The deal is done: Connor McDavid is staying in Edmonton.
In an unusual move for an NHL superstar, however, he signed very short term and for an incredible bargain with the Oilers, agreeing to a two-year extension with an average annual value of just $12.5 million. It’s far less than the $17-million-a-season deal that Kirill Kaprizov signed with the Minnesota Wild last week, and matches the same AAV as McDavid’s previous contract, which he signed way back in July 2017.
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The fallout from this extension is going to be felt league-wide, with winners and losers on both sides of the ledger as one of the sport’s best players ever decided to give his team a massive hometown discount rather than test free agency.
Let’s dig in.
Winner: The Edmonton Oilers
No question about it, Oilers CEO Jeff Jackson is doing backflips right now after getting this deal done.
McDavid could have demanded a record-setting, league max contract of $19.1 million a season on whatever term he wanted. Instead, the face of the franchise saved the Oilers $6.6 million against the cap the next two seasons, enough money to add another good player to their arsenal.
Had Edmonton
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