Matt Larkin of The Hockey News: Alas, Erik Karlsson had groin surgery this week but none of that matters now. Despite that, he is still a much coveted unrestricted free agent. The dropoff between Karlsson and players like Alexander Edler and Jake Gardiner is mindboggling. So, do not be surprised to see that $10-11 million AAV over seven years (eight from San Jose).
Montreal Canadiens — Montreal makes some sense and is still close to Ottawa. However, they overperformed last year and are not quite the contenders some other teams are.