couldnt afford 2nd t
Rejoint: sept. 2021
Messages: 1,014
Mentions "j'aime": 431
This deal has so much upside. I am surprised to see so many people against it.
Bigger players take longer to develop and breakout. Crouse is coming off a breakout season where he paced for 25 goals. The upside of this deal is tremendous. If they went to arbitration, and Crouse repeated as a 25 goal power forward, with his intangibles, he's a 5 or 6 million dollar player next time around. If he regresses back to the bottom 6, he's an overpaid physical player who can give them a bit of secondary scoring.
Ultimately, by the time they are anywhere near the cap ceiling, this contract will be off the books. Cooley won't get paid for 3-5 seasons from now, whoever they get in 2023 won't get paid for 4 years minimum, so that only leaves Auston Matthews starting 2 years from now as their big contract.
If Crouse has another season where he paces for 25+ goals, they also will have the option to trade him for a killing. Players like Crouse are impossible to get. There is always a premium for them as UFAs. If Crouse goes from a fringe top 6 forward to a proven top 6 forward, he will get them a humongous return cost controlled at 4.3 million.