It appears that contract negotiations between the Edmonton Oilers and Leon Draisaitl haven’t been completely smooth this summer.
Reports throughout the offseason seem to have painted a positive picture, with both sides interested in signing a long-term extension in Edmonton. Yet, with every passing day, the concern level in Oil Country rises ever so slightly.
With training camp less than a month away, Draisaitl remains unsigned past this upcoming season. A new report from Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli chalks this up to the two sides being a bit further apart when it comes to money than initially thought.
“I don’t wanna put too fine a point on it because these things change pretty rapidly,” Seravalli said on Monday night’s edition of OilersNow.
“It’s unfair to characterize it as hitting a snag. I would say, right now my understanding is that at least on a money basis, AAV, I think these two sides are a little bit further apart than I envisioned.”
On Draisaitl remaining unsigned, Seravalli told me:
“It’s unfair to categorize it as hitting a snag.”
“On a money basis, AAV, I think these two sides are a little further apart than I envisioned.”@OilersNow | #Oilers
— Brenden Escott (@BrendenEscott) August 27, 2024
It’s fair to say that Draisaitl is in line for a major pay raise after finishing up an eight-year deal that carried a cap hit of $8.5 million. The 28-year-old German consistently punched above his pay rate throughout that deal, logging five 1oo+ point seasons and three 50+ goal campaigns.
A long-term extension with the Oilers would almost certainly be around the $12.5 to $13 million range. With that in mind, the team will also have to lock up other key players like captain Connor McDavid and defenceman Evan Bouchard to new contracts in the coming years as well.
Seravalli also reported interestingly that the Oilers were hopeful that the extension would be completed last week, allowing them to announce it at the same time that they walked away from the Dylan Holloway and Philip Broberg offer sheets.
Unfortunately, that dramatic moment did not end up happening.
Though it’s far from ideal for Oilers fans, this doesn’t appear to be bad news. Seravalli made a point of making this new development sound as insignificant as possible, and it appears the belief is still strong that a contract can be signed before the start of the season.
Until that happens, however, anxiety will continue to grow in the Alberta capital.