A 14-year-old to get exceptional status for the WHL
Sportsnet: Elliotte Friedman on Landon DuPont to get exceptional status likely next week to play full-time in the WHL as a 15-year-old.
** NHLRumors.com transcription
The other situation we want to keep an eye on is here in the CHL north of the border. 14-year-old Landon DuPont of Calgary is expected to receive exceptional status as soon as next week. Now Everett (Silvertips) won the WHL lottery, will have the number one overall pick. The announcement has not been made on DuPont yet, but the belief is it will be given to him next week.
He will become the second player ever to get it in the WHL and allows you to play full-time as a 15-year-old. Connor Bedard was the first so congratulations upcoming apparently to DuPont and to Everett which we’ll get to draft him first overall in the WHL.
The Edmonton Oilers won’t get Leon Draisaitl for less than $13 million
Jim Matheson of the Edmonton Journal: (mailbag) When he’s up for a contract extension, Connor McDavid will be the highest-paid player in the league. Leon Draisaitl and Evan Bouchard will need new deals too.
Draisaitl has a year left on his contract before becoming a UFA and is underpaid at $8.5 million. Things are quiet on that front and no info is getting out. He could try the Auston Matthews route, doing a four-year deal and waiting for the salary cap to up even more. Matthews is at $13.25 million and Draisailt could look for that or more.
The other route for Draisailt is the eight-year deal like Nathan MacKinnon, who took a bit of a discount at $12.6 million. The cap his going up to around $87.7 million and it was $82.5 million when MacKinnon signed his deal. Don’t think Draisaitl will sign for under $13 million.
The Oilers can’t go into next season without Draisaitl as a pending UFA. He could get more money on the open market next July. You know the Boston Bruins would be doing all they can to get him.
