The Tampa Bay Lightning were in the news often and early on free agency day. They started out their day be waiving Tyler Johnson and then got in on the action of signing players. Only, they didn’t sign unrestricted free agents. They signed two of their own players.
The Lighting extended offers to and signed both forward Patrick Maroon and defenseman Luke Schenn.
Maroon gets a two-year deal worth $900K per season and Schenn signs for one year at $800K. Both are incredibly team-friendly deals but both players might have been in tough to do much better on the open market where there seems to be a lot more available than teams have money to spend.
Schenn is a depth piece that almost worked himself out of the NHL but showed in Tampa he could play a defined role. Maroon has been looking for a multi-year deal after signing single-season contracts later in free agency for the past couple of years.
Maroon Going for the Three-Peat
If Maroon can win again with the Lightning. Head coach Jon Cooper said, “I’d give guys roles and make sure they all know what they are, and he knows his. He’s got character, and he is a character. It’s two good attributes to have.” Clearly, he felt Maroon’s role was important enough to make sure it was played in Tampa for two more seasons.
Next: Henrik Lundqvist Signs One-Year Deal With Capitals
