Shane Pinto resolution is expected soon
Shane Pinto resolution is expected soon
Boston could have interest in the Senators center
The NHL season is less than a month away. Teams will be unable to be over the cap once the regular season start per NHL rules. The Ottawa Senators are currently facing a cap crunch with one of their restricted free agents.
Shane Pinto who was tied for eighth in rookie scoring with 35 points and played in all 82 games last season remains an unsigned restricted free agent. The former 32nd overall pick scored 20 goals in his first full NHL season.
The Senators have about $895K left in cap space and Pinto’s next contract is likely to be between one and two million, as it gives him a raise over his league minimum salary from last season.
Ottawa either needs to move someone out to fit Pinto in, or trade him. This is where the Boston Bruins come into the picture.
The Bruins even have less cap space than Ottawa with approximately $429K left. According to Jimmy Murphy of Boston Hockey Now the Bruins are expected to be interested in Pinto. However, Murphy was told Ottawa wants high-end prospects who could contribute now as the Senators look to get in the playoffs this season. Fabian Lysell and Johnny Beecher are names that are mentioned.
Lysell is a top three prospect and Beecher is a top ten prospect for the Bruins. The Bruins have one of the lowest rated farm systems in the NHL. With that, the prospect rankings for Boston is not as strong as most teams in the NHL.
Beecher plays center so moving him for Pinto would make sense, but right winger Lysell seems steep. Given the Bruins cap situation they would also have to make an additional roster move to be cap compliant.
Sens general manager Pierre Dorion spoke recently and said, “We’re working on that one (Pinto), hard. We’d like to see him next week when we open camp.”
The Senators have to either sign Pinto and get under the cap or trade him away before the regular season starts so whether it happens by next week or not, a resolution is upon us.
Follow Matt on Twitter @BSTRONG415
For additional Red Sox, Bruins, Patriots, MLB and NFL content follow Beyond the Monster on Twitter @BeyondtheMnstr.
