from Ken Warren of Senators Extra,
The Senators’ high-scoring, 26-year-old left winger may be a year removed from potential unrestricted free agency himself, but when the league’s free spending owners and general managers tossed out five and six-year deals like they were candy to the 30-somethings and almost 30-somethings at the top of the 2015 UFA forward class, a new bar for the open market was established.
Accordingly, Hoffman, who led the Senators with 29 goals last season and tops the team with 57 goals over the past two campaigns, has added leverage in upcoming tense contract negotiations with the Senators.
As expected, Hoffman filed for salary arbitration Tuesday, a move which guarantees that he will, at the very least, be under contract with Ottawa for one more season.
A year ago, Hoffman was rewarded $2 million following arbitration, but there are far different stakes this time around.
If Hoffman goes to arbitration again — hearing dates are scheduled for late July and early August — he’ll essentially spend the upcoming season showcasing himself for the rest of the league next summer.
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