Will put up some posts in the next few days on each of the Caps’ unrestricted and restricted free agents – Brooks Laich, Jason Arnott, Marco Sturm, Matt Bradley, Boyd Gordon and Scott Hannan are the big UFAs with Sean Collins also hitting the open market.
The biggest decision seems to be Laich, a versatile presence who played both wing spots and center during the 2010-11season. He’s been here through the entire rebuild, 470 games alone since the NHL returned from the lockout. Acquired in the Peter Bondra deal on Feb. 18, 2004, Laich has become a fan favorite. Are they really willing to let him go?
The problem, as always, is money. How much does Laich want and what is the team willing to spend? He had a salary-cap hit of 2,066,067. Presumably he and agent Roland Thompson are seeking a raise. Laich’s numbers dipped this season to 16 goals and 32 assists (48 points). But he had a career-high 59 points the year before (25 goals) and 53 in 2008-09 (23 goals).
Laich led all Washington forwards in short-handed time on ice per game (2:18). But he was also sixth on the team in power-play ice time (2:59). He was durable, playing all 82 games, and led the team with 1.69 goals against per 60 minutes of play, according to the web site Behind the Net. Well, Marco Sturm was technically better in that category, but he didn’t arrive until late February so that doesn’t count. So what’s important to Laich heading into the free-agent process, which would begin July 1 if the two sides don’t agree to a new deal?
“Well, Saskatchewan is pretty cheap place to live,” he cracked at the team’s getaway day on Thursday. “The funnest time of year is playing playoff hockey. You grow up dreaming of that, a chance to win, and I think that chance to win is here. I’ve been here for six years. This organization gave me my shot and turned me into an NHL player so I definitely have some sentiment there. But you know, we’ll have to see what they think. It’s up to Washington if they want to make a change or not.”
That sounds like a man keeping his options open. Laich will certainly draw interest on the open market. His versatility helps, for sure. But it would be difficult to let what amounts to a homegrown piece – Laich began his career in Ottawa before the Bondra trade – go for nothing. Plus, there are already holes at second and fourth-line center pending the free-agent status of Arnott and Gordon. That’s a lot of holes to fill with about $9.2 million in cap space.
“I don’t know what they’re thinking. We haven’t discussed anything like that,” Laich said. “I’ll discuss it with my agent and my family and we’ll see what happens. For the most part it’s out of my control now. You have an agent that negotiates for you and I just hope at the end of the day that there’s a hockey team that allows me to play hockey next year.”
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