Around the NHL: UPDATE

UPDATE (2:47pm)

• Goaltender Jonathan Quick has signed a 10-year contract extension with the Los Angeles Kings worth $58 million. He will be paid $5.8 million annually
• The Boston Bruins have resigned starting goalie Tuukka Rask to a 1-year deal worth $3.5 million
• The Tampa Bay Lightning have resigned D Brian Lee to a 2-year $2.3 million contract. He will carry a cap hit of $1.15 per year
• The Nashville Predators came to terms with D Hal Gill on a 2-year $4 million deal. His cap hit will be $2 million per year.

Original post is after the jump:

Just wanted to start off by apologizing for the lack of posts lately. We've had some great ideas for new stuff but just have not been able to take the time to see them through.

Starting today things will hopefully be moving towards a more steady and consistent routine.

On that note, let's take a look at the biggest headlines heading into Free Agent Frenzy on July 1st including a penguin hitting the jackpot, new head coaches, free agents, a new salary cap and more.

• Adam Oates is named the new Head Coach for the Washington Capitals...on the same day he is informed he will be entering the Hockey Hall of Fame

One of the greatest playmakers of all time is getting his first shot at a Head Coaching gig. Adam Oates was an assitant coach for the Tampa Bay Lightning (2009-2010) and New Jersey Devils (2010-2012).

 The former captain of the Capitals will bring a change to Washington as they transition from Dale Hunter's defense first game to Oates' expected offensive style:

"When you look at the Finals this year, you saw two teams that were basically in-your-face teams, all over the ice," Oates said. "I really feel the game today is territory. You have to establish territory and protect it. I look at the Caps lineup and the talent level and I don't see any reason why we can't push the pace and be an aggressive team but at the same time not sacrificing defense. It requires commitment all over the ice."

• Sidney Crosby agrees to a 12-year worth $104.4 million extension with the Pittsburgh Penguins

Crosby is going to be one of the league's highest paid players regardless of how many games he plays. The new deal will see him be paid $10+ million for the first nine years and then $3-4 million for the last three. His annual cap hit will still be $8.7 million.

No one was expecting Crosby to hit free agency next year but it would have been one crazy summer if he had. The deal will keep Crosby a Penguin until he is 35 meaning he could potentially be a Penguin for life.

The interesting statistic to me? Over the past two seasons Crosby has missed 101 games. That is a lot of games lost to injury. Love him or hate him, when Sidney Crosby is playing he is arguably the best player in the game today. Now the question will be if he can stay healthy enough to add to his already incredible resume.

• Highly touted free agent D Justin Schultz narrows his list to five NHL teams

Twenty-two year old defenseman Justin Schultz is ready to hit the market and has cut down the list of potential teams to five. According to the hockey insiders at TSN the teams that appear to be left in the running are the Vancouver Canucks, Edmonton Oilers, Toronto Maple Leafs, New York Rangers and the Ottawa Senators.

Schultz is an interesting player because just about every team in the NHL inquired about his availabilty even though he has yet to play a professional game in the NHL (or even AHL for that matter).

The 2nd round pick of the Anaheim Ducks was not interested in signing an entry level deal with the team that drafted him. After deregistering from the University of Wisconsin, the Ducks were given a 30 day exclusive window to negotiate a deal. If the reports are true, he told them pretty early on he had plans to move elsewhere.

The catch with Schultz is that with the thin Free Agent market, he may be the most sought after player not named Ryan Suter or Zach Parise. To make things more interesting, it has been reported that Schultz is asking for a guarantee spot in a team's top 4 defense. Quite the bold request for a player who has yet to play a game in the NHL and is listed as around 160 lbs.

All the aformentioned teams have their own reasons as to why he would be a good fit. However, the British Colombia native will end up where he wants.

There is no denying the kid has potential, but there will be a learning curve with the young defenseman as there always is. After all the hype about him this summer, his rookie season will be a big story line heading into the upcoming season.

• The Calgary Flames acquire and then sign D Dennis Wideman to a 5-year $26.25 million contract

Adding to their blueline, the Flames picked up one of the top defensive free agents out there and locked him up for the foreseeable future. Wideman played with the Washington Capitals last season putting up pretty good numbers (11G-35A-82GP) while leading the Caps in hits with 113. He was also fourth on the team in blocked shots with 132.

While the initial reaction is that he will round out the top 4 defense corps with the Flames (Giordano, Bouwmeester, Wideman, Butler) there is also a belief that if a team expresses interest in taking Jay Bouwmeester off their hands they would accept.

I personally believe that the Flames would not opposed to moving his $6.6 million contract elsewhere as the minute munching defenseman could use a change of scenery. Finding a team willing to take that contract on might prove to be more difficult but he only has two years left which could entice teams enough to take a chance on him.

• NHL announces salary cap to be raised to $70.2 million

Pop Quiz: What was the salary cap when the hockey lockout was over?
Answer: $39 million

Only seven years later and the cap is poised to be (just about) doubled from the original cap post lockout.

The cap floor will also increase to $54.2 million (from $48.3 million).

My thoughts? Expect smaller market teams make plays for players with big salaries in order to make the floor. We saw this last year when the Florida Panthers acquired Brian Campbell and his (once unmovable) $7.1 million cap hit.

Players that could potentially be in play? Jay Bouwmeester (Calgary), Tim Thomas (Boston), Wade Redden (New York Rangers), Vincent Lecavalier (Tampa Bay) and Rick Nash (Colombus). All of the mentioned players come with a heavy price tag, but a team that needs the added pay roll could make a play for one of them.

• Penguins gearing up for "Dream Team"...

When the Pittsburgh Penguins traded C Jordan Staal to the Carolina Hurricanes, the consensus was that the Penguins made one hell of a deal while clearing up cap space.

Then GM Ray Shero sends D Zbynek Michalek and his $4 million contract to the Phoenix Coyotes and clears up more cap space.

What are the Penguins planning? Well you can expect that Ryan Suter and Zach Parise will both be getting contacted by Shero on July 1st.

With just over $14 million in cap space (as of right now, Shero could move more contracts out before Free Agent Frenzy begins) the Penguins could try and make a pitch to both players and convince them to take a little bit less to play with Crosby, Malkin, Neal, Letang and Fleury. Not to mention the Team USA teammates (Parise and Suter) would have a chance to play together.

Pittsburgh scares teams on a night to night basis. That is one solid team from the top line all the way down to the backup goalie on the bench. If they can somehow add Parise and/or Suter this Penguins team will hands down be the favorite to win the Stanley Cup this year.

I'll be back with more later today.

Thanks for reading!