Almost a month has passed since the opening of the free agent market in the National Hockey League. Already in the first days, many clubs made a lot of deals, making new acquisitions and agreeing to extend cooperation with their players. Russian defender Dmitry Orlov and forward Ivan Barbashev were among the favorites of various ratings: the first moved to the Carolina Hurricanes, and the second, after a triumphant season, remained with the Vegas Golden Knights to chase his third Stanley Cup.
However, not all league players have secured a job for the new season. The impressive list of unrestricted free agents includes star players like Patrick Kane, but Vladimir Tarasenko remains perhaps the most talked about.
The future of the Russian striker is shrouded in many rumors, while the hockey player himself refuses to comment and prefers to enjoy his summer vacation with family and friends. For example, with Barbashev: Ivan was not allowed to take the Stanley Cup to Russia, and he celebrated his day with the trophy in the company of old acquaintances from the days of playing for the St. Louis Blues.
Meanwhile, work on finding options to continue a career in the NHL continues, albeit not as actively as expected. On the other hand, Vladimir is not at all interested in making hasty decisions. In December, the Russian will turn 32, and it is obvious that he needs to calculate everything to the smallest detail in order to provide himself with a solid contract. Possibly the last of his NHL career. And that takes time.
Already in the first days after the opening of the Tarasenko market, according to rumors, a number of offers from several league clubs followed. For example, from Carolina. But, according to the North American media, they were all rejected by the Russian striker, who clearly would like to stay with the New York Rangers, which in the current situation is almost impossible. The Blueshirts, even with a great desire to keep an experienced and star striker, are unlikely to find the necessary leverage to do this. fullscreen=»allowFullScreen» frameborder=»0″>
Later, Vladimir went to special measures and changed agents. Now the interests of the Russians in the NHL are JP Barry and Pat Brisson. The beginning of cooperation with J.P. Barry speaks of the high degree of seriousness of Tarasenko's intentions: Barry is one of the most famous and best hockey agents in the world, who made a lot of high-profile deals (for example, he knocked out an eight-year contract for Evgeni Malkin in 2013 worth $ 76 million).
JP Barry is Tarasenko's third agent in the last three years. Previously, Mike Liut handled the affairs of the Russian in the NHL, but in 2020, Vladimir trusted Paul Theofanos, who helped the Russian a lot with finding doctors to solve problems with an injured shoulder. It was Theofanos who nevertheless secured the exchange of Tarasenko from the Blues to the Rangers, albeit with a delay of a couple of years. Now, apparently, the eminent agent, who previously made rich Artemy Panarin and Kirill Kaprizov, could not meet the requirements of Vladimir.
«The market is very tough, but Vladi is definitely the best player in the market. There is no point in rushing now. The current situation is not new and now we have to go back to the beginning and look at every option that makes sense for the player. Signing a contract for one season? We have to consider everything, because with this option the player is looking for the best situation in which he can prove himself and return to negotiations for a longer contract. Teams prefer to use younger players, especially on the third and fourth lines, to maintain flexibility. But the amount of work that Tarasenko is doing is one of the decisive factors for playing in the first line. I think we should sit back for a while, collect all the information and talk to each club, «said JP Barry in an interview with The Athletic.
In the agent's statement, it is worth paying attention to the idea of a contract for a period of one year. In the new NHL season, the salary cap will rise by only one million, but then, as NHL chairman Gary Bettman predicts, it could rise by several million more. This option will allow Tarasenko to play one season in the NHL (albeit with a small salary) and count on the best deals on the free agent market in the summer of 2024. In this scenario, we can assume that the transition of Vladi in the “Carolina” is still real. From the outside, everything looks great: the Keynes have already significantly strengthened an already powerful squad, increasing the chances of a long-awaited championship, and even now they have room to maneuver in the payroll, and the club's ambitions are fully consistent with Tarasenko's aspirations. If successful, with a one-year contract, Vladimir will remain an extremely valuable asset in the market in 2024, and then he will be provided with generous offers.
But without a share of risk anywhere. Clubs look not only at the efficiency of a hockey player, but also at his health, and this element, coupled with age, is not Tarasenko's strong point. Vlady remains an elite striker and strong scorer, but three shoulder surgeries over the past few years is a label that still hangs on the Russian's name. We hope that this factor will not prevent the striker from having a stable new season, although any scenario is possible.
If Tarasenko’s side refuses the option with a one-year contract and subsequent entry into the free agent market in 2024, then perhaps the only real outcome (if you do not take into account all the same “Carolina”, which even in this situation can find a place for the player in the squad) remains Vladimir’s move from the USA to the capital of Canada. “Ottawa Senators” – the club with which the Russian connects most of the rumors in North America. The Senators' bosses even confirmed the fact of negotiations with Vlady's representatives, without going into details. The Ottawa, thanks in large part to the high-profile trade of Alex Debrinkat to the Detroit Red Wings, have no payroll problems and need to increase their offense. With young and talented Brady Tkachuk and Tim Stutzle, as well as experienced forwards Dominik Kubalik and Claude Giroud, Tarasenko's presence in the line-up can be very useful, and the first attacking threes look very nice on paper. But there is an important nuance — Ottawa has not played in the playoffs since 2017, the team is in the process of restructuring, and therefore there is no talk of winning the Stanley Cup in the near future. And this is some kind of blow to Tarasenko's ambitions. However, why shouldn't a Russian take on the role of a leader and, as a hardened veteran, lead a young and promising gang, and even provide himself with a cool contract?