Once again look at the D on the Wings & Pens in those seasons they make the Leafs D look like a high school JV team. Not to mention the Pens had Fluery in his prime, a

Who is available in the next two years as a UFA that you would rather pay over Matthews? Yes he is top 3 in the league...

1. McDavid
2. McKinnon
3. Matthews

Yeah. AT LEAST another year. Unless, of course, they can find players who are willing to be patient with the rebuild process and are young enough to project as guys who will help us in a few years when it's time to get serious. But most "stars" looking for big bucks want to win now.

The thing is you have to review a player’s history when deciding on whether or not you want to sign him and how much to offer.

So by specifying Matthews it opens the discussion to consideration of why the Leafs have failed to achieve more success when they continually have had one of the more talented rosters in the league. Furthermore, what role has Matthews has played in the annual playoff failures.

You keep saying they are spending "at the ceiling" if they give Matthews 15 mil AAV they are still nowhere near the ceiling. Also 13-15 mill AAV is what Matthews is worth to any team in the league if they can afford to pay him. Just so happens the Hawks are one of only a few teams that can actually afford to pay him this offseason.

After everything we've been through as CHI fans the last couple years, you can't honestly expect them to call the rebuild "complete" so soon. Be realistic. If it were purely fantasy and you aren't actually suggesting they do this, then I would understand, but suggesting this is a realistic course of action for CHI to take is delusional. Which I can't exactly blame you for after all the years under Bowman. But, just trust that Davidson is not Bowman, and he will not be prematurely loading up for a playoff run any time soon, or throwing away assets on awful "win now" trades.

Two summers from now Rantanen, Draisaitl and Marner are all scheduled to be UFAs, whether or not they get there is another thing. Same goes for Matthews though which makes this whole discussion really pointless at this time. I was actually hoping Aho was going to be available next summer but that dream is gone.

Who said anything about a trade? Keep the picks and prospects, and sign the available cap on a 25-year-old MVP-caliber center. That 100% is a logical way of building for the future.

You obviously aren't even reading what I wrote completely. Matthews isn't gonna come sit around in a rebuild and be patient. If he leaves TOR, he will likley want an opportunity to "win now". "Winning now" and giving Matthews a reason to come to CHI would require a more talented roster. A more talented roster would require paying more players. Paying more players would require spending a lot closer to the ceiling. Attracting those other talented players would require more salary and term, leaving little room for re-signing young players when it comes time and setting CHI up for serious cap trouble within two or three years. They aren't doing that.

So, unless Matthews is willing to be patient and is ok with coming into a rebuild, it isn't going to work. And even if he is, that extra cap space will be eaten up quicker than you think, and, again, sets us up for serious cap troubles.

So my suggestion is giving ...

Matthews (age 26 at time of signing) $15M AAV for 7 years (age 33 at end of contract)

you are suggesting giving

Rantaannan (age 28 at the time of signing) how much and how long?
Draisital (age 29 at the time of signing) how much and how long?
Marner (age 28 at the time of signing) how much and how long?

Matthews is better than all three of these players and will be younger at the time of signing as well. You have to look at how terrible the back end of these deals can be. Matthews will only be 33 at the end of this proposed signing which is still productive years of a player's career.

This team stinks

Ok "win now" or win in the "term of the contract" let me ask you this in the next 7-8 years who is more likely to win a cup? Hawks or Leafs? Answer this question with Matthews on either roster. I would say the window for the Leafs to win a cup with Matthews on the team is only 2-3 seasons before they have to start another rebuild. The Hawks in another year will have the arrow point up for another decade at least.

Maybe... But I still think if Matthews is going to leave TOR, it will be for a team that is ready to win in the 24-25 season, not a few years down the road. I definitely agree that it would be a smart long term decision for him to bet on the rebuilding team with the great prospect pool and all that, but high end athletes like him are notoriously impatient. Especially ones that have dealt with so much disappointment on their previous team. They want immediate assurances, they want the shiny object and the headlines, not the slow and steady safe/smart option.

