Inside the NHL’s restricted free agent waiting game

Mathew Barzal of the New York Islanders

The New York Islanders currently have about $3.9 million in cap space. That is with only 21 players, NHL rosters are maxed out at 23. The Isles are in trouble because one of the forwards counting against them is the unsigned Mathew Barzal, who remains a restricted free agent. The former Calder Memorial Trophy recipient is going to make more than $4 million. The math does not add up for New York.

In two of his three seasons, we can reasonably say that Barzal is a point per game player. The outlier was still 60 points in 80 games, very respectable still. Based on production Barzal is comparable to Sebastian Aho of the Carolina Hurricanes, who makes $8.45 million per season, or Johnny Gaudreau of the Calgary Flames, who makes $6.75 million per season. Barzal is obviously due for a raise from his entry-level contract salary of $832,500.

Personally, I would like to see Barzal stay on Long Island. The more competitive teams there are in the big market cities, the better for hockey. That being said, to make a deal with Barzal, another player would most likely have to be moved out. At a glance, any move made to free up money would hurt.

Possible moves include buying out 36-year-old defenseman Johnny Boychuck who is owed $6 million in each of the next two seasons or moving out some bottom-six depth like Casey Cizikas or Leo Komarov, who are each signed for a cost of over $3 million annually. All three of those options would sting the fanbase and seemingly the team’s chemistry as well.