Gaudreau, Rielly, MacKinnon among young stars due second contracts this summer

Seth Jones might start thinking about it when the NHL season is over.

The Columbus Blue Jackets defenceman is one of several high-profile young stars due a second NHL contract this summer.

Entry-level deals last the first three seasons of players' careers after which they qualify for restricted free agency and a new contract. For the league's best and brightest, those second deals are increasingly big in dollars and long in term.

Jones says he hasn't spent much time thinking about it, "but I'm sure in the summer obviously you're not playing any hockey, you're not really doing anything (then) I'm sure it's definitely on your mind," he said.

"I'm sure it'll be on mine."

The second NHL contract is a player's first real chance at long-term security and having a say in the process.

Talented 22-year-old Maple Leafs defenceman Morgan Rielly says he considered his contract status before his third season started last fall, but has thought little of it since.

"You know it's important and you know what's coming," he said. "But once you're in the season and you're going through games . . . you never really worry about it or think about it, you just go out and do your job because that's all you can control. And if you're doing your job well you're doing yourself a favour."

"Until your agent kind of starts talking with you and says they're talking with the team it doesn't really cross your mind," Jones agreed.

There is a curiosity about the process though.

Players like Jones and Rielly, valuable defenders to the Blue Jackets and Leafs, know they likely have the option of a long or short-term deal, the latter dubbed the bridge contract for its potential to act as a stepping stone to a bigger pact down the line.

Agents present the options to their players, offering spreadsheets with comparable players and contracts as well as the effects of going for the bridge deal versus dipping into something longer-term that limits flexibility.

"You can look at the contracts that have been handed out in the past and all this kind of stuff, but you have to be realistic and your agent has to be realistic and you have to have conversations," Rielly said. "And over the course of those conversations you find out what's probably going to happen, you've got a pretty good idea of it."

In recent years, more teams are locking up young players like Jones and Rielly to long-term second contracts, betting on them to eventually outperform the terms of the deal and become a valuable commodity in the salary cap world.

Teams are typically over-paying players during the first half of these contracts while hoping to under-pay them on the back half.

For the player, meanwhile, it's a chance at long-term financial security.

Aleksander Barkov and Olli Maatta were the most recent young stars to sign long-term second deals. Maatta agreed to a six-year, US$24.5-million deal in Pittsburgh and Barkov to six-year, $35.4-million pact in Florida.

The NHL could see a number of young stars signed to similarly large agreements in the coming months. That group should include Jones, Rielly and the following players:

Johnny Gaudreau: Bettered by only 11 other players in points in his first two NHL seasons, the shifty, creative 22-year-old is a huge part of Calgary's future and will be compensated this off-season.

Sean Monahan: Wise beyond his 21 years, the former sixth overall pick in the 2013 draft is what teams always look for in a top centre — a big, smart player who can play both ends of the rink. Like Gaudreau, Monahan is integral to everything Flames.

Nikita Kucherov: Picked 58th overall in 2011, the Russian winger is an electric offensive player, due a big raise after producing nearly 30 goals and more than 60 points in each of his first two NHL seasons.

Filip Forsberg: A 30-goal-scorer for the first time this season and still only 21, Forsberg is the kind of offensive talent the Predators have lacked for years and a key piece of their future.

Nathan MacKinnon: MacKinnon is still only 20 and has indeed bounced back after an off second season. The Nova Scotia native is an explosive offensive talent who should only get better in time for the Avalanche.

Others due second contracts this summer: Anaheim's Hampus Lindholm, Buffalo's Rasmus Ristolainen and Winnipeg's Jacob Trouba.