This might be where the last contract comes back to bite us. Stamkos took an offer of 8.5 that had been sitting on the table since January. Now, fast forward 8 years, we didn't even open contract discussions, and are probably gonna ask him to take less money even though a lot of his numbers are better coming into this contract than they were going into the last one (a lot of that is because the league has changed, but still).
I mean, we're gonna find out in the playoffs for a certainty, but I think most of us believe we have to get better 5v5 next year. We can do that with Stamkos onboard, but only if he takes a contract that leaves room to bring other guys in. If the PP goes from 1st to 8th or 9th, it's still a net positive if we go from a bottom 1/3 team 5v5 to a top 10 team.
In a perfect world, we remain a top PP and improve 5v5, but it's hard to imagine that happening unless Stamkos takes a VERY team-friendly deal. Like, he is probably gonna be asked to leave more money on the table (short term) than he did last time.
I mean, we're gonna find out in the playoffs for a certainty, but I think most of us believe we have to get better 5v5 next year. We can do that with Stamkos onboard, but only if he takes a contract that leaves room to bring other guys in. If the PP goes from 1st to 8th or 9th, it's still a net positive if we go from a bottom 1/3 team 5v5 to a top 10 team.
In a perfect world, we remain a top PP and improve 5v5, but it's hard to imagine that happening unless Stamkos takes a VERY team-friendly deal. Like, he is probably gonna be asked to leave more money on the table (short term) than he did last time.