Speculation: 2 years away. Do you think Matthews accepts a slight raise OR takes us to the cleaners next contract?

[hfman]

The Pens were going to fold or relocated before being gifted Crosby.

100% true.

And then of course, Pittsburgh 'won' the lottery and landed Crosby. Who of course, revived the franchise from bankruptcy and delivered a couple Stanley Cups. Therefore keeping the Penguins in Pittsburgh.

Just a coincidence though, like everything else. You know, the same kind of coincidence as when Gretzky was 'traded' to Los Angeles just when they were also under a threat of losing their franchise. And of course, Wayne goes down to the Kings and takes them to the Cup finals, all while selling out their stadium after they were in danger of losing their team. That entire southern Bay area wasn't catching on with hockey (remember the Seals?) and the NHL had to do something to create interest in that state and keep hockey down there. So. Throw Gretzky into the mix and voila, tickets are sold out and the Kings go to the finals. Then comes San Jose and Anahiem shorlty afterwards.

Nothing to do with Gretzky though....... it was just a 'coincidence' that he was traded down there

The same as Crosby was just a 'coincidence' to revive the Pens


People gotta open their eyes


The scary thing is, if the NHL keeps this same game plan as they did with Wayne and Sidney, they are 100% moving Matthews to Arizona or Vegas or somewhere down there to either kickstart or rescue those franchises.....

 

[therealkoho]

You think they’ll trade him before his final year of the current contract if he isn’t extended a year before ufa?

I truly believe that if he's not signed by the draft at close to their numbers the Leafs will move him for the 2023 1st overall and some other bits and bobs.

 

[kb]

I truly believe that if he's not signed by the draft at close to their numbers the Leafs will move him for the 2023 1st overall and some other bits and bobs.

He can't be signed by the draft. He can only sign as of July 1st.

And that would be a very poor return on arguably one of the most valuable assets in the NHL. If I'm the Leafs, I just let him go UFA, because no one has the cap space to take on $15 million+ and still ice a competitive team in a city that lives and breathes hockey- which is what AM wants. He has no desire to be a big fish in a small pond.

To get to $15 million, the Leafs would only have to clear $3 million, and they have Muzzin and Brodie coming off the books.

 

[aingefan]

14.34 x 8

13,434,343 for 34 years.

 

[kb]

14.34 x 8

Yup. I'd look at this area for the cap hit.......

 

[kb]

Pretty sure the Leafs already know the number that he will sign for. Dubas has said a few times that he has a very good working relationship with Judd Moldaver, AM's agent, and that they have spoken about it already.

Not the least bit worried about him leaving.

 

[TheScandal89]

If he stays my expectation is 8 year 120 Million (15m cap hit) which is extremely high but something we will likely pay him rather than losing him.

 

[The Hanging Jowl]

He's taking them to the cleaners. And he should. And we'd still be lucky to have him.

 

[The Hanging Jowl]

Not true. Pittsburgh won a lottery.

If you recall, it wasn't a weighted lottery due to the lockout season. They may have truly won it but I don't think someone suggesting shenanigans is outright crazy. It was very fortuitous.

 

[Kazparov]

He will sign for the highest salary in the NHL. Mostly front loaded in bonuses to avoid taxes.

Anyone here suggesting otherwise is delusional.

 

[ACC1224]

100% true.

And then of course, Pittsburgh 'won' the lottery and landed Crosby. Who of course, revived the franchise from bankruptcy and delivered a couple Stanley Cups. Therefore keeping the Penguins in Pittsburgh.

Just a coincidence though, like everything else. You know, the same kind of coincidence as when Gretzky was 'traded' to Los Angeles just when they were also under a threat of losing their franchise. And of course, Wayne goes down to the Kings and takes them to the Cup finals, all while selling out their stadium after they were in danger of losing their team. That entire southern Bay area wasn't catching on with hockey (remember the Seals?) and the NHL had to do something to create interest in that state and keep hockey down there. So. Throw Gretzky into the mix and voila, tickets are sold out and the Kings go to the finals. Then comes San Jose and Anahiem shorlty afterwards.

Nothing to do with Gretzky though....... it was just a 'coincidence' that he was traded down there

The same as Crosby was just a 'coincidence' to revive the Pens


People gotta open their eyes


The scary thing is, if the NHL keeps this same game plan as they did with Wayne and Sidney, they are 100% moving Matthews to Arizona or Vegas or somewhere down there to either kickstart or rescue those franchises.....

The difference though in Matthews instance is he will have a say in it something that neither Gretzky nor Crosby had.

 

[Sypher04]

He can't be signed by the draft. He can only sign as of July 1st.

And that would be a very poor return on arguably one of the most valuable assets in the NHL. If I'm the Leafs, I just let him go UFA, because no one has the cap space to take on $15 million+ and still ice a competitive team in a city that lives and breathes hockey- which is what AM wants. He has no desire to be a big fish in a small pond.

