Jim Rutherford recently stated that he was going to keep his eye on the market for one more value priced forward. Who could he be referring to? There are still quite a few decent players left but some of them can be eliminated because of the money. With the Hurricanes already past the limits of their budget at the present time, it's doubtful they will go over a million dollars. So who do they want and who could they get?
These are some of the forwards available:
- Alex Tanguay - 16G 25A Last Year's salary - 5.3 Million
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Brendan Shanahan - 6G 8A salary - 800 Thousand
- Mike Grier - 10G 13A salary - 1.775 Million
- Petr Sykora - 25G 21A salary - 2.5 Million
- Michael Peca - 4G 18A salary - 1.3 Million
- Taylor Pyatt - 10G 9A salary - 1.575 Million
- Robert Lang - 18G 21A salary - 4 Million
- Rob Niedermayer - 14G 7A salary - 2 Million
- Miroslav Satan - 17G 19A salary - 3.5 Million
- Jason Williams - 19G 28A salary - 2.2 Million
- Mats Sundin - 9G 19A salary - 5.6 Million
- Manny Malhotra - 11G 24A salary - 1.5 Million
- Blair Betts - 6G 4A salary - 615 Thousand
- Mike Comrie - 10G 17A salary - 4 Million
- Vaclav Prospal - 19G 26A salary - 3.5 Million
- Dominic Moore - 13G 32A salary - 900 Thousand
- Patrick Eaves - 6G 8A salary - 1.4 Million
The Canes are in need of a fourth line center, but would probably take any fourth line prototype forward if it was the right player. You can eliminate Tanguay, Lang, Satan, Sundin, Comrie, Prospal, and Sykora right off the bat because they are not fourth line players and it would take too much money to sign them.
Close but no cigar?
Shanahan would probably never accept a fourth line role. Grier would be a great choice but would need to take a major pay cut. Peca is a center, but probably is not at the top of the list because of his age. Niedermayer has been rumored to be on Carolina's short list, but how much of a pay decrease would he take? Jason Williams also plays center but is probably looking for a third line role.
Best chances?
- Malhotra might be near the top of the list but he is reportedly looking for a raise. His numbers really do not warrant much of one.
- Pyatt has got to be on the list with his size and grit, but he would also need to take a bit of a pay cut.
- Moore is a center but is also looking for a raise. The problem is he did nothing to earn one with his lackluster performance in Buffalo after the trade deadline last season.
- Betts is a center but might be the final option.
- With JR's love of player recycles, the return of Eaves is always a possibility.
What do you think?