NHL Free Agents: 5 Players Bound For Professional Tryout Offer (PTO)
By Ryan Ritchie
NHL Free Agents: 5 Players That Will Likely Need to Earn a Contract Through Professional Tryout Offer (PTO)
Numerous NHL free agents remain on the open market. Some of them will soon be signed to a new contract, while the rest battle it out in training camp. Professional tryout offers (PTOs) are becoming increasingly popular nowadays. It forces players to earn a roster spot if they want a new deal.
For the most part, these players who impress sign a short one to two-year six figure deal (less than $1 million dollars). It works particularly well for rebuilding teams who at worst can sign a low-risk one year deal that immediately comes off the books if the player doesn’t perform. Best case scenario, a PTO signing turns into assets coming back near the deadline as other teams look for rental help.
The players that often find themselves in a PTO scenario are those coming off a very disappointing season, usually because of performance or injuries.
Lee Stempniak is a great example. After fading away for a couple of years, all he could find was a PTO with New Jersey at the start of 2015-16. He managed to re-establish himself, earn the Devils extra assets, and sign a new contract this summer.
Below are five of the bigger NHL free agents still available that could find themselves in a professional tryout offer scenario.
NHL Free Agents: 5 Players Bound for Professional Tryout Offer (PTO)
RW Radim Vrbata
After scoring 20 goals (51 points) with the Coyotes in 2013-14, followed by 31 goals (63 points) with Vancouver in 2014-15, a 13-goal 27-point performance in 2015-16 was beyond disappointing.
To be fair, Vrbata was battling injuries and only appeared in 63 games, but GM Jim Benning was unable to find a trade partner at the deadline (which speaks volumes about his dip in play).
A five-time 20+ goal scorer, Vrbata is a proven NHL sniper. Concerns over the wear and tear on the 35-year-old veteran is enough to make him a PTO candidate.
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C R.J. Umberger
If Umberger doesn’t sign a new contract prior to training camp, it might be safe to assume he can earn a new deal on a PTO. Injuries have been a concern in recent years, but R.J. is taking the necessary steps this offseason to get his body back to an elite level.
Since he only appeared in 106 games over the past two seasons (39 in 2015-16), it’s understandable if teams are hesitant to even hand him a one-year deal before seeing that he’s healthy and still capable of producing.
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LW Tuomo Ruutu
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Ruutu served as a core piece in the Hurricanes lineup for several years. Between Chicago and Carolina, Tuomo was a six-time 15+ goal scorer.
The feisty power forward has unfortunately seen his game diminish over the past few seasons after joining New Jersey. He posted a disappointing 13 points in 2014-15, and missed two-thirds of the 2015-16 season (33 games played).
Five years removed from the last time he topped 15 goals – 30 points, don’t expect teams to have much interest in signing Ruutu. There might however be a few teams intrigued to see if the extra rest last season might rejuvenate the 33-year-old veteran.
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LHD Dennis Seidenberg
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If you were to ask Bruins fans, they would tell you this was fully expected. In fact, it was the signing of Seidenberg that essentially pushed Johnny Boychuk out-of-town.
Dennis only appeared in 34 games back in 2013-14, and again missed time to injury in 2015-16 only suiting for 61 games.
A proven two-four defender for many years, Seidenberg’s overall game has been on a slight decline over the past few seasons.
At 35-years-old, there might still be a bit left in the tank, and given his skill-set, there’s bound to be a few teams willing to offer him a PTO.
LW Lauri Korpikoski
This former Rangers 1st overall pick disappointed early in his career, but eventually blossomed down in the Desert with the Coyotes. He had a single season career-high of 19 goals (40 points) in 2010-11. After his production began to dip slightly in 2013-14 and 2014-15, Lauri was traded to Edmonton in June 2015 for Boyd Gordon.
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Safe to call his 2015-16 campaign with the Oilers a complete disaster. He had 10 goals, 12 assists (22 points) in 71 games, looking completely out a place far too often. Lauri Korpikoski is only 30-years-old, so there’s still hope that he can re-establish himself, although some might be wondering if he can even keep up anymore.