Gonchar
Blake
Martin
Corvo
Volchenkov
Seidenberg
Hamhuis
Leopold
Michalek
Granted, some of these players may retire, but you know Anaheim and Detroit will re-sign Nieds and Lidstrom if they don't retire.
How many teams are going to bid on Boychuk over one of these guys? Just being UFA isn't enough to get Boychuk 3+ mil. Seidenberg only got a 1 year/2.25 mil deal last offseason. Leopold only got 1 year/1.75 mil.
13 playoff games isn't enough of a sample size for Boychuk to get a large payday.
I don't think Boychuk will get that much in free agency. There are a lot of proven dmen on the market this year.
Lidstrom
Niedermayer
Kubina
Gonchar
Blake
Martin
Corvo
Volchenkov
Seidenberg
Hamhuis
Leopold
Michalek
Granted, some of these players may retire, but you know Anaheim and Detroit will re-sign Nieds and Lidstrom if they don't retire.
How many teams are going to bid on Boychuk over one of these guys? Just being UFA isn't enough to get Boychuk 3+ mil. Seidenberg only got a 1 year/2.25 mil deal last offseason. Leopold only got 1 year/1.75 mil.
13 playoff games isn't enough of a sample size for Boychuk to get a large payday.
I'll take any of those if it means Redden is gone... almost at any price.
I don't think Boychuk will get that much in free agency. There are a lot of proven dmen on the market this year.
Lidstrom
Niedermayer
Kubina
Gonchar
Blake
Martin
Corvo
Volchenkov
Seidenberg
Hamhuis
Leopold
Michalek
Granted, some of these players may retire, but you know Anaheim and Detroit will re-sign Nieds and Lidstrom if they don't retire.
How many teams are going to bid on Boychuk over one of these guys? Just being UFA isn't enough to get Boychuk 3+ mil. Seidenberg only got a 1 year/2.25 mil deal last offseason. Leopold only got 1 year/1.75 mil.
13 playoff games isn't enough of a sample size for Boychuk to get a large payday.
I can definitely see him getting that kind of an offer though and if you want him--you're probably going to be in the $3-3.5 range. Of the other d-men you mention he is younger than most, with maybe less wear on his wheels and with more potential to grow as a player. I think he's at the least going to be a solid top 4 even without much more progression.
Considering what Gilroy is getting and where Boychuk seems to be now as a player is one way to look at it. The two are close in age and Gilroy is making in th $2 mil range. Boychuk is obviously better which is to say there's almost nothing fair about this salary stuff anyway--just looking at Redden or Drury.
I can definitely see him getting that kind of an offer though and if you want him--you're probably going to be in the $3-3.5 range. Of the other d-men you mention he is younger than most, with maybe less wear on his wheels and with more potential to grow as a player. I think he's at the least going to be a solid top 4 even without much more progression.
Considering what Gilroy is getting and where Boychuk seems to be now as a player is one way to look at it. The two are close in age and Gilroy is making in th $2 mil range. Boychuk is obviously better which is to say there's almost nothing fair about this salary stuff anyway--just looking at Redden or Drury.
If we don't sign these type of players then we can never compete with the elite teams...kid is big, strong, mean and can play defense...i would take him over any of the aforementioned players.
But with Gilroy making $2mm, Redden and Rozy making a gazillion...there is no way they will spend what it will take on a defensemen....another reason to hate Sather.
I can definitely see him getting that kind of an offer though and if you want him--you're probably going to be in the $3-3.5 range. Of the other d-men you mention he is younger than most, with maybe less wear on his wheels and with more potential to grow as a player. I think he's at the least going to be a solid top 4 even without much more progression.
Considering what Gilroy is getting and where Boychuk seems to be now as a player is one way to look at it. The two are close in age and Gilroy is making in th $2 mil range. Boychuk is obviously better which is to say there's almost nothing fair about this salary stuff anyway--just looking at Redden or Drury.
If he isn't now, then his isn't going to get paid like one. All of the dmen I listed will take up a large portion of the available dollars (not to mention forwards like Kovy, Plekanec, Marleau, etc.). If a team doesn't sign Boychuk early, he'll get less money by the shear fact that there will be less money left to be spent. I can't see him being the first dman teams go after when so many other proven vets are available.
I'm all for signing him, but if he's going to be 3.5 million then no thanks. The guy hasn't even played a full year's worth of games. But I seriously doubt he'll get that much. Based on his regular season numbers, he's not going to sniff anything close to 3.5 mil. 13 playoff games where he played with Chara isn't going to increase his value that much. My guess is about 1.5 mil per year, maybe up to 2 mil per if he signs for more than 2 years.
You know who else looked like a star playing with Chara just a few years ago? WADE REDDEN!
Boychuk is a decent dman and he has made some strides. But if he was playing with another Boychuk so to speak, then he would not have looked so good. Chara covers up for a lot of his team's mistakes and does a lot of the dirty work.
