Written by Liam McGuire at Bloguin
There are plenty of deals given out during the free agent frenzy. With the big money being thrown around, some of the deals make you drop your jaw while others make you scratch your head in disbelief. Whatever you think at the time, it’s hard to truly peg how a deal is going to turn out.
Here are three of those free agent signings which have panned out well so far.
Francois Beauchemin
The Colorado Avalanche signed Beauchemin to a huge three-year, $13.5 million deal on July 1st. I wasn’t initially crazy about the move considering it was a lot of money and term to give to a 35-year-old defenseman, but so far it has been a huge move for the Avs.
Colorado’s defense would be an even bigger steaming pile of crap than it currently is if it wasn’t for Beauchemin. He has logged top-pairing minutes, prominently playing beside Erik Johnson. Offensively, he’s been scoring at an impressive rate with nine points (1 goal, 8 assists) in 14 games. He’s playing tough minutes. He hasn’t posted amazing possession numbers, but playing on a Patrick Roy-coached team will do that. The Avs have given up 31.5 SA/60 and sport the league’s worst Corsi at 42.6 percent.
The Avalanche are overworking Beauchemin, but it’s because their alternatives outside him, Johnson and Tyson Barrie are laughable. He’s been an extremely valuable pickup for the team.
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