Multiple reports say Kraken general manager Ron Francis is set to take a huge swing in free agency and will sign right-handed shot defenseman Brandon Montour of the Florida Panthers.
Tweets by Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic and Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet say the Kraken will sign Montour, 29, one of the top free agents out there, for seven years, $50 million and bring the offensively gifted defender to a team that already has a top point-getter in Vince Dunn. The free agency period opens at 9 a.m. PT, at which point a flurry of signings by teams are expected to be announced.
Montour had eight goals, 25 assists in 66 games for the Panthers last season in winning the Stanley Cup. The prior season, he had 16 goals and 57 assists in ranking as one of the league’s top defensive point-getters.
Heading into the free agency period, Montour was widely viewed as the top non-forward available. A Kraken team that finished with the NHL’s fourth worst goals per game total of 2.61 had looked to jumpstart the offense with acquisitions this summer.
While many do expect an additional forward or two to be added via free agency or trade, a Montour acquisition fills some of the offensive need while restoring balance to the left-right synergy of the defensive pairings. Some of that had been lost when right-handed defender Justin Schultz was not retained and became an unrestricted free agent.
Right-handed shot defenders are a rarer NHL commodity than left-handed versions. Montour gives the Kraken three right-handed defensemen alongside Adam Larsson and Will Borgen to go with three lefties in Dunn, Jamie Oleksiak and Ryker Evans.
This story will be updated.