NHL
Tom Wilson Re-Signs for Six Years; $31 million
Tom Wilson just proved that Friday nights are good for more than just going out after work. While it shouldn’t have been much of a shock, Tom Wilson re-signs with the Washington Capitals for six more years. His new contract is worth $31 million and carries a cap hit of $5.17 per season. It’s a significant investment for the Capitals, but they are confident in their choice.
“Tom is an invaluable member of our team and we are pleased that he will play a great part in our foreseeable future,” said Capitals General Manager Brian MacLellan. “At 24 years of age, he has an impressive amount of experience and we believe that he will only continue to grow and improve as a player. With his ability to play in virtually any game situation, teams need players like Tom in order to succeed in the NHL.”
The varying base salaries and signing bonuses per year are what may have prolonged contract negotiations. According to CapFriendly, signing bonuses worth $16 million make up more than half of Wilson’s $31 million contract. His base salaries range from $1.1 million for the first year to a whopping $5.1 million for the sixth year. Due to a $5 million and $1 million signing bonus respectively for these years, it evens out to a total earned $6.1 million.
A modified no-trade agreement goes into effect during the third year. Terms of this agreement are not confirmed yet.
Mixed Feelings
Now that Wilson’s contract is settled, the Capitals have signed all of their remaining restricted free agents. The organization and fans are excited to have Tom Wilson back, but the contract news had Twitter buzzing. Everyone was a little baffled.
The craziest thing about the Tom Wilson contract is that if you account for the games where he'll end up suspended, the Caps are paying him about as much as Connor McDavid
— Jeff Veillette (@JeffVeillette) July 28, 2018
That Tom Wilson buyout will be amazing cause the Oilers will sign him to play with McDavid.
— Adam Wylde (@AdamWylde) July 28, 2018
Somehow, Tom Wilson’s worst hit ever is his cap hit https://t.co/fI1imdsiPm
— Pete Blackburn (@PeteBlackburn) July 28, 2018
It was clear that the Capitals wanted to ink Wilson to a long-term deal, but that likely drove up the price. Keeping the Stanley Cup-winning team together for as long as possible was a priority for management. Last season was a career year for Wilson in goals, assists, points, penalty minutes; all of these played a role in getting to that contract amount.
The argument is obvious: was this career-year because he was playing on the top line with Alex Ovechkin? It’s impossible to say that the line had no affect on Wilson’s production, but he should be given some credit. At 24 years old, his game is still developing and he’s just coming into his prime. He doubled his scoring from the previous season and there’s nothing to suggest that progression is going to stop.
Expensive Mistakes?
Investing that much money in a player that may or may not perform is concerning, however. Wilson still has room and time to grow, but the Capitals are going to need to figure out if he’s worth it within the next two seasons.
The organization has to be thinking about the future. If they aren’t, getting another Stanley Cup could become an insurmountable task. Key players Nicklas Backstrom and Braden Holtby both become unrestricted free agents on July 1, 2020. If there are a couple raises in the cap ceiling between now and then, there may be enough money to keep at least one of them.
Both would be ideal. Backstrom’s playmaking and Holtby’s Vezina-worthy goaltending are integral to this team, but the number of long-term contracts signed within the last year may have them cornered into choosing. If Ilya Samsonov is ready to join the Capitals, this might be Holtby’s exit from the team. It’s unlikely that the Caps would give up Backstrom unless they absolutely have to.
