In
an article in the Globe and Mail, James Mirtle calls the end of the bridge contract in the NHL.
Quote:
Ten years into a salary cap world, GMs unhappy with the quality of UFAs available have finally begun to view offer sheets as a useful tool to pry players away from their teams.
And it’s working...
What the cap has forced GMs to do is find as much value for their $71-million and change as they can. That means eliminating overpays, which means eliminating legacy contracts for veterans who are paid for their name more than their production.
It also means targeting players entering their prime rather than those leaving it.
The NHL is becoming much more advanced analytically speaking, with at least a dozen teams now employing a full-time staffer charged with crunching numbers. Again and again, these analysts have shown that peak performance in the NHL is between age 22 and 27, earlier than many in the game previously believed.
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So unlike in the past, when a lot of 22-26 year old players were underpaid (and teams counted on underpaying them to fit under the cap), they're going to be paid much more of the team's payroll. And conversely, that means less money will be available to sign or keep veterans. It's not going to be uncommon in the future to see 33 year olds paid less then they were at 25.
I see this affecting the Flames in two ways:
Gaudreau, Monahan, and Bennet are going to get paid big in their next contracts. Teams will be sniffing around with offer sheets when they reach RFA status, and the Flames will need to pay to keep the wolves away.
Negotations with Gio are going to be very tough. NHL GMs are no longer going to pay players for what they've done in the past, and they've become extremely wary of anchor contracts for 30-something players.