Tony Amonte said he was “a little bit discouraged” because, as of Wednesday evening, he hadn’t received a contract offer in the wake of the Blackhawks’ decision to let him become an unrestricted free agent.
“I’ve talked with quite a few teams,” Amonte said. “I’m just waiting it out. We’ll see what the market brings. I didn’t think I’d be in the first round of guys [to sign], but I thought I might get some offers.
“It’s been slow going. It didn’t surprise me that the goalies (Curtis Joseph and Ed Belfour) were among the first to sign. Both of those teams all of a sudden needed a goalie.”
Stanley Cup champion Detroit signed Joseph on Tuesday to replace Dominik Hasek, who retired, and then Toronto signed Ed Belfour to fill the hole left by Joseph’s departure.
Amonte’s agent, Mike Gillis, has had discussions with Dallas, the New York Islanders, San Jose, Toronto and the New York Rangers.
Dallas signed right wing Bill Guerin, who 41 goals and 66 points last season for Boston, to a five-year deal Wednesday night.
Like Guerin, Amonte grew up in the Massachusetts and is a 31-year-old right wing. Amonte produced 27 goals and 66 points last season.
Unlike Guerin, who turned down a two-year, $18 million offer by the Bruins, Amonte didn’t receive a late offer to stay with his old team.
“[Hawks general manager] Mike Smith hasn’t called, and I don’t see it happening,” said Amonte. “They got Sergei Berezin (in a trade for a fourth-round 2004 draft choice) and he’s making close to what I was making.
“They’ve decided to go in another direction.”
Amonte made $3.4 million yearly, while Berezin, who is a restricted free agent, makes $2.95 million per year.
Smith said he has spoken to the agents of right wing Teemu Selanne, who had been getting $9.5 million from San Jose, and right wing Tie Domi, an enforcer who’d been getting $1.68 million from Toronto, but hasn’t made them offers.
