VANCOUVER — Only in professional sports could two players, one 21 years old and the other 22, sign contracts worth $15.2-million annually and have it considered almost a bargain for their employer.
The Vancouver Canucks negotiated fair and manageable deals for defenceman Quinn Hughes and Elias Petterson, the franchise cornerstones who are expected to travel to B.C. on Saturday in time for the final week of the NHL pre-season.
Hughes signed a six-year contract that averages $7.85 million per season, leaving just enough money under the salary cap for the Canucks to get Pettersson on a three-year deal worth $7.35 million annually.
Pettersson’s salary, although lower than the $7.7 million that was erroneously reported on Thursday night, sets a new precedent for bridge deals for NHL forwards coming out of their entry-level contracts, surpassing the $7 million the New York Islanders agreed to pay Mat Barzal before last season.
Hughes’ average salary falls short of contemporaries Cale Makar ($9 million) and Miro Heiskanen ($8.45 million) but the dynamic American becomes the NHL’s 19th-highest paid defenceman and, after surrendering only one year of unrestricted free agency, will be eligible for a huge payday on the open market when he is 27 years old.
Pettersson will be 25 when his bridge deal expires, and if he is unhappy with offers then on a long-term extension – the skilled two-way centre could command an eight-figure salary – he can simply accept the Canucks’ one-year qualifying offer and be a UFA at age 26.
These are the rare deals that look great for both sides.
They provide the Canucks with cost-certainty they can afford, and the team’s internal salary structure will be clearly defined by the richest contracts by average value in franchise history.
Winger Brock Boeser’s bridge deal worth $5.875 million annually expires next summer, and core players Bo Horvat and J.T. Miller, making $5.5- and $5.25 million, respectively, are up in two years.
Re-signing Pettersson and Hughes also ends the contractual crisis that has growing daily since training camp started without Pettersson and Hughes on Sept. 22.
“It’s great, especially with a little bit of time in camp left, to get in and kind of get situated with the new guys,” Canucks winger Zack MacEwen, one of two players made available to the media before Vancouver’s exhibition game Friday in Calgary, said on Zoom. “It’s just going to be great for the room to have them back.
“There’s a little bit of excitement there for sure. They’re obviously big parts of the team. Everybody wants them here, and want to get them here so we can get in a groove before the season starts. I think it’s just great for the team.”
The dark cloud hanging over the Canucks didn’t entirely dissipate on Friday, as general manager Jim Benning announced on Twitter that defenceman Travis Hamonic, who has missed camp for personal reasons, did not opt out of the NHL’s third pandemic season before Friday’s deadline to do so.
“He remains at home, dealing with some personal matters,” Benning said in a posted statement. “We continue to support him, and out of respect for the situation, we will have no further comment at this time.”
Hamonic, whose absence from camp is believed to be related to COVID restrictions and guidelines for players, signed a two-year, $6-million contract in July and was expected to partner Hughes on defence in a top-four role.
Neither he nor the Canucks have said whether his absence is vaccination-related, but Benning was unequivocal before training camp that players will be “100 per cent” vaccinated this season.
Hamonic opting out would have returned his $3-million cap charge for this season to the Canucks’ account and provided some clarity for the hockey team. Instead, if he wishes to play but is unvaccinated, Hamonic likely faces a long series of suspensions and minor-league assignments due to NHL travel protocols and local health authority restrictions.
His situation, however, is profoundly less impactful to the Canucks than the status of Pettersson and Hughes.
Pettersson, who is returning from a wrist injury that limited his 2021 pandemic season to just 26 games, will centre the Canucks’ top line, probably between wingers Nils Hoglander and Brock Boeser. Hughes will quarterback the power play and, without Hamonic, likely parter Tyler Myers or Luke Schenn at even strength.