To get to $15 million, the Leafs would only have to clear $3 million, and they have Muzzin and Brodie coming off the books.

Not only that, the cap is likely to rise enough that offseason to cover his pay increase.

 

[Mess]

He's taking them to the cleaners. And he should. And we'd still be lucky to have him.

The final price will however depend who the Leafs GM is at time of signing.

This whole situation will depend highly on the results of the season.

 

[TheGreatOne11]

The difference between Mack and Matthews, is that Mack earned a cup so deserves the raise, just like when Kane and Toews time came up.

I honestly believe he's seen what these huge contracts have done to the team, and he will sign a more team friendly deal than what he is capable of signing, but he's still going to get paid, he'll just leave some on the table to better position us for success.

Also i don't think he does 8 years, it'll be a bit less with less money because these new figures for the cap see us gaining 10 million in about 4-6 years.

 

[ToneDog]

He's taking them to the cleaners. And he should. And we'd still be lucky to have him.

If he is tired of losing in round #1, he may accept being highest paid player in the league. A $16+m bonus cheque on July 1st 2024 should make him happy to sign.

He is definitely worth the price of admission but if the goal is to truly win the cup then you can't let him "take you to the cleaners".

 

[kk87]

If he takes under $14m I'd be ecstatic; but honestly even if he signs for max value for 8 years on July 1st next year, I'd be happy. All that matters is retaining him for the next decade, at all and any costs. He's a borderline generational talent, so the onus is on management to build around that.

 

[Sypher04]

If he takes under $14m I'd be ecstatic; but honestly even if he signs for max value for 8 years on July 1st next year, I'd be happy. All that matters is retaining him for the next decade, at all and any costs. He's a borderline generational talent, so the onus is on management to build around that.

That would be a tough pill in a sense though. 20% of like an 88m cap would be somewhere around 17.5M. That said, he’s not getting max so we don’t have to worry about that lol

Probably lands somewhere around 16.5-17% if he doesn’t leave anything on the table. Feels like 15M is the high mark possibility on his next deal.

 

[Christ]

Matthews will get the maximum allowable salary and not a penny less...only question I have is term. Will he go long term or will he instead go with shorter term contracts. I could see him banking on not having his play decline for a few seasons so that he can sign again several years down the line at a higher max contract as the cap goes up...

 

[ACC1224]

Matthews will get the maximum allowable salary and not a penny less...only question I have is term. Will he go long term or will he instead go with shorter term contracts. I could see him banking on not having his play decline for a few seasons so that he can sign again several years down the line at a higher max contract as the cap goes up...

I don't think so. He'll get a bump but to take every penny won't be a good look and I believe he'll care about that.

 

[Stamkos4life]

He bent us over for an RFA deal when he accomplished relatively little, he's going to break the bank now

Career high of 70 points, a calder and average PO production netted him 11.634 x 5. Apparently he wanted 13+ for an 8 year deal.

Now that his career high is 106 points, 2 rockets, a Hart and a lindsay....

Anyone thinking he takes less than 14mil is dreaming.

 

[zeke]

Career high of 70 points, a calder and average PO production netted him 11.634 x 5. Apparently he wanted 13+ for an 8 year deal.

Now that his career high is 106 points, 2 rockets, a Hart and a lindsay....

Anyone thinking he takes less than 14mil is dreaming.

Maybe everybody knew that something like "70pts" was a very stupid way to evaluate a player.

 

[The Hanging Jowl]

If he is tired of losing in round #1, he may accept being highest paid player in the league. A $16+m bonus cheque on July 1st 2024 should make him happy to sign.

He is definitely worth the price of admission but if the goal is to truly win the cup then you can't let him "take you to the cleaners".

My guess is they won't have much say in the matter. Honestly, barring two disastrous seasons, he's going to get whatever he wants. If he follows up last year's performance with anything close this year, he in charge of this no matter who's the GM. We can only hope he sees the goodwill that's been provided on the team's end.

 

[Zur En Arrh]

What's slight?

MacKinnon just got 12.6M

I could see Matthews bringing home anywhere from 12.75-13.75M on an 8 year deal.

Depends on how much he wants to make exactly.

Lol. He won the hart and Lindsay, he's the best player in the NHL. He's getting 15 on an eight year deal which is fine by me. He's a once in a generation player and he's ours. PAY HIM!!!

 

[Zur En Arrh]

I have read a gazillion times on this board that he will be signing with Arizona. Could all of these posters been wrong?

They always are so...

 

[Menzinger]

In this scenario would the leafs be out of the playoffs? I don't see why a team would trade its best player if they are contending especially if its the last year of said player and they are in absolute must win now mode.


If Arizona suddenly found money and had a new arena built i could see the draw.

It's still going to take years for them to build one. Even if everything goes smoothly as it can. They don't even have the deal with the local municipality. Then there's the finalizing the basic plans for it + physical construction of it on top of everything