I think the importance of the paycheck is something that is easy for us fans to overlook. He's done receiving signing bonuses. If he were to spend the entire season in the AHL, he would actually make less money than he did during his final 2 years in junior.
His AHL salary is $80,000 per year. He makes $4,336 every day he is on the road plus a $132 per diem every day the team is on the road. Leaving him on the roster for the first week of the season would get him about $31k in earnings before getting sent down, which helps ease the sting quite a bit.
He hasn't earned nearly enough money in his career to not really notice an extra $30k. That's the type of thing that can go a long way toward building the relationship with a young player who is eating bad news.