Nightmare contract theory for Auston Matthews reported by Dave Poulin takes over

Reports came out during the past few days that Maple Leafs superstar Auston Matthews won’t be signing a new deal in Toronto any longer than five years.

Former NHLer and now TSN analyst Dave Poulin explained on OverDrive what he feels is taking place in Toronto with the Maple Leafs waiting on getting the Matthews extension done before turning to William Nylander. He is reportedly looking for a new contract north of $10M, and Poulin understands why he wants as much : he’s been playing on a bargain deal for the past seasons. If Nylander is not willing to back down from his $10 million/year demand, he could be traded.

When it comes to Matthews, Poulin thinks a three-year deal might be what he’s after and what works best for the star forward:

“I think the term is really going to be a significant impact on the number. The shorter the term, the lesser the number. If I’m Matthews’ side, I am fighting for the shorter term possible and it sounds funny because, if you’re going to offer me 8 years at $14 million and say of course you’re going to take it, but he’s already made money. And he’s going to make more money. The cap is going to go up, and what would be the peak time coming out of it? It might be three years, he might be looking at a three-year situation saying ‘I can revisit the market, I can come right back to it and be in a powerful position, being in great shape with way more money in the market and have three great years which I know I’m gonna have and by the way then I’ll be 28 years old. Then I’ll sign my 8 years’.”

If this is what Matthews has in mind, if Poulin is reading his, should new GM Brad Treliving take what he can get from Matthews, or should he hold firm and try to convince him to sign a longer term deal?

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