Hockey fans are well aware of the inflated prices free agents command on July 1, yet with trades so scarce in today’s NHL, general managers are often forced to turn to the open market — and its bidding wars — to upgrade their teams.
Granted, we’re only about 14 games into the 2014-15 campaign. And while the early returns of some of the summer signings have been fantastic, the following 10 players still need to prove to their new employers that their money was well spent.
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Matt Moulson
The deal: 5 years, $25 million
Oh, boy. A $5 million cap hit and zero goals and just two assists through 14 games. Moulson scored 36 goals the last time he played a full 82-game season with one team. Now he’s a minus-7 mired in Buffalo. Looking at the individual scoring leaderboard and seeing his old running mate, John Tavares, tied for seventh overall must add salt in the wound.
Ales Hemsky
The deal: 3 years, $12 million
General manager Jim Nill was praised for scooping up the talented winger mere hours after trading for his Ottawa linemate, Jason Spezza. But Hemsky has lost his offensive touch in Dallas. With zero goals, one assist and minus-1 rating in 13 games for a team on the outside looking in, Hemsky ranks seventh in ice time among Stars forwards.
Brian Gionta
The deal: 3 years, $12,75 million
At age 35, the former Montreal Canadiens captain was brought in more for his leadership than his production. But Gionta is a seven-time 20-goal man who once hit 48. The veteran has just one point (an assist) through 14 contests, which probably disappoints him as much as the Sabres’ brass.
Dave Bolland
The deal: 5 years, $27.5 million
Sometimes the smartest deal is the one you don’t make, right, Dave Nonis? The pricey Bolland has played four pointless games in Florida. He’s on the shelf with a pulled groin, and we’re still not convinced he’ll fully regain his stride since suffering a severed ankle tendon last season.
Benoit Pouliot
The deal: 5 years, $20 million
Classic case of a player peaking at the perfect time for his bank account. The 28-year-old Pouliot followed a career-high, 36-point season in New York with 10 more points in the Rangers’ run to the Stanley Cup Final. We know Edmonton has to pay a bit more to lure free agents, but Craig MacTavish must’ve expected more than the one goal and minus-4 performance his new winger has delivered through 13 games. Not enough value from a $4 million cap hit.
Brooks Orpik
The deal: 5 years, $27.5 million
While Washington’s fellow UFA acquisition Matt Niskanen has earned praise from coach Barry Trotz, Orpik ranks last among Caps players in plus/minus (minus-6) and first among the D-men in penalty minutes (20). He’s kept off the power-play but does kill penalties. Problem is, the Caps rank 18th in that category. Orpik is 34. How’s this deal going to look when he’s 39?
Deryk Engelland
The deal: 3 years, $8.7 million
Yes, he hits hard, but Engelland comes at a steep price for a team’s fifth-ranked D-man who leads the blueline in penalties taken. Give an assist here to T.J. Brodie and Dennis Wideman, whose nice starts make Engelland’s contract look a little uglier.
Stephane Robidas
The deal: 3 years, $9 million
It’s the term that’s excessive here. Brought in for his character, experience and smart decisions, Robidas was signed coming off two separate leg fractures, so we shouldn’t expect him to wow us out of the gate. But when you’re healthy-scratching a 37-year-old whom you’ve agreed to pay through his 40th birthday and his minutes paint him as your seventh defenceman, it’s not a good look.
Anders Lindback
The deal: 1 year, $925,000
Sure, it was a measured gamble (a cheap, one-year deal), but Nill should’ve learned from Steve Yzerman’s mistake. As an encore to his underwhelming relief performance in the Bolts’ 2014 opening-round playoff beatdown by Montreal, Lindback has posted a 4.58 GAA in two games for Dallas and has weakened his stock significantly at age 26.
Dan Boyle
The deal: 2 years, $9 million
Hard to criticize Boyle’s play, considering he only played 16 minutes with his new team before blocking a shot with his hand. But the Rangers can’t feel too lucky yet for winning a bidding war to acquire a 38-year-old defenceman.