EDMONTON — Lots of money, lots of money, lots of money.
That’s what most hockey experts expect once Edmonton Oilers captain Connor McDavid signs his next contract. With teammate Leon Draisaitl having secured an eight-year, $14 million contract extension, most journalists and fans are expecting a huge payday for McDavid.
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But could McDavid flip the script? Could he adopt the team-first approach of another NHL superstar, Sidney Crosby?
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It is certainly not out of the question.
McDavid left money on the table with current contract
McDavid signed his current $12.5 million contract right out of his entry-level deal. Peter Chiarelli was the Oilers’ GM at the time of the signing.
“This may have been one of the largest contracts ever in the NHL, but I can assure you it could easily have been much higher in value and shorter in duration,” Chiarelli told reporters at the time.
“Building a team to win the Stanley Cup was a constant in the discussion.”
That last sentence is key: “building a team to win the Stanley Cup.” When McDavid signed that extension, $12.5 million was only 15 percent of the team’s salary cap. He could have demanded 20 percent of the cap, which would have forced them to pay him $15 million a year.
But McDavid isn’t like that.
He wanted to be paid close to his value without jeopardizing his team’s chances of success, and leaving $2.5 million on the table is one way to do that.
Will McDavid Give the Oilers the ‘Sid The Kid’ Discount?
Crosby just signed a two-year extension that will pay him $8.7 million over two years. He signed the deal when he was 37 years old and it will take effect when he turns 38.
McDavid and Crosby are at different points in their careers. Crosby has won the Stanley Cup three times, while McDavid is still in the hunt for his first.
Crosby is in the final year of a 12-year, $8.7 million-a-year contract that he signed when the collective bargaining agreement allowed players to sign contracts longer than eight years.
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Many expect McDavid to sign a deal worth around $15 million. But he could follow in the footsteps of one of his idols and demand a nice number instead.
Is making the most money in the NHL his top priority, or is giving his team the best chance to win? Easing the team’s salary cap situation is one way he could do that.
So is McDavid asking for more than $15 million, or is he using his jersey number as inspiration for a $9.7 million contract? By the time his deal expires at the end of the 2025-26 season, he will have earned more than $100 million from his NHL contracts.
And we haven’t even mentioned sponsorship deals and endorsements.
No matter how you look at it, McDavid is going to get paid. But he has a chance to do something cool here, which would also be incredibly selfless.
I won’t hold it against him for taking $15 million a year. I’d probably do the same if I were him.
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