Blake Wheeler has signed a new contract with the Winnipeg Jets.

Another contract that is going to come around to bite a team in the butt.. when will they ever learn?

Big AAV, but he's clearly the heart and soul of this team. Short term crunch on the Jets and I have a feeling this hurts when he's 36/37 too.

If they win the Cup it's worth it though.

With no salary cap, this is good. Wheeler has proven himself as a player and leader. He is very consistent and he has made peanuts the last few years.....but we have a salary cap. Unless the cap goes up, it's gonna hurt

Wow!! I didn't expect this So cool. Not sure if this is a good or bad signing yet but definitely something to talk about!

Didn't expect a Wheeler extension before Laine's, Connor and Morrisey contracts. A bit risky move with that huge AAV

Maybe if he was 28 and scored 70+ points every season.

I still think a front heavy, long term contract with same overall money would have been best solution. Cap could have been so much lower.

People are very quick to ridicule these extensions that keep players until they are in their mid-late 30s. Fact of the matter is that these extensions are necessary to keep the player during a championship window.

Sure, Wheeler isn’t going to be worth $8.25M when he’s 37. But considering the Jets are in a prime position to win a championship, it would be foolish for them not to resign one of the best and most consistent RWs in the game.

We can't deny that Wheeler is a leader and an elite player. But, unless Winnipeg wins a cup with him, I can't see this sign as a good one. Specially, because they signed with him before of their young core players. Now, it's probable that they'll have to trade Ehlers or Connor after next season, depending of how much Laine and Connor will get in their next contracts. So, for now, I see this contract as a risky one. We'll see...

If it were the same overall money, the cap hit would've been the same; unless you're talking longer than 5 years, which would be just as ridiculous considering he'll be 33 when it kicks in.

I'm talking about 8 years and him playing only 5 then retire. His actual salary could have been only few millions by the end of the contract.

While Wheeler has been a late bloomer, of sorts, and could have some more 80+ Pts seasons in him, the fact remains that moving forward we are only going to see a decline. Even if it is slower than most and even if Wheeler can continue to stay healthy, there is really no situation under which this is a good signing - but it may have been the best they could get at this time. Should they have done it? That will be a question we can answer in 4/5 years but I think the big AAV at the back end of this deal will come back to bite the Jets.

This is a good salary for a perennial 80+ Pts player but is it reasonable to expect that as he moves on to his age 33 season (at the start of the contract), let alone his age 36/37 seasons at the back end of the contract.

I feel like a better offer could have been had, particularly with the 5y length. This AAV for 3y would have been ok (but still not great), but extending it to 5y I would have tried to keep the Cap Hit around $7M AAV at the most. With Connor, Trouba, Laine all needing new contracts in 2019, these dollars are going to make a difference.

Let's me say it this way: I like the signing from Wheeler's perspective. Good for him to earn some decent money he deserved and I am glad for him. Now what about other players?! Someone will have to go away. Honestly I hate this cap system, finally there is a team you like, you cheer for and then they HAVE to dismantle it because the league does not allow you to sign them for money they deserve. What would you give Laine now, 5M? He deserves more but what about Connor then, and Morrissey? There is no money for them. Next season looks like Jet's best bet for the Cup.

Presumably you mean longer than 5y (like taking the same money and spreading it out over 8-10y with just 1/2M in the final 3/4y)? These back diving contracts are no longer allowed (and haven’t been for 5y since the last CBA was signed. There is a limit on the % variation in salary year over year so if he signed for 8y (the max), then it would def cost more money than the 5y contract.

Why are you talking about Ehlers or Connor before even mentioning Perreault or Little?

That means the Jets having to endure a $5 million+ cap hit for three years for a guy that's not even playing. That's really bad cap management.

That's why you need a GM that is good at his job and can handle the difficulties of a cap. You can't just throw money at players in order to keep your team together. Then players will get overpaid, causing market values to increase, which was the primary reason of the 2004 lockout.

Because of changes in the 2013 CBA, that's now a terrible idea. If he retires, they will face cap recapture.

Which team could want to get one of these players and their terrible contracts? Specially, Perreault. The only way to get rid of them is buying out their contracts. I don't see Winnipeg doing this on Little. So, maybe they do it with Perreault. It's a good option indeed.

Okay, I may be wrong about this, but looking at the rules, the way I see it, early retirement would affect the cap only in case the player is 35 when signing the contract.

Bergevin, Chiarelli..

They needed to sign him. They couldn't lose him.

So there are limits to the variations for the base salary? Where can I read more about these limits?

Well, they're terrible GM's indeed. But I don't see a trade involving them even from those GM's. Unless Little plays a great season or Winnipeg give a great compensation to any team which want to swallow their contracts.