News Article: Auston Matthews - August 1st., Contract Crickets

[Legion34]

Yeah. The point is he could have a lot more but took less so his team can win.

????? He took 450 million dollars. How much more could he have taken?

It's rather telling that exactly one year to the date Matthews was benched for calling out Keefe in media, it was the coaches turn to be reproached over his infamous "soft and purposeless" comments.

I think we all know who really runs this team.

When we used to go to school they would post the salaries of the professors on the wall in the cafeteria. The average salary was about $250,000 a year. It would take a physics professor, a god damn genius, sixty four years to earn what Matthews made the first year of his contract.

If it's money Matthews wants, it's money Matthews will get.

Leafs fans are about to find out very soon where Matthews loyalties lay. Is he here to lead the team that drafted him first overall to a cup? Or is he just another showboating flash-in-the-pan hotdogger come to get rich quick and leave town as soon as possible thereafter?

The greatest accomplishment of this management team to date was bottoming out and drafting Matthews.

Their lasting legacy may be losing the "greatest Leafs player of all time" to free agency.

???? Matthews was benched for calling out keefe??? Did I miss this?

 

[hoglund]

????? He took 450 million dollars. How much more could he have taken?



???? Matthews was benched for calling out keefe??? Did I miss this?

I don't think that you missed it because I don't think that it happened.

 

[horner]

It's rather telling that exactly one year to the date Matthews was benched for calling out Keefe in media, it was the coaches turn to be reproached over his infamous "soft and purposeless" comments.

I think we all know who really runs this team.

When we used to go to school they would post the salaries of the professors on the wall in the cafeteria. The average salary was about $250,000 a year. It would take a physics professor, a god damn genius, sixty four years to earn what Matthews made the first year of his contract.

If it's money Matthews wants, it's money Matthews will get.

Leafs fans are about to find out very soon where Matthews loyalties lay. Is he here to lead the team that drafted him first overall to a cup? Or is he just another showboating flash-in-the-pan hotdogger come to get rich quick and leave town as soon as possible thereafter?

The greatest accomplishment of this management team to date was bottoming out and drafting Matthews.

Their lasting legacy may be losing the "greatest Leafs player of all time" to free agency.

If Mathews wrist is a problem in the future, then this contract will be a boat anchor.
Mathews wasn't using his wrist shot this year as much as last year, snapshots or one timers were his go to.
You need a healthy wrist for a wrist shot I would think.
I hope for the good of our team iam wrong.

 

[DarkKnight]

 

[SprDaVE]

Maurice the best coach ever in the NHL?

Is Bobrovsky the best goaltender since Martin Brodeur?

Radko Gudas is the Scott Stevens of the NHL... and we love it!

 

[DarkKnight]

Maurice the best coach ever in the NHL?

Is Bobrovsky the best goaltender since Martin Brodeur?

Radko Gudas is the Scott Stevens of the NHL... and we love it!

They went over their career playoffs, not recency bias.

 

[NVious]

It's rather telling that exactly one year to the date Matthews was benched for calling out Keefe in media, it was the coaches turn to be reproached over his infamous "soft and purposeless" comments.

I think we all know who really runs this team.

When we used to go to school they would post the salaries of the professors on the wall in the cafeteria. The average salary was about $250,000 a year. It would take a physics professor, a god damn genius, sixty four years to earn what Matthews made the first year of his contract.

If it's money Matthews wants, it's money Matthews will get.

Leafs fans are about to find out very soon where Matthews loyalties lay. Is he here to lead the team that drafted him first overall to a cup? Or is he just another showboating flash-in-the-pan hotdogger come to get rich quick and leave town as soon as possible thereafter?

The greatest accomplishment of this management team to date was bottoming out and drafting Matthews.

Their lasting legacy may be losing the "greatest Leafs player of all time" to free agency.

And the worst part is that you have;
1.All the playoff failures of his career
2.His recent mediocre season
3.His playoff failure this year

Leafs paid him handsomely before and now is a chance for him to help out the team and set the tone for the next set of contracts of the group. Yet all of us basically expect him to ask for 14+ million and probably some stupid term to boot.

"You CANT WIN WITHOUT HIM!!!!"

And yet they haven't won shit WITH him either. 7 years, barely a scratch in the 2nd round, from .62gpg in the season to .42gpg in the playoffs. Why is a guy that's not even .5gpg in the playoffs (never mind even ppg) SUCH a cornerstone? Especially when he's probably gonna ask for ALL the money? What sort of precedent does that set for the team?

 

[3blizzard4]

All Pitt had to do was beat Chicago and Florida doesn’t make the playoffs.

 

[ryno23]

And the worst part is that you have;
1.All the playoff failures of his career
2.His recent mediocre season
3.His playoff failure this year

Leafs paid him handsomely before and now is a chance for him to help out the team and set the tone for the next set of contracts of the group. Yet all of us basically expect him to ask for 14+ million and probably some stupid term to boot.

"You CANT WIN WITHOUT HIM!!!!"

