The 5 Worst Value Signings for 2024 NHL Free Agency
Zack Cook
Host · Writer
Sean Monahan
Listen, I have a lot of time for Sean Monahan as a hockey player, especially when you factor in the injuries and hand he's been dealt during his NHL career. After staying healthy for one season, it's hard to say that warrants getting a five-year deal in free agency. If Monahan remains healthy, the contract might be OK. With what we've seen throughout his NHL career, that's a major if and one we're not willing to bank on.
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Elias Lindholm
It was a strange season for Elias Lindholm with the Calgary Flames and Vancouver Canucks. Some might consider it an outlier, but we're not landing in that category. There are plenty of negative underlying numbers regarding Lindholm's game. You can see why the Boston Bruins would target him for his defensive impact, but he will also be counted on offensively with the type of deal the B's gave him. Lindholm and his agent already fumbled the bag when he turned down an even more significant extension last year, meaning this deal could look worse from a value standpoint. The Bruins have long shown interest in this player, and it's not a surprise he landed there, but giving out bad deals in free agency isn't something we've been accustomed to from the Bruins management team.
Chandler Stephenson
Whether you want to label Lindholm or Chandler Stephenson as the worst-value contract signed in free agency, we're undoubtedly OK with either one. No one will question the value the Vegas Golden Knights got from Stephenson during their recent run. A big reason he was considered valuable was because of his small contract. That's no longer the case after the deal he signed with the Seattle Kraken. Not only is the dollar value remarkably rich, but the term can potentially be a killer for Seattle. Stephenson will be a fine player for the Kraken, but in no way, shape, or form is he worth the contract they dished out for him on Day 1.
Yakov Trenin
There's nothing wrong with adding size and some scoring touch in your bottom-six forward groups. With that in mind, it's hard to recommend the type of contract the Minnesota Wild handed out to Yakov Trenin. Giving out four-year deals to a player like Trenin screams the opposite of value. Trenin will add some value to the defensive side of the puck, but that's not what this version of the Wild needs. The Wild would have been much better off spending this cash elsewhere.
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Joel Edmundson
Big defensemen certainly have their forms of value in the NHL. Still, that doesn't mean we have to give them term, especially when you factor in the wear and tear that they've gone through with their bodies. Joel Edmundson was a prime example of that. We've already seen his NHL career put into question with back injuries, which are certainly no joke. Yet, the Los Angeles Kings decided to give him a four-year contract? There's no way that this contract ages well. Leadership and toughness have value in an NHL locker room, but it's hard to envision this deal working out for Los Angeles.
Sean Monahan
Listen, I have a lot of time for Sean Monahan as a hockey player, especially when you factor in the injuries and hand he's been dealt during his NHL career. After staying healthy for one season, it's hard to say that warrants getting a five-year deal in free agency. If Monahan remains healthy, the contract might be OK. With what we've seen throughout his NHL career, that's a major if and one we're not willing to bank on.
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Elias Lindholm
It was a strange season for Elias Lindholm with the Calgary Flames and Vancouver Canucks. Some might consider it an outlier, but we're not landing in that category. There are plenty of negative underlying numbers regarding Lindholm's game. You can see why the Boston Bruins would target him for his defensive impact, but he will also be counted on offensively with the type of deal the B's gave him. Lindholm and his agent already fumbled the bag when he turned down an even more significant extension last year, meaning this deal could look worse from a value standpoint. The Bruins have long shown interest in this player, and it's not a surprise he landed there, but giving out bad deals in free agency isn't something we've been accustomed to from the Bruins management team.
