Sam Gagner is one of the first official deals done on the morning of free agency. He’s staying with his current club, the Detroit Red Wings, on a one-year contract extension, as per an announcement by the team. Technically, he won’t be testing the open market. The 31 year-old signed a one-year $850K deal.
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Gagner has floated around the NHL as a highly-skilled prospect and a journeyman. Making stops in Edmonton, Vancouver, Columbus, Philadelphia, Arizona and Detroit, he’s always on the cusp of being an NHL regular, but is often productive relative to his cost. He scored 15 points in 42 games last season with the Red Wings.
Gagner has played in 48 games for the Red Wings since he was acquired in February of 2020 in the Andreas Athanasiou trade to Edmonton.
This deal is bound to be among the smaller bits of news on what is expected to be a very busy day in the NHL, but it’s still good to see Gagner get a deal and stick in the NHL for another season. He’ll be a leader on a young and rebuilding Red Wings team that GM Steve Yzerman hopes is much more competitive than people are giving them credit to be.
If Gagner plays well, there’s always a chance he could be moved at this year’s NHL Trade Deadline.
More details to come…
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