Training Camp opens in Ottawa later this month (yea THIS MONTH) but there’s still one fairly significant piece of unfinished business for the team’s current General Manager.
Shane Pinto is an RFA and without a contract for the upcoming season.
What seemed like a fairly straightforward negotiation with a 22-year old forward with one full NHL season under his belt has lingered a little bit and according to the most recent reports, there’s still some work to do.
According to Bruce Garrioch’s latest, there remains “a significant gap to bridge” between the Senators and Pinto which sounds somewhat ominous with Camp opening in just a couple weeks.
Ottawa’s somewhat precarious salary cap situation has been well-documented to this point and is definitely a factor in the negotiations.
The Senators have a history of squeezing their RFAs a little bit, particularly in instances where the player has limited leverage, and that’s likely what’s going on here.
Pinto, who is coming off a 20-goal season, feels like he should get a fairly sizeable raise over the salary he earned last year. Rightfully so. Meanwhile, the team is in a situation where every dollar counts as they flirt with the upper limit of the league’s salary cap.
And while that kind of gap seems like a concern at this late stage of the off-season, there’s nothing quite like a deadline to help move things around. Shane Pinto doesn’t want to miss the start of Camp and the Senators obviously don’t want that either.
In summary, it’s fine. Seriously, it’s gonna be fine. It’s finnnnnnnnnnnnne.
In the meantime, let the soothing sounds of The SensChirp Podcast ease your troubled mind.
***
Listen on Apple Podcasts
Listen on Google Podcasts
Listen on Spotify
The SensChirp Podcast
