Anthony Di Marco of the Daily Faceoff joined TSN Radio in Montreal and was asked when we can see movement on the Quinn Hughes and Cale Makar fronts? Is one waiting for the other, and how has the market changed in terms of price for these top defenseman?
NHLRumors.com Transcriptions
Minnesota Wild, Quinn Hughes, and the Center Position
Host: “There’s a lot of big names that are going to be in play here, right? The question mark’s always around Auston Matthews, but more so the Connor McDavid, the Cale Makar, and the Quinn Hughes. Like, when should we be expecting, as hockey fans, to leave Matthews out of the conversation because he seems like he’s locked in a little bit more. But the other guys are definitely coming up with their deals? Like, what are we expecting here, and what are we looking at from a time frame?”
Anthony Di Marco: “Like with the contracts of Matthews and McDavid, and if they’ll be moved off instead of re-upping with their respective teams, like that kind of conversation?”
Host: “Yeah, or news breaking, or maybe like dollars and cents. Like, is the Hughes team gonna wait for Makar? Is Makar gonna wait for Hughes? How does that play out?”
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Di Marco: “Well, I think Bowen Byram kind of set the stage here, and now you even see like a trickle-down effect with Jamie Drysdale. I think the Flyers thought they’d be able to get in the fives, and by all accounts, they’re gonna be lucky if they get him in the sixes, depending obviously on terms (Drysdale signed a four-year deal at $6.5 million AAV).
But as for Quinn Hughes, I mean, he’s eligible for an extension. I think we see him sign an extension, probably a three-to four-year kind of range, and I think Makar is two years away from unrestricted free agency, so he has to wait until next July 1 before signing a contract.
But I think that Leo Carlsson contract sets the stage for everyone here. So I probably think you see Quinn Hughes making, I would say around the Kirill Kaprizov‘s number, maybe $15 million-$16 million, on a shorter term deal because how much money can Bill Guerin throw around. And they’re also in on Dylan Larkin.
And then when you get to Cale Makar, he’s probably going to be the richest player in the NHL when he signs his contract next year.
As for Matthews and McDavid, Simon, it’s weird there because McDavid clearly is okay taking pay cuts and take a discount to give the Oilers one last track here to get it going. As for Matthews, he’s never cared about taking a pay cut. Every time he signs a new contract, it seems like he’s setting a new precedent, whether it be the term walking into UFA status or getting the money. Now he’s making what, $13.25 million, if I recall correctly. So I think with the defense, we’re going to see it more rapidly rise because of what we saw with Byram.
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But then even on the forward side, Leo Carlsson getting that massive contract set to be the highest paid player going into this coming season, so I think over the next 12 months we’re going to start to see the landscape shift, specifically when this huge contract extension inevitably comes down the pike.”
NHLRumors.com Note: There is a lot of talk out of Minnesota when it comes to Quinn Hughes, from their close to a deal, to their very optimistic, and to nothing new to report. The owner of the Wild wants to pay him whatever he wants, but Minnesota’s cap situation is an issue, given Quinn Hughes and Kirill Kaprizov would be the two highest-paid players on the team. But who is scoring goals for the Wild?
Again, it is a waiting game for a player who has control over where he wants to go. While Hughes talks a big game, he has yet to sign a deal. Is there another force driving this negotiation?
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As far as Cale Makar, the Avalanche know what the number is; that is why they have moved out players like Mikko Rantanen, Jack Drury, Ross Colton, and Valeri Nichushkin to open up the cap space necessary to sign him to a new deal.
But given the market and how the young defenseman are being paid, you have to think both could get over $15 million on new deals.
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