Auston Matthews is reportedly willing to take a discount on his next deal to help the Leafs build a winner
If there was one thing Kyle Dubas was missing as Leafs GM, it was timing. He signed a truly elite core of players to big money deals that should have gotten better with time as the salary cap rose. Unfortunately the cap has stayed flat for the entirety of those contracts, leaving the Leafs cap strapped for his entire tenure. Now that he's gone off to Pittsburgh, the cap is set to rise dramatically over the next few seasons. As I said, timing was Dubas' worst enemy.
Now that those deals are up and the salary cap is finally set to rise by leaps and bounds, all eyes are on 2022 Hart, Ted Lindsay and Rocket Richard Trophy winner Auston Matthews. Today on SN590's Drive Time, Frank Seravalli gave an update on negotiations between Matthews and the Leafs new front office.
"I personally think that the number for Auston Matthews for 3, 4 or 5 years is close to $13M. I think that's sort of a sweet spot that makes sense for the Matthews camp. One of the real considerations that they have here while they embark on this path is; first off they're not in any rush to do it and wanna see a full view of the chess board and what Brad Treliving has assembled. That includes what happens with William Nylander and how that's dealt with."
I'll admit, hearing this part didn't exactly fill me with hope. From the sounds of it, Matthews wants to be the highest paid player in the NHL while, at the same time, signing a shorter term deal so he can re-up for more in a few short years. Don't worry, there's good news as well. Seravalli continued:
"But then one of the real considerations for Auston Matthews, who's coming off of a down season, is that he wants to be able to allow enough money on the Leafs cap and in their system to build a team that has a chance to win. It's not about setting a record, it's not about getting 4x15, as much as he could ask for that and the Leafs might have to pay it. The idea is, at least as I understand it, he wants to win and he needs to find a spot, whatever that looks like, that pays him appropriately and gives the Leafs some wiggle room to go out and make deals." - Frank Seravalli
To me, that sounds like a guy that is learning. To win in this league requires sacrifice. Whether it be physical or financial. Matthews was clearly hampered by a wrist injury for much of the year and certainly after the first round of the playoffs, so we didn't get to see him at his best. My theory, for what it's worth, is that getting that little taste of success, that one, hard fought playoff series win, felt good. Good enough to change Matthews' thinking. He's already made enough money to ensure that he, his future children and grandchildren will be very rich people. It seems the desire to win is beginning to overtake the desire to make as much money as humanly possible.
It's especially important that it is Auston Matthews doing this. As the team's on ice leader and more than likely their future captain, him taking a discount could encourage Mitch Marner and William Nylander, among others, to do the same. If the three of them are willing to give up some AAV, or sign an extra year or two on their contracts, it would go a long way towards taking the Leafs from hopefuls to true contenders.
You can hear Seravalli's full comments on Matthews here.
| POLL | ||
JUIN 28 | 1112 ANSWERS Auston Matthews is reportedly willing to take a discount on his next deal to help the Leafs build a winner What does a discounted Auston Matthews contract look like? | ||
| $12.7M | 493 | 44.3 % |
| $13M | 367 | 33 % |
| $13.5M | 66 | 5.9 % |
| Anything under $14M is a win | 186 | 16.7 % |
| List of polls | ||
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