Tampa Bay Lightning: Grading the Erik Cernak extension as Bolts lock up another piece

Erik Cernak has just become the latest player to commit to the Tampa Bay Lightning.

It was announced today that defenseman Erik Cernak has signed a three-year contract with an Average Annual Value of $2.95 million, while fellow blueliner Jan Rutta has also extended his stay with the Tampa Bay Lightning after signing a two-year deal with an AAV of $1.3 million.

Cernak’s $8,850,000 contract will keep him in Tampa through the 2022-23 season when he will still be eligible as a RFA, while Rutta will hit the open market as a UFA once his $2,600,000 deal expires after the 2021-22 season.

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It has been a busy offseason for the Lightning who have been focussed on bringing back the majority of the roster back that helped the franchise win the Stanley Cup just a few months ago, and they now have the majority of their key pieces locked up.

Now, we’ll touch on Rutta shortly but, given his importance, we are going to focus on Cernak and his new three-year deal, before giving it a final grade.

Cernak on the rise

It has been a rapid ascension to the top for Erik Cernak who is quickly establishing himself as a key cog in this juggernaut of a Tampa Bay Lightning team.

Since being acquired in a trade from the LA Kings, along with goaltender Peter Budaj and two draft picks for goaltender Ben Bishop on Feb. 26, 2017, Cernak has improved dramatically as a player.

The 23-year-old has played in 125 NHL games with the Lightning, recording 10 goals and 18 assists for 28 points to go along with a plus / minus rating of +36, 117 penalty minutes,176 blocked shots, 370 hits and 29 Takeaways.

Cernak appeared in a career-high 67 games in 2019-20, recording 12 points (5 G, 7 A) to go along with a +11 rating, while the six-foot-three and 233 pounds blueliner ranked second on the Lightning for both hits (172) and penalty minutes (59).

The Slovakia native also ranked fourth among all Tampa Bay defensemen for ATOI during the 2019-20 Stanley Cup Playoffs with 20:43, a figure that highlights both his importance to the team and the trust he has earned from Head Coach John Cooper.

Having the luxury of playing predominantly in a top-four role with either elite defenseman Victor Hedman or the solid Ryan McDonagh, Cernak is a reliable presence in his own zone for the Lightning and he adds some toughness and grit to this team with his ability to hit like a train.

He’s a true modern-day shutdown defenseman who is improving year-on-year and he’s a good partner for a more talented player in either Hedman or McDonagh.

Plus, still only 23-years-old, Cernak is only going to get better with age and experience and he offers both physicality and the ability to move the puck out of the zone.

Grading The Trade

With still a relatively small body of work behind him, a three-year contract with an AAV of $2.95 million is a good deal for Erik Cernak and he’ll still be an RFA once it expires, so he could be in line for a bigger payday should he keep on his current trajectory.

He’ll have every chance to keep flourishing too given that he’s on an absolute juggernaut of a team that, having kept its core together, could repeat as Stanley Cup Champions in 2020-21 while they are likely to remain highly-competitive for the foreseeable future.

As for the Tampa Bay Lightning, this is another example of General Manager Julien BriseBois trying to keep the gang together as he attempts to set his team up for sustained success.

Cernak has established himself as a solid top-four defenseman for the Lightning who can play a physical brand of hockey while logging big minutes and also move the puck well.

He was second on the team in hits with 172 during the regular season and he performed well on the biggest stage during the Stanley Cup Playoffs, so $2.95 million a year for three years for a player who is only going to mature and get better is a pretty fair deal.

Now, granted, this signing does further complicate things for the Tampa Bay Lightning when it comes to the salary cap, but we will look at that more closely once we quickly assess Jan Rutta’s new deal.

Final Grade for Erik Cernak’s new contract: Grade B+