So it's amazing but we are now in the month of August with James Neal and Bobby Ryan still unsigned. Lots of RFA movements this year as Niklas Hjalmarsson was given an offer sheet and James Wisniewski was traded for a conditional third round pick.
So why is there a lack of movement for James Neal and Bobby Ryan? It may have something to do with the summer of 2007. In the summer of 2007, Kevin Lowe gave Thomas Vanek an offer sheet of seven years and total money of $50 million. The Buffalo Sabres decided to match it.
The next thing that Lowe did may have shaped the landscape of RFAs for years to come and may explain the lack of movement in RFAs the last two years. He decided to offer Dustin Penner a five-year $21.25 million contract. Remember that? Let me remind you of what followed.
Brian Burke blew up, literally. He was so mad he yelled at the media about how he was blindsided. Essentially it boiled down to the fact that he thought there should have been proper dialogue throughout the entire process instead of just blindsiding him with that contract. Furthermore, he said he will take the draft picks and knowing the Edmonton Oilers they ...
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Article written by Imtiaz Ferdous
Why NHL RFAs Almost Never Sign Offer Sheets
August 1st, 2010 by Imtiaz Ferdous Leave a reply »
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