Here is another interesting article on why Kessel remains unsigned by any team. This approach does seem to make sense. There hasn't been any offers from other clubs and the Bruins can just sit and wait and if there is an offer they match it. I wonder how long this game of cat and mouse is going to go on?
While Phil Kessel continues to swing gently in the barely stirring breezes of restricted free agency, the Bruins go calmly about the rest of their business these days, unconcerned that their leading goal-scorer of last season could be tempted by some outrageous offer sheet at any moment.
That may be disconcerting to some in Bruins Nation, but there’s a very good reason general manager Peter Chiarelli has been so willing to let Kessel dangle out there like some oversized carrot on a string for the last week and a half: Because he knows it’s unlikely “Phil the Thrill” will get an offer the B’s can’t match.
Though Kessel scored a team-high 36 goals in just 70 games last season, there seem to be enough questions about the 21-year-old forward’s leaky defense, his lack of a physical game, and his allegedly weak role in the team dynamic, as well as the NHL’s shaky economic and salary-cap climate, to dissuade any team from bidding more than $5 million a year or so for the former University of Minnesota star.
And while Chiarelli might feel Kessel is worth more along the lines of a David Krejci ($3.75 million a year) than, say, a Brian Gionta ($5 million a year from Montreal), the Boston GM wouldn’t hesitate to match either offer. If you’re thinking match-and-trade, forget it — the NHL prohibits trading a player for one year after matching an offer to him — but that doesn’t mean Chiarelli couldn’t unload someone else to make space available.
There’s also the compensation issue for Kessel’s suitors to consider. If they offer him more than $6 million a year (actually, over $6,026,867) and the Bruins don’t match, Boston would get two first-round draft picks, a second-rounder and a third-rounder. If the offer is more than $7.5 million, the compensation would be four first-round picks.
Rest assured there’s not a GM alive who thinks Kessel is worth that much in salary and damages.
On the other hand, the one thing the Bruins lack is a go-to offensive guy, someone they can count on to put the puck in the net in the clutch, a take-over-the-game player. And Kessel could be that guy.
The B’s were right to give up on Joe Thornton because of his frequent malaise and his playoff paralysis, but Kessel has shown signs of being someone they can lean on in the postseason. Besides his 66 goals in three seasons, Kessel has 15 points (including nine goals) in 15 playoff games, with a plus-8 rating.
That’s something he and the Bruins can, and should, build on.
[Telegram.com]
No comments:
Post a Comment