Leon Draisaitl contract extension set to be heavy on signing bonuses

On Tuesday, we wrote about how Leon Draisait's camp is reportedly seeking a deal for the maximum eight years. The conclusion came from Bob Stauffer on his Oilers Now radio show, following a conversation with one of Drasaitl's agents, Mike Liut, who is involved in the player's contract negotiations.

Certainly this makes sense, given how much the 2020 Hart Memorial Trophy winner enjoys playing in Edmonton. And with Connor McDavid expected to re-sign with the Oilers, why not stick around with the game's best player, who also happens to be one of his closest friends?

Another reason the apparent length of the new deal makes sense, is because it's likely going to be the last time Draisaitl gets this kind of security, just because of the fact he'll be 37 be the time it concludes. On the subject of security, details of the financial side of things have now emerged.

A lot of hockey media outlets were of the impression that the Cologne, German native would be getting anywhere between $12 million and $14.5 million on his contract extension. (And it would be higher if he decides to leave Edmonton and sign elsewhere through free agency.) And this will likely still be the case, but not in the conventional way.

Lower base but higher bonuses

According to Jim Matheson of the Edmonton Journal, he suspects Draisaitl's next deal will be similar to the one Nathan MacKinnon gets in Colorado. In other ways, the annual base salary will be low, but he will receive huge signing bonuses each year.

MacKinnon signed an eight-year, $100.8 million contract extension in Sept. 2022, which runs through the 2030-31 season. However, what was noteworthy about it, was that $85.34 million of the deal was made up of signing bonuses.

As per PuckPedia, MacKinnon's annual base salary is anywhere between $775,000 and $990,000 in seven of the eight years. The exception is the 2026-27 season, when he will receive a base salary of $9.15 million.

(The 2026-27 season is significant, because the current NHL collective bargaining agreement is set to expire on Sept. 15, 2026, meaning the potential for a lockout. If this happens, while MacKinnon's signing bonus is protected against any lockout, his base salary isn't.)

MacKinnon's deal also includes a no-movement clause, so going down this road makes total sense for Draisaitl. As mentioned, this type of deal offers more security for him and gives him peace of mind for the majority of the remainder of his NHL career.

From the Oilers' perspective, this type of contract structure doesn't make things any better for them. Signing bonuses are still part of a player's salary and therefore count towards the team's salary cap.

At the same time, the Oilers still know it makes smart business sense to bring Draisaitl back for another eight years. Consider that since the beginning of the 2019-20 season, the five-time NHL All-Star has the second-most regular season points in the league, with 538. (No prizes for guessing who is in first place.)

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