Speculation: Does Matthews' injury bring down his contract?

[The Nuge]

It won’t change his contract at all. It just adds some risk for the Leafs

 

[Michel Beauchamp]

Some Leafs fans are praying...

 

[moegillknee]

Did Crosby injuries affect his contract? No
But missing a bunch of games means Matthews will not flirt with being a 100 pt player or leading scorer, driving his price tag higher .
Leafs will still have to pay him big big bucks

 

[Michel Beauchamp]

For a guy who's job is suppose to get Tavares and Marner the puck, Hyman sure does suck at getting Tavares and Marner the puck...

Are you lost ?

 

[Tatar Shots]

No it won’t. It’s not an injury that will affect him long term.

 

[Puckstuff]

Are you lost ?

yes

 

[Michel Beauchamp]

yes

Do you need help ?

 

[BM14]

leaf fans are all heading to church to hope so

Why? We can easily afford him and Marner.

 

[Hunter368]

His few injuries aren’t going to effect his contract in the least.

 

[Nervousbreakdown]

It was a pretty big hit.

Seriously 2 massive guys going hard to the exact same spot, trouba was going for him and having one mean game lol.

 

[Former Referee 68]

I think not hitting 70 points again brings his value down

 

[Flyerfan52]

If the Leafs use this as an excuse they sour the relationship.
If there's a lowball offer a team with cap space & their own 1st round picks (see Arizona, Carolina or NYI) in need of a marque name to boost attendance could & probably would up that. GMs around the league are no longer the old boys club of old. The Leafs beed only to look @ Dubas as proof.
Either way Matthews & his agent will get their ask. The TML might as well meet it rather than have to meet an OS that could well be higher.
Matthews knows that he'll get his $s regardless so the ball is in the Leafs court.

A 2nd hard negotiation this close on the heels of the Nylander standoff doesn't look good on the organization & would make it unlikely that any future UFA like Tavares with lots left in the tank would consider them.

With this entitled generation the saying has changed from "play me or lose me" to "pay up or lose me". Ice time & the chance @ a SC seem to take 2nd place to the immortal bank account. Like the GMs it's a different breed.

 

[Jumptheshark]

Why? We can easily afford him and Marner.

and Nylander and fix your D and Kapanen?

 

[Gaylord Q Tinkledink]

Probably give him more.

Allows him to get a bionic shoulder and a better shot than he already has.

Win-win.

 

[typicalsavage]

Injuries didn't stop Buffalo overpaying Eichel so no

 

[NobleSix]

Not if he doesnt want it to.

The Leafs are paying him a premium. Theres no getting around that.

 

[puckpilot]

Yeah, go ahead low ball him. That'll be like lighting a fuse on a bomb that explodes when he's 25.

 

[Oddbob]

Is there really a thread for this? Unless he was only playing 40 games every single year, his contract will be about the same as whether he misses games or not! I mean even if he played 60 GP every year, and put up 60 PTS or thereabouts, that is still extremely valuable.

The Leafs will absolutely NOT lowball Matthews. He is getting what ever he wants, just like McDavid did. As a matter of fact, they aren't lowballing Nylander either, difference is, Nylander is out to lunch on his value to the Leafs or anyone else for that matter.

 

[sharks9]

Maybe a little, Toronto management will argue to sign him according to his point and goal totals, while Matthews' agent will argue for what he's been on pace for

 

[Willy Stylez]

Nah.

 

[Icebreakers]

Leafs have no leverage with a player like Matthews. You don't wanna play that game.

 

[Niten Ichi Ryu]

Yes. Having long-term injuries in 2 of your 3 entry-level seasons is a huge factor in negotiating a long-term contract of this magnitude.
He switched his agent to Orr (McDavid's agent) hoping to get the same 12.5, but the injuries definitely brings down that number, by a lot. Matthews has about the same PPG as Eichel, so I would say 10 mil per, is his worth and that's being generous.

