Very much agreed with all points. A bridge is the best solution for all parties. Gaudreau gets the opportunity to prove that he is a top 10 player, the Flames get the opportunity to see how much Bennett and Tkachuk will cost. And honestly, I think the Flames' absolute best shot at a cup will come by the end of the 2018-2019 season, so if you can have an "underpaid" (i.e. 6.3 million instead of 9+ million) Gaudreau, it just lets you bring in more depth. They can still be competitive after, but there will be no studs on elc's available for cheap depth like most cup champions have had lately.
I don't think the Flames will have any problem paying Gaudreau 9 million if he proves himself to be a top 10 player in the league. It's not like it's a massive jump from the 7.5X8 long term deal that's been thrown out as the low end deal right now.
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Originally Posted by transplant99
And if so, do you want the possibility that an arbiter then awards a 2 year deal if it gets to that point and JG can walk as UFA at the end of that term?
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If a player takes a club to arbitration, the arbitrator picks the dollar amount and the team picks the term, 1 or 2 years. The flames could simply choose a 1 year deal to avoid UFA.