And yet they haven't won shit WITH him either. 7 years, barely a scratch in the 2nd round, from .62gpg in the season to .42gpg in the playoffs. Why is a guy that's not even .5gpg in the playoffs (never mind even ppg) SUCH a cornerstone? Especially when he's probably gonna ask for ALL the money? What sort of precedent does that set for the team?

cause Leaf fans know the misery of Tyler Bozak and those type of players as 1C and not making the playoffs.

Lots of young leaf fans don't understand the misery we fans of the 80s understood or post-lockout when they missed the playoffs every year.

Yeah our core sucks in the playoff but at least we get to watch playoff hockey.

 

[NVious]

cause Leaf fans know the misery of Tyler Bozak and those type of players as 1C and not making the playoffs.

Lots of young leaf fans don't understand the misery we fans of the 80s understood or post-lockout when they missed the playoffs every year.

Yeah our core sucks in the playoff but at least we get to watch playoff hockey.

JT and Nylander are both better than Bozak ever was, so that's not happening.

And you really enjoy watching this team in the playoffs? The extra week means so much?

It's also interesting how we can't get better trading away Matthews or the core, so we have to pay them more and more after failure, humiliation and disappointment year after year?

Did Boston win a cup trading away arguably the #1C at the time?
Did Florida not just trade away a 120 point player, 2D and get better?

 

[therealkoho]

This guy f***ing gets it.

If only our core guys did.

Worried their contracts will be bullshit. If so... time to move some of them.

I don't get how after all this failure they think they deserve to be higher paid then a guy like McDavid... its just greed then.

Exactly and also has pride in the uniform, which to me suggests that he gets TEAM sports and what it's really all about, and that is its all about the rings.

I have to laugh everytime I hear an athlete who's already made enough money for two lifetimes, while negotiating a new contract and demanding close to a league high contract use the old "gotta feed my family" nonsense.

Nobody liked it except for Heat fans, but I respected those guys who had already made tons, and made a pact to play in Miami for way less than their previous contracts in order to win some championships.

 

[Burnie97]

Exactly and also has pride in the uniform, which to me suggests that he gets TEAM sports and what it's really all about, and that is its all about the rings.

I have to laugh everytime I hear an athlete who's already made enough money for two lifetimes, while negotiating a new contract and demanding close to a league high contract use the old "gotta feed my family" nonsense.

Nobody liked it except for Heat fans, but I respected those guys who had already made tons, and made a pact to play in Miami for way less than their previous contracts in order to win some championships.

Again maybe not the best comparison because he has a massive contract but I doubt he ever cares about money much now. He's loaded. It's him talking about still be able to have good players around him. In the NFL cap is way higher so they get way bigger contracts.

Matthews will still be loaded too. Yes he makes a lot less but he still hasn't won shit. I never hear him or Marner talk about taking less for the team. They should.

Taking less now would go a long way. Really he should be getting about 13 Max for 8 years but he wants like 15 for 5 years so he can get another big contract later. Thats what I've been hearing anyway.

We'll see what happens but I just don't see it working anymore without one of them gone.

They've had more than enough chances to get further in the playoffs now. They need a reset.

 

[sunstersun]

Mahomes isn't the best comparison. He's trying to chase Brady. He can't if he maximizes every $.

 

[ULF_55]

Again maybe not the best comparison because he has a massive contract but I doubt he ever cares about money much now. He's loaded. It's him talking about still be able to have good players around him. In the NFL cap is way higher so they get way bigger contracts.

Matthews will still be loaded too. Yes he makes a lot less but he still hasn't won shit. I never hear him or Marner talk about taking less for the team. They should.

Taking less now would go a long way. Really he should be getting about 13 Max for 8 years but he wants like 15 for 5 years so he can get another big contract later. Thats what I've been hearing anyway.

We'll see what happens but I just don't see it working anymore without one of them gone.

They've had more than enough chances to get further in the playoffs now. They need a reset.

Can you imagine.

Matthews takes less, and then in a year marner goes for the most he can get?

That would produce some interesting reporting ...

 

[therealkoho]

He was offered a contract in season. Deferred to after. Then was approached. And called a public press conference andHe said he didn’t know if he wanted it…. And then wanted more money and say…… would you extend a contract to someone who voluntarily called a press conference and said that?

What was he going to get… 25 million? Who would go to their boss and say… yes give this guy millions who doesn’t want to be here.



What if he signs for 8 years on July 1? Still right?

I can't guarantee it, but 6 will get you 5 that he doesn't, his agent may not want him to sign anything for that matter. This is because they say that by the 25/26 season the cap is in all probability by that time be somewhere in the mid 90s.

 

[Peasy]

Didn't Mahomes at one point sign the largest contract in history?

Almost three years ago, Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes landed the richest contract in American team sports history.

Yes, yes he did.

