Via Paul Kukla of Abel to Yzerman comes this article from the Hockey News’s Ryan Kennedy, who gives Red Wings GM Steve Yzerman a thumbs-up for his decision to sign Anthony Mantha to a 4-year contract today:
With cost certainty in Detroit, Yzerman may have the opportunity to exploit the market, much in the same way it is expected Seattle will do since the Kraken will enter the league with a completely clean slate, cap-wise. Other than Justin Abdelkader’s buyout money, Detroit will be junk-free very soon.
As for Mantha himself, there’s a great opportunity for the powerful winger in this new contract. Most importantly, he’ll be an unrestricted free agent when it ends, taking him to the open market for a potentially big score. In the interim, he’s making a nice chunk of change with the chance to prove he deserves more at the end. Mantha is coming off one of his best offensive seasons so far in the NHL, albeit one marred by a punctured lung and truncated by the pandemic. Nonetheless, his 0.88 points per game represented the highest rate in his NHL career and his growth as a more rounded player continues. Mantha was Detroit’s best possession player this past season and he has often been at or near the top in recent years.
The next step is the full-on breakout. Mantha certainly has the talent to put up 30 goals or more in a season; he just hasn’t done it yet. If the NHL plays a shortened campaign in 2020-21 he may have to settle for pro-rated numbers again, but it will be important for him to keep growing his output. Eventually, the Red Wings will have more talent surrounding him and that can only make the situation better.
Detroit is still going to be in a world of hurt next season, but the planning and execution shown by Yzerman and his staff truly points to a positive future. The Mantha contract is the latest sign.
