For many it was a major shocker to see both Ryan Suter and Zach Parise sign monster deals to play with the Minnesota Wild. I’ve got to be honest, it didn’t stun me all that much, but I was pleasantly surprised by something else.
How refreshing is it to see all of the usual suspects be denied in the hunt for higher profile unrestricted free agents this off season?
Sorry Rangers! Not a chance Maple Leafs! Denied Detroit! Nope Philly! Thanks for coming. All the big teams, who always seem to try to outspend the other teams in the NHL, got scooped by a smaller market team — and I love it!
Cash is still king in the NHL, but players appear to be more open to looking at new markets where there’s a new level of excitement. They’re even looking at places that might have been considered less sexy a few years ago.
In the case of both Parise and Suter, family played a huge part in determining their final destinations. Parise is a native of Minnesota and Suter is from Wisconsin plus his wife is from Bloomington. It’s really quite simple: A player can make big dough, make it close to home, and make the family as happy as possible. That’s a win, win, win situation for everybody.
But there’s more. How about defenseman Matt Carle hooking up with a smaller market team in the Tampa Bay Lightning, once again avoiding all the big boys? Plus you can add to that list NCAA star Justin Schultz as he chose Edmonton over a lot of those other big guys.
The little teams are having their day in the sun and there’s nothing like watching the big boys squirm a little. No idea how long this will last, but I’m going to sit back and enjoy it for awhile. This has been fun.