After a successful second half with the Boston Bruins, it is highly unlikely that the Bruins will be able to retain Orlov’s services. It hasn’t been a secret either, with Orlov looking forward to his Free Agent opportunity this Summer.
Previous to his Boston experience, Orlov was hovering around a 0.5-point-per-game pace throughout his career. However, during his time in the Bruins newly minted offensive system, Orlov scored at a much higher pace. Totaling 4 goals and 13 assists, along with a +10 rating(Stats), Orlov established himself as much more than an elite defensive defenseman.
Now that free agency is looming, Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff reports that Orlov is looking at a contract with an AAV of around $8m. Orlov is coming off a six year, $5.1m AAV contract that took him to age 31.
The question now is, can Orlov be worth $8m per season? I am leaning toward no unless he takes a short-term deal, like Vladislav Gavrikov took with the Kings. I expect Orlov to end up with a 4-6 year contract with an AAV between $5.5m and $6.5m.
