What will Ducks do about Carlsson and Gauthier’s extensions?
The Anaheim Ducks might be the number-one “feel good” story in the NHL right now. A year after after missing the playoffs for the seventh straight season, the Ducks find themselves at the top of the Pacific Division standings with 27 points in 20 games. They’re playing a fun brand of hockey, too, as they’re currently second in the the league in total goals scored behing only the high-powered Colorado Avalanche. Throw in that they’re led by two exciting early-20s stars in Leo Carlsson and Cutter Gauthier, and the vibes in Anaheim could hardly be better.
However, it’s only a matter of time in the NHL before teams are forced to pay for those good vibes. Carlsson and Gauthier are scheduled to be restricted free agents after this season, meaning the Ducks are going to have to pony up and pay their two young stars salaries commensurate to their on-ice production.
On Thursday’s episode of Daily Faceoff LIVE, Tyler Yaremchuk and former NHL goaltender Carter Hutton were joined by The Fourth Period‘s David Pagnotta to discuss when Anaheim might offer Carlsson and Gauthier contract extensions, and what those new deals could look like.
Carter Hutton: Gauthier and Carlsson are both pending RFAs. What do the Ducks do with these guys? Is this close to them being signed, or what are going to see here as this plays out?
David Pagnotta: It doesn’t seem like it, unless conversations have picked up dramatically in the last 24 to 48 hours. My understanding is they’re fine taking things slow in this regard, still. Even with the production and how well these guys are doing. You look at the numbers, it’s a combination of the offensive numbers plus the ice time that they’re getting. These guys aren’t playing 25 minutes a night and they’re not playing 15 minutes a night. They’re playing solid minutes for where they’re at, and what they’re responsibilities are. For them to put up these types of numbers in 20 games is defintely impressive.
The Ducks have a lot of cap space starting bext season. A good chunk of that is going to be attributed to what Gauthier and Carlsson want and what they’re going to get. With that being said, obviously the team would like to go full term with these guys, but are these guys going to be willing to go full term. We’ve seen a lot of players, like Jackson LaCombe signed his eight-year extension with the club, but that was before the season started. Now that these guys are putting up these numbers, are you looking at $10, $11, $12 million for Carlsson on a four-year deal, a five-year deal, or are you going full eight? I think that’s going to be part of the negotiation once they actually get to that table. Gauthier’s going to make a crap-ton of money, Carlsson’s going to make more, but that’s going to be a big chunk of their cap going towards next season and on. But they’ve got the space to do that, and some.
You can watch the full segment and the rest of the episode here…