Leafs' Matthews forges own path with all-smiles contract

TORONTO - Leave it to the hockey player from the desert - the kid who blazed a trail by spending his NHL draft year schooling seasoned pros in Switzerland - to drift ever so slightly off the beaten path.

By signing a five-year, bonus-heavy $58.2-million extension with the Toronto Maple Leafs on Tuesday, Auston Matthews expanded the scope for star players exiting their entry-level contracts. You can have your cake and eat it too, apparently. The guy who's scoring goals at a remarkable pace through 182 NHL games, challenging the traditional profile of a No. 1 center, managed to find the sweet spot between his best interests and needs of his salary cap-strapped team.

Mark Blinch / Getty Images

Matthews is far from the first franchise player in pro sports to concede a little bit of cash for the greater good, and he'll be paid handsomely starting next year and through the 2023-24 season at an average annual value of $11.6 million. But the new Matthews contract format - medium term and a big but not record-breaking chunk of the cap - is his own cozy space for now. The dream of an inflated Connor McDavid special (eight years, $100 million) is officially dead, and that's OK.

"We understand the cap restraints we have," Matthews said at Scotiabank Arena on Tuesday, with general manager Kyle Dubas within earshot. "We went through everything from three to eight (years) and settled on five. I think both sides are obviously happy and happy to get this over with and move on."

"In the end," added the potential future captain, sticking with the team-friendly theme, "you're measured on championships."

Consider this: There will be 30 NHLers with cap hits of $8 million or greater during the 2019-20 season, including Matthews and teammate John Tavares. From that group, only Matthews and Blake Wheeler (five years, $8.3 million per season) signed deals shorter than seven years. And Wheeler's contract is the winger's fourth deal, making Matthews unique in the current landscape. Second contracts simply aren't structured this way in the salary-cap era.

"We're very thankful that they were willing to move from their desired term," Dubas said of Matthews and his representatives. "Obviously everyone wants to be here for as long as possible, and we were able to find an AAV that works for everybody."

Rene Johnston / Getty Images

Matthews will occupy 14 percent of the Leafs' 2019-20 expected cap space and trails just McDavid for the highest cap hit. He's now slated to become an unrestricted free agent at 26 years old, only a year behind schedule. The 2017 Calder Trophy winner is tracking toward another significant pay raise in his prime, as his third deal could easily hit triple digits.

If the two sides had agreed on an eight-year deal - the chosen route for many of Matthews' peers, including McDavid and Jack Eichel, and a path the forward and his team discussed - he would have hit the open market at 29 and, at least theoretically, missed out on a boatload of money while under team control.

"These things are complicated," Dubas said of contract negotiations, referencing the lengthy negotiation period with Matthews' camp. "They're not as simple as people want them to be at times."

Overall, at the time of the deal, Matthews looks like the victor, if a winner needs to be declared. Dubas and the Leafs gained short-term flexibility, assuming the team uses the extra cap space to its advantage, while Matthews gained long-term flexibility if he stays on his current career trajectory. There's inherent reward and risk for both parties, with Matthews taking on less of the latter, but it'll be smiles all around in Toronto for the foreseeable future.

From a league-wide perspective, who's to say Brayden Point of the Tampa Bay Lightning, Patrik Laine of the Winnipeg Jets, Sebastian Aho of the Carolina Hurricanes, or Mikko Rantanen of the Colorado Avalanche can't replicate Matthews' contract structure (albeit on a smaller scale) and satisfy both player and team? The possibility of a fat third contract should make those youngsters drool.

The hockey world loves comparables, and the Matthews deal provides another. Have at it, restricted free agent class of 2019.

What about Marner and the rest of the Leafs?

With William Nylander inking an extension in December following a long standoff, and Matthews now locked in, everyone's attention immediately turns to Mitch Marner, the club's final big-ticket RFA.

Conventional wisdom suggests Marner, the play-driving winger who has recorded 63 points in 52 games this season, is due to earn $9-11M annually on his next contract. Since salary is always linked to length, the Leafs probably want to stagger the deals. Matthews has provided a nice template, making six years at $10M per season a logical fit in the Marner negotiations.

Marner, who leads Toronto forwards while averaging 19:39 of ice time per game in 2018-19, is on a 99-point pace. An all-situations player who's found hot chemistry with Tavares, he's arguably been the team's MVP through 52 games. If he cracks 100 points, good luck convincing the Markham, Ont., product to take a hometown discount.

Marner's representatives, led by outspoken agent Darren Ferris and fiery father Paul Marner, have stated publicly they'd prefer to postpone talks until the offseason. The Leafs have no issue honoring that timeline, Dubas says.

Despite the possibility of a July offer sheet hanging over his head, the GM is confident the two sides will eventually find common ground. "He's going to be a Toronto Maple Leaf for a long time," Dubas said, "regardless of how we have to come to that."

Mark Blinch / Getty Images

As for the rest of the team, the 2019-20 Leafs have roughly $72 million of the projected $83 million salary cap committed to eight forwards, five defensemen, and one goalie, according to CapFriendly.com. Placing Nathan Horton's contract on long-term injured reserve after training camp could give the club up to $5.3 million in additional cap space, and $16.3 million total to work with.

Translation: There isn't much of the pie left for Marner, three other forwards, one defensemen, and a goalie.

Budding wingers Kasperi Kapanen and Andreas Johnsson, 22 and 24 years old, respectively, are among those looking to get paid. "We'll continue to let the season play out and let the sample size grow," Dubas said of the lower-profile RFAs. "We'll begin having discussions with their people probably after the trade deadline."

Impressively, Dubas continues to project confidence when he speaks about his team's long-term core. It's a group featuring a handful of bargains - Travis Dermott, Morgan Rielly, Nazem Kadri, and Frederik Andersen. And it may also include recent acquisition Jake Muzzin, $2.3M winger Zach Hyman, and $2.1M winger Connor Brown.

The core likely won't include Jake Gardiner, whose potential earnings on the open market don't align with the Leafs' cap situation. If Dubas can make Nikita Zaitsev's contract disappear, however, there's a fighting chance.

At the very least, following Tuesday's development, the smiling GM has secured Matthews, Tavares, and Nylander for the next five seasons beyond this one. Two cornerstone centers forming a Crosby-Malkin combo of sorts, and a highly skilled winger. Marner will be along for the entirety of that six-year Stanley Cup window, too, right? Maybe, but maybe not. The money is tight.

The Leafs want to be the next Chicago Blackhawks or Pittsburgh Penguins or Los Angeles Kings - a dynasty, or at worst a pseudo-dynasty. Not a one-off.

"We're trying to build a team that can have sustained success, not just contend once," Dubas said, giving a vague nod to pro sports dynasties.

"I think a lot of that is luck related and luck based," he continued, "and I think we want to give ourselves the maximum number of chances we can to make a real good go at it."

John Matisz is theScore's National Hockey Writer. You can find him on Twitter @matiszjohn.

Copyright (C) 2019 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.