There’s no young player in the NHL quite like Connor McDavid and that’s why the 20-year-old was just handed a record contract by the Edmonton Oilers. But does his deal have the ability to alter things for players who follow?
Jeff Jackson, McDavid’s agent, joined Prime Time Sports on Thursday and acknowledged the possibility.
“I don’t know if it will change things but I suspect that it will,” Jackson said.
McDavid signed an eight-year, $100-million extension on Wednesday. At $12.5 million per season, it stands as the highest annual cap hit in league history.
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Traditionally, top flight NHL talent will sign an entry-level deal, then another contract before really cashing in on their third deal, which usually comes as they enter their mid-to-late 20s. McDavid skipped Step 2 and at a young age has already secured a big-time deal.
That could be the way the league is trending, says Jackson, who highlights Maple Leafs centre Auston Matthews, Sabres forward Jack Eichel and Blue Jackets defenceman Zach Werenski as young players who’ve quickly become relied upon by their teams.
“If Connor’s at the edge of a new wave, it’s because these young guys are such good players and they’re dominant so early,” said Jackson. “And they’re going to be in the prime of their careers in their early 20s to late 20s.
“We kind of went through something in the last couple years where you see Connor and Matthews and Eichel and Werenski and all these really great young kids step into the league and play dominant roles on their teams,” he added. “Conventional thinking and the conventional way of doing things, waiting for that third deal to actually kick in, for these guys is changing.”
Jackson says this trend was noted in his negotiations with Oilers general manager Peter Chiarelli.
You can listen to the full interview in the audio player below.
