Confirmed Signing with Link: [FLA] Aaron Ekblad re-signs with Panthers (8 years, $7.500M AAV)

[Soundgarden]

I'm so glad for Florida and their fans.

 

[BCShark]

will look like a steal in 2 years

 

[vendetta]

Question for Florida fans. How much do you guys think ekblad is worth right now. Is this the type of deal that in a couple of years it will be fair value or even a steal, or is he already worth 7.5 million.

Right now I don't like it... he's a 40 point d man that showed little improvement in his 2nd year.. his skating needs work on the speed and explosiveness which also didn't improve from year 1 to 2... may e that was his sophomore slump? Anyways it is a risky co tract that has the potential tial to be a steal if he developes some more... he is a smart big guy with a ton of character so I do believe he will work to get to the level where he needs to be to make it a steal... this is a wait and see obviously but makes me nervous

 

[Paralyzer008]

Is Jimmy Murphy a legit source?

The fact that he tweeted this out 40 minutes ago and nobody else has said anything does make me question it.

Murphy is NOT a legit source. He said that expansion would be delayed so that Carolina could move and also has been throwing things at the wall that are untrue lately.

What is he doing is guessing the signing ahead of time because it's a likelihood that the Panthers announce a deal tomorrow.

These are the same terms that Elliotte Friedman suggested earlier.

 

[PAZ]

That extra year bumped it up to 7.5 mil. Probably would've been 6.5-7 mil in a 6/7 year contract, but definitely worth it for that extra year.

 

[FLYLine27*]

Ok deal. Probably could have gave him 6 million for the next couple years, then for his next contract had given him 7.5M.

 

[vendetta]

Love Ekblad but he is ridiculously overrated, can`t believe some of the things I read about him on here.

The price point here is way too high and I don`t think he`ll live up to it.

He is overrated today but he is 19 years old and had a historic 18 year old season.. u have to use some projections for kids this young... also his iq is off the charts... he is one of the safest bets to make a co tract like this but he does have to improve rapidly for this to be a steal in 2 or 3 years

 

[JAK]

And here I thought bridge contracts would be better, only time will tell.

Even on Ekblad's camp, they should have went for a 3x $5.5 deal where they could secure a even bigger deal for the next contract if the Canadian dollar goes back up, Salary Cap could explode.

 

[TT1]

big moola for a stud player

 

[GoJetsGo55]

This deal is going to look like a STEAL in a few years.

 

[boredmale]

Ok deal. Probably could have gave him 6 million for the next couple years, then for his next contract had given him 7.5M.

How did that work out for Montreal and Subban?

He is overrated today but he is 19 years old and had a historic 18 year old season.. u have to use some projections for kids this young... also his iq is off the charts... he is one of the safest bets to make a co tract like this but he does have to improve rapidly for this to be a steal in 2 or 3 years

He is also on the last year of his ELC so the contract doesn't kick in till 2017/18

 

[TestGrave]

So in 2017-18, the only defensemen with a higher caphit (as of right now) would be:
Subban, Weber, Byfuglien and Suter

A little less and it would have been great, but this might be a little risky.

 

[Jesus comma Brodin]

Good deal... Will be a top 5 Defensemen in no time.

 

[DingDongCharlie]

Could be good for both sides. Right now it's advantage Ekblad.

Making more than Doughty and Pietrangelo...

 

[Gliff]

Bob Murray is mad.

 

[Nsjohnson]

This is not a gamble as some people are saying. This is a deal. This will look good in even just five years.

 

[Bourne Endeavor]

What? No pointless bridge deal to prove himself first? It's almost like Florida rewards their defensemen without needing an arbitrator.

 

[Theodore450]

At least my second favourite team the panthers actually know how to run a team

 

[Morry83]

So this is a fantastic deal, but everyone questioned the Klingberg contract?

 

[Vatican Roulette]

As it stands, this is a great deal for Ekblad, and a pretty big gamble for Florida, who can only hope that he grows into that contract.

He's already in the conversation for the top 3 dman in the league.

He will live up to that contract, and probably more than that.

 

[Sky04]

Good deal. This is already a steal even at this age.

That would be the 5th highest caphit by a dman right now, not even a top-15 D-man yet with a top-5 caphit? Not a chance.

He has one more year on his elc but he isn't a 7.5m D-man right now.

 

[Jumptheshark]

good sign

 

[vendetta]

He's already in the conversation for the top 3 dman in the league.

He will live up to that contract, and probably more than that.

No he isn't in that convo and not in the convo for top 10 as of yet

 

[M.C.G. 31]

He's going to win multiple Norris trophies. Great contract.

 

[Mike Hasselhoffman]

Ekblad will be a perennial Norris trophy candidate for the duration of that contract and then some. Great deal now, gonna look like a huge steal in a couple of years. The going rate for these kinds of players will be much higher than that soon. Good on Florida for locking up Ekblad for his prime on a sweet deal!