Senators vastly improved, may set up salary cap problems

During previous offseasons, people understandably joked about the Senators being “cheap.” Plenty of smaller moves followed that pattern, too. With some incredibly promising and deeply unexpected moves in free agency/trades, the Senators flipped that script this summer.

However, that doesn’t necessarily mean that they’ve dropped every organizational strategy or blueprint.

Amusingly enough, while the Senators have pinched pennies on a year-to-year basis, they’ve also curiously inspired a thought. (At least, personally.)

“Hmm, they’re sure paying full price and giving plenty of long-term contracts to their young players.”

Such a thought re-entered my skull when the Senators signed Josh Norris to a beefy eight-year, $63.6 million contract on Thursday. This latest contract is just the most recent piece to a puzzle that mostly looks promising, but carries at least a few red flags.

Here’s why.

Allow me to share another personal belief. Building a Stanley Cup contender isn’t just about finding talented players, and getting the most out of them. It’s also about picking your spots about how you use your salary cap space. Eventually, the bill comes along for top talent, and often the supporting cast members who put you over the top.

But there’s real value in opening windows — even small ones — where you get more than what you pay for from key players.

The Penguins won their first Stanley Cup of the Sidney Crosby era while Evgeni Malkin and Jordan Staal were still under their rookie contracts. Alex DeBrincat‘s former team the Blackhawks won their first of three Stanley Cups in the final year of rookie deals for Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane.

Of course, few teams will be able to line up entry-level contracts with peak opportunities