Jimmy Vesey didn’t sign an entry-level contract with the Nashville Predators in March, and therefore wasn’t able to join their roster for a Stanley Cup playoffs run.
It’s a decision the Harvard product might now regret — Nashville is one game away from the Western Conference final — but he has the option to become an unrestricted free agent on August 15.
Which team will he sign with? His hometown club, the Boston Bruins, should be in the mix.
“I think the Bruins will definitely be on my list of teams,” Vesey recently told Stephen Harris of The Boston Herald.
This comment isn’t surprising. Vesey was born in Massachusetts and played four years at Harvard.
“On Aug. 15 I can start talking to teams, and see what they’re going to say to me,” Vesey said. “Then, I think we’ll probably take several days after that to come to a decision.”
The Bruins certainly need scoring depth on the wings, particularly on the right side. Vesey is a left winger, but the B’s might need to fill Loui Eriksson’s top-six role on that side if the veteran forward leaves Boston in the summer as a free agent.
Vesey scored 24 goals and added 22 assists in 33 games for the Crimson last season, which helped earn him the Hobey Baker Award as college hockey’s most outstanding player. He originally was a third-round draft pick of the Preds in 2012.
Thumbnail photo via YouTube/HarvardAthletics
