The Ottawa Senators locked up a key part of their roster on
Friday, re-signing forward Chris Kelly to a four-year $8.5 million contract,
breaking down as just over $2.1 million per season against their cap.
Kelly was eligible for unrestricted free agency in July and
it had been speculated the Senators might lose him to the UFA market because of
cap constraints. He’s a versatile checking forward who can play center or wing
and also chip in offensively.
His signing could make it tougher however for the Senators
to find sufficient cap space to re-sign key free agents such as Andrej
Meszaros, Antoine Vermette, Cory Stillman and Mike Commodore.
Where Kelly is most important for the Sens is on the PK. He'll be especially important if they lose Vermette - the prospect of losing Kelly might have been one of the things holding the Sens back from moving Vermette who also has an important PK role.
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.
