The New Jersey Devils have been watching the Cale Makar negotiations closely. No, not because they have any negotiations that would use that as leverage. They are paying attention because there’s still a chance they'll need to use this contract in a negotiation next year (or, ideally, this year) if Quinn Hughes becomes available.
That’s a topic for another day, but if Hughes isn’t willing to budge on price or term, Bill Guerin might make a business decision and send Quinn Hughes to another destination. Or he might just open the purse of his billionaire owners and pay the man.
Either way, it’s an interesting day for broken-record contracts.
One of the biggest conversations around the contract is the one about the term. Many thought that Makar would take less so he could cut the term. If he signed for three or four years, he could sign another mega deal when he was around 30 years old, giving him seven years of truly bonkers salary numbers.
With the rapidly rising salary cap, Makar might be leaving $50 million on the table because he signed an eight-year deal. But that’s how these situations go. There is risk on either side, and the Devils know firsthand about that risk.
P.K. Subban came to the Devils in what was supposed to be his prime
On the second day of the 2019 NHL Draft, just hours after taking Jack Hughes with the first-overall pick, the Devils sent two second-round picks and defensive prospects Steven Santini and Jeremy Davies for three years of Subban. It seemed like a no-brainer for then-GM Ray Shero.
The Devils needed a top-line defenseman for years. Sami Vatanen and Damon Severson were really good second liners, but they were not what they needed at the top of the lineup. Andy Greene was too old to play the position, and some of their big young bets (Mirco Mueller and Will Butcher) did not work. Ty Smith was still a few years away (remember those vibes?), and they just needed someone who could be that dominant force now.
Subban was 30 years old at the time of the trade, and he had three years left on an eight-year deal that paid him an average of $9 million per season. He likely assumed he had a long career ahead of him.
Subban is 37 years old today and his career seems like it ended a decade ago. In reality, it ended with that contract. The Devils and Subban went their separate ways three years later. It was an era of disappointment, as Subban never wore a Devils’ sweater in the playoffs.
Back injuries that Subban suffered throughout his career made him much less effective. He didn’t have the same explosive stride that made him a superstar, and he lost a few MPH on his shot.
Would someone have given him a shot at a veteran’s minimum or maybe a little more? Probably, but it’s clear Subban didn’t want to accept that type of role and retired from the sport of hockey.
Injuries are always prevalent in the sport, but they impact defensemen just a little more than other positions. They are taking and giving a few more hits, facing 100 MPH slapshots a little more often, and they take those bumps and bruises a little more.
It takes one hit in the wrong place to change the trajectory of Makar’s career, and therefore, change his value. Now, he is guaranteed more than $160 million whether he can play or not. If he turns into Subban on the Devils tomorrow, the Avalanche are liable for all of the contract or whatever is agreed upon in a buyout, which would be massive (and unlikely).
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