Getty Connor McDavid #97 and Leon Draisaitl #29 of the Edmonton Oilers.
The Edmonton Oilers are still fighting for their lives in the Stanley Cup Final. According to reports emerging right before Game 4 (played on June 15) the Oilers are already preparing to offer long-term contracts worth a combined $40 million to their franchise.
Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff revealed this information during a conversation with Bob Stauffer on the “Oilers Now” podcast on June 14. The discussion happened one day before the Oilers’ 8-1 trouncing of the Florida Panthers in Game 4, extending the finals to at least five games.
Seravalli says Oilers have begun contract talks with Draisaitl, McDavid is committed to staying in Edmonton #LetsGoOilers
Seravalli reported the Oilers are preparing an extension package amounting to a combined $40 million annually to offer to the three core members of the team: Leon Draisaitl, Connor McDavid, and Evan Bouchard.
“My point is, two years from now when the Oilers take the ice, those three same guys are going to add up to $40 million bucks,” Seravalli said.
Oilers’ Contract Extensions a Matter of ‘When, Not If’
Seravalli considers the Oilers’ contract extensions to the trio of McDavid, Draisaitl, and Bouchard a matter of “when,” not “if,” and thinks about them as something that is legitimately bound to happen.
“The next iteration of this, when everyone is locked up, and I said ‘when’ because to me is not ‘if’,” Seravalli said, “I believe the Oilers have already begun discussions with Draisaitl.”
The insider, in fact, noted that Draisaitl is already in talks with Edmonton’s brass to reach an agreement for a new contract. Draisaitl, for context, will be eligible to sign an extension on July 1.
Stauffer thinks Draisaitl will want to sign a long-term deal for the maximum possible money. “It’s my belief that the Draisaitl camp will want the maximum,” he said. “They’re not looking for the Auston Matthews four-year deal here; they’re going to go for the long-term deal.”
Seravalli confirmed that to be the case, adding that the Oilers have already started talks with Draisaitl regarding the extension of his current contract.
“I believe the Oilers have already begun discussion with Draisaitl’s camp,” Seravalli said.
Financial Implications & Aftermath for Oilers
After coming up with the $40 million figure, Stauffer suggested a split of $16, $14, and $10 million respectively for McDavid, Draisaitl, and Bouchard’s deals on a per-season basis.
“Yes, that’s my projection,” Seravalli answered. “And if the Oilers are sitting in their office with Jeff Jackson‘s big board that he has up there, I think the numbers are really close to that. The cap is also going to be $100 million then.”
The NHL announced a salary cap increase of $4.5 million for the 2024-25 season, reaching $88 million, on June 9. Although such raises cannot be considered linear, assuming the cap goes up $4.5 million in each of the next two offseasons, that’d put it close ($97 million) to $100 million before the start of the 2026-27 campaign.
Stauffer thinks there is obviously a risk involved in inking three players to hefty deals taking nearly 40% of the whole team’s salary cap, but he also believes locking up those three superstars is something that could certainly benefit the franchise.
“It’s a lot for three players,” Stauffer said,”but securing these deals eliminates future uncertainties for the organization and its fans.”
While Seravalli agrees with Stauffer, he also thinks there is no other way for that trio, and Draisaitl in particular, to play along with NHL-best McDavid.
That is because he sees no possible way in which the Oilers let McDavid go as a free agent or trade him, thus making it impossible for Draisaitl (and Bouchard) to play with him elsewhere.
“This is the only place on planet Earth that both of them can play together,” Seravalli said. “Where else are you going to go to play with Connor McDavid?”
Oilers Keep Fighting, Destroy Florida 8-1 in Game 4
Draisaitl, McDavid, and Bouchard have been instrumental in the Oilers’ recent successes including their run to the Stanley Cup Final in 2024.
McDavid leads the NHL with 38 postseason points, which is the most points in a playoff year among active players topping Evgeni Malkin‘s 36 in 2009.
Edmonton staved off elimination in the Stanley Cup Final by defeating the Florida Panthers 8-1 in Game 4. The Oilers became the fourth team in a row to win Game 4 to extend a series after falling 0-3 in the finals.
23 of Connor McDavid’s 32 assists in the 2024 #StanleyCup Playoffs are primary assists.
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McDavid scored his first goal of the series and added three assists. He broke Wayne Gretzky‘s 31-assist record (1988) in a single playoff run, now having 32 to his name.
Mattias Janmark scored twice, Adam Henrique netted a goal, Dylan Holloway contributed two goals, and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Ryan McLeod also scored once each. Goalie Stuart Skinner made 32 saves.
Game 5 will take place in Florida on Tuesday, June 18, with the Panthers leading the Stanley Cup Final 3-1.