Thomas Vanek is using his newfound unrestricted free-agent status as motivation.
Bought out by the Minnesota Wild, the 32-year-old winger is set to hit the open market with a will to prove he still has plenty of gas left in the tank.
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"(Vanek) is more motivated than I’ve ever heard him, talking about coming back and showing everybody he’s 30-goal scorer," agent Steve Bartlett told John Vogl of the Buffalo News.
The 30-goal mark hasn't been reached by Vanek since he scored 32 with the Sabres in 2010-11, and the 18 he scored in 2015-16 marked the lowest single-season output of his career.
Still, Vanek is averaging 31.7 goals per 82 games over the course of his career and hit at least 20 every season before last since entering the NHL in 2005.
While the Wild weren't willing to carry his $6.5-million cap hit for another season to find out if can indeed rediscover his scoring touch, the team that signs him could get nice value out of Vanek, especially if he comes in at a discounted rate.
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