But maybe Matthews is smart enough to see the potential, and the allure of playing with guys like Bedard, Korchinski, Nazar, Moore, Reichel, etc. I certainly wouldn't mind it. I just don't want them spending a ton of money on win now moves and burying their prospects in depth. I'm all in on the patient approach of this rebuild, and Bedard doesn't change that for me.

Also, like Snowhawk said, it seems like there might be something off about Matthews. I think it is possible that his contributions to team chemistry and culture could be counterintuitive or toxic to what CHI is currently trying to build, regardless of how talented he is.

He will be 26, IMO I think 15 mil AAV gives you some patience in a top USA market to make more in endorsements not having to deal with the Toronto media and playing with Bedard. There is not a team in one years time who is in cup contention that can afford to give Matthews that type of cash. So if it's about winning he will take less money than he is worth to play for an immediate contender. If it's about his career he will take the most money in the most attractive market with the best long term chances of success. I don't see another franchise who can offer the cash, the city and the potential over 7 years than the Hawks. Do you? If so what team?

Better then all three… really? I would suggest you look at the stats for Rantanen and Draisaitl stats for the last couple/few seasons.

As for Marner; I laid that out in a previous post; offensively they are very close, defensively Marner just finished third in the Selke voting. I think you are ranking them strictly on goal scoring and not giving enough consideration to the complete package.

As for what I would offer those three in terms of $$ and term, that would depend on a lot of factors:

- How well do they (Rantanen, Draisaitl, Marner) play leading up to free agency. Do they stay healthy?
- Where are the Hawks in terms of their on ice product, are they at the point where it makes sense to invest in top tier free agents or are they still years away from being relevant?
- How are the Hawks young guns developing, are they looking like future stars that are going to command big bucks themselves? If so, do I value them more then potential upcoming free agents? It would suck to invest heavily if free agents only to see young players developed to elite/very good level by the organization leave because we can no longer afford to keep them… I’m looking at you Toronto Maple Leafs and John Tavares.

So I’m not prepared to put $$ and term amounts on players who are two years away from free agency until those questions get answered, just like I’m not prepared to offer $15m per season to Matthews, making him the highest paid player until he answers some questions of his own. Can he bounce back with an elite season; not just good; worthy of that price tag and can he lead his team to at minimum a conference final. If he does those things then I would be more then willing to reconsider my position at that time.

Well, as I said previously, it would be a smart long term decision for him to take that money if CHI offers it. But, i'd be willing to bet he will be looking at more short term goals, such as going to a team that is closer to winning. But, I do think AZ would be a good option for him, considering their similar trajectory, cap space, and the fact that he is from there. There are also plenty of teams who could easily and would be willing to make room for him, if there is mutual interest. But there definitely aren't many teams outside of CHI that are perfectly set up for such an acquisition. So, in that way, it does make sense. There is just a lot more to it than the financial aspect.

I've also heard rumblings that he may be looking for that big number on a shorter term deal of like 3 to 5 years. Which makes sense from a long term perspective too. Sure he might not have the same money guaranteed beyond that timeframe, but that would put him in a position to move on to the next contender seamlessly without team interests hindering or affecting his own goals/plans/preferences. So, I'm not saying I am against it entirely, there are just a lot of unknown variables that make it a more complicated situation than this would suggest.

If he is willing to be patient, and he isn't going to be toxic to the rebuild, prospects, or team, and he fits CHI's plans, and they can see a manageable path forward even with adding that much salary to the books, then yeah, go for it.

Look I’m going to be transparent here, I despise the Leafs more then anyone I know.

Having said that I don’t know how anyone can say the Hawks have a better chance to win the cup in next 7/8 years over the Leafs. The Leafs are a serious contender right now and for the next few seasons. If they can keep their core and the cap goes up as expected, they will be extremely competitive for the next 6 - 8 years. There are a lot of players who grow up the GTA who adore the Leafs and would love to be a part of the team that brings the Cup back to Toronto, because of that there will always be solid veterans who will take discount deals to play in Toronto.

