Breaking Down the Tampa Bay Lightning’s Unrestricted Free Agents

5. Brian Elliott

Brian Elliott was a solid back-up behind Andrei Vasilevskiy in his two seasons in Tampa . Elliott signed two separate one-year contracts with the Lightning, each for less than $1 million per season. When you are already spending $9.5 million on a starter, there is not much money left to spend on a second net-minder. After going 23-12 in his two seasons here, there was not much to complain about with Elliott considering what he was being paid.

Towards the end of this past season, things did not go as well in his starts. In his final game of the season however, he was able to pitch a 32 save shutout. This game likely was his last in the Lightning crease and potentially his last in the NHL. At 38 years old, it is unlikely that Elliott comes back, especially with Tampa Bay likely hoping to somewhat decrease the workload for Vasilevskiy.