 

[Buds17]

When John taveras was asked in 2018 if he would leave NYI as a free agent this is what he said, “I think I’ve always showed my commitment, appreciation and desire to play on Long Island. I would like to continue that for the long haul. If you look at some of the greatest players who have spent their entire careers somewhere.”

interviever : that would rule you out of returning to Toronto?
JT: ”I would not count on that”

JT’s final sentence in the interview commenting on playing for NYI “I would love to see it through and lift the stanley cup there”

just because matthews is saying the right things, it don’t mean squat. superstar players approaching their ufa contract will say anything to make you think they are staying as JT has illustrated here

I'm not sure that the quote is from 2018 since NYI missed the playoffs in JT's final season there IIRC. Probably not much the Leafs can do though if Matthews wishes to play at home, or for an American team, or potentially for less money elsewhere.

 

[Burnie97]

Can you imagine.

Matthews takes less, and then in a year marner goes for the most he can get?

That would produce some interesting reporting ...

You'd just say... bye bye Marner. Trade him and get assets. You won't win the trade but again they can round out the team much better.

I hope they do that during this off season though.

 

[therealkoho]

you did watch the leafs before there was a salary cap, no?

Sure but they had zero direction because of continual changes in ownership, and infighting at the board level that eventually spilled down into the GMs office.

They gave Fletcher Carte Blanche, and then took it away from him when the board suddenly got uptight about the bottom line, and he had to tear down the best Leafs team since the 60s.

Make no mistake there is a tear down coming, not because of money but because of a problem in the dressing room, I'm not going to speculate but I have a pretty good idea of what it is.

 

[therealkoho]

I don't necessarily think the hfboards community is necessarily reflective of the wider fanbase. People who post here I think tend to pay more attention to stuff like contracts, prospects, ect

Of course I meant here, how could it be otherwise?

You'd just say... bye bye Marner. Trade him and get assets. You won't win the trade but again they can round out the team much better.

I hope they do that during this off season though.

You'd be getting rid of the wrong guy, I'd much rather have the guy who does everything well, who wears his Leaf on his sleeve, rather than the guy who's great at one thing, but who's only concern is making the most ever. That idea of the most money can be done anywhere.

 

[Larcos_Unal]

They went over their career playoffs, not recency bias.

If you're talking playoffs, Tkachuk's round vs Carolina this year is greater than anything Matthews has done in the playoffs in his entire career.

 

[therealkoho]

Auston Matthews is one of the top handful of players in the sport and the highest profile athlete in Toronto. He makes less money than Chris Boucher on the Toronto Raptors, who makes $11.7 million.

Patrick Mahomes is on another several tiers about that. No one's going to shed a tear that Matthews isn't making $100s of millions of dollars because the NHL happens to stink, but there's also no reason to take Matthews' reputation and intentions behind the woodshed like this.

You can't compare the leagues pay structures unless they're on a level playing field which they are not

Basketball like baseball and the NFL don't have to sell one ticket in order to cover the teams expenses. TV, merchandise and the logo brings in all the money they need to operate and profit. The NHL has franchises that are bleeding cash and need outside help in order to meet obligations.

 

[Burnie97]

Of course I meant here, how could it be otherwise?


You'd be getting rid of the wrong guy, I'd much rather have the guy who does everything well, who wears his Leaf on his sleeve, rather than the guy who's great at one thing, but who's only concern is making the most ever. That idea of the most money can be done anywhere.

Well yeah ... you don't want to make changes just for the sake of it but whoever ends up going I hope they get a younger stud D... and a good winger at a minimum maybe picks too.

There's a lot they could do.... I hope whoever is in charge soon can make the right moves. The team is just too top heavy for my liking after the amount of chances they've had.

If you're talking playoffs, Tkachuk's round vs Carolina this year is greater than anything Matthews has done in the playoffs in his entire career.

View attachment 712865

I hate Tkachuk so much but he's been great along with Bob. It pisses me right off but props to them.

 

[therealkoho]

Let's be real here, Matthews is a top 5 player in the league yes but when you're getting packages like the ones I listed above not to mention the 10+ million in cap space, Matthews alone won't do it, hence why you add the 28th pick

Top 10 maybe top 5, I just don't see it

If you're talking playoffs, Tkachuk's round vs Carolina this year is greater than anything Matthews has done in the playoffs in his entire career.

View attachment 712865

He picked that team up and put them on his shoulders, but in saying that the rest of his teammates followed his lead, I watched all the ECFinals games he was an unstoppable force.

The Leafs didn't seem to have a guy capable of that kind of leadership or drive

Like someone recently said "Matthews couldn't lead a two car parade!"

 

[Sypher04]

Of course I meant here, how could it be otherwise?


You'd be getting rid of the wrong guy, I'd much rather have the guy who does everything well, who wears his Leaf on his sleeve, rather than the guy who's great at one thing, but who's only concern is making the most ever. That idea of the most money can be done anywhere.

No issue with you preferring Marner, but to act like Marner is an all around complete player and Matthews is nothing but a shot is utterly ridiculous.

We also have precisely no idea right now what is important to Matthews going into negotiations for an extension. Both players took as much money as they could possibly get on their post ELC deals, so why act like only 1 cared purely about the money last go around