Matthew Tkachuk couldn’t help but keep close tabs on his friend/opponent Auston Matthews’ recent contract dialogue.
On Tuesday afternoon, Matthews and the Toronto Maple Leafs agreed to a five-year, $58.17 million deal. Contrary to reigning Art Ross winner Connor McDavid, Matthews accepted shorter term compared to the former’s eight-year, $100 million deal. So how is this all relevant to Tkachuk? Well, the 21-year-old is also set to become a restricted free agent this summer and should receive a significant raise from his $925,000 US.
Tkachuk touched on Matthews’ new deal and insisted that like players before him, Auston’s new deal “set the bar”.
The following is an excerpt from the Calgary Sun:
“It kind of changes every year, it seems like there’s always that one guy or a couple of guys that change the money, whether higher or lower,” Tkachuk said. “You had (Connor) McDavid a couple years ago setting the bar there, maybe a guy like (Drew) Doughty setting the bar for free-agent (defencemen), a guy like (Jack) Eichel, too, signing, and now you have Matthews.
“I feel like every year there’s a couple guys, a couple big names every year who kind of change the way a little bit. I think Auston changed it, too, going with the approach (of) a five-year deal, too. Maybe people haven’t seen that in a couple years, but it’s not like, uncommon. Guys used to do that all the time. He definitely set the bar.”
Tkachuk could land himself in the $7-$8 million price range based on this season’s production, which would make him the highest paid Flames player over leading point scorer Johnny Gaudreau. But the American doesn’t seem interested in negotiating a new contract this season, similar to Matthews’ teammate Mitch Marner. If it were up to him, it would get dealt with in the summer.
The following is an excerpt from the Calgary Sun:
“I think if we just keep playing this (season) out, my mindset’s not to sign in the season or to not sign in the season,” Tkachuk said. “If it were up to me I’d probably just want to keep playing and not talk about that stuff, not even discuss anything and just figure it out in the summer, probably.”
With the new bar set, it will be interesting to see if Tkachuk elects to go with a long-term contract or one with a shorter term that ends closer to when the NHL’s new Collective Bargaining Agreement kicks in.
(H/T Calgary Sun)
