I disagree. They have to sign Hall, Hischier, and Bratt next season. They could pay him $10 million this year and it wouldn't matter. Next year it absolutely does. That's why the David Backes speculation never made any sense, the 2nd year is a non-starter for the devils.
The only other team that even made an offer was the Blue Jackets. Other teams were either capped out or in situations where a win-now player like Gusev didn't make sense. If you look at CapFriendly, Columbus is already missing its second rounders in 2020 and 2021, the only way for them to beat our offer would have been to give up a 1st rounder. To have only two picks in the first three rounds of the next two drafts might have been more than they could stomach.
If Gusev busts, which I really don't see happening, the Devils can simply buy out his remaining year with a $1.5 million cap hit for the 2020-2021 and 2021-2022 seasons. Or he can retire and go to Russia and the Devils would be responsible for a tiny cap recapture penalty since his contract is $5 and then $4. The most painful loss would be the draft picks, but to me it's worth it for the potential upside Gusev offers.
Absolutely. The Subban, Simmonds, and Gusev deals are all deals that the Devils were able to do because of their cap position. They're all short term commitments and unlikely to hamstring the team down the road. Shero has done a fantastic job.