It’s been nearly 12 months since the Tampa Bay Lightning acquired the rights to forward Jake Guentzel and signed him to a seven-year contract. His rights were acquired from the Carolina Hurricanes on June 30, 2024, in exchange for a third-round pick. The contract has an average annual value (AAV) of $9 million.
It faced scrutiny, especially with what it coincided with. He was in, and the longtime face of the franchise, Steven Stamkos, was out.
If he had come in and Stamkos stuck around, the move would have been welcomed with open arms across the fan base. But that’s not how it went down. Stamkos signed with the Nashville Predators the same day. Guentzel had already proven he was a high-caliber player between his years with the Pittsburgh Penguins and his rental stint in Carolina. However, he was now seen as the replacement of a future Hall of Famer. He was receiving more money than Stamkos had ever received during any season of his career.
Coming out of the gate playing at a high level was crucial for Guentzel, and he did just that. As we approach the one-year mark, let’s look back on a move that proved to be a genius acquisition.
Just a heads-up going into this: There are going to be some comparisons to Stamkos’ last season. Because Guentzel’s acquisition and Stamkos’ departure are so intertwined, it has to be done.
To keep it simple, Guentzel had one of the best seasons of his career. In 80 games, he had a career-high 41 goals and tallied 39 assists for 80 points on the season. It’s the second time in his career that he reached the 80-point mark. His 41 goals were good enough for second on the team behind Brayden Point, and his 80 points placed him fourth.
He worked perfectly on a top line that consisted of Point at center and Nikita Kucherov at right wing. He did a solid job keeping up with Kucherov in setting up Point. He recorded the primary assist on nine of Point’s goals during the 2024-25 season (Kucherov recorded 19). He recorded the secondary assist four times when Kucherov had the primary assist. For comparison, Stamkos recorded the primary assist on three of Point’s goals in 2023-24, with three more secondary assists when Kucherov had the primary assist.
He assisted on nine of Kucherov’s goals (three primary and six secondary). While Kucherov was still doing the heavy work across two lines last season, Guentzel had no trouble doing his part. For comparison, Stamkos recorded just four primary assists on Kucherov goals in his final season with the Lightning.
Guentzel and Stamkos are two different types of players. Stamkos is expected to hover around the circle and wait for the right shot more than Guentzel is. However, Guentzel brought value in other ways while still scoring the 40 goals we’d expect from the former Lightning great.
Come playoff time, Guentzel brought the same production that the Lightning got from Stamkos the season prior. In the loss in five games to the Florida Panthers in the first round, he recorded three goals and three assists for six points. Stamkos had five goals and one assist for six points in the previous season’s playoff matchup. The point remains the same. The two contributed in different ways but still got on the scoresheet the same number of times. Like Stamkos, Guentzel was one of the few Lightning players who put up a fight against a tough Panthers team.
This is also an opportune time to bring up that Stamkos did not play any playoff games in 2025. The Predators finished third-to-last in the Western Conference. The Lightning and their fans had to feel somewhat better about the moves after that.
The Lightning are still going to get some prime years out of Guentzel. He’s entering his age-31 season. He’s at an age where the top players in hockey are still expected to keep it going for some time. Even if the Lightning likely won’t get the expected production from him for all seven seasons, it’s worth the investment to get it for three to four years while he’s still at the top of his game.
The reality is that if they had stuck with Stamkos, even if he hypothetically performed better staying in Tampa Bay in an alternate timeline, there is way less racetrack to work with. Switching to Guentzel helped extend the window for potentially winning another Stanley Cup. There’s no guarantee they ever get back to the top of the mountain, but the odds improved.
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In an effort to extend his NHL career, veteran winger Conor Sheary has agreed to a professional tryout (PTO) with the New York Rangers, per the NY Post’s Mollie Walker. Sheary has played in 593 games throughout his 10-year career, posting 124 goals and 267 points. He has also shown an ability to elevate his game in big moments during the playoffs, as evidenced by his contributions to the Pittsburgh Penguins’ back-to-back Stanley Cup wins early in his career, when he often played a key role alongside Sidney Crosby. Notably, some of his best professional seasons came in Pittsburgh under head coach Mike Sullivan. After signing a five-year deal in May to lead the Rangers, Sullivan is bringing in a familiar face as he looks to implement a new game plan in New York. However, Sheary has struggled in recent years. After producing just 15 points in 57 games with the Tampa Bay Lightning during the 2023-24 season—his lowest output since his rookie year—he dressed in only five games last season with the team. He spent the majority of his year with Tampa’s AHL affiliate, the Syracuse Crunch, where he produced 20 goals and 61 points in 59 games. Sheary, 33, will now look to rejuvenate his career with the Rangers, a team in the midst of transition. Beyond the obvious changes that come with a new head coach, the team has also seen longtime staples Chris Kreider and K’Andre Miller depart, while adding forward Taylor Raddysh and prospect Carey Terrance. While PTOs are anything but guaranteed, Sheary’s history of producing quality offense, combined with his relationship with Sullivan, should give him a strong chance to make the opening night roster.
