A lot of the important business has already been handled by Don Waddell this summer. The franchise added some nice pieces at the draft. He fired his head coach - and hired a new one. He signed a big ticket free agent center, and added depth to his defense corps. He subtracted some dead weight from the roster.
But, as busy as he's been, there is still a lot to be done here. The inevitable Patrik Laine trade still looms large. And, more importantly, three very important young players for this team still need new contracts. What can we expect to happen with Kirill Marchenko, Cole Sillinger, and Kent Johnson?
The club has ample cap space to get all three done (currently over $17 million available per PuckPedia). But, in the cap world, you definitely don't want to overextend value on any player. Especially not guys who are still finding their way in the league.
Getting these three players signed is highly important, but it shouldn't break the bank. Let's take a look.