Pionk files for salary arbitration

It was announced late on Friday afternoon (around 4:00 p.m. CT) that Jets players Andrew Copp and Neal Pionk had elected to file for salary arbitration along with 38 other NHL players. Photo Credit: Colby Spence Andrew Copp, 24, is coming off a productive season with the Jets (11 goals, 14 assists in 69 games) while Pionk, recently acquired from the New York Rangers in the Jacob Trouba trade, had 6 goals and 20 assists in 73 games last season. Jets/Moose goaltender Eric Comrie, who was eligible to file for salary arbitration, decided not to exercise his option. As per the NHLPA, "The deadline for Club-Elected Salary Arbitration notification is July 6, 2019 at 5 p.m. ET. Salary Arbitration hearings will be held in Toronto from July 20 to Aug. 4, 2019." It should be noted that filing for salary arbitration does not mean that players will necessarily go to salary arbitration. Both Copp and Pionk (and their respective representation) can continue to negotiate and sign a contract any time before an arbitrator's ruling. In fact, last offseason, of the 44 restricted free agents who filed for arbitration, only three actually had their salaries determined by an arbitrator (Jacob Trouba, Cody Ceci, Brett Kulak). The rest signed before a ruling. Stay tuned to Illegal Curve for the latest news. You can follow me on Twitter @ICEzzyg.

Winnipeg Jets Andrew Copp and Neal Pionk file for salary arbitration