But I do remember his entry-level contract coming down to the wire, because he wanted more bonuses. I can definitely see this spilling into pre-season and even the regular season, given what Dubas is doing with Nylander. I still think it was a huge mistake to sign Tavares. It set the stage for the Nylander stand-off. Marner, Matthews, Nylander is the future of Toronto. JT will start to decline in 2-3 years from now and that contract will be a huge weight on the team

 

[Jumptheshark]

Leafs try to use it as leverage only to see Arizona swing by with an offer sheet..

Leaf fans had this idea for mcdavid

 

[Coach]

Yes I believe so. Matthews was on pace for a 75 goal 119 point season. I believe if he maintained that he won of won at least the Art Ross and Rocket Richard and perhaps other hardware which would of let him ask for 15 million. No way he gets that now without the hardware. Now likely he will need to settle for around 12.5 million which in less than McDavid as the salary camp has gone up since he signed.
The bigger question may be if Marner outscores Matthews for a second straight year and if he continues to outscore Tavares if he can get himself 10 or 11 million.

 

[oooooooooohCanada]

It won't impact Toronto's side. It will impact Matthews ability to say that he should be paid as a major award winner though which is big. If he had won the art ross or rocket he could demand everything and anything. Without that it takes a tiny bit off the price tag, in my opinion. I still think he's set up for a deal like Tavares, just at 8 years.

Also for the people talking about Matthews' shoulder issues, here is a chunk of an article Mirtle of The Athletic did on Matthews injury.

Most notably, he didn’t have a sling on his injured left arm, which rested comfortably on a ledge.

The Maple Leafs announced on Monday morning their young star would miss a minimum of four weeks with a shoulder injury, but the exact nature of the issue — and treatment plan — weren’t disclosed. Medical professionals accustomed to dealing with hockey injuries, however, are fairly confident saying that how he was hit, how he reacted and the expected timeframe away is consistent with a first or second degree sprain of the AC (acromioclavicular) joint in the shoulder.

And that is very good news, as far as the prognosis.

“Most of the time when they’re talking about a separated shoulder, they’re talking about the AC joint,” said Dr. Ron Noy, a highly regarded orthopedic surgeon based out of Manhattan who has treated many NHL players with shoulder injuries over the years. “It’s a grade one or two sprain for the most part in professional athletes. You’re just waiting for the inflammation to come down, and it should be fine.”

Most importantly, the injury is not the type that’s considered to typically be chronic or recurring. It also shouldn’t cause Matthews to lose any strength or ability in his dominant hand and arm — as a left shot — beyond the short recovery period.

The fact Matthews has had shoulder injuries twice in back-to-back seasons is likely more an unfortunate circumstance than anything to worry about long term.

“This is purely a traumatic (impact) thing,” Dr. Noy said. “It’s common in hockey. It’s not something that anybody else wouldn’t have gotten an injury on with the exact same mechanism. I don’t think it’s of any concern about his future, like he’s going to be an injury problem (consistently) at all.

“I’d be more concerned if his shoulder dislocated. As a 21-year-old, if you dislocate your shoulder, and you have a labral tear, then more than likely, he would have needed his labrum fixed (surgically to prevent it from becoming a chronic issue) … But this isn’t a genetic thing. It didn’t look like that kind of injury. He just looks like he’s in some pain.”

What’s interesting is Leafs coach Mike Babcock has pointed out twice now that Matthews specifically put in some time in the summer to build up his shoulder strength. It’s clearly an area that’s been identified for him to work on — and an outside trainer explained to me that that’s not uncommon in the NHL, as many players have “uppercross syndrome” due to the fact they’re leaning over their stick and skating so much.

But, given he is only 21 years old, the fact there could be minor strength imbalances in Matthews’ body is not a huge concern. And not a sign of problems to come.

So stand down Toronto. Crack a beer and relax. Nothing to worry about.

TL;DR:

Most importantly, the injury is not the type that’s considered to typically be chronic or recurring. It also shouldn’t cause Matthews to lose any strength or ability in his dominant hand and arm — as a left shot — beyond the short recovery period.

The fact Matthews has had shoulder injuries twice in back-to-back seasons is likely more an unfortunate circumstance than anything to worry about long term.