Dale Tallon’s do-over of the Florida Panthers seems less and less about saving money and more about restoring his vision.
After all, salary retention made the Jason Demers - Jamie McGinn trade pretty even financially. Tallon also spared no expense in reportedly signing promising young defenseman Michael Matheson to a whopping new deal.
Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman originally reported it, and TSN’s Bob McKenzie backs it up as a “done deal” of eight years, $39 million. That means Matheson will carry a $4.875M cap hit starting in 2018-19, as his rookie deal still has one year remaining. The Panthers have yet to confirm it, but this seems like a safe bet to be true.
Giving Matheson an eight-year deal could be understandable if it meant huge savings. Handing him almost $5M would be reasonable if you instead wanted a bridge deal to see if he’s really worth that money. The Panthers giving Matheson both is where things get hairy, and many reactions boil down to Matheson being good, but the contract being bad.
I like Matheson, in fact I wanted the Leafs to pry him out of FLA but that contract is.....its not good
— Jard (@JaredOfLondon) October 7, 2017
I like Matheson but this is a weird move https://t.co/01nQwmpspJ
— periphery- juggernaut: kenny omega (@corncobdipshit) October 7, 2017
Now, it’s better to overpay a talented player than it is to say, give precious cap space to a more limited defenseman like the Panthers once did with late-stage Ed Jovanovski.
It’s one thing to lock up a player early in a contract year when that person is a huge part of your marketing plan and could very well cost you a ton of money a year later. There’s a reason why teams like the Buffalo Sabres are proactive with the likes of Jack Eichel.
Even as a prominent member of the Panthers’ defense, it’s a bit baffling to imagine that they wouldn’t want a bigger sample size before handing Matheson almost $5M per year. This is a guy coming off of a 17-point season. Would a strong 2017-18 season really hurt that Panthers that much in the wallet?
Matheson's a fine enough top-four guy but I'm not convinced there's upside and I can't explain the urge to lock him up until 2026. pic.twitter.com/qtsmJqZyMc
— Sean Tierney (@ChartingHockey) October 7, 2017
Now Matheson is opened up to potentially painful comparisons. Look at the Anaheim Ducks, who have one proactive deal that looks better (Josh Manson) and one strenuous RFA situation that fell very nicely for them (Hampus Lindholm).
The Panthers have already seen a promising defenseman struggle under the weight of a lofty new extension.
It’s plausible that Aaron Ekblad will get things back together, and a star defenseman is often worth the $7.5M he’s receiving - and then some. Still, at the moment, people feel a lot worse about Ekblad’s deal than they did before, and that was a more agreeable decision in the moment.
Between Ekblad, Matheson, and Keith Yandle, the Panthers will devote $18.725M to three blueliners beginning in 2018-19.
Overall, it’s tough not to criticize this process, even if there are still some things to like about Florida’s roster, and that includes Matheson. Did they really need to cut ties with Jaromir Jagr, Jason Demers, Reilly Smith, and Jonathan Marchessault so rapidly? Did this Matheson deal need to get done right away? It also feels a little slap-dash.
The makeover continues with the deft touch of a paint roller (via @MimicoHero) pic.twitter.com/WcjHtXYnk7
— James O'Brien 📎 (@cyclelikesedins) October 7, 2017
Again, things aren’t all bad, and Matheson has talent. The bigger picture could be prettier, though.
Tune in on Sunday for a breakdown of the good and the bad of this team’s structure.