Maple Leafs, Matthews agree to 5-year extension with $11.6M AAV
The Toronto Maple Leafs and superstar Auston Matthews agreed to a five-year contract extension with an average annual value of $11.634 million, the team announced Tuesday.
Ninety-three percent of the money in Matthews' contract will be paid out in signing bonuses, according to Sportsnet's Chris Johnston.
Here's a year-by-year breakdown of the deal, courtesy of TSN's Bob McKenzie.
Auston Matthews year by year breakdown:
— Bob McKenzie (@TSNBobMcKenzie) February 5, 2019
Year 1: $15.2M SB, $700K salary.
Year 2: $15.2M SB, $700K salary.
Year 3: $9.7M SB, $750K salary.
Year 4: $7.2M SB, $750K salary.
Year 5: $7.2M SB, $750K salary.
That’s $54.5M in SB, $3.65M in salary.
Matthews will have a full no-movement clause in the final year of his deal, which is the first year it can kick in, according to Sportsnet's John Shannon.
The dynamic center's average annual value makes him the second-highest paid player in the league, trailing only Connor McDavid's $12.5 million. Matthews' annual cap hit is $634,000 more than teammate John Tavares', who signed a seven-year, $77-million contract with the Maple Leafs this summer.
The Maple Leafs project to have $16.4 million in cap space next season with Mitch Marner, Kasperi Kapanen, and Andreas Johnsson as key pending restricted free agents.
Since entering the league in 2016-17, Matthews has established himself as one of the game's premier goal scorers. He ranks sixth in the NHL with 97 goals during that span despite missing 34 games due to injury.