Confirmed with Link: Jeff Skinner re-signs. 8 years, $9M AAV.

[Zman5778]

Lower base the last 2 years. Seems like this contract can be easily bought out after 6 years?

 

[Buffaloed]

The Sabres owed Skinner. They got 40 goals out of him last season for only 6M.

 

[Buff15Sabres]

Jacks contract is bargain if anything. Cant say the same about Skinner. We will see what happens with Reinhart and Dahlin but with the benchmark being Skinner at 9, we are going to be in cap hell very soon.

Eichel had the 7th highest cap hit this season, and finished T-23rd in points. Is Eichel a top 10 player (all positions) in the NHL? Clearly not. Top 25? Doubtful.

His contract has the potential to be a bargain after years 5 or 6 as the cap increase (assuming the cap increases), but right now there's no question he's overpaid.

And to be clear, I don't think it's a terrible contract. I just think Eichel was overpaid by about 1m per year (much like Skinner).

 

[dotcommunism]

Lower base the last 2 years. Seems like this contract can be easily bought out after 6 years?

Front-loaded contracts actually cost more cap space to buy-out in later years than ones with flat year-to-year salaries do. A Skinner buy-out after six years would eat $4M in year 7 and $6M in year 8, with $2M each over the two following years. On a contract that paid a flat $9M per year, the buy-out would cost $3M in cap for all four years.

 

[TheStorm]

If it really is a full NMC that's terrible. Really hope it doesn't come to bite the Sabres in the ass which I'm sure it will. Not mad about the 9 mil per year.

 

[dotcommunism]

By the way, since it was mentioned in the previous thread, NMCs do not prevent buy-outs. If a team wishes to buy-out a player with an NMC, the player can opt to be placed on waivers, otherwise he is bought out outright without having to pass through waivers.

 

[Tatre]

These crazy kids and their instagram machine.

Love Samson

Sign him for <8 before it's too late

 

[Buffaloed]

Love Samson

Sign him for <8 before it's too late

He has the same agent as Skinner.

 

[Doug Prishpreed]

The people who dislike this deal have simply
Forgotten the Sabres sole purpose

Giving the Pegula’s something to keep them busy during retirement?

 

[Tatre]

He has the same agent as Skinner.

Generational talent, that agent.

 

[Hischier and Hughes]

1 mil per too much

Had to be done.

Happy skinner is back. We couldn’t replace his goals.

I think you underestimate Eichel’s playmaking

 

[Buffaloed]

Generational talent, that agent.

He was also Mike Peca's agent when he held out for a year. Don Meehan doesn't even leave crumbs on the table.

 

[WeDislikeEich]

Jeff Skinner earned his big contract — and the Sabres’... (sub required)

• Since bursting into the NHL as rookie of the year in 2010-11, Skinner is 13th in the league with 244 goals.

• He’s fifth in even strength goals with 191, trailing only Alex Ovechkin, John Tavares, Patrick Kane and Stamkos — four players who might be on their way to the Hall of Fame.

• Despite being a relatively slight 5-foot-11, 187 pounds, Skinner has skated in 93.9 percent of his games. He’s played a full 82-game schedule four times, including three of the past four years.

• He made Jack Eichel better. During the 845 minutes that Skinner and Eichel skated together at 5-on-5, they outscored opponents 53-43. For the 316 minutes Eichel didn’t have Skinner, the center was outscored 20-9.

As for the salary … well, it’s high. We looked at comparables in March — everyone from Tony Amonte to Thomas Vanek – and $8 million seemed fair for both sides. But the Sabres’ history of poor drafts and bad trades put them in a position where they had to overpay by $1 million.

But those are concerns for another time. For an organization that hasn’t sniffed the playoffs since 2011 — the longest drought in the NHL — the time to improve is now. And the Sabres needed Skinner on their roster to improve.

He’s a legitimate first-line player. He’s well-positioned to produce throughout the eight years. He has Vanek’s production with some of Alex Mogilny’s flair. He clearly wanted to remain in Buffalo. The Sabres had no choice but to make it happen.

 

[Club]

These crazy kids and their instagram machine.

But the older generation has taken over Facebook.

 

[Dahlin 2 Eichel]

Glad to have Jeff back. Now let’s add some depth.