There is not a bigger sporting event in North America than the Super Bowl, and tickets are only getting more expensive every year. There is also a ridiculous secondary market for tickets where seats sell for well above the original face value. It is usually fans or ticket resellers going for a quick profit. But as was reported on Friday, sometimes it can be players in the NFL looking to make a profit. According to multiple reports, including the Associated Press and ESPN, more than 100 players are facing fines and potential suspensions for selling their allotment of tickets to this year's Super Bowl between the Philadelphia Eagles and Kansas City Chiefs for above face value. Players are reportedly facing fines of one-and-a-half times the face value they originally paid for the tickets, while they are also prevented from purchasing tickets to the Super Bowl for the next seasons. The Associated Press obtained a memo from the NFL detailing the violation and investigation. That memo was as follows: “Our initial investigation has determined that a number of NFL players and coaches, employed by several NFL Clubs, sold Super Bowl tickets for more than the ticket’s face value in violation of the Policy. This long-standing League Policy, which is specifically incorporated into the Collective Bargaining Agreement, prohibits League or Club employees, including players, from selling NFL game tickets acquired from their employer for more than the ticket’s face value or for an amount greater than the employee originally paid for the ticket, whichever is less. We are in the process of completing our investigation into this matter, but the investigation has revealed that club employees and players sold their tickets to a small number of ‘bundlers’ who were working with a ticket reseller to sell the Super Bowl tickets above face value.” If players are not willing to pay the fine, they could be facing suspension from the league. It seems unlikely that any of the players — none of whom have been named, or their teams — would refuse to pay such a fine. It's also one of those moments where you can say, professional athletes — they're still normal people trying to make a quick buck. The most logical answer here is perhaps some of the players caught up in this are younger players who have not yet struck it rich on a big contract or perhaps even practice squad players who are not making top dollar.
After years of speculation and nothing materializing, the New York Yankees have at last acquired third baseman Ryan McMahon from the Colorado Rockies, per the New York Post's Jon Heyman. Pitching prospects Griffin Herring and Josh Grosz are headed to the Mile High City in return. They were the number eight and 21st-ranked prospects in the Yankees' farm system, per MLB.com. Given the Yankees' struggles at the third-base position over the last few years, bringing in a guy who was an All-Star in 2024 and will be much more reliable is a win. Former MLB player and current analyst Cameron Maybin certainly believes that, as he was pushing the McMahon-to-New York narrative over the last week and feels it could be a great fit for both sides. "The third baseman they need plays in Colorado...I'm telling you! Defensively more than adequate and Taylor made for the ballpark offensively," Maybin wrote on social media. Maybin went on to mention how McMahon will feel reinvigorated joining a World Series contender like the Yankees after the last six-and-a-half years of being at the bottom in Colorado. The 30-year-old is not having his best season, slugging 16 home runs and 35 RBI with a .217 average through 100 games with the Rockies, per MLB.com stats. However, he's consistently been a 20-plus home run hitter who drives in runs at a strong rate and has a large sample size of doing so. Arizona Diamondbacks third baseman Eugenio Suarez (.252 average, 36 HRs, 86 RBI) has seemed to be No. 1 target for most teams, and for good reason, but given the Yankees' current situation and weaknesses, McMahon made more sense. Not only does he play a better third base, which New York desperately needs, but he has another two years of control after 2025, whereas Suarez would have been a rental. The acquisition cost was nothing crazy, and adding a lefty bat with some power to potentially take advantage of the short porch at Yankee Stadium is always a bonus. Some may not be satisfied until they see McMahon positively impacting the New York Yankees, but rest assured, this is a very solid pickup.
The Boston Celtics recently traded away a first-round draft pick, who ultimately became one of the best players in the league. The Celtics held the No. 30 pick in the 2020 NBA Draft, but instead of taking a player, the team opted to trade the pick, along with forward Enes Freedom's salary, to the Memphis Grizzlies in a contract dump situation. The Grizzlies chose shooting guard Desmond Bane with the pick, who established himself as one of the best players at his position in the league. More news:Former Celtics Forward Says His Injuries Are the Reason Jayson Tatum Became Superstar in Boston Although he's a bit undersized for a two guard, Bane provides rare two-way value on both ends of the court. On the Celtics, he could have flourished, but it never materialized. According to ESPN's Zach Kram, the trade has aged poorly, to the point where it could be one of the worst moves that the team has made since 2020. "This was a reasonable move at the time: The Celtics didn't have room on their roster for another young player, and trading Bane's draft rights allowed them to shed Enes Freedom's salary," Kram wrote. "Nobody expected the No. 30 pick to develop into the sort of player who'd one day command four first-round picks in a trade," Kram added. This summer, Bane was flipped to the Orlando Magic, where he figures to provide a massive upgrade to the team's backcourt shooting and scoring. "But Bane did, and Boston certainly could have used him over the past half-decade," Kram noted. "A solid defender for his position and career 41% 3-point shooter, Bane would have been a perfect fit in the Celtics' system." More news: Celtics Urged to Sign Former All-Star in Major Free Agent Move While Bane would have ended up on a big contract down the line, he fits the mold of the ideal Celtics player, providing consistent shooting at a high volume with impressive perimeter defense. He offers similar value as Derrick White, though he is younger and has much more basketball left in his career. While the Celtics could use Bane, the team still ended up winning the 2024 NBA championship and looks poised to challenge for a title for the next decade. More news: Celtics Could Trade $45 Million Guard in Major Roster Shakeup: Report For more news and notes on the Boston Celtics, visit Boston Celtics on SI.