Bruins hesitant on McAvoy’s contract because of his heath issues?!

This could explain the ongoing negotiations at the moment…

HockeyFeed
HockeyFeed
Published 4 years ago
Bruins hesitant on McAvoy’s contract because of his heath issues?!
Zuma Press

Charlie McAvoy remains unsigned at the moment in Boston, and Bruins fans are growing impatient. A lot has been said about the negotiations between the Bruins and the restricted free agent, but as of now, the team is still looking at ways to free up some cap space to afford his new deal. 

However, insider Fluto Shinzawa of The Athletic pointed out another element that could be evaluated in McAvoy’s new offer: his health. 

“The Bruins’ concern here is health: McAvoy has suffered heart and concussion issues and has yet to play more than 63 games in a season.
“The Bruins will try to dig in a little bit. They’ll point to his games and they’ll use [David] Pastrnak, who’s a superstar. It’ll be a tough deal to do, a tough deal to evaluate. It may end up that a solution is four years,” an anonymous agent told Shinzawa.”

However, the insider reported back in February that McAvoy turned down a long-term extension offer, citing the eight-year, $7.5-million AAV contract that Florida Panthers defenseman Aaron Ekblad inked in the summer of 2016.

Boston currently has about $8. 1 million available to re-sign McAvoy and Brandon Carlo. While they are both RFAs, it is expected that both men will command a significant raise, especially McAvoy.

If the Bruins get Carlo to sign a bid ranging from $ 2 million to $ 2.5 million, Sweeney would have to find a way to convince McAvoy to accept less than $ 5 million a year. And they might use his health as an argument. 

And let’s not forget: McAvoy is ineligible for an offer sheet. from another team because of his NHL service time. His only leverage is to withhold his services…

To be continued…