While the Hawks rebuild is on the right track in my opinion, there is still so much that has to right for them to be considered contenders. Even if you sign Matthews, Bedard has to become everything he is speculated to be, perhaps even more. Should that happen, some of their other highly touted prospects have to hit and I mean hit big, not just be roster guys but difference makers, significant top two line forwards and top two pairing d-men.

Well said and that is the key looking at the overall long term plan / path. I considered Arizona could be on his radar considering he is from there but with all drama with their stadium and it not being a good market for endorsments I think the Hawks can offer way more.

I would be shocked if he took a 3-5 year deal. That means he would enter FA again in his 30's and won't make nearly as much.

25 year old stud should take the longest term for the most money and lock up his career earnings.

Honestly, I might rather bring a UFA like Lindholm in as a very good responsible young 2-way 2C with around half the cap hit, than bring in an Elite UFA like Matthews, depending on how the coming season goes. But, we'll see. The only way I would complain about bringing Matthews in at $15M aav, is if they start making all kinds of other acquisitions. Sure winning is fun, but it would just create problems down the road. They way they are doing things now, is attempting to line up ELC's, extensions, development, and drafting, with each other in a way that isn't going to give them trouble in the future and sets them up for a consistent flow of talent through the pipeline, so that we can avoid tough decisions when players price themselves but when/if they do, they have already anticipated such a scenario and have an ELC replacement ready to take their place, opening up more cap space and opportunity for young players to come in and be difference makers. They are modeling their rebuild after teams like NJD and BUF.

Well, it is certainly a risk. But, if he can continue being a high end elite player deep into his 30's and the cap continues to rise, that $13 to 15 million aav will become more common place and he could probably get another good contract. Even if he has to come down to a more modest $10 or $11 million, that is still a good pay day and provides him with more options to win. I mean... at that point, what is more important, winning or being the highest paid player? And how much more money do you really need to make? I think he is built to play a very long successful NHL career and will probably be good until he retires in his late 30's. Betting on himself with shorter term deals is probably safe for him, if he wants to go that route.

Let me ask you this lets say all 4 of them want a 7 year deal with an AAV north of 13 mil. Who would you give it to and keep age in consideration?

He would be starting a new trend if he take less for less term being a player of his caliber. I just don't see a player like him taking a "bargain". It's a business at the end of the day and in the cap era you need to maximize your cash while you can.

Honestly, though, they could probably be a contender very rapidly if they snagged someone like him AND a high end top 4 defensive minded dman over the next couple summers. That would allow them plenty of opportunity for the young players coming up, wouldn't break the bank too much, and would definitely kick them up a few notches pretty quickly. But, it might accelerate their evaluation process for young players, too. Which goes against their policy for patience with development. So, Idk. It'll be interesting to see what they do.

This isn't me trolling, this is me asking Hawks fans sincerely. You have exactly one defense prospect and one goaltending prospect worth anything. Yeah, load up those forwards, but what are you doing about the back end? Toronto and Edmonton's failures since 2016-17 show that exact issue: inconsistent and sometimes tissue paper defense and mid goaltending cobbled together randomly but boy oh boy look at those forwards. Real contenders build from the back end, like Tampa, Colorado, St. Louis of years past. It's what New Jersey is buiding now even as they're just emerging as a contender. It's for this reason I don't see Chicago as any kind of contender til 2027 at the earliest. Defenses take time to build.

Yeah. I don't see him taking a bargain AAV, by any means. But I could see him taking less term. If you think about it, it gives the teams less control over his career, while still allowing him to get paid. He will still be an elite center in 3 years, and the cap will be significantly higher, and the league maximum AAV will be higher at that point too. He could be setting himself up for a potential raise, too, while still allowing him freedom if things don't work out or he decides he wants to win now. That way he isn't tied to whatever team is willing to give up the most in trade to appease the teams needs, he is only tied to where he wants to go and who is offering the most money, giving him more control in the bigger picture. Making him an elite level mercenary, of sorts. Which teams may not like, because if he is gonna leave they would prefer to get assets for him, but oh well.