As cap space trouble begins to see the Stars make some big offseason moves, already trading Mason Marchment for a low return, former Predator Matt Duchene was the latest Star to earn himself a contract extension, and an extension worthy of genius status for the Stars front office.
A deal at $4.5 million for four years seemed a pretty drastic pay cut for Matt Duchene down from his previous $8 million deal in Nashville, but in reality, the extension is an amazing show of business by the Stars front office, as one clause people may be forgetting about has played nicely in Dallas’ favour.
After Duchene was bought out of his seven year $8 million contract by the Nashville Predators in 2023, he signed a one year $3 million deal with Dallas, and then signed another one year extension at the same rate to keep him in the lone star state for one more year, but with cap complications for the upcoming season, Duchene’s name was one who could have been on the chopping block. But after signing the $4.5 million extension, Duchene’s buyout means he will be paid an extra $6.5 million this year by Nashville, and will continue to be paid $1.5 million a year by the Predators until the 2028/29 season, meaning in reality only one year of his new deal in Dallas will be paid at $4.5 million. Especially for a player like Duchene, looking back on a deal like this is genius by Dallas, and couldn't have gone any better in this time of trouble with their cap space.
Duchene openly talked about the struggles after his buyout, and as the cap[ complications began to loom, it seemed easy given the circumstances to resign in Dallas, and given he will be paid a total of $11 million this year, and $6 million for two years after, it was a no brainer for him to stay, and a great deal all around. Now with Granlund being the main extension target, the deal of $4.5 million is crazy given the calibre of player Matt Duchene is, and has used the system perfectly. Being a solid second liner for an ever growing Dallas team, it looks like the deal went swimmingly for both teams, and with the special circumstances that came with Duchene’s contract situation, Dallas have used their devices perfectly, and could go down as the biggest steal of an extension this offseason.
Comments