Apparently now Kevin Paul Dupoint thinks he is an expert on player salaries. This is the same clown that was the cheerleader and on the bandwagon for running Phil Kessel out of town in Boston. Now he is a critic of player salaries in another NHL Market. [
props]
Blackhawks’ dollars don’t make sense
The deals signed last week by Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane, and especially Duncan Keith officially and forever severed any lingering ties to the old Bill Wirtz regime in Chicago. In Keith’s case, the Blackhawks also severed any ties to reality (a state they rarely lived in during the miserly Dollar Bill’s days).
Beginning next year, young stars Toews and Kane each will pocket an average of $6.3 million for five years. Their annual payouts will be identical: $6.5 million, $6 million, $6 million, $6.5 million, and $6.5 million. Compared with the likes of, say, the Sedin twins (Henrik and Daniel) in Vancouver, or Anaheim’s Corey Perry and Ryan Getzlaf, or Anze Kopitar in Los Angeles, the Kane-Towes payouts are right on the money. Solid value.
However, Keith’s deal is beyond extravagant, all the worse given that fellow Hawks back liner Brian Campbell is hauling in a bloated $7.14 million through 2013-14. Grossly overpriced.
Keith, 26, will earn an average of $7.913 million over the first four years, $7.55 million for the next two years, $5.5 million for another two, $4 million for two more, and then slightly more than $2 million for the final three. Total: 13 years/$72 million, for a cap hit of $5.54 million. If you’re still holding on to your calculator, it exceeds the 12-year/$62.8 million deal, in both gross dollars and cap hit, that career marksman Marian Hossa pocketed with the Hawks in July
[Boston Globe]
I don't ever read this guy KPD, but he sounds like a real idiot. Provided Duncan Keith doesn't suddenly become injury prone or suffer a career ending injury this has a chance to be a great contract. It is only a $5.5 against the cap a year for the next 13 years. Keith has already been an all-star and will likely improve even more and hopefully for Hawks fans be a perennial Norris trophy candidate at some point. I say good deal for both sides barring injury, but obviously that's a risk with every contract.
ReplyDeleteFor a guy who covers the NHL you would think KPD would have a better grasp on why teams do these long terms deals. It is to lower the average salary per year, because that's what counts against the cap. So they probably wanted to sign Keith for maybe 8 yrs at 7-8 mill per year but if they tack on 5 more years at 2-3million it lowers the average hit for the life of the contract, plus Keith will still get a ton of money in the first few years and then have guaranteed income for the last few as he likely becomes less productive, pretty simple really.
The Hossa deal is a little different as he is a older, but I bet he retires before that contract is up.
Also KPD, Campbell may be a bit of a liability defensively but he sure can scare the opposition on the power play and he sure does pile up points. He probably isn't worth the money he is getting but he has earned it more than Huet.
As a Hawks fan I only hope they can resign Seabrook now. I think he is as valuable as Keith. Sadly Sharpe will likely be gone soon.