Mike Ribeiro has rejected a contract extension offer from the Nashville Predators, reports Adam Vingan of The Tennessean Friday.
While general manager David Poile locked up his other priority forward, Mike Fisher, on draft day, Ribeiro wishes to gauge his value elsewhere.
The forward’s agent, Don Meehan, told Vingan that his client will entertain interest from competing clubs during the interview period for unrestricted free agents.
Although no counteroffer had been delivered as of Friday morning, the two sides will continue to communicate as July 1 approaches.
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“We’re both flexible and open-minded to more than one year,” Poile told the outlet.
“The most important thing is does he want to play in Nashville more than he wants to play anywhere else? I can only offer what I think is right and fair and what we have available. He has to make a decision whether this fits for he and his family, just like he did last year.”
Poile took a chance on Ribeiro last summer, after the forward was bought out by the Arizona Coyotes due to what Coyotes GM Don Maloney called “behavioural issues.” Ribeiro, 35, is fighting sexual assault charges from his former nanny.
The centre led the Predators in assists (47) in 2014-15 and scored five points in six playoff games, earning every penny of his $1.05-million, one-year salary.
“I would love to be back,” Ribeiro told reporters after Nashville was eliminated from the playoffs by the eventual champion Chicago Blackhawks.
“There’s always Plan A, B and C in this situation,” Poile told The Tennessean, “so if Mike’s not going to sign with us, we already have other things in the works.”