What new Leon Draisaitl contract means to the Oilers - 7 takeaways
By Phil Gretzky
3. The Boston and San Jose rumors were a bunch of bullplop
Someone along the way made up some ridiculous bull that Draisaitl was going to leave Edmonton and sign in Boston instead. That was never going to happen, and there are three good reasons for it - 1) Boston didn't have the cap space to sign him. At the time of writing this, the Bruins only have $8.6 million in cap space, just over half of what the Oilers will be paying him when his new deal kicks in. This means the Bruins would've had to get rid of a huge chunk of their team to fit his deal in. It was never going to happen. This was an idea that never should've gotten off the ground. 2) They already made a big splash at center when they signed Elias Lindholm in free agency. 3) They already have a poop ton of centers as it is. Just look at it. No cap space and no roster spot - pretty compelling reasons not to sign a guy.
The San Jose rumor is even more farfetched. Supposedly, because a German guy owns the San Jose Sharks, Draisaitl was going to jump ship to his team. That's even more laughable than the Boston rumor. After all, Draisaitl already spent the first six seasons of his career playing on a rebuilding team. Why would he leave to play on another rebuilding team and experience that losing all over again, just because the owner is German? Doesn't make any sense. Not to mention if a deal was actually plausible in the least, you can bet Stan Bowman would ask for the one guy they would probably never give up - Macklin Celebrini - and that's just for starters.
If a Saudi prince bought an NHL team, does that mean we suddenly see an influx of hockey players from Saudi Arabia? Hardly. Just because a couple of guys share nationalities, doesn't mean they're best buddies for life. Germany has over 80 million people in it. Doesn't mean everybody knows each other.
4. McDavid's next deal will have an AAV of $15 million at the absolute minimum
If the second-best player in the league just set the franchise and league record in AAV, do you think McDavid will accept anything less? Not a chance. McDavid's current pact is up after the 2025-26 season, and he's the only guy in the league we can say is better than Draisaitl.
With his extension, Draisaitl becomes both the franchise's and the league's highest paid player, but that will all change once McDavid's next deal kicks in. We now have a line in the sand drawn, at least at the bottom. At the top? Who knows? He can ask for the CBA max that year and he knows it, as does Bowman.