Friedman: Beleskey Could Command $5 Million Per Year

Elliotte Friedman was on Toronto’s Sportsnet 590 on Tuesday morning.

On what sort of contract could be tabled for Matt Beleskey as a free agent this summer if one GM had to outbid 29 others:

“I think you’re probably looking somewhere in the $5 million range. The guy is proving he can score.

“He’s not a guy who’s going to create his own shot, necessarily. He’s not the guy who’s going to take the puck down the ice and do something to create something. But he’s a guy who’s going to get down the ice himself and he’s going to get into position and if you get him the puck in an area where he can score, he will.

“You’ve seen his goals. Look at his goals the last two games… (Friedman describes the goals)

“It’s almost like a 3-point shooter in the NBA. If you get him the ball in a spot where he is comfortable, he’s going to get it in the net. And those guys are hard to find. Look, it’s a tough league to score goals in now and if you can do it, you’re going to get paid.

“I think Anaheim made a real run to sign him at the deadline, but they just couldn’t get it done. Bob Murray wouldn’t tell me much about it, except I know he was frustrated that he couldn’t get it done.

“Well, the price is only going up. And you can see how in a market where there’s not a lot of guys and you need scoring that Beleskey’s number could be 5.”

Source: Sportsnet 590/ Transcript: Nichols