Tampa Bay Lightning general manager Julien BriseBois is doing his best to lower the expectations of fans when it comes to a big free-agent splash. Honestly, based on the talent available, there is no reason for anyone’s expectations to be above mildly intrigued by this class. If all the Lightning do is re-sign Darren Raddysh, an argument can be made that they nabbed one of the top players available.
That’s not fun, though, right? The Lightning have some cash, well, cap space, and some needs. So why not speculate on some players that might help their roster remain one of the best in the Eastern Conference. Today, we take a look at Seattle’s Eeli Tolvanen.
Well, that chart wasn’t as pretty as we thought it would be for a player that had 12 goals and 24 assists while averaging 16:02 of ice time. Charts aren’t everything, and there is some reason to think that the 27-year-old could fit into the Lightning system and help them out a little.
First off, he plays all three aspects of the game. In his 16 minutes a night, he averaged roughly a minute on the penalty kill and just under two minutes on the power play. He finished fourth on the Kraken with 14 points with the extra skater, scoring 5 goals and adding 9 assists. Does he address the need for a right-handed shot on the top unit? No, but he would add some depth to the second unit, or give them another option if they want to go all left-handed with the forward group – something they’ve done at times throughout the season.
His best value likely comes at 5v5, especially if the Lightning want to continue playing the heavy, physical style of play they adopted this year. Tolvanen was second on the Kraken with 187 hits and also blocked 81 shots. Zemgus Girgensons was the only Lightning player to have more hits than Tolvanen, so the former Nashville draft pick would bring some physicality to the Bolts.
There is also some reason to think that Tolvanen had a bit of bad luck last season. He scored 12 goals on an expected goals of 15.82. His 294 shot attempts would have ranked fifth on the Lightning last season as well. He also doesn’t mind shooting from in front of the net, something Lightning players often decide against. The native of Finland doesn’t rack up a ton of high-danger chances (NHL Edge stats had him in the bottom half of the league) but he does get a lot of shots off from the mid-danger range, and he does have a strong enough shot to beat goaltenders from there.
The big question will be cost. Tolvanen is coming off of a two-year contract that carried a $3.475 million AAV. If Charlie Coyle’s deal is any indication, players that can produce at the middle-six level will probably land a contract in the $5-$7 million AAV range. That’s probably on the high end of what the Lightning would be willing to spend in free agency, especially if they have designs on signing Raddysh to a market-level deal.
At the right price Tolvanen could be an intriguing pick-up, but there might just be too much demand for him om the free agent market.
Hockey News
Matthew Schaefer wins Calder Trophy [Lighthouse Hockey]
It’s not really a surprise that the Islanders’ defenseman won the Calder Trophy, but the fact that it was unanimous was at least a little shocking. Not since Teemu Selanne in 1993 has a player received all of the first-place votes for rookie of the year. Congratulations to him.
Leafs fire Craig Berube [Pension Plan Puppets]
As we continue to write about things that don’t surprise us, the Toronto Maple Leafs parted ways with their head coach, Craig Berube. He may be a “tremendous coach and an even better person” in the words of new general manager John Chayka, but he’s not tremendous enough to keep coaching the Leafs. As of right now, the Leafs are technically the only team with a vacancy. Although the Kings and Golden Knights have interim coaches at the helm. It also sounds like Chris Knoblach’s run in Edmonton might be drawing to a close.
Tappara wins the Liiga title [Tappara]
The most decorated club in Finnish hockey history added another title, and it was Lightning prospect Benjamin Rautiainen helping them along the way as he assisted on the eventual game-winning goal, scored by Joachim Blichfeld. After leading the league in scoring during the regular season, Rautiainen added another 7 points (1 goal, 6 assists) in the postseason. He has one more season on his current contract.
Brayden McNabb suspended for one game [NHL Department of Player Safety]
The DoPS has been quite busy handing out fines and suspensions lately. They’ve added another suspension as Vegas’ Brayden McNabb is sitting out Game 6 after he buried Ryan Poehling into the boards well after the play had left the area.
PWHL expanding to Las Vegas and Hamilton [The Ice Garden]
As Montreal and Ottawa get ready to battle for the Walter Cup, the league announced their two newest franchises. Hamilton, Ontario is finally getting a professional hockey team almost 20 years after Jim Balsille tried to but the Predators and move them there. Meanwhile, Las Vegas continues to collect professional sports franchises like they’re Infinity Stones. They join Detroit as expansion franchises expected to begin play in the 2026-27 season.
Avalanche 4, Wild 3 (OT) [Colorado wins series 4-1]