I am also not sure if Boychuk is what we need. He is physical, but not Volchenkov physical. He's an ok option, but not at $3.5 or anything around that number.
If he isn't now, then his isn't going to get paid like one. All of the dmen I listed will take up a large portion of the available dollars (not to mention forwards like Kovy, Plekanec, Marleau, etc.). If a team doesn't sign Boychuk early, he'll get less money by the shear fact that there will be less money left to be spent. I can't see him being the first dman teams go after when so many other proven vets are available.
I'm all for signing him, but if he's going to be 3.5 million then no thanks. The guy hasn't even played a full year's worth of games. But I seriously doubt he'll get that much. Based on his regular season numbers, he's not going to sniff anything close to 3.5 mil. 13 playoff games where he played with Chara isn't going to increase his value that much. My guess is about 1.5 mil per year, maybe up to 2 mil per if he signs for more than 2 years.
It always seems that there's one or a few decent d-men to be had into August and sometimes even into September. Even so there are only a finite number of good d-men every summer and Boychuk looks definitely like one of those this summer--though maybe a bit more of a gamble. I think some team will take a gamble with him as far as a contract in terms of money and years because of his age and also because he has more upside/or more of an unknown potential than practically all the others. You could concievably hit a home run with him.
Hopefully this will not be the team's motto any more. First priority should be signing Staal ASAP.
The Caps did a great job today and secured one of the cornerstones of the organization's present and future for the next 10 years at close to 7mil per. I say great job because they wasted no time showing Backstrom that they aren't going to mess around and give other teams any silly ideas that they may have a chance at obtaining one of the best young pivots in the world.
The Rangers should take the same attitude/approach regarding Staal and show the kid how badly they want one of the best young defensemen to call NYC his home for the rest of his hockey career.
They're lucky they got him in the first place. He should have went at #8 that draft year (at the very least).
Huh? He's been in the mnors for most of the last 6 years and you think someone wants to pay him what? How much does Orpik make a year?
Well--let's make it clearer. I think the Rangers are going to sign at least one UFA defenseman this summer and probably not someone like Volchenkov who will probably get $5 mil or more. Boychuk is an option but maybe not the one we'll take. Whether the Rangers or someone else signs him I think that he's going to come in between $3 and 3.5. We'll wait and see on that. Whether he'll live up to the contract he gets--whether higher or lower than my estimation--is another thing.
I'll tell you this--I expect a Boychuk at that price to be a much better deal than Redden at what we're paying him. It may be overpayment but that's what happens on almost all our UFA contracts. Drury and Rozsival are two more cases of big overpayment.
Paul Mara is still an option...
There's one player I'll actually be really willing to get back in New York.
Other Options include:
Brad Lukowich ($1,566,666) - 33yo
Kurtis Foster ($600,000) - 28yo
Carlo Colaiacovo ($1,283,333) - 27yo
Jordan Leopold ($1,750,000) - 29yo
Sheldon Brookbank ($500,000) - 29yo
I would put most consideration in Carlo Colaiacovo and Sheldon Brookbank.
Colaiacovo had 7 goals, 25 assists this year, with a +8 on a team that didn't make the playoffs this year. He's also 27, so he's entering his prime, and now is time to sign him to 3 years. He probably won't come that cheap, but $2.5M - $3.0M sounds right.
Brookbank was +10 on Anaheim, a team with a -13 difference. He doesn't give much offensive contribution, but he throws the body around, and fights when necessary. He'll come really cheap.
Johnny Boychuk played with Jeff Finger and Brett Clark in the Avs minor league system. Both Finger and Clark signed new contracts worth $3.5 million when they were about to become group III UFA's. Finger played one NHL season and then signed a 4 year/$14 million deal with the Leafs. Clark signed a 3 year/$10.5 million extension with the Avs. Both players were basically journeymen but they capitalized on their improved into big contracts. They barely played in the NHL but somehow ended up with $3.5 million per. Both contracts ended up being bad contracts. The Clark contract finally ends this summer and Finger is ticketed for the AHL to finish out the remaining two seasons.
The Rangers should hang up the phone when Boychuk's agent calls on July 1.
Quote:
Johnny Boychuk, defenseman, $500,000
Despite what many believe, Johnny Boychuk's age (26) combined with games played at the NHL level means he doesn't qualify for any of the restricted free-agent requirements under the current CBA. That means that this blue liner, who made a name for himself in the playoffs with six points and a rugged style, is an unrestricted free agent on July 1 if he doesn't come to terms with the Bruins. That would leave him as fair game for any NHL team to sign, and rumor has it that unless the Bruins step up with a hefty raise, he may test the free-agent waters. Boychuk would love to stay in Boston, but while the Bruins don't have to break the bank, they have to show respect with their offer or Boychuk could be playing elsewhere next season.
