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As training camps kick off this week, there’s no shortage of intriguing storylines on the contract front, led of course, by the best player in the world.
I will say that everyone involved did a good job after the Stanley Cup Final of conditioning the media, the Edmonton market and frankly, the hockey world at large not to expect a quick extension for Connor McDavid when he was eligible July 1.
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The message was that it would be a longer process — McDavid was expected to take his time this summer to ponder things.
The idea that McDavid wouldn’t sign an extension by training camp, which is now reality, was even on the table if you listened to some of the speculation back in June.
The idea that the puck would drop on the regular season and McDavid still would not have signed? I can’t say I would have predicted that as a real possibility back then. But given what we’re hearing now, it’s obviously feasible.
It’s also true McDavid may still extend before puck drop next month. That’s what the Oilers are hoping. They remain confident they will get him signed to an extension at some point. I think everyone involved is comfortable with the idea that if and when an extension happens, it’ll be of a shorter term — not eight years. Whether that’s two, three or four years, we shall see. McDavid’s agent, Judd Moldaver, negotiated a four-year extension for fellow superstar Auston Matthews with the Toronto Maple Leafs, so there’s a track record there.
But I also think it’s important to note an important aspect of these ongoing discussions, which again Tuesday were described to me by league sources as very cordial and ongoing: This isn’t a financial back-and-forth. It remains very much a philosophical discussion between the parties.
It’s a feel thing for McDavid. As colleague Chris Johnston wrote Tuesday, it’s about his comfort level and understanding where the Oilers are headed as a franchise. Are they headed off a cliff in a few years, or can they remain contenders? I really think McDavid is trying to answer that for himself.
I do think the likeliest scenario remains that McDavid will extend at some point on a shorter-term or medium-term deal, but I can’t tell you when exactly that will happen because the most important person in that decision hasn’t decided yet.
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Once McDavid green-lights Moldaver to enter the financial bargaining, that will take five minutes. The Oilers have no choice but to sign off on whatever McDavid and Moldaver bring to them. Until then, Oilers management, as general manager Stan Bowman told me earlier this month, remains patient in the process and is going out of its way not to put any pressure on McDavid. Which is smart.
If the puck drops next month and there’s still no extension, though, the pressure builds from within to be sure.
Right now? It’s status quo.
The Minnesota Wild are not engaging with teams on Kirill Kaprizov, according to league sources. There’s zero appetite to do that at this juncture. They also haven’t asked for a list of teams he’d want to be traded to. Their only objective remains to sign him to an extension despite the rejection of a massive offer last week.
That offer also remains on the table.
We’ve not yet heard from Kaprizov since he turned down $16 million per year. He’s expected to meet the media in Minnesota on Thursday as camp opens. GM Bill Guerin is also expected to meet the media that day. You can bet our all-world Wild coverage led by Michael Russo and Joe Smith will be all over it.
My sense of things is that the Wild don’t want to negotiate against themselves, so I don’t believe they’ve made another offer to this point. I also think the Wild still believe Kaprizov wants to stay in Minnesota. And that’s a really, really important sentiment to underline at this very delicate stage of things. If the Wild thought the offer being rejected meant the player wouldn’t sign no matter what, that’d be a different thing altogether.
For now, it’s a tough negotiation with a veteran agent in Paul Theofanous, who has grinded many a team over the years — and made his clients a lot of money. The reality is, the Wild desperately want to sign the player, so the agent does have a lot of leverage. Can he get a few more dollars above $16 million a year? Perhaps …
I have such a hard time believing the Vegas Golden Knights and Jack Eichel isn’t a marriage that will continue past this season, given how he ended up there and the faith each side had in each other in that process. It’s been a wonderful trade for everyone involved. A perfect fit all around.
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But as training camp opens this week, Eichel is without an extension entering the final year of his deal. My understanding is that negotiations are still in early stages but no one is worried about it not getting done.
What is Eichel’s comfort level going into the season without a deal, if that in fact is the case next month?
“You can only control so much, right?” he said at the Player Media Tour last week in Las Vegas. “And that’s sort of been my mindset. … I focus on preparing for the season, getting my mind and body in the best place to be successful and help our hockey team. That’s more so my focus. I think anything else just takes care of itself when you do your job well.”
