Last offseason, it looked like we had seen a shift in how NHL general managers were approaching free agency. Teams were frugal, conservative and showed an unwillingness to commit big dollar amounts to longer term contracts. We found out Wednesday that last year was an anomaly as GMs through all that out the window.
During the first 12 hours of the free agent market being open, we saw a return to the craziness of the past as 163 contract were signed for a little more than $785m. Now that the dust has mostly settled, teams like the Colorado Avalanche are going to pick away at the few remaining available players in the hopes of finding discounts.