PTO: [TBL] F Austin Watson signs PTO with the Lightning (signed)

[MMC]

Click to read more...

 

[dixie]

Replaces Maroon and Perry in one swoop!

 

[PoutineSp00nZ]

Good for Watson. Likeable guy, overcome some personal demons. Willing to do whatever he needs to to play. Willing and eager to drop the gloves but loses more than he wins.

Pulling for him, hope he gets to keep playing.

 

[biturbo19]

Is he...cleared to play? After his off-ice escapades?

Good for Watson. Likeable guy, overcome some personal demons. Willing to do whatever he needs to to play. Willing and eager to drop the gloves but loses more than he wins.

Pulling for him, hope he gets to keep playing.

Yeah. I always liked him as a player. But having the sort of off-ice baggage he does, is not great for a depth player looking for work after some...time off.

 

[BlueDream]

Is he...cleared to play? After his off-ice escapades?



Yeah. I always liked him as a player. But having the sort of off-ice baggage he does, is not great for a depth player looking for work after some...time off.

Where have you been? He’s been playing for a long time now.

 

[Leafs87]

Jeez the guy had to take the spotlight away from Matthews?

 

[PoutineSp00nZ]

Is he...cleared to play? After his off-ice escapades?



Yeah. I always liked him as a player. But having the sort of off-ice baggage he does, is not great for a depth player looking for work after some...time off.

He's been clean for years. No issues with any baggage since he became a sen. Played out the season, just lost his place on the depth chart.

I dont see him being more than a 13th forward. He can play, but he's not really great at anything. Solid on the pk though, probably the best part of his game.

 

[DistantThunderRep]

Is he...cleared to play? After his off-ice escapades?



Yeah. I always liked him as a player. But having the sort of off-ice baggage he does, is not great for a depth player looking for work after some...time off.

He's played 142 games in the last 2 seasons. So I'm not sure if he's cleared to play.

 

[biturbo19]

Where have you been? He’s been playing for a long time now.

Well shit. Sure enough. I guess that speaks volumes of how noticeable he's been since. I definitely thought he was still in NHL jail. lol.

 

[PatriceBergeronFan]

Fits the style well.

 

[Crunchrulz]

Good for Watson. Likeable guy, overcome some personal demons. Willing to do whatever he needs to to play. Willing and eager to drop the gloves but loses more than he wins.

Pulling for him, hope he gets to keep playing.

"Willing and eager to drop the gloves but loses more than he wins" means he is a PERFECT fit for the Lightning.

 

[Master P]

"Willing and eager to drop the gloves but loses more than he wins" means he is a PERFECT fit for the Lightning.

 

[Crunchrulz]

With the exception of Jeannot, Tampa Bay has had players who are willing but not so able for years. They might win a fight now and then, but they have lost far more than they have won of late. That being typed, those back to back Cups and three straight Finals appearances in the last four years make the "pain" a lot easier to deal with.

 

[KingsHockey24]

Punching bag.

 

[TheNewEra]

If he plays every other game I think he is fine. Seems like a great locker room guy but just doesnt have the capability to play an effective full season anymore imo

 

[NyQuil]

I would have preferred him over Zack McEwan but I don't think we could fit him under the cap.

 

[Master P]

With the exception of Jeannot, Tampa Bay has had players who are willing but not so able for years. They might win a fight now and then, but they have lost far more than they have won of late. That being typed, those back to back Cups and three straight Finals appearances in the last four years make the "pain" a lot easier to deal with.

Whatever you say lol

 

[Karl Eriksson]

He was really good for Ottawa down the stretch last year. I’m surprised he wasn’t signed yet.

 

[Crunchrulz]

He was really good for Ottawa down the stretch last year. I’m surprised he wasn’t signed yet.

Agreed. This one was totally off the radar and unexpected. Even if he does not make the Bolts roster, he can come to Syracuse and provide Leadership and Toughness here while being available as a call up as needed. If he lasted this long as a free agent, odds are he would not be claimed via waivers.

 

[FinnLightning26]

With the exception of Jeannot, Tampa Bay has had players who are willing but not so able for years. They might win a fight now and then, but they have lost far more than they have won of late. That being typed, those back to back Cups and three straight Finals appearances in the last four years make the "pain" a lot easier to deal with.

I guess winning a couple of Cups just about offsets the pain of losing a few face punching contests.

 

[The Devilish Buffoon]

Well shit. Sure enough. I guess that speaks volumes of how noticeable he's been since. I definitely thought he was still in NHL jail. lol.

No, it says nothing about him and probably a bit about you. Nothing bad, mind you, but clearly you dont pay too much attention. He's played close to 300 games, fought almost 40 times, and has been one of the most physical players in the league. Been an NHL regular the entire time.

With the exception of Jeannot, Tampa Bay has had players who are willing but not so able for years. They might win a fight now and then, but they have lost far more than they have won of late. That being typed, those back to back Cups and three straight Finals appearances in the last four years make the "pain" a lot easier to deal with.

Watson will take a punch, but he doesnt win many fights at all... especially against real fighters. Since being dealt to Ottawa, he's fought 26 times and beaten:
- Brandon Duhaime
- Jeremy Lauzon
- Michael Pezzetta
- Kyle Burroughs (arguably a draw)
- Antoine Roussel (arguably a draw)
- Jujhar Khaira (arguably a draw)
- Zach Bogosian (arguably a draw)
- Evander Kane

 

[NyQuil]

He’s not a great fighter but he’ll take punches instead of a guy like Brady Tkachuk who really should be picking his spots more.

The nice thing about Watson is that he can play a 4th line shift and kill penalties, unlike a lot of enforcers out there.

Willing to block shots and do anything to win.

I suspect he wanted more from Ottawa to re-sign and found out that there weren’t that many suitors out there after all.

 

[Treb]

I would have preferred him over Zack McEwan but I don't think we could fit him under the cap.

The guy had to go for a PTO, highly probable he gets the same cap hit as MacEwen IF he signs.

 

[NyQuil]

The guy had to go for a PTO, highly probable he gets the same cap hit as MacEwen IF he signs.

Sure, but I think it's quite probable that Watson tries for a multi-year contract with the team that just had him on the roster, only to be turned down, and then tests the market and finds out it isn't as accommodating as he might like.

Personally I think the same thing happened with Duclair, where what he signed for with Florida was less than what he wanted from the Senators after a pretty solid season with them.

In this case, Ottawa moved on from Watson and replaced him with someone cheaper, even if Watson ends up signing for league minimum somewhere else on PTO.

I find a lot of people often say "Well, we should have just signed him for that" but it's not always that simple, in that a player may have to reduce their demands to play elsewhere if the market dries up or is non-existent and their original team has already replaced him.

 

[AndreRoy]

Ideally one of our young guys takes a step forward and Watson ends up as depth in Syracuse and a potential injury call-up. But it doesn’t hurt to have more competition for those last couple of forward spots.