Fourth Period’s Dave Pagnotta joined the Sirius XM NHL Network Power Play segment with Steve Kouleas and Jason Strudwick. There, he was asked what contract extensions would look like for Macklin Celebrini and Connor Bedard with the rising salary cap.
Writing for NHLRumors.com
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Jason Strudwick: “The salary cap is going through the roof, which is great. We have rising stars looking for new contracts, Connor Bedard in Chicago, and I know he’s got one year left, but (Macklin) Celebrini in San Jose. I don’t know if anything is happening at all with any of the others or when would you expect it to look like that?
Dave Pagnotta: “Yeah. I mean, yeah, you’re right. Like, we’re at 104 ($104 million) next season, it’s 113 and a half ($113.5 million) a year from now. And in two years, it’s going to be around $120 million, $123-$124 million. And there’s money to play with. They’re going to make a lot of money, and I think Bedard, at his age, where he’s at, signing a contract that, you know, keeps him quiet in the final year of his restricted free agent status, and probably looking at $12 million, maybe a high AAV for all he knows.
It is clear that Celebrini still has two, they will talk in the summer. But I mean you are even higher in that. Obviously, the preference on the team’s part is to lock the guy up for as long as possible. The player side, it’s a combination of safety, but also being smart about it, and how old you are, when your age is at it, you can definitely see that you’re playing something for them.
And not only that, as you look at Anaheim, they have a few guys, but they have to be locked into new contracts. (Cut) Gauthier needs one. He just scored 40 goals. They have a few other pieces there as well. You have a great American, you have a great Swede. He has many different pieces. He has a defenseman, and a young defenseman, who needs a new deal.
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So the Ducks will be spending a lot of money on these guys as well. And whether it’s (Leo) Carlsson or Gauthier or whoever, they’re going to get a lot of money. I can see them following the same pattern I expect Bedard to fall into. In the middle of four or five quarters they bank on a four-year extension for big dollars and then I see where the cap is right now. Because in five years, we could be at about 130, and those dollar figures will continue to rise. “
NHLRumors.com note: However, Macklin Celebrini, during his year-end media availability, said he is open to signing an extension this summer. As Max Miller of San Jose Sharks Digest reports, he and Connor Bedard have a process, but he says every situation is different.
It will be interesting to see what those players get in dollar terms, along with Cutter Gauthier, Leo Carlsson, and other Ducks young players. But as wages rise, dollar values will rise for high-skilled players.
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