The draft is quickly approaching with hopes of exciting changes to come, but first the Detroit Red Wings have some business to take care of — namely, their RFA business. After news of Brian Lashoff signing a new deal yesterday, there were reports early Wednesday morning of another player getting a new contract, this one of more importance to the Detroit roster.
TSN’s Aaron Ward reported that the Wings and Riley Sheahan came to terms on a new two-year deal.
Riley Sheahan and the Detroit Red Wings come to terms on a 2 year deal.
— Aaron Ward (@NHL_AaronWard) June 15, 2016
MLive’s Ansar Khan(!) said the same, along with a cap hit for the new deal.
#RedWings Riley Sheahan agrees to two-year deal at$2.075 cap hit.
— Ansar Khan (@AnsarKhanMLive) June 15, 2016
Sheahan is coming off his second complete NHL season in which he posted a career-high 14 goals in 81 games. He added 11 assists and averaged 15:13 TOI per game. The 6’3″, 222-pound center also had an assist in the Wings’ short playoff run.
It’s likely he’ll be expected to take on more responsibilities in the coming season against tougher competition, with the likely departure of Pavel Datsyuk and to allow players like Andreas Athanasiou to ease into the center position as a full-time NHLer.
