NHL Free Agency Rumors: Jason Demers signs five-year deal with Panthers
Sportsnet is reporting that free agent defenseman Jason Demers has agreed to a five-year contract worth $22.5 million with the Florida Panthers.
The Florida Panthers have been arguably the most aggressive team so far in the NHL offseason. Even after signing Keith Yandle to a lucrative contract, they are reportedly not done rebuilding their blue line. Chris Johnston of Sportsnet is reporting that the Panthers have agreed to a five-year deal with free agent defenseman Jason Demers.
Jason Demers agrees to $22.5M, five-year deal with #FlaPanthers, @Sportsnet has learned: https://t.co/sLEwIUTXx3 pic.twitter.com/HBcOAyzIzx
— Chris Johnston (@reporterchris) July 2, 2016
That’s an excellent bargain for Demers who entered July 1 as the premier unrestricted free agent blue liner. He’s right-handed and he can move the puck. As fans saw with the Taylor Hall trade, teams covet right-handed shots. Five years is reasonable for a 28 year old defenseman like Demers. The fifth year might be a bit ugly but the first four should make the contract well worth it.
Considering how much money has been thrown around, $4.5 million a year is a bargain for somebody who can move the puck like Demers. He is not without his flaws, but he has a skill set that is valued quite highly by teams. The NHL is shifting towards a style of play that favors puck movers. Demers is a nice puck mover.
He should be a very good second pairing defenseman for the Panthers. Florida has done a great job replacing Erik Gudbranson with Yandle and replacing Dmitry Kulikov with Demers.
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