Nikita Kucherov's next contract with the Tampa Bay Lightning just got a lot more complicated.
Elliotte Friedman flagged the situation in his 32 Thoughts column on Friday, and it wasn't a small detail.
Friedman said not much information gets out of Lightning camp when it comes to Kucherov's negotiations. But he floated a theory anyway.
His guess? The post-Leo Carlsson world has changed the dynamic entirely.
Carlsson signed for $18,000,000 annually with the Anaheim Ducks this offseason. It's the richest cap hit in the league right now.
That number sits over every negotiating table in hockey now. Kucherov is no exception.
He's been the engine of this Lightning team for over a decade. Tampa Bay doesn't have anyone waiting in the wings to replace that kind of production.
Carlsson's mega deal becomes Tampa Bay's new problem
Julien Brisebois has navigated plenty of cap pressure since taking over as GM back in 2018. This is a different animal.
Think of it like a housing market. One massive sale down the street resets what every other house on the block is worth.
That's essentially what Carlsson's deal just did to winger contracts across the league.
Jon Cooper's group heads into tonight's game against the Nashville Predators with this storyline hanging over the room.
Kucherov hasn't said a word publicly. Neither has Brisebois.
And that silence is exactly what Friedman was pointing at. Letting speculation like this simmer through camp isn't great business.
Fans in Tampa deserve more clarity than a guessing game from a national insider.
Is Brisebois quietly building toward a number nobody in Florida wants to hear? Nobody outside that front office actually knows.
-
Friedman's read is a guess, not a report. But his guesses have a habit of aging well.
Should the Lightning be prepared to pay Nikita Kucherov near Leo Carlsson's $18 million cap hit?
Also read on Markerzone.com:
Elliotte Friedman reveals massive Connor Hellebuyck trade offer Jets rejected
