The madness has died down, and teams are starting to get a little more frugal with how they spend their money. The UFA pile is also down to much smaller pieces, but that doesn’t mean what’s left isn’t useful. There are plenty of intriguing names remaining, and these later signings can generally be negotiated at more of a bargain price, leading to some of the better value contracts each season. So let’s take a look at who we might be looking back on as a steal for the 2018-2019 season.

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Andrei Markov –  Montreal Canadiens

Expiring Cap Hit: $5,750,000

Expected Cap Hit: $4,500,000

Top Destinations: Chicago, St. Louis, Minnesota

Andrei Markov had played four straight full seasons before this one, and has put up over a 40 point pace in all of them (over a 50 point pace in two of them). There is plenty left in the tank for the aging Russian, and many teams would be happy to have him, as generally NHL teams can’t have too many good, mobile defencemen. The problem now is the contract. As a 38-year old, most teams won’t want to commit big dollars or term. So the best fits will be those that see Markov take a bit of a pay cut to play in a comfortable situation. This means either staying in Montreal, or joining a contending team at a discount.

With the changes to Montreal’s blueline, staying put may not be the best option for Markov. That being said, both sides have expressed favourable interest in a reunion. The holdup in a contract with Montreal has been the result of Markov being over in Russia attending a wedding. We’ll give him a pass since it was his own. However, if a contract with the Canadiens isn’t done soon, then it might be a sign that the two just can’t find the middle ground. Enter Chicago, St. Louis and Minnesota are all options. All contending teams, all in need of a left defenceman, especially Minnesota, who is currently only rostering one. Additionally, due to Chicago’s injury situation with Marian Hossa, the three teams seem to have the salary cap space to get a deal done. In all three of these landing spots, Markov would be playing second fiddle to the big guns. He could still give the 40 point plateau a run on a second pairing with some secondary power-play time, but the points pace will likely drop off this season, as will the peripherals. It remains to be seen how much, and at what price.

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Jaromir Jagr –  Florida Panthers

Expiring Cap Hit: $4,000,000

Expected Cap Hit: $2,500,000

Top Destinations: Pittsburgh, Washington, San Jose

Rumour has it that Florida has told the ageless wonder, Jaromir Jagr, that they will not be offering him a contract. If this is true, then Jagr will once again be finding himself wearing new colours come October. Jagr himself joked on twitter that no one is calling him. However, he does too many good things to not be offered at least a small one-year deal to be a power-play specialist on a contending team. Not that Pittsburgh or Washington really need help on the powerplay, but depth wingers are always great to have.

San Jose makes another intriguing fit. There is some top line wing time up for grabs, and Jagr with the mullet taking passes from Joe Thornton and his glorious beard would almost be too much to handle. Thornton re-signed with San Jose on an expensive one-year deal, effectively showing that their window to win starts closing next season. Bringing in Jagr on a cost-effective one-year deal would certainly be a push in the right direction for this club. No matter where Jagr ends up though, another 40-point season is certainly possible, and it will likely be on a bargain of a contract.

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Cody Franson –  Buffalo Sabres

Expiring Cap Hit: $3,325,000

Expected Cap Hit: $2,500,000

Top Destinations: Buffalo, New Jersey, Colorado

Why a 29-year old, right-handed shooting, 6’5”, smooth-skating defenceman can’t find work is completely beyond me. Is he asking for too much and pricing himself out? Or do NHL teams just have him on their black list for some other unknown reason? It’s impossible to say. What we do know, is that if Cody Franson signs at this point, it will be for less than he should be making, and it will be for a team that needs him. He is an underappreciated asset, and someone will be looking back in December thinking how lucky they are to have signed him so cheaply in the second half of July.

All three of New Jersey, Colorado, and Buffalo have a need for defencemen, have the cap space to easily fit Franson in, and really have nothing to lose at this point. Colorado has only three NHL defencemen under contract right now. Franson can’t be worse than three pylons can he? In all seriousness, Franson is capable of putting up solid numbers on a second defensive pair. For your fantasy squad, he can add some great peripheral numbers in the right situations, pacing himself most seasons to over 100 hits and a block per-game.

Recent news has it that Franson has an agreement with Chicago to come to their training camp on a professional tryout offer, however the likelihood is that someone finds room for him before it gets to that point.

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Thomas Vanek –  Detroit Red Wings

Expiring Cap Hit: $2,600,000

Expected Cap Hit: $1,750,000

Top Destinations: Los Angeles, Florida, Minnesota*

Thomas Vanek was very well utilized at the start of last season with Detroit. He was given an offensive role, slightly sheltered minutes, and he paid dividends. He was on the Capped bargain list of UFAs last season, and could find himself there again should he be able to procure another contract. At this point no one is overpaying for the big winger who has trouble holding his own in the defensive end, however as a depth piece on a bubble team, there is still value to be found.

Enter Los Angeles and Florida, as two teams with bottom-six winger slots open, as well as enough cap space and incentive to get a deal done. Vanek’s production would be better off in Los Angeles, where he has less competition for the easier minutes than in Florida with all the youngsters coming through the pipeline.

On the surface, Minnesota seems like another possible option; cap space, contending team, lots of insulation on forward but uncertainty in the depth positions are all reasons why. Ironically enough, Minnesota is probably the least likely spot for Vanek to end up. For him to sign with the Wild, it would require a team to actually swallow pride, and openly accept mockery. Why is this? Well Minnesota is currently paying Vanek $2.5 million this season in buyout money, so that he doesn’t play for them. Say Vanek signs for $1.5 million in Minnesota, even though that would be a great deal, he would be paid $4 million this season, the majority of it with the purpose of having him not play for them. Hockey finances can be very strange sometimes.

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As always, you can find me on twitter @alexdmaclean where I post some of my other smaller musings that don’t make it into the articles.