When you look at the CH’s upcoming summer, one thing stands out: the famous second center. In the eyes of just about everyone, this has to be Kent Hughes’ top priority: he needs someone to step in for Nick Suzuki and play center to Ivan Demidov next year.
Kirby Dach, at the moment, is too big a question mark to be fixed in that role. We’ll have to look elsewhere to find the man who will occupy that chair in 2025-26.
That said, there’s another file that’s going to be abundantly talked about in the coming weeks: the next contract for Lane Hutson. The defenseman, who has just broken all records in his first year in the NHL, can sign a contract extension as early as July 1… and the club will probably want to settle everything as soon as possible.
It’s been done with Nick Suzuki (by previous management, though), with Cole Caufield and with Juraj Slafkovský. Logic dictates that it’s #48’s turn now… and ideally in the (very) long term.
But this afternoon, something happened in Calgary: Matt Coronato signed a seven-year contract to stay with the Flames.
What’s interesting, though, is that the pact comes with an annual salary of… $6.5M.
Coronato is a 22-year-old winger who just scored 24 goals and 47 points in 77 games. He’s a very solid player… but that’s a pretty substantial amount for a guy who had a good season, though not an outstanding one.
He averaged fewer points per game than Patrik Laine this season, after all.
And that brings us back to the Lane Hutson situation. The defenseman, who just amassed 66 points in 82 games in his rookie season (and added five more in five playoff games), has already pulverized the offensive production of a forward 18 months his senior… and who just signed for $6.5 million a year.
To me, Hutson looks like a guy who could leave money on the table to improve his chances of winning. And in Montreal, seeing Caufield and Slaf sign for a smaller annual salary than the captain shows that there’s a salary scale that, so far, holds up…
But in an NHL where the new salary reality means that guys like Coronato earn $6.5 million a year, is it really realistic to believe that Hutson will emulate Caufield and Slaf and sign for less than $8 million a year? Because in reality, he probably has the arguments to ask for (at least) $10 M a year.
I don’t expect Hutson to break the bank… but I do expect his next contract to earn him a bigger annual salary than Suzuki. Realistically, though, the GM might try to convince him to sign for a lower percentage of the payroll than Suzuki did back then.
The captain signed for 9.55% of the payroll… and if Hutson did the same, he’d earn just under $10 million a year.
We’ll see what the defenseman’s contract looks like, but one thing’s for sure: the fact that the NHL’s wage reality has changed means that we can expect Hutson to be the first domino to blow up Montreal’s current wage scale.
Because 12 months later, it’ll be Ivan Demidov’s turn to be eligible for a contract extension… and with a big season next year, he’ll have arguments to break the bank too.
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