6 pts. at home, 19 away.
Kyle Rudolph and Jason Zucker have formed a special bond in...
This is from The Athletic, but I believe this story is unlocked, for all to read. Really cool read on Zucker's (and Kyle Rudolph's) philanthropy.
He's a stand-up guy; happy that we have him representing our team.
$5.5 maybe? Right around Nino?
That's my hope as well. I have very few concerns about Zucker being worth ~$5m for the duration of a 7 year contract. He's had concussion issues in the past, but I think that was a few seasons ago now. He seems to be sinking pretty strong roots down in the area, so hopefully extra term for a little lower cap hit makes sense for everyone.Nino's deal adjusted for the cap increase is a shade higher than $5.5M
My preference would be to add a couple years to bring it back down to ~$5M
$35M/7
Any shorter and he asks for more $$. I'd say 5m is the minimum. If the Wild, against all odds, actually do something in the playoffs and he produces, he could get closer to 6M.
It's tough to keep hammering these guys on their contracts when Koivu, and especially Parise, are still around making what they are making.
I don't really worry about his skating falling off much by 31. 33-34? Then I start to worry.
Can he realistically get $5.5M and not put the team in complete cap hell?
Well there is Staal's contract to offset Koivu/Parise.
I think Zucker falls somewhere between $5m-$6m a year range. a 5 year contract is probably the longest I'd be okay with, but would prefer a 4 year deal.
Any shorter and he asks for more $$. I'd say 5m is the minimum. If the Wild, against all odds, actually do something in the playoffs and he produces, he could get closer to 6M.
It's tough to keep hammering these guys on their contracts when Koivu, and especially Parise, are still around making what they are making.
Agree completely. 33 is about the age where I think we're likely to start getting uncomfortable with spending $5.5m on Zucker (or the 2025 cap-percentage equivalent of $5.5m... you know what I mean), so it'll be a good time to re-evaluate. And at that age he might be more amenable to 2-3 year deals instead of the 4-6 I assume he'd want at age 30.A 4 year deal puts him at free agency at 30 years old, which could end up being a really tough decision to make. I'd rather extend it to 32/33 years old where it's a) easier to cut bait, or b) the expectations of an additional 5 or 6 year deal are diminished.
A 4 year deal puts him at free agency at 30 years old, which could end up being a really tough decision to make. I'd rather extend it to 32/33 years old where it's a) easier to cut bait, or b) the expectations of an additional 5 or 6 year deal are diminished.
I'm just worn out on long contracts. I like Granny's 3 year deal, I also like Nino's 5 year deal. Zucker's skillset seems (to me) like one that will take a nosedive off of a cliff once any decline starts. I'd rather go a year short on that than 3 years too long.
30 is also about the perfect age for a player looking for another big contract on the UFA market, so it works for the player. The team can still get a good return as a rental trade if needed also.