 

[PriceIsGod]

No brainer for Buffalo imo, good deal regardless of if they spent a little extra cash.

 

[RecycledEichel]

Hopefully he hits 40 goals alongside Eichel for the next 4 years, then we offload him in a major trade

 

[Rasmus CacOlainen]

Hopefully he hits 40 goals alongside Eichel for the next 4 years, then we offload him in a major trade

You cant just offload him when you want to if he really has a full NMC. You have to beg him first and hope he agrees. Otherwise you are f***ed.

 

[WeDislikeEich]

Like everyone else, I would have preferred Skinner at a lower AAV. $8M AAV is probably about what he’s worth.

But with the position Buffalo is in, why let him walk over $1M a year?

The Sabres are not in cap trouble, they are desperate for goal scoring (even with Skinner) and even more desperately need to show improvement. Skinner helps accomplish both of those things.

His deal doesn’t prevent us from signing Reinhart or Dahlin or anyone else right now.

Will it cause cap issues 4, 5, 6 years down the line? Yeah, it might.
But right now we are a ways away from even having to worry about it.
And most NHL teams eventually run into cap problems. But they always find a way to deal with it, and the majority of teams don’t let their best players walk regardless of their cap situations. They find a way to make it work.



IMO What we really need to worry about right now is IMPROVING.

Otherwise this team may have much bigger problems than cap space, like turning into the Edmonton Oilers 2.0 and all that comes with it.


Also, I think the impact this signing has on the locker room is worth mentioning.

Almost every Sabres player made it clear how much they wanted Skinner to stay. Especially our main guys like Eichel and Reinhart. We even have Sabres player thanking him for staying on social media! lol.
This signing has everyone excited. It also helps show the players that the Sabres are trying to improve and be competitive. It has to have taken a toll on guys in that locker room, constantly watching talented players leave. They had to be concerned that skinner wouldn’t’t be back. I’m sure they are all thrilled tonight.

It also makes it easier for Krueger, who’s starting his tenure with all the excitement and positivity that comes with Skinner signing as opposed to it being something he had to immediately overcome.

It would have been a tough sell to the locker room if they let Skinner walk (someone who clearly wanted to be in Buffalo) over $500k to $1M a year.



A top 15 goal scorer in the NHL, who would have had plenty of options in FA, just decided to dedicate the next 8 years of his career to the Buffalo Sabres. Let’s all be happy about that!

Skinner is the best goal scorer we’ve had in a long time. Now there’s a good chance he will retire in a Sabres uniform. I, for one, am pretty damn excited about that!


(I reserve the right to bitch about his contract in 4-6 years, though. )

 

[Rasmus CacOlainen]

Like everyone else, I would have preferred Skinner at a lower AAV. $8M AAV is probably about what he’s worth.

But with the position Buffalo is in, why let him walk over $1M a year?

The Sabres are not in cap trouble, they are desperate for goal scoring (even with Skinner) and even more desperately need to show improvement. Skinner helps accomplish both of those things.

His deal doesn’t prevent us from signing Reinhart or Dahlin or anyone else right now.

Will it cause cap issues 4, 5, 6 years down the line? Yeah, it might.
But right now we are a ways away from even having to worry about it.
And most NHL teams eventually run into cap problems. But they always find a way to deal with it, and the majority of teams don’t let their best players walk regardless of their cap situations. They find a way to make it work.



IMO What we really need to worry about right now is IMPROVING.

Otherwise this team may have much bigger problems than cap space, like turning into the Edmonton Oilers 2.0 and all that comes with it.


Also, I think the impact this signing has on the locker room is worth mentioning.

Almost every Sabres player made it clear how much they wanted Skinner to stay. Especially our main guys like Eichel and Reinhart. We even have Sabres player thanking him for staying on social media! lol.
This signing has everyone excited. It also helps show the players that the Sabres are trying to improve and be competitive. It has to have taken a toll on guys in that locker room, constantly watching talented players leave. They had to be concerned that skinner wouldn’t’t be back. I’m sure they are all thrilled tonight.

It also makes it easier for Krueger, who’s starting his tenure with all the excitement and positivity that comes with Skinner signing as opposed to it being something he had to immediately overcome.

