The free agent period is now less than one month away from opening up and there are several prominent players set to hit the open market while many teams have key restricted free agents to re-sign. Here is a breakdown of Anaheim’s free agent situation.
Key Restricted Free Agent: F Nicolas Kerdiles – While most teams have several RFAs to re-sign, the Ducks are one of the exceptions. Kerdiles was the lone pending RFA to see NHL action this season so he gets the spot by default. The former second round pick (36th overall in 2012) made his NHL debut in the regular season, getting into a single game. He made a strong impression though as they also used him in four postseason contests where he recorded his first career point. Kerdiles is coming off his entry-level deal and is not arbitration eligible. His cap hit in Anaheim this season was $925K on a two-way deal and it wouldn’t be surprising to see him take a lower NHL payday in exchange for a higher guarantee in the minors than the $70K he received.
Other RFAs: G Kevin Boyle, F Emerson Etem, G Ryan Faragher, D Jaycob Megna
Key Unrestricted Free Agents: F Patrick Eaves – The Ducks wound up giving up a first round pick to Dallas to secure Eaves just before the trade deadline and he made quite a strong impression, scoring 11 goals in just 20 games. He was off to a solid start to his postseason as well, tallying two goals and two assists in his first seven contests before suffering a high ankle sprain that kept him out for the rest of the playoffs.
Eaves is coming off a bargain contract worth just $1MM and will greatly surpass that in free agency. Between Dallas and Anaheim, he scored 32 goals, only the second time that he had 15 or more in a single season. That will likely prevent him from commanding top money as a 30 goal player often does but he has shown himself to be capable of playing a top six role and many teams around the league will have taken notice.
G Jonathan Bernier – Anaheim added Bernier from the Maple Leafs to replace Frederik Andersen (after nearly half his salary was paid by Toronto via a signing bonus) and he put up his best numbers since 2013-14. His finish wasn’t as strong as he was pressed into action in the third round and took the loss in the final two games to Nashville. He won’t be able to get the $4.15MM he earned on his last contract but Bernier projects to be one of the better backup goalies available on the open market.
Other UFAs: F Spencer Abbott, F Sam Carrick, G Jhonas Enroth, D Nate Guenin, G Matt Hackett, D Korbinian Holzer, D Jeff Schultz, F Nate Thompson
Projected Cap Space: With 22 players already under contract, most of Anaheim’s payroll is already committed for next season to the tune of just shy of $70.7MM per CapFriendly. As a result, they’ll be hard-pressed to keep Eaves in the fold unless they shed some salary either via trade or through the expansion draft. It’s likely to be a fairly quiet offseason for the Ducks.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.