News broke on Tuesday of the new contract extension signed by Edmonton Oilers superstar Leon Draisaitl.
It’s an 8-year deal worth $112 million that will keep the high-scoring icon with the Oilers well into the next decade.
The deal carries an AAV, or average annual value, of $14 million, which now becomes the highest cap hit in the NHL, passing Auston Matthews’ $13.25 AAV.
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First and foremost, let’s be clear that this is an appropriate number for one of the most electric scorers in the league.
Draisaitl has earned his payday and the Oilers will be happy to have him around for another eight seasons.
Between Draisaitl and his otherworldly teammate Connor McDavid, Edmonton will be paying a $26.5 AAV per season.
That’s nearly one-third of the Oilers $88 million salary cap.
While any team would obviously jump at the chance of having players like Draisaitl and McDavid, it makes things that much more difficult when it comes to building the best possible team around them.
That’s where the Florida Panthers have been fortunate.
Looking at each of the highest contracts on the Panthers, there are quite a few that would be considered team friendly.
The highest AAVs on the team belong to Sasha Barkov and Sergei Bobrovsky, who each count $10 million against the cap.
Barkov, like several of his teammates that we’ll get to shortly, is signed through the end of the decade, while Bobrovsky deal expires after next season.
Next highest is Matthew Tkachuk at $9.5 per year, and like Barkov, he’s signed through 2029-30.
Sam Reinhart just signed his extension, with last season’s 57-goal scorer sticking around in South Florida on an AAV of $8.625 million through 2031-32.
All four of those AAVs are among the NHL’s 50 highest, but its arguable that each of them are probably on the low side (except for Bobrovsky).
There are 14 players in the NHL who high a higher AAV than Barkov and Bob, there are 21 who have a higher number than Tkachuk, and 45 with a greater AAV than Reinhart.
The point of this this story isn’t just to compliment the efforts of Bill Zito and his staff for negotiating those long-term deals to key players at those mutually satisfying numbers.
It’s also to show the sacrifice made by these Panthers star players, who likely could have made much more if they’d prioritized dollars over winning.
A team-friendly deal means the team can take that money and put it into the rest of the roster, and Florida’s depth was as big of a key to their Stanley Cup success as anything else.
For the price of a Leon Draisaitl, Florida gets a Sasha Barkov and perhaps an entire fourth line.
With a winning culture, savvy front office and rising salary cap, there is an incredibly opportunity for Florida’s management and players to sustain the Panthers as a Stanley Cup Contender for years to come.
Bring grateful to the front office is certainly proper, but don’t forget to credit the players for their end of the bargain.
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