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How Much Do You Pay Alex Pietrangelo? |
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Let us start off with the basics. Alex Pietrangelo is set to become an unrestricted free agent after this season. He has forced his way into the conversation as one of the best defensemen in the National Hockey League. He's going to get paid like one. The only question is, how much is he going to cost, and will he be retained in St. Louis?
You could easily argue that Alex Pietrangelo is a top five defensemen in the league. He's going to be the best defensemen to his free agency in a long time, and the question on everyone's mind is, how much do you pay him? On this past deal that expires at the end of this season, Pietrangelo was making an average of 6.5M per season, which ranks as the 19 highest paid NHL defensemen, tied with Cam Fowler of Anaheim. There is no question that Pietrangelo could as anywhere between 8/10M per season over the next seven years.
So let's take a look at some comparisons. Erik Karlsson is the top paid defensemen in the NHL, with an average annual salary of 11.5M. Karlsson is certainly the better of the two when it comes to the offensive side of the game, but Pietrangelo is certainly better defensively. Still, I wouldn't even consider paying 11.5M for Pietrangelo or Karlsson. Drew Doughty makes 11M per season and if that is the cost to resign the Blues captain, one would think that Doug Armstrong will let him walk.
So how much should he make? If I had to guess, I would slot him somewhere between Oliver Ekman-Larsson and P.K. Subban money. Ekman-Larsson has an average salary of 8.25M per year, while Subban averages 9M a season. I do think that Pietrangelo, who just captained the Blues to their first ever Stanley Cup, could ask as high as 9.5M and that could be pushing it.
There is no question that "Petro" deserves to be paid, and he's earned his right to get to free agency and talk to teams. He should ask for as much as he thinks he could make. However, this is where you hope and pray that the man loves St. Louis enough, he'll be willing to take a half a million or so off his deal to stick around in St. Louis. Maybe offering that extra eighth year, which no other team can offer, is enough to keep the total down under 9M. If Pietrangelo is willing to take anything under 9M per, then you have to get a deal done. The fans understand the cap crunch, but if you lose Pietrangelo because you signed Justin Faulk to a long term deal, it wont be the best look for Armstrong and the Blues.
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I have to say, it's good to be back here at HockeyBuzz. It's been almost five years since I have written for HB and I am excited to be back and to see what opportunities arise here for me.
St Louis Blues Blogger • 
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