Report: Lightning closing in on contract with Tanner Jeannot

Back at the trade deadline, Tampa Bay paid a high price to land Tanner Jeannot from Nashville, sending five draft picks (one in each of the first five rounds over the next few years) along with defenseman Cal Foote to get him. It appears they’re close to signing him to a new contract as Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports (Twitter link) that the two sides are closing in on a two-year deal.

Financial terms are not yet known but it’s worth noting that Jeannot’s qualifying offer was for just under $900K. He had filed for salary arbitration with a hearing scheduled for July 24 and it wouldn’t be surprising to see this deal check in for more than double that qualifier. A two-year term would give Tampa Bay one extra year of team control.

The 26-year-old had a breakout campaign in 2021-22 with the Predators. He put up 24 goals and 17 assists that year in 81 games while adding 130 penalty minutes and 318 hits. That was enough to land him in seventh place in Calder Trophy voting for Rookie of the Year and it appeared as if the Preds had a core power forward on their hands.

That wasn’t the case in 2022-23, however. Instead, Jeannot saw his production drop sharply with Nashville, down to five goals and nine helpers in 56 games along with 85 penalty minutes and 213 hits. Despite that, Tampa Bay felt that he could be a difference-maker for him down the stretch and in the playoffs with the hopes that they could then make him part of their future core.

That didn’t exactly happen. Playing through some injury woes, Jeannot was limited to just a goal and three assists in 20 games following the swap while he missed three of their six playoff games in their first-round loss to Toronto. And with this contract more or less amounting to a second bridge deal, he isn’t exactly going to be viewed as a long-term core piece now.

Despite that, there is still some room for optimism for Jeannot with the Lightning. He should slot in on their second or third line next season and with a full training camp under his belt in the fall along with a return to health, he should be in line for a stronger showing next season.

In an Atlantic Division that has added some toughness this summer (Ryan Reaves, Milan Lucic and Zack MacEwen have all entered the division), Tampa Bay will be relying on Jeannot to help them on that side of the table as well. His initial impression might not have been the most favorable but things should only be looking up from here for him.