All is quiet on the Darren Raddysh front, and with the Tampa Bay Lightning quietly starting to tackle their offseason to-do list, now seems like the perfect time to examine what the organization could do should its prized blueliner walk as a free agent.
We covered the ins and outs of the Raddysh free agency decision earlier this month, so we won't rehash most of it here. The reality is a simple one: Tampa Bay probably can't afford to match the market price for the defenseman, and if he decides to secure a once-in-a-lifetime bag, general manager Julien BriseBois will need to move on with a Plan B or C.
Of course, none of this is news to the Lightning, who have had at least half a year to prepare for life without Raddysh. We aren't flies on the wall of BriseBois' office, however, so the best we can do is speculate and guess as to what one of the best organizations in professional sports will do should the defenseman leave town.
John Carlson could offer a short-term stopgap for Lightning if Raddysh leaves as a free agent
The Anaheim Ducks are a team on the upswing after a surprising run to the second round of the Western Conference playoffs. That could be enough to keep John Carlson in town, who had only played for one franchise for a decade and a half before getting traded by the Washington Capitals in March.
Anaheim paid a hefty price for Carlson--a first-round pick in 2026 and a third-rounder in 2027--so general manager Pat Verbeek would likely prefer to keep the veteran defenseman. The GM has also developed a reputation as one of the most cost-conscious, hard-to-negotiate-with managers in pro hockey, so it isn't hard to see where things could go off the rails with the 36-year-old blueliner.
Carlson checks a lot of the same boxes as Raddysh, and will likely cash in at roughly the cap hit Tampa would prefer to keep Raddysh around. The difference here could be term. Would BriseBois be comfortable offering Carlson three years instead of going to seven or eight with Raddysh? Only one of these players has a consistent track record of high-end offensive production, after all.
If the Massachusetts native wants to get back into the Eastern time zone while trying to help a good, veteran team hold the Stanley Cup window open just a bit longer, Tampa Bay could make a ton of sense. Like Raddysh, if Carlson is looking for the most money possible, the Lightning aren't a fit. But on the ice, he could be a fantastic stopgap addition.
Jacob Trouba offers Lightning more of the grit they valued last season
On the flip side of Carlson's offensive upside coin is Jacob Trouba and his bone-crushing hits. Both of these blueliners were invaluable to Anaheim's climb up the rankings, but the Ducks could be looking to get younger at the position by moving on from at least one of them.
Tampa Bay embraced truculence after getting thrashed by the Florida Panthers in the playoffs. Perhaps to a detriment, but we can't ignore the value BriseBois has placed on physical play as of late. And they don't come much more physical than Trouba.
He's also been an outstanding partner for Jackson LaCombe, and it isn't like the Ducks don't have cap space to burn if they want to. But, again, Verbeek has established himself as the kind of GM who won't toss money around just because he can. That could allow Trouba to shake loose and test the market.
Trouba was a bit of a misunderstood, and perhaps even an overvalued player, with the New York Rangers. Yet there's no denying that he's earned his reputation as a defenseman who is not afraid to step into his opponent. How many times would he need to run Matthew Tkachuk over in the neutral zone of a playoff series before he'd be worth his cap hit? Have fun standing in front of the net while Trouba is on duty, Sam Bennett.
Neither Trouba or Carlson is a perfect replacement for Raddysh. Ideally, Tampa Bay can hang onto its own player here, but this thought exercise is to illustrate how slim the pickings are for BriseBois should he need to turn to free agency. Perhaps the devil you know, in this instance, is better than the one you don't, and overpaying or overextending Raddysh may make a lot of sense in this current free agent environment.
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