NHL contracts have exploded this offseason. The Chicago Blackhawks traded for and signed Bowen Byram to a massive six-year, $75 million contract. Leo Carlsson shocked the hockey world when he signed the Philadelphia Flyers' offer sheet, forcing the Anaheim Ducks to match a five-year, $90 million contract. The biggest contract of the offseason goes to San Jose Sharks centre Macklin Celebrini, who signed a five-year, $94 million contract. While the rest of the NHL has been shattering the mould for player salaries, the Montreal Canadiens have found a way to get their players to take less. The team has fully bought into taking less, hoping it will give them an advantage in their quest to win the Stanley Cup. The Canadiens have locked up their young stars to team-friendly contracts, but you need a total team buy-in.
Winning is everything for the Canadiens
Nearly every Canadiens player who has signed a long-term deal could have demanded more money and would have been justified in doing so. Ivan Demidov is the most recent Canadiens player to sign a massive extension. However, his eight-year, $73.20 million contract is nothing compared to Celebrini, who was in the same draft class as the Russian winger. While it is not a crime to say Celebrini is the better of the two players right now, the $9+ million difference in their salaries does not represent the gap in their talents. Hockey fans were left stunned by Demidov’s extension and had a similar reaction when the Canadiens locked up Lane Hutson to an eight-year, $70.80 million contract last summer.
The highest-paid player on the Canadiens roster is defenceman Noah Dobson, whom they acquired from the New York Islanders last offseason, before signing him to a massive extension. When the Canadiens agreed to the sign-and-trade with the Islanders, giving Dobson an eight-year, $76 million contract, it faced backlash. Dobson was coming off a down year, but a year later, with the defenceman having a bounce-back season and seeing some of the other contracts given out this offseason, the move clearly worked out in the Canadiens’ favour. Montreal has managed their cap exceptionally well, and if they wanted to, could add a big-name, high-priced player to the lineup, something that would not be looked down upon by captain Nick Suzuki.
Suzuki does not care who makes more than him
At a charity golf tournament for the Asista Foundation, TVA reporter Anthony Martineau asked Suzuki whether he would be bothered to see a player with a contract of $15-17 million per year land in Montreal while he earns $7.88 million. His response? All he cares about is winning, and that is a common thought throughout the team.
""That's what happens when you sign a long-term deal. It's been five years now! Times have changed. On this team, the guys just want to win. Some have accepted less money to make it happen. That makes a difference. And we're still making enough money to be set for life.""Nick Suzuki
He understands that money is not everything, and while it is still important, their careers are just a small portion of their life, and when you look back at what you have done in the sport, will you tell stories about how much money you have made or can you say you left the sport as a Stanley Cup champion? It is clear that the team’s goal is to win the Stanley Cup, and they are committed to doing it together, even if they have to take a little less money to do so. The city of Montreal has been starved of seeing Lord Stanley since 1993, but this group of players looks determined to change that.
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