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Albin Grewe was selected by the Saginaw Spirit, and it could be a good opportunity to keep track of his development. So many things are in the air right now, and several interesting changes to the CBA are being discussed.
Amongst the changes discussed was a limit on salary variability over term and a limit on signing bonuses. This may not be approved, but it’s fairly clear the eyes of GMs and Owners are fixed on Toronto. This year, the Maple Leafs paid out 60 million in bonuses, including 15 million to Matthews. In a world with an 81.5 million dollar cap, that is a chunk.
As far as salary variable, you can see that Matthews making 16 million this year with a cap hit of 11.634 million there is a significant drop off at the end. On a 58 million dollar contract, 54 million is paid out in signing bonuses. His final year payout is around 8 million (more than 3 million lower than the cap hit). Tavares is a very similar case. Of 77 million in salary over his deal, 70 million is in bonuses with an actual of around 7 million in the final years on an 11 million dollar hit. Marner is signed for 65 million, 61 of that is in bonuses. Nylander is contracted for 45 million and 25 million of that is bonuses. July 1 is a happy, happy day for several Leaf’s players.
It would be the height of hypocrisy to blame Dubas for pushing the limits on a current system. His use of “dead contracts” and finding ways to gain an edge in the market place is within his rights. Detroit was one of the primary “offenders” when owners sought a salary cap. As far as back diving contracts, the Red Wings had those in spades. Large sums of money up front with a bare minimum at the end made it difficult for other teams. Philadelphia tried to pry Shea Weber from Nashville with that same formula, and that was one of the last of those major drop off deals.
Still, some owners look at the 7 million dollar variable on Matthews actual (15 mil at the beginning and 7 mil at the end) along with such a high percentage of That in bonuses (93%) as an issue and want it rectified. It is a clear advantage for teams that are cash flow positive, and is not something smaller market teams want to have to fight with. Montreal forced Carolina’s hand in the Aho deal. The player may never have wanted to leave, but was able to get an opposing team to do his negotiating for him. Impressive.
There are talks now of how to apply escrow to bonuses properly and that is a breath of fresh air. If players with these bonuses are paying escrow, then I’m not sure what leg those who are concerned have to stand on. Toronto has a tight cap situation, and one way of holding onto players is paying them a lot of money on July 1. I concede that the fluctuations on salary could be addressed, but how the team pays out on contracts, if they have the resources, isn’t that their business?
I’d much rather see an end to trading “dead” contracts. It’s ridiculous knowing that teams with cap issues are looking for those type of deals to gain additional cap space. If anything, that smacks of being shady far more than huge bonuses.
Still, it’s nice that Detroit isn’t the team in the crosshairs. Dubas, in his short tenure as a GM, has turned the system on its ear. His approach to roster construction and financial tinkering is a bit like high stakes poker in a room full of people playing bridge. Thankfully, we’re a long way from the days of fistfights in GM meetings. If Bergevin went after Dubas, not good.
With a flat cap projected for a couple years, the Dubas experiment will be front and center. His commitment to keeping high output offense with 4 players taking near half of the cap seems risky, but if it works...time will tell.
I look at the CBA like old world fishing nets. In Egypt, the materials were so fine that an entire large net could be pulled through a man’s ring. Any small tear could be exploited and cause major issues. These revamps are going back and repairing those holes. Inevitably, a brand new set will present themselves. Hopefully not for at least 6 or 7 years.
Detroit Red Wings Blogger • 
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