Flames

Calgary Flames sign Matthew Tkachuk to three-year bridge deal

Sep 25, 2019 • 9:37 am

The stalemate is over.

After months and months of negotiating, the Calgary Flames and Matthew Tkachuk have finally agreed to terms on a contract extension.

It’s a three-year bridge deal worth an average of $7 million per season, which will make Tkachuk the highest paid player on the roster. The Year 3 salary is $9 million, meaning his qualifying offer the following summer starts with a nine.

That’d walk him to free agency – at the same time as Johnny Gaudreau, no less – so the goal would obviously be to put together a long-term extension. At that time the cap should be higher from the new TV deal in America so we could be talking big, big, numbers.

At any rate, it’s great that Tkachuk is locked up and has some time to get up to speed before the meaningful hockey begins.

Tkachuk, by all accounts, is an elite two-way winger and his presence adds a whole different dimension to the team. PP1 is again as potent as anyone’s and L2 goes from average to high-end with him back in the mix.

I think we should be looking at 70+ points from Tkachuk again this year, which is pretty great when you consider he’s also as good at driving play as he is opponents nuts.

He brings a ton to the table and, at 21, there’s still more room for growth. I’d say he’s already worth the $7 million. If he continues to grow, I have no doubt he’ll provide the Flames with excess value.