Lightning sign Brayden Point to 3-year deal
Just days after Brayden Point’s agent Gerry Johansson said the Lightning and his client were "a ways apart right now.... We're not that close, frankly,” on a new contract, the two sides agreed to a three-year bridge deal.
Crazy how quick these things can move when the threat of a key player missing regular-season game time gets more and more real.
Reports surfaced Monday that the two sides were nearing a new contract for the highly-productive restricted free agent, with TSN’s Pierre LeBrun noting that both camps were focused on a multi-year bridge contract.
As it turns out, that’s exactly where they settled, with Point inking a three-year deal worth an AAV of $6.75 million.
The #GoBolts #TBLightning re-sign 23 y/o C RFA Brayden Point to 3 year $6.75M Cap Hit per @EricFrancis. RFA on expiry, 1 year from UFA
-41G 92P in 79 GP
-61.5% 5v5 GF
-53.2% Expecte GF
-52% Corsi
-Scored 2.7 P/60
Rep'd by Gerry Johannson @TSC_Hockeyhttps://t.co/13hMPSKghO— PuckPedia (@PuckPedia) September 23, 2019
Both player and team were apparently more than a couple million dollars per season apart as recently as this past weekend, so there was clearly some serious progress made over the last 48 hours or so. With the looming regular season approaching rapidly, Tampa and Point met somewhere in the middle of their resective asks.
The star forward is the latest RFA to sign after Mitch Marner, Brock Boeser and Charlie McAvoy inked new deals earlier this month. The Flames’ Matthew Tkachuk, Colorado’s Mikko Rantanen and the Jets’ Patrik Laine and Kyle Connor are still without contracts.
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