The Macklin Celebrini extension was essentially the final piece that needed to land in place this summer. And it signals what NHL owners feared the most.
When Jason Robertson and Connor Bedard signed for $12 million and $15 million AAV, respectively, it seemed that there had been some sort of order restored to the overall market.
But then, the Sharks did not take any chances with their budding franchise player. The club signed Celebrini to a five-year deal with an $18.8 million AAV tag attached to it. While that’s one heck of a payday for the 19-year-old, it’s not what owners would have wanted.
NHL owners fought a war with the players in the early 2000s to keep player salaries as low as possible. For the most part, GMs towed the company line. They tried to play hardball, keeping salaries in line with what the organization would have wanted to pay.
The dam broke with the Leo Carlsson offer sheet. The $18 million the Anaheim Ducks essentially saw themselves forced to pay Carlsson opened the floodgates to what has now become a steady trend in salary inflation.
That was to be expected when the salary cap began rising substantially following the flat COVID years. Teams will now need to brace themselves because the next wave of free agents could blow out the market entirely.
The Celebrini extension will just be the tip of the iceberg.
Celebrini Extension Should Pave Way for Hughes, Makar
The next wave of nuclear blasts won’t happen with RFAs. It will happen with impending UFAs. In particular, two names come to mind: Quinn Hughes and Cale Makar. Both Norris Trophy winners will need new contracts after this upcoming season.
And after the way the market shifted this summer, the Minnesota Wild and Colorado Avalanche will be in tough to re-sign them.
Hughes comes with the most uncertainty at the moment. He doesn’t seem nearly as committed to the Wild as Makar is to the Avalanche. Hughes could be the biggest wild card of all, potentially wanting to max out his next deal. If that’s the case, the Celebrini extension could look like a bargain.
As for Makar, he might not be too keen on testing the UFA market. But it won’t be easy for the Avalanche to extend him, given their current cap situation. But if Makar, like Hughes, gets their just reward, fans could be looking at the NHL’s first $20 million AAV players.
If that works out to be the case, teams will be in a tough spot moving forward.
What to read next:
NHL Teams Can’t Put Toothpaste Back in the Tube
At this point, the toothpaste cannot go back into the tube. This summer’s wave of massive deals, not just the Celebrini extension, has pretty much pushed NHL player salaries past a threshold.
And there will be no coming back from that point.
A line has been crossed. Despite some owners’ reluctance to move past it, there will be no coming back. That’s why the only path forward for player salaries, especially as the cap continues to rise, will be up.
The problem is that one of these major contracts will blow up. When one of them does, the entire league will become reticent to the idea of locking up players to such lucrative extensions.
Like HEAVY’s content? Be sure to follow us.
This article was originally published on HEAVY
The post Celebrini Extension Signals What Owners Feared the Most appeared first on HEAVY.