Vinny Lecavalier getting the money

[nyisles16]

http://tsn.ca/nhl/story/?id=241633&l...=topStory_main


$77 mil for 9 years.. I guess the new owners really want to make this team work..

[SPTO]

I heard an interview with the new owner and he's indicating that he wants to run the Lightning in the same vein as the Red Wings. He basically said Lecavalier wants to play his entire career down there and get a job in the front office once his playing days are over.

[nyisles16]

Vinny is a great talent - I look forward to seeing what Melrose can do with this team

[asianflow]

Big fan of Vinny's style of play. Seems like he has been in the league forever yet's only 28 years old. I assume this deal is front loaded because the contract could look real ugly towards the last 3 years of the deal.

There have been a ton of monster contracts since the lock-out ended. The average salary is higher now than pre lock-out.

[mercalnd]

Quote: Originally Posted by asianflow

Big fan of Vinny's style of play. Seems like he has been in the league forever yet's only 28 years old. I assume this deal is front loaded because the contract could look real ugly towards the last 3 years of the deal. There have been a ton of monster contracts since the lock-out ended. The average salary is higher now than pre lock-out.

Well 6 to 8 yers from now 8.5 million might not be all that much for a player of Vinny's stature. Granted he will likely have slowed down but some guys are already breaking the 10 million barrier.

[Vince]

in hockey dudes who are 38-40 years old can still put up 100 points. see Burnaby Joe.

Vinny is in TREMENDOUS shape.He's without a doubt a top 5 player/forward in the league now and his best days are still ahead.

Great move.

[DrJones]

Quote: Originally Posted by mercalnd

Well 6 to 8 yers from now 8.5 million might not be all that much for a player of Vinny's stature.

Really? Everyone here thinks the cap is going to keep going up and up and up? Not unless the Canadian dollar is worth $1.50 US in 5 years' time.

[mercalnd]

Quote: Originally Posted by DrJones

Really? Everyone here thinks the cap is going to keep going up and up and up? Not unless the Canadian dollar is worth $1.50 US in 5 years' time.

I don't think it will go up drastically. But this contract already has him around 2.5 million under the maximum salary. Even if the cap only goes up another 3 or 4 million in that time span the gap between his 8.5 an the maximum salary will increase. That's why I think unless he slows down considerably I doubt his salary will be seen as way too high down the road. When I said "might not be that much" I meant that I don't think he would be considered overpaid, not that he would be underpaid.

Of course all this is relative to the current standards in the league. Having a problem with the high salaries in general is another debate entirely but to me Lecavalier a few million under the max doesn't scream outrageous salary.

[Ridgeberg]

Vinny is making $7.16 mil a year now. Considering the improvement he's made in the last two years and the fact that he is technically now hitting his prime, I'd say that $1.39 mil per year raise is a good deal for both sides.