Free Agent Profile: Travis Hamonic

It wasn’t that long ago that Travis Hamonic was viewed as a core defenseman.  While things have changed a bit since then (especially with mobility and offensive skills becoming more important from the back end), he’s still a capable shutdown defender.  That’s why he was ranked as the 13th-best UFA in this class, sixth among blueliners.  The five in front of him signed relatively quickly but as we approach the first full month of this offseason, Hamonic remains unsigned.

It’s not as if teams aren’t on the lookout for a right-shot defender that can play more than 20 minutes a night either.  That’s something that just about every team in the league can use.

So why is Hamonic still unsigned?  He didn’t help his cause during the regular season when he had just a dozen points in 50 games.  Again, the 30-year-old is more of a stay-at-home player but that output is still pretty low for someone who played over 21 minutes a night.  The fact that he opted out of the NHL’s Return to Play for family reasons also lingers, not in the sense that prospective suitors are holding that against him but that it may be affecting his willingness to commit somewhere at this time.

But while he’s never going to light up the scoresheet, Hamonic can still play solid defense, kill penalties, and block shots.  That’s still a role that should be in considerable demand around the league but with the UFA market slowing to a crawl at the moment, it appears he may be waiting a little while yet before signing somewhere.

Potential Suitors

There are multiple situations where Hamonic could be a fit for teams.  Quite a few will be hoping to add an impact defender over the next couple of months and he would fit the bill.  If he wants to take a shot at a Stanley Cup, there are contending teams that would find a spot for him at the right price tag.  And if he wants to take a one-year deal at the most money possible, as arguably the best defenseman still available, that type of contract should eventually become available as well.

In the Eastern Conference, the Flyers really haven’t completely filled the vacancy created by Matt Niskanen’s sudden retirement.  They brought back Justin Braun but he’s better served in more of a depth role and while they also brought in Erik Gustafsson, he’s nowhere near as good of a defensive player as Niskanen was.  Hamonic could step into that void.  Detroit could certainly use him as someone on their second pair behind Filip Hronek which would shift Troy Stecher into a third-pairing role which may be his best spot and cap space won’t be an issue for them.  Cap room also isn’t an issue for the Devils who could use a stabilizing defensive presence to help counter some of their more offensively-aggressive blueliners.

Out West, Hamonic’s hometown team in Winnipeg certainly should be a suitor.  While they were able to retain deadline acquisition Dylan DeMelo, they still have a defense corps that’s in need of some improvement.  With the announcement that Bryan Little has been told not to play this season, the Jets will have some LTIR space at their disposal which could be used to bring the blueliner in.  The Kings have plenty of cap space and could certainly stand to improve their back end, even with its relative strength being on the right side.  On a short-term deal, in particular, that might be a fit.  Dallas has a question mark with regards to the health of Stephen Johns; if he is expected to be LTIR-bound once again, Hamonic would represent a potential short-term replacement and upgrade if the Stars opt to dip into that.  (With their potential bonuses, it’s not a guarantee that they would.)

Of course, there are quite a few other teams where Hamonic would be a key player but would need to free up cap room in order to do so.  Given how difficult that is proving to be this offseason, it’s difficult to classify any of them as possible suitors at this time.

Projected Contract

When our initial projections came out, we had Hamonic receiving a three-year, $12.5MM deal.  That AAV wasn’t much higher than the deal he just finished while being lower than the salary he received in each of the last four seasons.  Even in a deflated market, that price tag seemed doable.

That doesn’t appear to be the case now as while a few teams still have money they’re willing to spend, they can afford to look for bargains.  Hamonic’s case is bolstered in that he is a top player at his position left on the open market which should help him a bit but a pay cut appears to definitely be on the horizon.  If Hamonic takes a one-year deal, a $3.5MM salary may be his ceiling with the price tag dipping if he signs for longer.  He should still wind up with a decent contract but he will eventually be added to the ever-growing list of players that will wind up with less than they expected.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.