Leon Draisaitl expected to follow suit with Auston Matthews
Photo credit: Bob Frid - USA Today Sports
Leon Draisaitl is expected to follow Auston Matthews' lead, according to The Fourth Period's David Pagnotta.
The Edmonton Oilers have found themselves in a slight pickle as the contracts of Draisaitl, Connor McDavid, and Evan Bouchard are set to expire within the next year or two. Draisaitl is up for an extension a year sooner than the latter two, which more or less will set the market for McDavid. After Matthews became the highest paid player in the NHL with a $13.25 million AAV, look for Draisaitl to surpass that mark.
David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period joined Tom Gazzola and Shawn Belle on their "Hello Hockey Show" to discuss what he's heard in relation to what a Draisaitl extension will look like:
"They're gonna continue their discussions with respect to an extension unless something changed since the start of the playoffs. It's more likely to see an Auston Matthews-esque type extension, 4-5 year deal or anywhere from a 3-to-5-year extension versus a full 8."
Rather than going the perceived route of the 8-year max extension, it sounds like Matthews might have paved the way for superstars to earn the most bang for their buck by taking less term and allowing themselves to cash in on one more big contract while still in their prime.
Draisaitl has been playing on one of the friendliest and more valuable contracts in the NHL, which is saying something considering his cap hit is sitting at $8.5 million per season. He has amassed 347 goals and 850 points in 719 games played across 10 seasons at the NHL-level. However, over the last 6 years, he's scored 272 goals and 643 points in 450 games and has added 30 goals and 81 points in 53 post-season contests over the last 3 years alone.
He is clearly worth every penny, but unfortunately for the cash-strapped Oilers, it's going to cost a lot to retain his services and he could be in line for an increase of $5M-$6M, potentially putting him in the $14M AAV range on his next deal.
Should he take the 3-5 year route, it could set a precedence moving forward for superstars around the league.
It's going to be a very important season for the Oilers after falling one game short of the Stanley Cup as they now have to focus on signing one of the best players in franchise history, while setting the course for McDavid's extension the following year.
Source for Leon Draisaitl's statistics: Hockey-Reference
Leon Draisaitl stats and bio
Leon Draisaitl stats and bio
| POLL | ||
JUILLET 15 | 340 ANSWERS Leon Draisaitl expected to follow suit with Auston Matthews Will Draisaitl's AAV surpass Matthews' $13.25M AAV? | ||
| Yes, the next superstar always makes more | 140 | 41.2 % |
| No, especially if it's on a 3-4 year deal | 133 | 39.1 % |
| It'll be equal to Matthews' | 67 | 19.7 % |
| List of polls | ||
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