The Florida Panthers signalled the NHL's new era Monday by outbidding the Toronto Maple Leafs as the free-agent market opened with more tire kicking than actual signings.
The Panthers kicked off the free-agent period by signing veteran forwards Joe Nieuwendyk and Gary Roberts, long-time buddies who will play together on an NHL team for the third time.
''We started our careers together and we wanted to finish our careers together. And going to Florida gives us that opportunity,'' said Roberts.
It didn't take long for the Leafs to get their first taste of the new economic order, unable to match the two-year, $4.5-million US deals each player got from Panthers GM Mike Keenan.
''There were parameters with which we were working that didn't meet their needs,'' Leafs GM John Ferguson said Monday night from his Air Canada Centre office. ''They made a decision in their best interest.''
The Columbus Blue Jackets also jumped into the fray Monday, inking prized free-agent defenceman Adam Foote. The two sides have agreed to terms on a three-year deal worth $13.8 million. An official announcement is expected Tuesday.
Meanwhile, the tantalizing free-agent duo of Markus Naslund and Peter Forsberg began shopping their services. Whether or not they can package themselves together remains to be seen.
''Markus's approach has always been `Who wouldn't want to play with Peter Forsberg?''' Naslund's agent Mike Gillis said. ''But there has to be some things that need to come together for that to happen. We'll have to wait and see.''
A number of clubs inquired about both Swedish stars Monday.
''There's been tremendous amount of interest in (Naslund),'' said Gillis, who added that Vancouver was still in the mix to resign its captain. ''We're going to be patient. When it begins to really catch fire it'll go quickly.''
Said Don Baizley, Forsberg's agent: ''Yes, we've had a lot of calls, but I'm not inclined to say anything other than that.''
The agent for unrestricted free agent Scott Niedermayer was also a busy man Monday, the No. 1 defenceman on the market getting his fair share of calls.
''We've talked to at least 14 teams today,'' Kevin Epp said from his North Vancouver office. ''Some of them are just wanting to see what the market might be.
''Some of them were just tire kicking, no real offers made today. I don't think there's any front-runners at this point. Out of the 14 teams, there's probably 10 legitimate possibilities though.''
Other moves Monday:
- The Edmonton Oilers traded winger Brad Isbister to the Boston Bruins in exchange for a fourth-round draft pick in the 2006 NHL entry draft. In 51 games with the Oilers during the 2003-04 season, Isbister had 10 goals, eight assists and 54 penalty minutes.
- The St. Louis Blues signed unrestricted free-agent enforcer Aaron Downey to a one-year contract. Downey, who didn't re-sign with the Dallas Stars, led the AHL in penalty minutes during the 1997-98 and 1998-99 seasons.
- The Minnesota Wild signed unrestricted free-agent tough guy Andrei Nazarov. The 31-year-old had 125 penalty minutes in 33 games with the Phoenix Coyotes in 2003-04.
- The Los Angeles Kings signed unrestricted free-agent winger Tom Kostopoulos, 26, to a two-year deal.
The Leafs, meanwhile, were clearly outbid by the Panthers, something that wasn't possible under the old collective bargaining agreement when Toronto was among the biggest free-agent spenders. But the Leafs have about $9 million left of cap room and need to sign about seven players. They simply could not afford what the Panthers gave the veteran duo, and likely did not want to go two years on the deal either.
''Our discussions with Toronto were positive and right up until the end it was just as likely that they would be able to stay there,'' said Rick Curran, the agent for both players. ''After the noon starting time (for free agency), I had almost immediately two proposals sitting on my desk from other teams.
''I had a further conversation with Toronto. It reached the point where the boys had to make a decision on what they wanted to do going forward.''
And that was Florida, which anted up with $2.25-million salaries.
''It really wasn't a financial decision,'' Nieuwendyk said on a conference call, although he admitted, ''clearly the terms of the deal I'm awfully excited about.''
Roberts was slated to earn $3.75 million during the wiped-out 2004-05 season while Nieuwendyk was at $3 million. The long-time friends and teammates in both Toronto and Calgary were unrestricted free agents.
Roberts, 39, played four years with the Leafs and had 28 goals and 20 assists in 72 games in 2003-04.
The 38-year-old Nieuwendyk played just the one year in Toronto, scoring 22 goals and adding 28 assists in 64 games and making a huge impact in the playoffs in which he had six goals in nine games.
Perhaps following Niewendyk and Roberts out of Toronto will be long-time tough guy Tie Domi. Sources said Monday night the 35-year-old had drawn sizable interest from other teams.
Keenan, meanwhile, made the first plunge into free agency on a day where agents and GMs burned up the phone lines. Everyone is trying to figure out what exactly is the new market.
''You try to get a feel for what the market might bear,'' said Keenan. ''It's certainly a complete unknown at this time. But you do have relationships with agents. I've known Rick Curran for a long time.
''There's has to be a level of trust when he says there are other offers at a `X' amount of dollars. I have to believe him.''
Still, there seemed to be hesitation from both sides Monday.
''A lot of teams are expressing their interest and asking that we call them when it begins to happen,'' said Gillis, who also represents unrestricted free agents Bobby Holik, Mathieu Schneider and Pavol Demitra, among others. ''Which is par for the course, everyone is dealing with a new world out there and no one is eager to make a mistake.''
Roberts and Nieuwendyk were the first in a long list of unrestricted free agents to sign.
Among those available are Forsberg, Naslund, Mike Modano, Alexei Kovalev, Demitra, Ziggy Palffy, Holik, Alexei Zhamnov, Paul Kariya and Teemu Selanne. The defencemen are led by Niedermayer, Sergei Gonchar, Brian Leetch, Derian Hatcher, Brian Rafalski, Mathieu Schneider, Mike Rathje, Roman Hamrlik and Adrian Aucoin.
Added to that is an already flooded market because of a large number of players who weren't tendered qualifying offers, therefore making them unrestricted free agents.
That list includes Miroslav Satan, who was cut loose by the Buffalo Sabres, as well as Martin Skoula (Anaheim), Ville Nieminen (Calgary), Bryan Berard (Chicago), Richard Park (Minnesota), Jason Ward (Montreal), Vladimir Orszagh (Nashville), Dan Blackburn (N.Y. Rangers), Martin Prusek (Ottawa), Brian Boucher (Phoenix) and Brad Lukowich (Tampa Bay).