Ah, yes, it’s here. Christmas in July. The day when every GM in the National Hockey League simultaneously loses his respective mind and digs deep into his team’s coffers to make sure that the Michael Del Zotto’s and the Dan Girardi’s of the world get paid six times what they are actually worth. Ladies and gentlemen, free agency is upon us.
The rules have changed in the last few years to allow teams to contact unrestricted free agents and begin having discussions with their representatives prior to the official opening of Silly Season, giving every club a chance to feel out where it wants to send its gagillions of dollars prior to the July 1st lunacy launch.