It's one thing if it were a guy who has a long history of showing up big in the playoffs despite coasting through the regular season. But even then, guys like that aren't the type you build around, they're guys you supplement with.
Many teams can't even guarantee playoffs every year ... unexpected things happen, teams hit downturns for various reasons. Where's the value in the years the Kings aren't really Cup threats? Where's the value in the years when they don't even make the playoffs? How many years out of the 8 is he going to even have the opportunity to make a major difference for a team with a real Cup shot?
Even if we accept the premise that he's a good playoff performer, there are plenty of playoff performers over the years who had very ordinary playoffs mixed into their resumes. Patrick Roy didn't go into God mode every time he went into the postseason. Lots of Mr. Clutch guys from one year never replicated that level of play again.
8 years is a long time, which cuts two ways. On the plus side, he'll have a lot of years to pay dividends, and if he plays a key role in even one Cup then it's at least somewhat paid off. But on the downside, it's a lot of years to pay a guy who might not really give a crap in the hopes that he might care during a Cup run that may or may not even happen.
