Confirmed with Link: TOR signs Auston Matthews to 5 year extension, 11.634M AAV, 93% Paid In Bonuses

[TheTotalPackage]

I'll tell you why people are dumb.

There is not a single GM in the NHL that was getting Matthews under 11.

I don't think the 11 million is the issue...

 

[Walshy7]

He is a free agent at the end of this correct?

unless it was a 1 year or 2 yr deal he will be a UFA

 

[mikeyz]

I do not like this deal at all boys and girls.

Way too much per year and the term isn't long enough.

 

[Finnish your Czech]

Dubas losing some of my faith here. f***.

 

[wam_raven]

I dont like the deal, but realistically what are the other options?

Trade him? People will flip
Let him hold out? People will flip

Like it or not, the player has all the power in these negotiations.

Exactly, people here have no sense. The grapevine exists, word is out. If AM is available on July 1, the price would be higher on a 5 year deal, because people would pay the compensation for this player.

By having the high talent players Toronto has in numbers, they literally put themselves in harder negotiation positions with each of them, because they all know they're worth more to the club than the RFA compensation.

Said it before, trade one of Marner/Matthews and your position with everyone else becomes easier. Or, they should have just not signed JT.

 

[Slyfox]

He better start playing like the second best player on the planet moving forward.

 

[X66]

It's funny to see how people's minds work.

If Matthews signed for 9 mill everyone would need to change their pants, but 11.65 is just TOO much. That's legit a Connor Brown difference.

Paying your good players isn't what kills your teams, it's paying your bad players too much.

 

[IBeL34f]

So we're basically left hoping that Matthews becomes Crosby/Malkin/Ovechkin tier level player to justify this deal.

Wow.

Were you not already hoping for that?

 

[Cor]

Breakdown:

 

[Loosie]

yeah, this is so infuriating. If we're giving him that type of contract, why the hell is the AAV still so damn high on only a 5 year deal?

It's lockout protected. That won't mean the contract is cheaper.

 

[SnizzMitch]

Terrible contract? For a guy who scored 40 in his rookie season, and has 46 points in 38 games, and is going to be a top 5 player in the league someday? Maybe you should find a new team to cheer for...

Lol, your homerism is blinding you, the guy never scored more than 69 points, he’s missing games almost every season, doesn’t show up when it matters, and is now the 2nd most paid player behind Mcdavid??? Not to mention he’s only locked up for 5 years so he can pull a JT whenever his contracts end. I’m a Leafs fan for life but this contract his atrocious to say the least.

He better step up in big games if he doesn’t want to be bashed by the media night after night.

 

[The CyNick]

This isn't good enough.

Losing faith in Dubas.

Losing?

Another failed negotiation

 

[Sniper99]

Its like a PGT after a Leafs loss in here LOL cmon now its not that bad of a deal guys.

 

[57 Years No Cup]

Welcome to the new NHL.

This will definitely be a controversial signing (I don’t think folks should LOVE it), I just think this is where the league is going in terms of contracts.

Agents know star RFAs are a golden goose and are going to seek to exploit that to their fullest advantage. People I think are kidding themselves if they think anybody else would have gotten a considerably better/differently structured deal

This is why I am predicting a lockout if this nonsense with RFAs continues. What is even the point of having an RFA classification if the contract values are equal to what a UFA would get?

 

[SeaOfBlue]

It's overpayment. Quite significant actually. All things considered, this should have been a 10 mill deal, or for 7 years.

How does Pridham figure this deal makes any sense given the comparables?

 

[TimeZone]

That...I have no idea how that happened.

 

[Melo Meds]

They'll try to bridge Marner now and Paul won't be happy.

Hope we don't see Nylander 2.0 with Marner.

Matthews must be laughing now. Buys one year of UFA. Best part is he has yet to even hit 70 points.

 

[selltrade]

I must be in the minority, Im thrilled we used up one of his UFA years and anyone who believed we were getting a cap hit of under 11 million was / is drinking bathwater

 

[81Leafs50]

How did the Oilers get McDavid at 12.5 for 8 yrs and Leafs got 5 years at 11.634???

 

[Muston Atthews]

11.63 is a steal. Thankfully the HF community dont like it which means it will be perfect

In what world is this contract a steal? He’s the second highest paid player in the league, making less than a million less than McDavis and signed 3 years less than him. I haven’t looked up the numbers but I’m pretty sure McDavid has put up way more

 

[Advanced stats]

The waffle guy is going to lose his mind

 

[DarkKnight]

Come on, any fair minded person can't like this term for that money, considering it's all signing bonuses. So Willie and Auston become free agents together. Can't wait for Marner's five year 10 mil deal.

 

[diceman934]

To all you whining and bickering? What were you expecting to sign for? 6? 7 mill? We knew he wasnt getting McDave coin. Its 5 years its not that bad.

He got more then McDavid that makes this deal horrendous.

McDavid is playing his first year on his 8 year deal. And his deal runs two more addition years.

 

[Mkdaman1818]

I can't believe some people are just sheepishly accepting this garbage.

So are you gonna stop watching the team? Gonna protest in front of the SBA? If I gave you a pair of tickets to a game would you refuse in protest?

Everyone was projecting Matthews at 12 and it’s a bit less than that. Yeah we only get him for 5 right now but just as he gets to evaluate the team for 5 more years, we get to evaluate him for 5 more. This is a decent deal, and our window is wide open now. Let’s get a cup.

 

[Kamiccolo]

Hope the media finds their balls again and grills Dubas at the press conference.