The Nashville Predators went fishing for a bigger fish in this summer's NHL UFA pool, and landed one today, signing former Florida Panthers winger Martin Gelinas to a one-year contract. Financial terms have yet to be disclosed.
Predators general manager David Poile admitted last week that he might sign a veteran unrestricted free agent player, as his payroll was still $2 million below the mandated minimum payroll requirement of $34.3 million.
We should find out shortly how much Gelina's new contract will be worth, so it'll be interesting to find out how much he got. It could be a considerable raise, as last season he made $975K with the Panthers.
Gelinas' signing with the Preds comes as a surprise, as it was believed he'd likely re-sign with the Panthers after failing to sign with either Vancouver, Calgary or Edmonton in order to stay close to his Calgary home. At least by signing in Nashville he's not two time zones away and not as far to travel back home as he was in Florida.
This is more than just a signing to get close to the cap "floor" for the Predators. At 37, Gelinas remains a very capable third line winger, capable of solid two-way play, as witnessed by his two forty-plus point seasons with the Panthers. He's also three years removed from a very impressive playoff performance with the Calgary Flames during their run to the 2004 Stanley Cup finals.
His experience and skills will make him a welcome addition to a Predators team that had dealt away several veterans in salary dumping trades.
And if Gelinas' new contract is less than $1 million, don't be surprised if Poile makes another UFA signing later this summer.
I think he will do fine in Nashville.
I feel sorry for the predators fans. They built a good team there over the years just to see it dismantled. You know it sounds alot like Edmonton in the past.
Good luck predator fans i sure liked the jersey
I'm surprised Gelinas ended up in Nashville, as it seemed his former clubs had interest and the price doesn't seem too rich. I suppose if it's like any other season he'll be traded at the deadline, as he's one of those players who always seems to step it up in the postseason.
Okay Spector. First off, the Preds need to get over the salary cap minimum, not the ceiling. Secondly, this may be a good sign for them but they still have lost way too much to even think of contending again this year. Forsberg, Vokoun, Hartnell, Timmo and Kariya. Now you take that amount of talent off of any team and see if signing Gelinas is that big of a deal.
Pipsy: First, re-read what I wrote. Twice I noted the Predators need to get over the minimum payroll requirement, or the cap "floor".
I inadvertently wrote "ceiling" in my hasty response to another poster when I meant to write "floor" (the post has since been deleted, hence the reason I'm noting it here), but in my original comments above I clearly wrote twice they needed to get above the cap floor.
And second, I didn't make a big deal about this signing, but merely pointed out Gelinas' skills and experience will make him a welcome addition to a team that lost some veteran talent due to salary dumping trades.
I'm Lyle Richardson, also known as Spector, Foxsports.com 's "Prince of Pucks".,which is based on the fact I live in Prince Edward Island, Canada and I couldn't think of a better byline. I've been an NHL hockey commentator since 1998 on my website, Spector's Hockey, and I'm a contributing writer for Foxsports.com , The Hockey News and Eishockey News. I'm also a regular on The Faceoff Hockey Show and a frequent guest on "The Late Crew" on The Team 1200 Ottawa.
