NHL Rumors: Top insiders name contenders for $68M Steven Stamkos should Tampa Bay Lightning extension fall through

The Tampa Bay Lightning and Steven Stamkos have still not come to terms on a contract extension, insider Pierre LeBrun reports. LeBrun reported on Insider Trading that if a contract extension between the Bolts and Stamkos fails to materialize, several teams will be in the mix to sign the star forward in free agency.

In particular, LeBrun named the Nashville Predators as possible contenders to land the Tampa Bay captain, whose eight-year, $68 million deal is set to expire. LeBrun stated:

“Tampa is going to have to change their offer and that still can happen between now and Monday. In the meantime, there are a number of teams lining up hoping they can talk to Stamkos.” LeBrun added, “Among those teams, I am told, is the Nashville Predators.”

The news seems shocking, considering that Steven Stamkos has played his entire career with Tampa Bay. But while LeBrun noted that Stamkos would still prefer to stay in Tampa, the Preds will still target him to fill their need in attack:

"They (Nashville) need an offensive upgrade for that team, and I believe Barry Trotz, their GM, will want to be in the mix if Steven Stamkos goes to market."

Another renowned insider, Chris Johnston, reports that the Detroit Red Wings could be in the mix, too. Per Johnston:

“One I would keep an eye on is the Detroit Red Wings, who have freed up money with the Jake Walman trade they made this week," Johnston continued, "The belief is they are one of the ones lining up to take a run at #91 if he hits the open market.”

Both LeBrun and Johnston point toward significant interest in Stamkos. Ultimately, expect Stamkos to get offers from several sides. Whether Stamkos leaves Tampa or not likely depends on Tampa meeting Stamkos halfway.

Simulation predicts Steven Stamkos re-signs in Tampa

The Hockey News recently ran a piece in which a computer simulation on NHL 24 was run to predict what Stamkos’ new contract would look like. The authors ran three simulations, and all three predicted that Stamkos would re-sign in Tampa.

The interesting part of this simulation is that all three predicted outcomes reflected one-year deals. It seems quite intriguing that the artificial intelligence running NHL 24 would predict that Stamkos will sign a one-year deal. Given that Stamkos is 34, a one-year deal might seem like a viable alternative. At the same time, both sides may figure out a solution that could keep Stamkos in Tampa until retirement.

The simulation also predicted a dollar value ranging from $8.05 to $8.46 million. That value seems fair, considering Stamkos’ expiring contract carried an $8.5 million cap hit. While the chatter surrounding this matter is that Stamkos is willing to take a team-friendly deal, Stamkos might be less inclined to give Tampa a break on a one-year deal.

Ultimately, most reports indicate that Stamkos would like to stay in Tampa. So, it’s fair to assume that both sides will eventually work something out. In the meantime, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see other teams trying to sign a proven goal-scorer and leader like Stamkos.