Go ahead, we dare you.
Imagine yourself as an NHL general manager in charge of a team looking to make a big splash on an impact player, but perhaps not in the manner everyone expects.
Instead of standing alongside everyone else on July 1 and taking turns wooing the big-ticket unrestricted free agents, you take a gunslinger's stand and march right onto enemy turf.
Your quarry of choice? The restricted free agent.
A quick scan of the league indicates a plethora of talent could be available via nontraditional means like the offer sheet, a bold move that allows talent-seeking teams to toss out contract terms that the original teams must meet or lose a player in question.
Or perhaps another team suggesting interest could trigger a trade.
Landing Spot: Washington Capitals
It was just three years ago that the Seattle Kraken used the second pick of the 2021 draft on Matty Beniers after he'd spent two years at the University of Michigan.
His results since reaching the NHL have been respectable if not transcendent, with a Calder Trophy in 2022-23 after a 24-goal, 57-point rookie season. Those numbers plummeted in year two, though, and Seattle missed the playoffs after its prized 21-year-old produced just 15 goals and 37 points in 77 games.
The 6'2", 175-pound center is finishing a three-year, $5.5 million entry-level contract and the Capitals are looking to add skill and upside—both of which he has in droves—to position alongside Alex Ovechkin as he fades into the goal-scoring sunset.
Though it would be a tough sell given his numbers through 167 games, overpaying on a six-year deal with an average annual value of $7.25 million might be enough to prompt Seattle GM Ron Francis to let Beniers go.
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