Yes, the contract might be less than spectacular in a few years but we have no idea what else could happen on the team…we always tend to assume the worst but there’s also a good possibility that we see something really positive happening that will make things easier.
Maybe guys like Kerins or Phillips takes a big step forward and outperforms expectations or maybe our recent first rounders (Zary, Pelletier, Coronato) could really catch fire. Maybe Wolf becomes a Vezina candidate and the team can move Markstrom and get quality assets. Or they could strike gold with one of the draft picks over the next year or two. Being able to get a couple of players to play high end first or second line minutes while they are on an ELC will make that contract a lot more palatable.
So much can change in a three or four years. If in 2018, someone said Gio, Brodie, Tkachuk, Monahan, and Gaudreau would all be done by 2022-23, I’d have thought they were crazy. Yet, at least, on paper, I think we are a better, more balanced team. In 2026, who knows what the team will actually look like? Let’s enjoy this season. It’s going to be fun.
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