We';re deep into the summer, yet one of the greatest Danish hockey players of
all time remains without a contract. Jannik Hansen should have more in the
tank, but one sub-par season has demolished his value on the market.

This begs the question, what';s next for Jannik Hansen?Where';s Hansen';s Value
 Lies

For nearly a decade, Hansen established himself as a responsible, two-way
player in the NHL. He';s an efficient penalty killer with speed to burn. Even
at 32 years 0ld, he can still be one of the fastest players in the league.

Hansen is also an underrated offensive player as well. For seven seasons,
Hansen averaged between 30 and 40 points per season for the Canucks and the San
 Jose Sharks.

It wasn';t until last season in San Jose where everything fell off the rails
for Hansen. He was constantly a healthy scratch, making it into the lineup for
only 46 games last season. Hansen never found a spot in the lineup, with his
most common linemates being Chris Tierney and Mikkel Boedker. As a line, the
trio bled scoring chances at even-strength, with a scoring-chances-for
percentage that was below 43 per cent.Jannik Hansen had a forgettable tenure in
 San Jose, but he could still provide value to some teams. (Stan Szeto-USA
TODAY Sports)

Hansen suffered through some bad lucky as well. Throughout his career, Hansen
never had a shooting percentage below eight per cent. Last season, his shooting
 percentage dropped down to 3.7 per cent.

If Hansen were to come back to the NHL, you could expect him to bury a few more
 goals. He';s a better shooter than last season';s goal total would suggest.

Hansen is also an effective penalty killer and has been for a number of years.
Although healthy scratches limited his time on the penalty kill in San Jose, he
 helped the Sharks to the second-best penalty kill in the league last season.
With the Canucks, he was a vital part of the penalty kill for his entire
career.To Whom Could Hansen Provide Value?

With many rosters all but complete this late in the summer, it can be tough to
pick out some teams who could value from Hansen. In June, some in Vancouver
were calling for Hansen to come home in Vancouver. That theory is all but dead
 after the signings of Jay Beagle, Tim Schaller and Antoine Roussel.

Teams who could use Hansen are those who aren';t strong on the penalty kill,
are slow, and could benefit from his veteran leadership. Here are a few that
come to mind as a possible fit for Hansen.Philadelphia Flyers

The Philadelphia Flyers are pretty stacked at the top of their roster and have
some younger guys vying for spots. If Hansen were to crack this team, he would
likely have to beat out other vets like Dale Weise and Jori Lehtera for playing
 time.Could Jannik Hansen be a fit to join Dave Hakstol and the Philadelphia
Flyers? (Amy Irvin / The Hockey Writers)

Even though the Flyers are potent on offence, they struggled mightily on the
penalty kill last season. Part of that though was due to Brian Elliott';s poor
save percentage shorthanded, and could also be attributed to their weak defence
 rather than the forwards up front. Valtteri Filppula, who had the worst goals
against per 60 shorthanded among Flyers forwards, has departed Philly for the
Islanders.Columbus Blue Jackets

This might make the most sense for Hansen on a couple of levels. One, the
Columbus Blue Jackets are one of the youngest teams in the league. They also
had a bottom-10 penalty kill last season, meaning that Hansen could help
Columbus on more than one area.

Another reason why Hansen could end up in Ohio is because of his connection
with John Tortorella. While Torts might want to forget everything about his
tenure in Vancouver, one player he did love was Hansen. He fed Hansen more than
 15 minutes per game, including loads of time on the penalty kill.

Still, there are a lot of talented young forwards in this organization, so
it';s hard to see Hansen beating many of them out. If anything, Hansen could
become a 12th or 13th forward who plays big minutes on the penalty kill or
fills in for any injured forwards.Tampa Bay Lightning

Although the Tampa Bay Lightning were among the best teams in the league last
season, they struggled mightily on the penalty kill. Hansen';s speed also fits
right in with the way Tampa likes to play the game.Steve Yzerman could be the
GM who sees the value of signing someone like Hansen to a cheap, one-year deal.
 (Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports)

Tampa is right up against the cap right now, which could actually work in
Hansen';s favour. As the Lightning try to clear more cap room to add a guy like
 Erik Karlsson, Hansen could be a perfect low-cost signing for the organization
 in case they trade away some of their forwards.

The post What';s Next for Jannik Hansen? appeared first on The Hockey Writers.

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