I asked Eichel how he felt about negotiating once the puck dropped next month. Some big-name pending unrestricted free agents tell their agents to suspend talks during the season. They don’t want to be distracted. Others have zero issue with talks continuing. It sounds like Eichel is fine with talks continuing.
“I’m definitely not in the ‘no communication’ (camp),” Eichel said. “I just try to focus on things that are in my control. If the contract happens organically, then it happens. Right now you’re just focused on getting yourself in as good a place as you can be to start the season and help the hockey team.”
Again, let me stress: No one involved seems concerned it’s not done yet.
“That’s a priority,” Golden Knights GM Kelly McCrimmon told me Sept. 3 at the GM meetings in Detroit when asked about an Eichel extension. “He’s been a great player for our organization. I think our organization has been great for him. So lots of interest obviously, I think from both sides, to make something work.’’
I checked into the Luke Hughes contract situation Tuesday and was told by league sources that the New Jersey Devils and Hughes’ camp are continuing to “grind” away at a resolution, with the pressure of training camp opening and everyone involved wanting the player there.
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A longer-term deal remains the preferred option for both sides, but all options are on the table to get the restricted free agent signed.
Hughes, who turned 22 last week, had seven goals and 44 points in 71 games last season after putting up nine and 47 in 82 games as a rookie. Overall, he’s got 41 power-play points over two seasons, especially taking advantage of running the top PP unit when Dougie Hamilton has been injured.
What’s the next step in Hughes’ evolution?
“Hopefully Luke can come in and be on power play 1 from Day 1,” brother Jack Hughes said at the Player Media Tour. “That’s super important for him because he’s got so much upside. And when we do give him these things that all the other No. 1 Ds around the league get, we get a great return. But then sometimes he gets taken away (from the power play). So my hope for him is that he comes in, he’s on power play 1 to start, and the rest of the game, he’ll take care of himself. He’s a great skater. He’s a really good defender, too. I think he can be a true No. 1 for us. He’s going into his third full year. I think as a group we should expect him to be a true No. 1.”
And listen, it’s natural for Jack to feel that way about his brother. As we saw with Jack’s comments on Quinn Hughes last week, it’s a tight-knit family as well and the brothers all have each other’s backs.
But I can’t help but wonder where Hamilton fits into this whole picture. When an extension gets done, the Devils will have two talented offensive blueliners but just one QB job on the top power play.
Hamilton, 32, has three years left on his contract, which pays him $9 million annually. He really likes it in New Jersey and doesn’t want to go anywhere. His full no-movement clause this summer switched to a modified no-trade, under which he can list 10 teams he would go to.
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I’m not suggesting there’s anything imminent on that front, but it’s more something to file away closer to the March 6 trade deadline, depending on how things play out.
The Anaheim Ducks’ negotiations with Mason McTavish have been difficult by all accounts.
Ducks GM Pat Verbeek has had his own approach when it comes to his young RFAs coming off entry-level deals — former Ducks forward Trevor Zegras being one example a few years ago.
So we’ll see where this one goes, but as of Tuesday, communication was ongoing but it was still in a tough place.
Colleague Darren Dreger reported during our Insider Trading segment Tuesday on TSN (Insider Trading is back!) that there’s progress in negotiations and mutual interest to get something done between Kyle Connor and the Winnipeg Jets. That’s no guarantee it gets done before the regular season. There’s no firm timeline to get a deal done, Dreger noted, but both sides are hoping to keep at it.
It might surprise some people outside of Winnipeg that an American pending UFA star player would want to stay on with the Jets, but I’ll point out Connor loves the outdoor life the market affords. He’s an avid hunter, like many players on the team. That’s not reason alone, of course, for him to stay. There are other markets where you can find that outdoor life. But it’s not nothing. (Fellow American star and avid outdoorsman Connor Hellebuyck also extended two years ago.)
Again, nothing is done until it’s done, but the mere fact there’s mutual interest in getting an extension done answers an important question about Connor’s mindset.
(Photo of Jack Eichel and Connor McDavid: Lawrence Scott / Getty Images)
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Pierre LeBrun has been a senior NHL columnist for The Athletic since 2017. He has been an NHL Insider for TSN since 2011 following six years as a panelist on Hockey Night In Canada. He also appears regularly on RDS in Montreal. Pierre previously covered the NHL for ESPN.com and The Canadian Press. Follow Pierre on Twitter @PierreVLeBrun
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