Ducks get speed boost; sign Mike Santorelli for one year at $875K
The Anaheim Ducks have looked to upgrade their speed this offseason. On Monday they made another move to add a fleet-footed forward, and they didn’t have to break the bank to do so.
Anaheim announced it signed former Nashville Predators forward Mike Santorelli to a one-year contract. The deal is worth $875,000 according to ESPN’s Craig Custance.
A former 20-goal scorer, Santorelli had 11 goals and 18 assists in 57 games with the Toronto Maple Leafs a year ago before a trade to Nashville doomed his value. With the Predators he scored one goal and added three assists in 22 games.
Last season, Santorelli garnered a minus-4.9 SAT relative percentage, meaning his team attempted more shots at the opposition’s net when he wasn’t on the ice.
Nashville gave up a first-round pick, forward prospect Brendan Leipsic and Olli Jokinen to get Santorelli and defenseman Cody Franson from Toronto. Both did not work out and were limited to depth roles with the Preds. Franson is the lone remaining big name on the UFA market. C’mon, he at least deserves Beauchemin money.
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Santorelli’s last deal was a one-year $1.5 million contract.
Said On the Forecheck on Santorelli:
The hope was Santorelli would kick-start whatever was ailing third- and fourth-line scoring. Instead, he became a victim of that black hole, pointing to a bigger problem Nashville has and one they need to address soon.
In 22 games with the Predators, Santorelli scored just a single goal and added three assists. He did pot one against Corey Crawford in Game 2 of the Western Conference quarterfinal; but if you were in attendance for that game, chances are you did too.
Ouch … for both Santorelli and Crawford.
This is a depth signing for Anaheim. But to get an NHL-level player under 30 – Santorelli is 29 – who can play the wing and center and chip in offensively for that price is pretty solid.
According to General Fanager, the Ducks still have about $7.4 million of salary cap space available. Last week Anaheim signed RFA speedster Carl Hagelin to a four-year $16 million deal.
General manager Bob Murray has said he believed the Ducks’ lack of speed doomed them against the Chicago Blackhawks in the Western Conference Final.
Whether that’s the case or not, Santorelli – and Hagelin – certainly do help in that regard. The Ducks may very well be the favorite next season in the Western Conference.
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Josh Cooper is an editor for Puck Daddy on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at puckdaddyblog@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @joshuacooper
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