Does Kevin Fiala’s Contract Help Or Hurt New Jersey Devils In Jesper Bratt Negotiations?

The New Jersey Devils did not end up with Kevin Fiala after a day’s worth of rumors on Wednesday. At times, it seemed like Jersey’s Team was in the front of the pack to get the winger from the Minnesota Wild, but they ended up trading him to the Los Angeles Kings for a package the Devils weren’t willing to beat.

Now that the Fiala dream is dead, it’s time to focus on the things the Devils can control. With just over a week until the first round of the NHL Draft, the Devils are running out of time to make a massive move to include the second-overall pick. Nobody is saying Fiala was worth that asset, but it does show that the Devils are facing some pressure with a lot of teams with deep prospect pools that are further into their rebuilds.

It also makes us wonder about the impact this contract has on one Devils player who comps pretty well with Fiala. Both Bratt and Fiala had decent underlying numbers their entire career, but they both broke out in a huge way this past season. Fiala just signed a deal that pays him $7.9 million over seven years. That’s a massive deal for a player that still has a shroud of risk involved. Now, the Devils have to face their own contentious negotiation after this contract came down the pike.

Bratt is going to be in the ballpark of this deal if he signs for a similar length. He is younger than Fiala (23 years old vs. 25 years old) but he also has been less consistent over his career so far (Bratt’s previous career-high was 35 and that was his rookie year). They are decent comparables, and they are actually percentage points away in terms of points per game over their career (.67 PPG for Fiala and .66 for Bratt).

It seems like Bratt’s value is slightly lower than Fiala’s, and hopefully, that comes out in contract negotiations too. Would anyone be upset if the Devils signed Bratt to a contract that pays him $7 million over seven years? That seems like what the Devils are destined for, and with the salary cap finally leaving flat status, it will likely be a good contract throughout.

The good news with Bratt is no contract he signs right now will pay him too far into his 30s. Even if he signs a max contract, he will be 31 at the end of it. That’s paying for his entire prime. This would be a good move to get Bratt locked up, and if it takes a little more than $7 million, then so be it. Fiala shows what these contracts are worth, and we think the Devils find a middle ground with their best winger sooner rather than later.