Every July, NHL teams have a golden opportunity to upgrade their roster. The first week of free agency is one of the most exciting times of the year for hockey fans. Star players change teams, role players receive lucrative contracts, and sometimes intelligent signings are made. Ultimately, free agency is a “boom or bust” time for most front offices. Too often, we witness contracts that teams regret tendering down the line that ruin their chance at competing for the Stanley Cup.
Related: 3 More Lightning Questions for the 2024-25 Season
How have the Tampa Bay Lightning done in free agency in recent years? I started a mini-series examining the team’s previous free agency classes. So far, we have graded the 2019, 2021, and 2022 free-agent signings, as the summer of 2020 saw no significant additions via pen and paper. The final part of the series is the 2023 free agency grades.
In 2023, after three straight Stanley Cup Final appearances, the Lightning fell to the Toronto Maple Leafs in Round One of the playoffs. The team made minor changes that summer and, this season, they lost in five games in the first round to the Florida Panthers. Now, here’s a letter grade for each of their signings in the summer of 2023.
Calvin de Haan
One of the more under-appreciated signings of the series, Calvin de Haan, was the perfect depth addition for the Lightning blue line last season. While his best days with the New York Islanders were behind him, de Haan made a name for himself as a solid bottom-pairing defenseman with the Carolina Hurricanes and Chicago Blackhawks. In 2022-23, de Haan had two goals and 12 points in 53 contests with the Hurricanes.
Then, the Lightning signed de Haan to a one-year deal worth the league minimum salary of $775,000. He filled a bottom-pairing role but struggled to remain in the lineup towards the end of the season. In 59 games, he notched three goals and 10 points. de Haan had an underrated microstat profile and would have been good depth again this season, but the Lightning front office had other ideas with a Ryan McDonagh trade. In the end, de Haan was your typical bottom-pairing shutdown blueliner on a playoff team.
Grade: C+
Tyler Motte
With a thin bottom-six forward group, the Lightning needed to add a safety net to bolster the depth. They turned to defensive specialist and penalty killer Tyler Motte, who had spent the previous season with the Ottawa Senators and New York Rangers. Motte was a chippy bottom-six option who could pressure opposing defenders on the forecheck. He recorded a career-best eight goals and 19 points in 62 games in 2022-23.
However, he had a career-worst in offensive production in a depth role with the Lightning last season. Motte scored six goals and nine points in 69 games. After roughly four seasons with the Vancouver Canucks, he played a less defensive role on his new teams but still started 10.14% of his shifts in the defensive zone. Ultimately, Motte was a solid addition to the bottom six for a single season.
Grade: C
Conor Sheary
The most exciting signing of this free agent class at the time, Conor Sheary, was added to fill a middle-six secondary scoring role on a cost-effective deal. General manager Julien BriseBois signed the Massachusetts native to a three-year contract with an annual average value of $2 million. Sheary had a few stellar years with the Washington Capitals before joining the Lightning, including 19 goals and 43 points in 71 games in 2021-22. However, things did not click offensively for the veteran last season.
Sheary saw a massive drop off in production in 2023-24, registering just four goals and 15 points in 57 games. Despite suffering from the injury bug, he was abysmal in the games he did play. Head coach Jon Cooper could not find the winger consistent linemates, and fans wanted him off the roster before this season. Although he performed below expectations, former teammate Jake Guentzel may help Sheary return to form with his locker room presence. While the grade is low now, expect Sheary to perform better for the remainder of the deal.
Grade: D+
Luke Glendening
Supposedly on Tampa Bay’s radar for some time, Luke Glendening signed a two-year deal with the Lightning with an average annual value of $800,000. Not known for his offensive prowess, the veteran centerman was signed to win face-offs and kill penalties. After a long career with the Detroit Red Wings, Glendening landed a depth role with a contending Dallas Stars team before joining the Lightning, recording just three goals and six points in 70 games during the 2022-23 season.
Although he hit a double-digit goal total with ten tallies on the season, one should not let his suspiciously high 17.54 shooting percentage (Sh%) fool them. The center had only one assist across 81 games and performed in the bottom percentiles of all possession metrics. Not the worst signing in the world, but the Lightning had better options to add youth to the bottom six.
Grade: D
Jonas Johansson
When starting goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy was ruled out to start the season, many anticipated the Lightning would find a short-term replacement. However, the coaching staff turned to the six-foot-five Jonas Johnasson to fill the starting role. The young netminder never played more than ten games in a single season, appearing in just three with the Colorado Avalanche in 2022-23.
Johansson did a below-average job keeping the Lightning around a .500 win percentage until Vasilevskiy’s return but shined at times. He notched a .890 save percentage (Sv%) and a 3.37 goals-against average (GAA). He will back up Vasilevskiy for the 2024-25 season at a league minimum salary. After finally gaining some NHL experience, maybe there is room for growth.
Grade: D
Underwhelming 2023 Free-Agent Class
With lower expectations in 2023-24, the Lightning still found themselves out by the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs for a second straight season. The 2023 free agent class was underwhelming, with the two best additions off to different teams for the 2024-25 season.
Fans hope that Sheary, Glendening, and Johnasson provide more of an impact this season. Luckily, the contracts aren’t holding management back. If Sheary can return to his middle-six-scoring self, his grade could elevate in a future remake of this series. This article marks the end of the Lightning free agency grade series, as the 2024 class needs at least one season before assigning grades.
