Confirmed Signing with Link: [TOR] F Auston Matthews signs extension with the Maple Leafs (4 years, $13.25M AAV)

[BB88]

Aav is fine for a top 5 player with a massive cap spike. With the remaining year on his deal this is 5 years of knowing AM34 anchors the franchise.

They’ll never win anything with their core players on being among the highest paid players.

They’ll never get the advantage of them being on value contracts

 

[surixon]

Takes him through the rest of his prime so on that front I don't mind the term. But that cap hit is ludicrous given what other star centers are making.

 

[DisgruntledHawkFan]

…. It’s already confirmed next years spike seeing as escrow will be paid off. Unless there’s another global catastrophe the cap will rise

Blackhawk fans thought the same thing when Toews and Kane signed eight year deals. Then OPEC flooded the market and tanked the Canadian dollar.

 

[Curufinwe]

Can't blame a guy for wanting to maximize his career earnings the best he can I guess... AM is doing that perfectly these past 2 deals

He's taking the risk of a major injury meaning he won't get another big deal, but obviously he's cool with that.

 

[mkatcherin00]

AM is all about himself. Highest paid player and a 5-10 player in the NHL

They were right when they said one of his goals was to have the highest career earnings in NHL history

Guy is not about winning a cup

 

[danpantz]

You think he gets more money from 30-38?

If he makes it to UFA and is still playing at a high level some team will offer him more. Cap will be higher.

 

[BB88]

Max term is a disadvantage at 26, not an advantage. Do you think Toews was worth 10.5M last year, or the year before?

They paid more to get him at his prime before the decline. However, they shouldn't be paying for years he sucks like Chicago had to with Toews.

You realize Leafs will try to re-sign him after this one and the cap hit will be even higher?

 

[Rich Nixon]

Only 4 years? Matthews is a sack. No other superstar pulls this shit.

This is going to be the way of the future whether you like it or not.

And I don't know what there is to be mad about. He's now under contract with his team for the next 5 seasons at a price the team was willing to pay. At the end of it, he can sign a very large and 8-year deal in a more favorable cap environment, and that one will take him close to retirement age.

If he suffers a career-altering injury before that happens? Well, then he's left $50m or so on the table at this price point. But if he signs 8 years now, he's probably also leaving $30m+ on the table at the tail end of his career. There's risk built in on both sides of it for the player.

So, you can rabble around all you want about how dudes should take a paycut and stay with your team forever, but we're talking about 8-figure decisions here. The expectation that they sacrifice tens or hundreds of millions in their own financial flexibility to give their bosses more flexibility and time to figure out how to build a contender is just...unrealistic. Like, are you gonna turn down a 50% raise and the ability to seek other employment in the future so your company can buy you a better computer and get you an intern? It might make your life easier, but at the end of the day it isn't feeding your family (or at the scale we're talking about: generations of your family to come).

And these are the types of decisions dudes will be making much more frequently in the future. This is pro sports now. It's a f***-you-pay-me world and Matthews is not the first person to embrace that, and in hockey he will not be the last.

 

[Nylanderthal]

Is that supposed to be a shot? Lol
Quinn signed for 6 years at below market value

It’s supposed to be a way for you to realize that the term isn’t that bad. 5 years is a good median term to have a guy locked up. 9 years (what an 8 year extension would mean) is a long time, look how many of those deals age poorly. If he’s still worth it at 31 then they simply extend him then.
Do you think the hawks loved the last 4 years of that toews deal?

 

[LOFIN]

What? Malkin literally earns less now than he did during his 8 year deal - is that not a sign of a decline?

No he doesn't, more like 2/3 of it. And he signed that deal when he turned 36.

Matthews is supposed to be in a totally different category of a player than Tavares no? These superstars should not regress like the kinds of Tavares.

 

[Canucks LB]

Curious how this effects the nylander negotiations, if at all?

 

[tucker3434]

His next deal might be the worst contract of all time.

 

[Nylanderthal]

They’ll never win anything with their core players on being among the highest paid players.

They’ll never get the advantage of them being on value contracts

13.25 will be a deal when the cap is 100m

 

[super6646]

Matthews got term and aav. Guess master negotiator Tre was no better than Dubas.

Tbf the leaf’s had no leverage, and matthews has by all accounts wanted another payday down the line. 4 yrs was better than 2 or 3 for the leaf’s I guess.

 

[Pierce Hawthorne]

Toronto fans are happy that they kept their guy.

Other team's fans are happy because Toronto's best guys continue to neuter them cap-wise.

Win-win.

Ya pretty much tbh. Leafs best players continue to make it so difficult for them to actually build a proper cup contender team. They're so close with that core group as well.

 

[Divine]

You realize Leafs will try to re-sign him after this one and the cap hit will be even higher?

If I'm the Leafs I don't re-sign him unless it's a discount and/or shorter term.

It's not like Crosby got a higher cap or long term when his deal ended.

 

[Golden_Jet]

Signs a shorter deal than the last one, Seravalli says 4 was his max, confirms he’s all about the money.

 

[Skolman]

2022 mvp (both league and player voted) 2021 mvp runner up….
26 years old, he’s absolutely a top 5 player. Take your bias elsewhere

McDavid, Mackinnon, Draisaitl, Makar, Kucherov. Who is he better then in there?

 

[Canucks LB]

All the 'Matthews is 100% going to Arizona' guys are punching air right now.

They never said when! They meant in 4 years lol

 

[Zegs2sendhelp]

4 years is smart by Toronto

Pretty obvious he peaked, and will likely be washed by the end of the 4 years

 

[Dirty Dog]

He clearly had the team in a position of no leverage, and took full advantage of it. I mean, he got way more money than any other top player in the league, and held firm on short term.

it’s his right! It’s business! But, I can’t think of any other player that has done that any time recently?

 

[Pierce Hawthorne]

13.25 will be a deal when the cap is 100m

Matthews will be a free agent again when the cap is $100M though?

 

[ole ole]

Man i love this. WTG Matthews.

 

[hullsy47]

Oh boy, can't wait to see all of the Leafs fans turn on Treliving for losing the negotiation with Matthews like they did with Dubas.

This is the right money .dubas gave too much for short term .

 

[Skinnyjimmy08]

He's taking the risk of a major injury meaning he won't get another big deal, but obviously he's cool with that.

He's already made enough cash so that the next 10 generations of Matthews won't need to worry about cash lol... And he's shooting for even more and more and more