- Capitals have opened contract talks with Ryan Leonard and Justin Sourdif
- GM Chris Patrick calls the Leo Carlsson offer sheet a warning sign for the league
- Read below for what Patrick said about getting a Leonard deal done before camp
The Capitals are not going to sit on Ryan Leonard and hope for the best.
Capitals general manager Chris Patrick told NHL.com’s Tom Gulitti on Tuesday that the team has already started contract talks with Leonard, who plays out the final year of his entry-level deal this season before hitting restricted free agency. Patrick was asked whether he wants that settled before Leonard reaches the open RFA market.
“Yeah, we’ve had some discussions this summer. I’m hopeful we can continue to have some discussions here. That’s not something that I want to let play out. I’d rather get something done if we can, if it makes sense for both sides because I do think what happened this past summer is definitely potentially a harbinger of things to come in the League.”
What happened this past summer was Leo Carlsson signing a five-year, $90 million offer sheet with the Flyers and becoming the highest-paid player in hockey at $18 million a year. Barrett Hayton got one from New Jersey the same week.
Both teams matched and kept their players, but every GM in the league took the hint.
Leonard is the exact profile a rival team goes hunting for. The 21-year-old had 45 points in 75 games as a rookie and finished fifth among all NHL first-year players in goals, assists and points. He did it on a $950,000 cap hit.
Sourdif is in the same spot. The 24-year-old put up 35 points in 78 games in his rookie year and has one season left on a two-year, $1.65 million contract. Patrick laid out why he wants both handled early.
“I think my M.O. going forward really is if you have guys that are going to be restricted free agents that could potentially get offer sheets, you want to get in front of it as much as you can, as much as you feel comfortable doing that.”
There is a wrinkle. Adam Fantilli and Cutter Gauthier are both still unsigned, and Patrick said those two deals will tell everyone what the Carlsson contract actually did to the market for young forwards.
Washington opens the season Oct. 2 in Carolina against the defending Stanley Cup champions. Patrick would not guess whether a Leonard deal beats that date.
“I don’t know now,” he said. “If it made sense, I’d do it tomorrow. We just have to get to that point.”
