Predators, goaltender Juuse Saros closing in on an extension

Nashville Predators goaltender Juuse Saros.

The Predators and goaltender Juuse Saros can’t officially reach an agreement on a new deal until Monday.

It appears they’re getting close to having a deal in principle, however, as Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports that the two sides are believed to be closing in on an eight-year contract extension. Financial terms are not known but Friedman adds that the AAV will apparently start with a seven if the deal is finalized; Chris Johnston of TSN and The Athletic suggests that the cap charge should check in around $7.5M.

Pierre LeBrun of TSN and The Athletic adds that while some details are being worked out, the framework of the agreement is in place.

The 29-year-old has worked his way from being a little-used backup at the start of his career to one of the NHL’s true workhorse netminders in recent years.

Saros has led the league in appearances in each of the last three years, facing the most shots and making the most saves in both 2022-23 and 2023-24, making him a bargain player with a $5M AAV which runs through the 2024-25 campaign.

This season, Saros played in 64 games, posting a 2.86 GAA with a .906 SV%, numbers that were the worst of his career. However, given the workload and the fact that Nashville had several newcomers after shaking up their roster over the summer, it’s not surprising that he got off to somewhat of a quieter start.

However, following the All-Star break, Saros was more effective, putting up a .912 SV% which helped lead the team to a franchise-best 18-game point streak. That stretch helped propel the Predators into a playoff spot where they were eliminated in the opening round by Vancouver.

Despite his performance in recent years, there was some speculation that Saros could be in play on the trade front this summer. The team has Yaroslav Askarov in the system, one of the NHL’s best goalie prospects and he’s not too far away from being NHL-ready.

This potential agreement will now call into question Askarov’s long-term future with the franchise although the two netminders could work together for a few years at least, allowing the 22-year-old to ease into the NHL somewhat gradually.

While the Predators generally are hesitant to hand out trade protection in their contracts, GM Barry Trotz indicated earlier this week that if a new deal gets reached, it would have some no-trade provisions in there although it would be limited.

Assuming the price tag comes in around the $7.5M mark as reported, that will be a full million lower per season than what Connor Hellebuyck received from Winnipeg back in the fall, a contract that many felt would serve as a direct comparable for negotiations.

Instead, it appears Saros is content to come in a little below that amount to ensure he’ll be sticking around for the long haul, giving the Predators long-term stability at that position in the process.

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