- Frank Seravalli says Cale Makar’s $20.4M deal changed how NHL teams have to negotiate
- Connor McDavid, Auston Matthews and Zach Werenski all become extension eligible next summer
- Read below for what the new market means for Quinn Hughes and the Wild
Frank Seravalli thinks NHL general managers just lost the staring contest.
The Daily Faceoff insider was asked on Sportsnet’s The Fan Morning Show what Cale Makar’s eight-year, $163.2 million extension does to every negotiation behind it. He did not soften the answer.
“The adjustment is on the team side, understanding that this marketplace dynamic has shifted and the time for screw around is over. That if you want to keep these players, you’re coming with the Brinks truck and you’re doing it right from jump street as opposed to talking tough.”
Makar signed for $400,000 less than the maximum a player can earn under the cap. Seravalli read that as a defenseman who knew his number and refused to shave it for appearances.
“This age of player enlightenment is certainly here. (Players) seem to be more comfortable than ever saying, ‘No, this is actually what I’m worth.’”
That gap is not a rounding error. Makar’s $163.2 million clears Kirill Kaprizov’s $136 million by better than $27 million, and Alex Ovechkin’s 13-year, $124 million deal ranks third on a list that also carries Leon Draisaitl, Shea Weber, Jack Eichel and Sidney Crosby:
Here’s how the league greeted the deal the day it landed:
Connor McDavid, Auston Matthews and Zach Werenski all become extension eligible next summer. Three franchises get to decide whether Seravalli is right about opening with the Brinks truck.
Minnesota is already living the other version of this. Seravalli was asked where the Quinn Hughes standoff goes with camp closing in, and he would rather the Wild settle it before the games count.
“If it were me, I’d look to rip the Band-Aid off at some point this month. Not to put a deadline on it, but I don’t want my team and season being held hostage by this storyline.”
Hughes has one season left at a $7.9 million cap hit and no extension. Makar just set the price the Wild will be negotiating against.