It would have been a tough sell to the locker room if they let Skinner walk (someone who clearly wanted to be in Buffalo) over $500k to $1M a year.



A top 15 goal scorer in the NHL, who would have had plenty of options in FA, just decided to dedicate the next 8 years of his career to the Buffalo Sabres. Let’s all be happy about that!

Skinner is the best goal scorer we’ve had in a long time. Now there’s a good chance he will retire in a Sabres uniform. I, for one, am pretty damn excited about that!


(I reserve the right to ***** about his contract in 4-6 years, though. )

We are not in cap trouble now. Things will change very quickly when this contract is the benchmark and if actually start winning. We will easily be in a situation that Toronto is in in terms of cap 3-4 years from now. Botts was played by the agent on this one and Ive defended the guy in the past and am a fan of the player.

 

[SabresEichel]

I am just so thrilled he re-signed he earned his money.

 

[EichelsJockStrap]

Not the best deal. Hes an 8 mil player in todays market. Oh well its only 1mil which would go to a guy like ellie or wilson anyway

 

[Goathead]

Props to Bob Mac who once again calls it right. Guy is legendary. Real impressive for one guy to corner the market on insider news.

 

[WeDislikeEich]

We are not in cap trouble now. Things will change very quickly when this contract is the benchmark and if actually start winning. We will easily be in a situation that Toronto is in in terms of cap 3-4 years from now. Botts was played by the agent on this one and Ive defended the guy in the past and am a fan of the player.

IMO Eichel’s contract was, and still is the benchmark in Buffalo.

And Skinner’s situation was/is different than any current Sabres player we will need to give a big deal to in the near future.

Skinner has been in the league 9 years and was a pending unrestricted free agent. Every buffalo player was acutely aware that he could choose to sign with any number of teams of his choosing.

They also know that he was only in Buffalo for 1 season and came relatively cheap in trade. He didn’t owe buffalo his loyalty, or anything else.

He came to buffalo with 1 year on his deal, after the only nhl team he had ever played for decided to seek out a trade. They wanted him gone to the point that they took a low return to get it done.

I am also sure these players know that Skinner wants to win and play playoff hockey. He just played for the team with the longest playoff drought. They ship him out and he watches them make a magical playoff run. Now he’s once again on the team with the longest playoff drought. He had other options and chose to stay here.


Skinner has also been a top 15 goal scorer his entire 9 year career. He is a proven top goal scorer in the NHL over a long period of time. Top goal scorers get paid in the NHL.




Maybe I’ll be proven wrong in time, but right now I am honestly not worried about what this contract does for any other Sabres player. Eichel’s contract is still the benchmark for Dahlin IMO, and Reinhart is going to get whatever he earns. Skinner really isn’t s player I would use as a comparable to a Reinhart at this point in his career. They are different players.

 

[Aladyyn]

IMO Eichel’s contract was, and still is the benchmark in Buffalo.

And Skinner’s situation was/is different than any current Sabres player we will need to give a big deal to in the near future.

Skinner has been in the league 9 years and was a pending unrestricted free agent. Every buffalo player was acutely aware that he could choose to sign with any number of teams of his choosing.

They also know that he was only in Buffalo for 1 season and came relatively cheap in trade. He didn’t owe buffalo his loyalty, or anything else.

He came to buffalo with 1 year on his deal, after the only nhl team he had ever played for decided to seek out a trade. They wanted him gone to the point that they took a low return to get it done.

I am also sure these players know that Skinner wants to win and play playoff hockey. He just played for the team with the longest playoff drought. They ship him out and he watches them make a magical playoff run. Now he’s once again on the team with the longest playoff drought. He had other options and chose to stay here.


Skinner has also been a top 15 goal scorer his entire 9 year career. He is a proven top goal scorer in the NHL over a long period of time. Top goal scorers get paid in the NHL.




Maybe I’ll be proven wrong in time, but right now I am honestly not worried about what this contract does for any other Sabres player. Eichel’s contract is still the benchmark for Dahlin IMO, and Reinhart is going to get whatever he earns. Skinner really isn’t s player I would use as a comparable to a Reinhart at this point in his career. They are different players.

Can't wait to trade Reinhart for peanuts a year before he hits UFA to a team that will use him properly for the 1st time in his career