Vladimir Tarasenko hit NHL Free Agency as one of the more interesting players on the open market. The former Stanley Cup champion has a track record as a reliable sniper in the top six. However, this past season wasn't exactly his best season. And he isn't exactly getting any younger.

It seemed as if the veteran forward had found a home relatively early in the offseason. Rumors surfaced that Tarasenko was closing in on a contract with the Carolina Hurricanes. After days without official confirmation, however, a bombshell was dropped.

Tarsenko decided to change agents in the middle of NHL Free Agency. As a result, any rumored contract with the Hurricanes was put on pause. And as it turns out, it was called off completely.

Tarasenko has signed a one-year contract with the Ottawa Senators. The veteran forward will earn a salary of $5 million this season, and he holds a full no-trade clause.

Let's take a deeper look at this contract from both sides. Here are our grades for the one-year contract signed by the Ottawa Senators and Vladimir Tarasenko in NHL Free Agency.

Vladimir Tarasenko signs with Senators

Tarasenko split this past season with the St. Louis Blues and New York Rangers. In all, he scored 18 goals and 50 points in 69 games. Excluding seasons shortened by injury, it's his lowest goal total since 2013-14 with the Blues.

Every report we have indicates the 2019 Stanley Cup champion sought a multi-year contract to begin NHL Free Agency. In fact, reports indicated the Senators tabled a four-year contract earlier this summer.

Whether this is true is up for debate. However, his decision to change agents indicated that he wasn't pleased with how contract negotiations unfolded. And his signing this late in the offseason further shows that things didn't unfold as he envisioned.

If he did receive a four-year contract from the Senators, taking a one-year deal lowers Tarasenko's grade just a bit. $5 million certainly isn't a bad payday, though. And he maintains control over his future this season with the no-trade clause. Things may not have been all sunshine and rainbows for Tarasenko. However, things could have been a lot worse.

Senators sign Vladimir Tarasenko

The Senators are in an interesting position after this contract. They added a goal-scoring punch that they desperately needed. Ottawa traded Alex DeBrincat to the Detroit Red Wings earlier this month. And while Dominik Kubalik came the other way, more was certainly needed.

To that end, this is a great bit of business for Pierre Dorion. Adding a player of Tarasenko's caliber on a relatively risk-free contract is big for this team. Especially given their playoff aspirations for 2024. A one-year contract allows the team to see if he can bounce back to his former 30-goal ways. If he can't he's gone next summer and that's that.

However, there is a downside to this contract. Ottawa now has less than $1 million in available cap space. But the Senators aren't done operating this summer. They still need to re-sign forward Shane Pinto, who turned in a promising rookie season in 2022-23.

There aren't any obvious trade candidates on the roster that could help free up cap space. And Ottawa certainly doesn't appear likely to trade a potentially core future player in Pinto. Another move is certainly needed before the start of the season.

Ottawa does incredibly well to sign Tarasenko, especially after losing a player like DeBrincat. The contract puts them in a bit of a pickle, however. And that's something to keep an eye on as the summer rolls on.

Grades and final thoughts

Both the Ottawa Senators and Vladminir Tarasenko receive a decently high mark. It looks like Tarasenko had offers with more security and more money on the table. However, whatever issues he had with his previous agents may have cost him in the end. For the Senators, their grade here honestly feels incomplete. They need to make another more in response to the cap crunch they are now in so they can get Pinto under contract. And I do believe their grade could change depending on what that move is. For now, though, this is a fine addition to Pierre Dorion's team.

Vladimir Tarasenko grade: B+

Ottawa Senators grade: A-