Rumor: Winnipeg Jets to make huge offer to Alex Pietrangelo in free agency

Free agency would be normally complete by this time of the summer and the newest signees would be reporting to their new teams for training camp. Instead this year we get playoff hockey through the summer and with a flat-cap for the next two seasons at $81.5 million, many top stars will have new colors and cities to play in starting October 9th. The disappointing loss of the St. Louis Blues in the first round of the playoffs this year may spell the end of captain Alex Pietrangelo's time with the Bluenotes. 

The Winnipeg Jets are in a unique position of having a ton of cap space coming off the books that would allow GM Kevin Cheveldayoff to pursue a top free agent this fall. The Jets have Dustin Byfuglien's $7.6 million and Dmitry Kulikov's $4.33 million to use in an offer for Pietrangelo if they choose. According to Sportsnet's Ken Wiebe the Jets could offer Alex Pietrangelo a short term $10 million/yr deal. The belief is Winnipeg can offer that type of money with the savings from the Byfuglien and Kulikov contracts, but can't offer a long term deal because it would not leave enough to re-sign Patrik Laine or Neal Pionk after next season. The Blues captain may be enticed to take a two year deal in hopes that the cap goes up post-pandemic. There are not too many teams with cap space to spare, so it may come down to a choice of taking a pay cut or changing addresses. This is going to be a crazy offseason with many faces in new places.


photo credit: Rich Graessle/Icon Sportswire