Two years ago, Alex Chiasson entered free agency in an ideal situation. He was coming off his first season with Edmonton and had a career year which gave him considerably more leverage than he had the year before when he hit the open market. That landed him a two-year deal to stay with the Oilers but things haven’t gone as well since then so the veteran has hit free agency in a different situation than he had last time.
After his first season with the Oilers, it looked as if the 30-year-old was finally living up to the potential he had shown in flashes in his previous stops. 22 goals in 73 games is certainly decent for someone who had largely been a role player up to that point but unfortunately for him and the Oilers, Chiasson was only able to manage 20 goals over the last two seasons combined, spanning 110 contests.
Still, Chiasson stands 6’3 and has shown a bit of a scoring touch with the man advantage, tallying 19 goals over his three seasons with Edmonton. While he certainly wasn’t a play driver on their power play, he still filled a useful role on it. Between the size and power play ability, he’s an intriguing depth option for teams even if he doesn’t fill the prototypical style that many teams covet in their bottom six (physical with an ability to kill penalties).
Stats
2020-21: 45 GP, 9-7-16, -10 rating, 33 PIMS, 65 shots, 45.6 CF%, 12:29 ATOI
Career: 564 GP, 101-101-202, -40 rating, 329 PIMS, 798 shots, 48.1 CF%, 13:51 ATOI
Potential Suitors
How much Chiasson wants will largely dictate his market. If he’s willing to back to playing for close to the league minimum, he becomes an intriguing pickup for some cap-strapped teams that are looking for an incremental boost. Otherwise, his options will be limited to teams that project to have ample cap space that could also be open to taking a flyer on him rediscovering that scoring touch from two years ago. For this exercise, we’ll look at the teams with cap space and assume that a cheap deal isn’t on the table just yet.
In the East, the Devils have been quite active already this summer but someone like Chiasson would add some more offensive upside to their depth forwards and they still have plenty of cap space to bring him in. The Blue Jackets don’t have a lot of firepower in their bottom six and also have ample cap room for the winger. One of his former teams in the Senators could have a use for Chiasson if they want a younger forward to get some more development time with AHL Belleville as well.
Out West, the Wild should still have enough cap room by the time they re-sign their two big RFAs to add Chiasson in a depth role. The Predators are currently projected to have some inexperienced players in their bottom six and could use Chiasson as a piece to allow someone to spend more time in the minors. The Avalanche didn’t really replace Joonas Donskoi and while Chiasson is at a lower level than he is, he’s someone that can move up into the top six at times if needed and Colorado still has a bit of wiggle room with their cap.
Projected Contract
Chiasson ranked 47th on our Top 50 UFA list with a projected two-year, $3.2MM contract. At this point, landing that contract seems unlikely as at this point of free agency, teams are bargain shopping and won’t be swayed by that 22-goal campaign. A one-year pact that’s closer to $1MM may be more realistic now and considering his power play production with Edmonton, he could be an interesting pickup for several teams at that price point.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Chiasson’s stick is where many plays for the Oilers decided to die the last 2 years. When even Edmonton doesn’t want you in their bottom 6 you know there is something wrong.
Well, Alex, here’s some sound advice from your friends at PHR — don’t piddle-fart around here, the Cap Cannibals are always hungry and there might not be enough scraps for you if you wait too long…