At this point in free agency there always seems to be a bargain free agent who for some reason or another has not been signed with about a month left in the offseason.
Last year that player seemed to be Alex Tanguay a player coming off injury but who has showed the league that he could play in his role. This season, that free agent happens to be former Minnesota Wild and Vancouver Canucks defenseman Willie Mitchell.
So why has this bruising defenseman not been scooped up with the rest of the stay-at-home defenders?
His skill level, experience and grit added to any blue line could rival that of Anton Volchenkov or Zbynek Michalek when healthy; which seems to be the key phrase.
Last season, while with the Canucks the 33-year-old missed a total of 34 games and the entire post-season after sustaining a concussion at the hands of league superstar Evgeni Malkin. The Russian forward clearly threw him into the boards from behind and could have ended this veteran’s career. In fact...
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