Latest News: Lightning Extension Candidates Steven Stamkos Name Omitted Due to

Although the Tampa Bay Lightning are not yet in the summer, they have already started their season-long preparations.

Thus far, they have signed 2021 seventh-round selection Niko Huuhtanen to an entry-level contract and inked forward Mitchell Chaffee to a two-year deal.

Still, that’s only the start. Key players on the Lightning roster still need to be figured out. Re-signing Steven Stamkos is one that stands out.

This offseason, that’s the big thing. However, this is about more than just his contractual condition. The Lightning must resign or extend the contracts of the following four players this offseason.

Hedman Victor

With yet another seasoned member of the team, the Lightning can still escape yet another issue.Victor Hedman signed an eight-year contract in 2016, of which he has one year remaining. After 15 seasons as a Bolt, it seems sense to make sure he, along with Stamkos, is a Lightning lifetime member.

Hedman’s agent has already had a “preliminary discussion” with Lightning general manager Julien BriseBois, according to Tampa Bay Times Lightning reporter Eduardo Encina. Like Stamkos, he made it clear that the intention is to keep Hedman in Tampa Bay.

BriseBois remarked, “We’d love to keep Victor going forward.” He is a top-tier defenseman. He’s one of those unique all-time greats, a Tampa Bay Lightning Bolt who is still incredibly productive, and I don’t see any reason why that won’t continue in the future.

At least for this year and next, we now know more about where the cap is. A new CBA is scheduled to take effect at some point. Drafts of expansions are rumored. “Keeping Victor would be the plan going forward, but we’re trying to take all that into account” (from “Making Steven Stamkos a career Bolt is Lightning’s top offseason priority,” Tampa Bay Times, May 1, 2024).

Retaining their best defensemen suggests if the Lightning have a chance to win the Stanley Cup as well. The 2020 Conn Smythe Trophy winner’s departure would be a clear indication that the run is finished.

Duclair Anthony

In order to increase offensive depth, the Lightning acquired Anthony Duclair at the trade deadline, and he was a fantastic match. He totaled 15 points in 17 games with eight goals and seven assists. In his first seven games with the Lightning, he scored at least one point. He recorded two assists for two points in five postseason games.

Duclair was a great deadline acquisition that the Lightning should want to keep for the upcoming campaign. In the second part of the season, he played a key role in the team’s push to qualify for the playoffs. Since he will be an unrestricted free agent this offseason, he will need to be signed as one of the top priorities.

Duclair, who is 28 years old, still has a lot of life left in him and might be brought back on a team-friendly contract. He has a $3 million cap hit in 2023–2024. It would be worthwhile for the Lightning to re-sign him on a short-term contract, perhaps two to three years, even if he wants it increased to about $4 million.

Nick Perbix

Lately, Nick Perbix has shown to be one of the Lightning’s finest late-round choices. The sixth-round selection in 2017 went to college and honed his skills for four seasons. But it didn’t take him long to establish himself as a staple with the Lightning after making the transition to the professionals. He has participated in 14 American Hockey League (AHL) regular-season games with the Syracuse Crunch prior to being called up.

The Lightning signed Perbix to a two-year deal with an average annual value (AAV) of $1.125 million after his rookie season. After the upcoming season, his contract will expire, and he deserves a wage increase.

With a career-high 24 points and a defensive points share (DPS) of 3.4 at the end of the previous campaign, Perbix stood out. From 65 blocked shots in 2022–2023 to 114 in 2023–2024, there was a huge increase. When Johnny signs a new contract, it wouldn’t be out of the ordinary to see his AAV double, and the Lightning would be well-served by taking on the higher compensation.

The fact that the salary cap will probably rise higher after the upcoming season will aid the Lightning in this situation because it will allow them to raise Perbix’s pay without using up a disproportionately huge amount of the available cap space for his contract.

Mikey Eyssimont

Mikey Eyssimont is an excellent choice for the Lightning if they want to retain some strength in the lineup for the foreseeable future. This season, he participated in 81 games, which is a career high, and he saw career highs in almost every statistical category (I know, shocker).

The 27-year-old forward contributed defense throughout a severely deficient season. He recorded 135 hits and stopped 35 shots. In addition, he had 22 giveaways and 31 takeaways.

Beyond simply supporting his colleagues while they’re being roughed up, Eyssimont has proven he’s a valuable asset. He’ll thwart offensive assaults on his way to the penalty area. He had the most penalty minutes on the club this season—104—so I say “en route to the penalty box.”

Eyssimont doesn’t contribute much offensively, but that doesn’t mean he can’t occasionally score a crucial goal. In 2023–24, he scored 11 goals, two of which were game-winners. That is tied for the most game-winning goals with Hedman and Nick Paul.

The Lightning can hold onto Eyssimont at a cheap cap hit and preserve that physicality and timely scoring rather than going through older bottom six players like they have in recent years.

Although the Lightning are not the same squad as they once were, there are still certain guys who will be valuable while they improve. Holding onto important players like the ones mentioned above is crucial if they want to put themselves in a position to win more Stanley Cups.