What? That makes no sense.
If Dubas signs an extension that drastically alters (see: ruins) the framework of other RFA deals because it is surprisingly against the grain, both in how things were expected to go and how things had operated prior, then it's a lot more reasonable to put part of that change at his feet than it is to suggest that other teams should have been operating their crystal balls and had their players sign before Matthews if they didn't like how it was going to turn out.
Just how were they going to do that, anyway, without offering similar player-friendly deals? Contract negotiation isn't a race, it's a waiting game, so that's no guarantee either since you just let their agent know by caving in so early that he can probably work another couple million off of you by June, but let's say they sign. Great contract for the player, would basically have to be.
Uh oh, Leafs Nation. Matthews was setting the market here, that appears to be the general consensus. Well a team just signed their slightly worse RFA to a huge deal, just to "save money" and beat Matthews/Toronto to the punch. Can you even imagine what Matthews' demands are going to look like then?
