Thats a lot of money…
By mitchelldyck at September 16, 2011 | 1:33 pm | Print
Greetings! And welcome to what I hope is the first of many blogs to come. My names Mitch and I’m a new contributor here at Shock Blast Media, mostly writing hockey and whatever else they’ll let me publish.
You should know that I’m Canadian and a Canucks fan. Don’t hold that against me, let’s face it, things could be worse. I could be a Leafs fan or Montreal Canadians fan. I will do my best to be impartial and write without a bias and not be a total homer about my favorite team.
There, now that we’ve got the formalities out of the way, let’s talk some hockey.
I’d like to start my first piece off by talking about Tyler Myers of the Buffalo Sabers. The Sabers and the former Calder Trophy winner agreed on a new 7 year $38.5 million dollar contract extension. Good news for Sabers fans, no doubt, but one has to wonder what’s happening to the free agent market in hockey, particularly the restricted free agent.
Over the last 4 years players who complete their entry level deals have gone from entry level money to superstar money. I understand this if the player is superstar caliber. I.E Sidney Crosby, Patrick Kane or Jonathan Towes, but when you have a player like Myers (who, don’t get me wrong, will be a star) isn’t even does his entry level deal and signs on the dotted line for $38.5 million over 7 years with an annual hit of $5.5 million it makes you wonder.
Personally it makes me think of what that players done in order to achieve such a large contract. How have they helped their team? Have they significantly contributed to a team coming from a bad position and put them in to a good position? Have they come on to a good team and help push them over the top? Have they had great personal stats? Are they able to handle their position and go above the call of duty?
Put quite simply; do they deserve to make that kind of money?
If you ask all those questions I just listed about Tyler Myers, you would be inclined to believe that he does, if anything, Tyler Myers does make a good case as to why he should be making that kind of money. He’s helped his team, contributed significantly to the team’s success, had good stats, is solid and responsible for someone of his age AND he’s taken home a piece of hardware you can only win once in your entire career, the Calder.
Myers case is pretty clear cut, and with new ownership in Buffalo they’ve made it obvious that they want to sign talent to big money for the long term i.e. Christian Ehrhoff. But how does this signing affect the market? How does it affect other restricted free agents? More specifically, restricted free agent defensemen.
With the recent signings of Luke Schenn (Toronto, 5 years, $18 million) and Zach Bogosian (Winnipeg, 2 years, $5 million), the one remaining restricted free agent blue liner is Kings star Drew Doughty.
There has been a lot of back and forth between the Kings camp and Drew Doughty’s agent Don Meehan. And a few weeks ago it appeared through various reports that they were close, or at least they had agreed on the parameters of a new deal. However, with camps opening league wide today, Drew Doughty is at home in London, Ontario, rather than with his team mates at the Kings training camp.
There have been a few reports circulating that the Kings are not willing to pay Doughty more than their star center, Anze Kopitar, who is currently on the books for an annual hit of $6.8 million.
Now, let’s say that is the reason why Doughty and the Kings haven’t agreed on a new deal. That brings us to ask the same questions I asked about Myers. Have they significantly contributed to a team coming from a bad position and put them in to a good position? I would say so. Doughty has single handedly pushed the Kings in to playoff contenders, but he’s definitely had a hand in it. Have they come on to a good team and help push them over the top? Not so much, but he’s helped make them a team that could use a player or two to help push them over the top. Have they had great personal stats and are they able to handle their position and go above the call of duty? Again, yes. Doughty’s personal stats have been great. In 239 games played he has 126 points (33g 93a), he’s also a key component to the Kings 5-on-5 game, power play and penalty kill.
Needless to say, the Los Angles Kings need Drew Doughty. And it’s not like his value is being understated by the Kings, they know what he’s worth and that he is an integral part of their team. But does that make him worth more than $7 million dollars per year? Some would argue that no 21 year old is worth that sort of money, because really a lot of the money that’s being spent on the player is being spent on potential.
I guess we’ll soon see what happens in Doughty Gate 11.
Give us your take on the Doughty contract situation.
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