Canadiens, Mammoth among the teams with best value contracts for young stars
The National Hockey League has seen a number of massive contracts signed in recent weeks, some of which include the likes of Cale Makar, Connor Bedard, Macklin Celebrini, Leo Carlsson and Cutter Gauthier.
There’s no doubt these players are among the best in the game, but the size of the average annual value (AAV) in these deals is widening the eyes of both fans and executives. While Makar may be the first NHLer to eclipse a $20-million AAV, at this rate, he certainly won’t be the last.
Now the question becomes: which teams have put themselves in the best position?
On Wednesday’s episode of Daily Faceoff LIVE, Tyler Yaremchuk and former NHL goaltender Carter Hutton discuss the flurry of expensive contracts inked this offseason, and which franchises have the best value contracts for their young stars.
Carter Hutton: You could say the Montreal Canadiens’ top-four forwards — Nick Suzuki, Cole Caufield, Juraj Slafkovsky, then Ivan Demidov — are in the same window as the Anaheim Ducks’ top-two players with Carlsson and Gauthier. For the Habs, those first three will make $7.8 million, $7.8 million and $7.6 million, respectively, then Demidov will get $9 million in 2027-28.
That is the difference between sustainability and not being able to win. This is a league where we see it firsthand with the Edmonton Oilers, as Connor McDavid is making way less than these players, and he’s the best on the planet. Are you taking those deals to help your team win, or is there a selfish side where you think, “I have to take my money when I can.”
As an ex-player, I do view it as there is a business, because if you don’t play well and it’s a contract year, the team won’t be like, “hey we understand.” Power to the player to be able to lock it up, based on where the ceilings would be.
Tyler Yaremchuk: I like that you mentioned Montreal, because that’s what these teams are trying to do. Everyone is trying to look at the Canadiens, and maybe the Utah Mammoth deserve to be in this conversation, as well. I don’t think enough people really include them in it, but having Logan Cooley signed for $10 million is an insane value.
Even a guy like Dylan Guenther, who scored 40 goals last year … is he not the exact same as Gauthier? I know they’re not the “same” player, but you look at him and think, “yup, he should be able to get me 40,” and Gunther signed long term for $7.1 million.
What these teams are trying to do, even though prices are inflated, is think three years from now, the Ducks are hoping Gauthier is a 45-goal guy, every single year, and those guys on the open market are now making $18 million, and Gauthier is really good value.
You can watch the full segment and the rest of the episode here…