If Gaudreau (or any player) takes less, then we're just as likely to overpay some FA, or trade for a bad contract. Everyone has to take less in that scenario which doesn't really happen unless you have a standard set early on with your leadership group. Now being able to offer an 8th year is an advantage to set that standard with AAV, and have the total contract be a maximum.
I'd rather he get the maximum he can. If he makes $12m, and we have to stop giving term and $$$ to the middle of the roster vets instead of concentrating on young players and developing I think that puts us further ahead long term.
We already got cheap years from him and Tkachuk that helped move us forward, now time to find the new crop of those players while we have reasonably young well paid talent.
This made up fantasy that athletes should take less to stay is ridiculous. Pay the best the most. The salary cap leveled the playing field, so every team can afford their best players. We need to drop the thinking from the non-salary cap era...young players get paid on their first RFA contract now, non-superstars are depreciating assets at 30 as the rule, not the exception and every team has UFAs, so we shouldn't panic when they come up.
Francis...when that guy retires will anyone even notice? What a legacy.
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