The Oilers have the entire left side of their NHL defence up for extensions this summer, and this brings forward an obvious question: What could these contracts look like? Mattias Ekholm (35; Prev. Deal 4x6.25M) The Ekholm extension is going to be a very interesting deal and I’m sure it will be very very divisive …
The Oilers have the entire left side of their NHL defence up for extensions this summer, and this brings forward an obvious question: What could these contracts look like?
The Ekholm extension is going to be a very interesting deal and I’m sure it will be very very divisive deal with Oilers fans. It can be very easily be argued that he has played well enough to earn a relatively significant raise over the last few years, and seen on the chart below, Ekholm still drives play at an elite rate, especially when compared to some other defenceman who signed larger deals this summer like Ivan Provorov (7×8.5) and Vlad Gavrikov (7×7). However, the other obvious factor besides his play in Ekholm’s case is his age. At 35, Ekholm has passed his statistical peak and regression should be expected, and this makes a huge impact on what his next contract could look like. With his age and projected regression, I think the Oilers will prioritize reducing term over lowering cap hit, and because of this I can see him signing for 1 or 2 year between 5-7 million per year.
Offical Prediction: 2×6.5M
Jake Walman joined the Oilers at last years trade deadline and proved himself to be a nearly perfect fit in Edmonton’s system. He is an exceptional puck mover, he drives play when he’s on the ice and is competent defensively. When paired with Evan Bouchard Edmonton has arguably the most offensively dangerous top pairing in the NHL. Walman has never signed a big ticket deal in the NHL, and as he is currently right in the statistical prime of his career (29 years old), he is almost definitely looking lots of guaranteed money, both from term and AAV. Because of this, as well as the Oilers seeing him as their replacement for Ekholm once he ages out, I can see him getting max term at low end top pairing money (6-8 Million).
Offical Prediction: 8×7.25M
In my Opinion Brett Kulak’s extension is going to be the most interesting extension to look at. Kulak has been arguably the most reliable Oilers defenseman the last 4 years and has been playing elite third-pairing or low-end top-4 minutes on an absolute steal of a contract. As seen on the chart below, when Kulak is on the ice the Oilers allow significantly less scoring chances and expected goals against. Because of this I think he’s going to get a lot of money from either the Oilers or another team. I believe Kulak has earned upwards of 4M per season, especially compared to other contracts signed this off-season and last by players like Cody Ceci, Brian Dumoulin and Joel Edmundson. I think that the Oilers should work hard to resign him as his is arguably their best shutdown defenseman, but I think it will be difficult with how much he could potentially get.
Official Prediction: 4x4M
