Offer sheets.
For so long in the NHL, two dirty words rarely spoken and even then, in hushed tones.
The threat of an attempted poaching of a restricted free-agent was as rare as lightning striking the same person twice. Or at least it seems that way.
Thanks to the combination of the salary cap’s small rise and lack of top-tier unrestricted free-agents available, the possibility of one team trying to swipe away a young rising star with a big-ticket contract, only surrendering a handful of draft picks, seemed very real in this year’s free-agency period.
Sure it hasn’t happened yet, but the chatter exists.