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There has been speculation that when all is said and done Johnny Gaudreau and Sean Monahan will sign matching - or at least very similar - long-term deals with the Calgary Flames.

If that holds true it means one of two things: Gaudreau signed for less than he is worth, or Monahan signed for more than he is worth.

To this point in their careers Gaudreau is a .89 point per game player while Monahan has averaged .67 points per game; although it's worth noting he has averaged .77 since his rookie campaign.

I know Monahan has been drummed up to be an excellent two-way forward, or a guy with the potential to become one, but we haven't seen that at this point. For all the hype around his defensive game his shot and goal suppression numbers at evens aren't exactly impressive.

Since entering the league no Flames forward (minimum 1,250) has been on the ice for more 5 v 5 goals against per 60 minutes while only Mason Raymond and Lance Bouma allow more shot attempts per 60.

Obviously he is only 21 and there is ample time to improve in that area but Gaudreau is unquestionably the better offensive player and Monahan, at least right now, doesn't add much defensively.

If they were to sign matching deals at, say, $6.5M per that would be excellent. If Monahan gets pulled into Gaudreau's range, which should be $7.5-8M, then I think the former is probably getting more money than he deserves.

I'm not knocking Monahan - he is an excellent young player - but his point per game averages fall in line with the first few seasons of Gabriel Landeskog, Evander Kane and Jeff Skinner while Gaudreau is sandwiched between John Tavares, Jamie Benn and Taylor Hall.

Gaudreau deserves to make more.

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