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Coburn Re-Signed: Three Years in Tampa


radoran

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Gotta say, a bit surprised by this re-sign.

 

I would have bet for sure that the Bolts would let Coburn walk after this season.

Then again, I didn't think Coburn would take a pay cut to stay.

 

I guess Stevie Y isn't taking any chances that the young defense core this team has coming up beyond Victor Hedman will work out.

For sure, the Lightning have some nice prospects coming up....some even seeing significant time this year (Nesterov and Koekkoek)....so the Coburn re-sign looks like it's a way to keep a veteran type guy, one who knows his way around the league, in the fold till the young guys prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that they belong at the NHL level.

 

Under performances by both Matt Carle and Andrej Sustr, I am sure, played into this decision as well.

And speaking of Carle.........I wonder if this re-sign means the Bolts have a plan to jettison Mr. No Trade Carle (whether at the deadline or in the off season). His $5.5M cap hit is getting heavier by the game....

 

Not gonna say I am super excited by this re-sign, but then again, Bolts could have done worse than sign an established vet still in his prime, for just 3.7M.

In his defense, Coburn has at worst, been serviceable, at best, he has been pretty good in making sure teams respect entering the Bolts' zone. Outside of Coburn, the Bolts really don't have a defenseman who hits with regularity, so that is a plus.

 

Hedman and Stralman hit as well, but their strengths lie more in making plays and setting up the forwards. Jason Garrison would be another, though these days, he seems very injury prone.

 

Another way to look at this is Yzerman trying to maximize the Radko Gudas deal.

I'd say the Bolts initially won that deal due to Coburn being instrumental in TB getting out of the 1st round in last season's playoffs while Gudas was an injured asset with Philly.....but since Gudas has been playing regularly, I would have turned the tables around and said Philly wins now due to Gudas being a Flyer regular, while Coburn leaves the Bolts.

 

Well, this is Coburn's chance to continue to match Gudas in terms of value for his team.

 

This re-sign could signal the end for players like Sustr, Taormina, and hopefully, Carle, beyond this season.

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2 hours ago, flyercanuck said:

Good for Coburn. I was never a hater.

 

$3.7? Deal for Tampa.

Agree. Nice deal for them. Makes it easier to re-sign some of their other guys with the AAV cut.

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