Edited Apr. 20, 2021 at 1:21 a.m.
Quoting: coga16
Nah man, its not some cloak and dagger contract processing of secret meetings and conversations. There are 2 factors. Expansion Draft and Unannounced Cap space. Once at least 1 of the variables are resolved then teams can with confidence manage the cap for those players....Landeskog, Hall, Nugent Hopkins will probably all end up signing back with their teams.
and why would Landeskog want to sign with the Hawks, hes after cups. hawks are not even close to a cup team. You arent landing 2 big UFAs in the middle of a rebuild
1) There are conversations happening all the time between agents and teams that fans are completely oblivious too. I know this first hand and anybody that has played, worked for, or covered teams will tell you this. UFAs are free game and team, players and agents exploit that despite what diehard fans sometimes think. There are exceptions of course, but there are plenty more examples of UFAs leaving or taking a few weeks to sign with their current team which during that time, they are often "exploring all options".
2) Most players want a cup yes, but if it means forgoing $1M+ a year over 6+ years for a CHANCE with their immediate team, you start getting into choppy water. Not saying they'll leave to join Ottawa or Detroit but Chicago is nowhere close to those teams.
3) Blackhawks are rebuilding, but they are also the 3rd most valuable franchise in the league which equals resources, and the #2 largest fanbase with the #1 most tickets sold the last 12+ seasons (pre covid) holding a NHL record. Believe it or not, but that means a lot to players...they want the best creature comforts, training resources, facilities and they want a big fan base.
That said, players like most people are comfortable in their current environments if they've planted roots there with family, friends, etc. So in the case of Landeskog and RNH those are huge factors and likely they won't leave at least Landeskog more so.