Bridge contracts disappear as more teams lock up talented young players

Few teams today would dare try what the Montreal Canadiens did with P.K. Subban in the winter of 2013.

So-called "bridge contracts," like the two-year agreement Subban inked with his now former team in Montreal, are disappearing as more teams opt to lock up their talented young players as soon as possible.

The Carolina Hurricanes added the latest name to the group on Tuesday morning, signing 23-year-old Victor Rask to a six-year deal worth $24 million US.

Deals like Rask' are essentially low to medium-risk bets under a restrictive cap system. Teams are betting that the contracts, the first after entry level agreements, will become bargains one day if the player continues to improve and the cap continues to rise.

The result is the disappearance of bridge contracts, shorter deals that "bridge" players from the expiration of their entry-level deals until a potentially richer third NHL contract. Teams give themselves more time under such scenarios to evaluate players before they commit long-term.

"I think it's a lot of things," Hurricanes general manager Ron Francis said of the current trend. "One, you're banking on improvement (and) I think also you're banking on the individual. Victor now, at the ripe old age of 23, has been with us for a while and we've got to know him as a person and his work ethic. That factors in our comfort level with a longer term deal as well."

Francis said the Hurricanes have opted for both kinds of deals. The club signed defenceman Justin Faulk for six years, already a winner because of Faulk's improvement, and former top-10 pick Elias Lindholm to a two-year pact which expires after next season.

"I think it really depends on the situation and the individual and really, what you can get on a long-term deal number-wise and what you can get on a shorter term deal number-wise," Francis said.

It's a win-win deal initially for both player and team.

The player gets immediate security with term on his contract, while the team, assuming the player improves, gets a good player at a helpful number under the cap, which rose to $73 million next season.

The Winnipeg Jets just signed 23-year-old Mark Scheifele for eight years with a $6.1 million annual cap hit that could become a steal if Scheifele continues to build on the 29-goal, 61-point production he managed last season.

The Edmonton Oilers dove head-first into the tactic years ago, quickly locking up Taylor Hall, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Jordan Eberle after their entry-level contracts expired.

Those deals, while initially jarring, have looked somewhat more reasonable in time.

Among those to sign similar deals so far this summer: Columbus defenceman Seth Jones (six years), Toronto blue-liner Morgan Rielly (six years), Colorado forward Nathan MacKinnon (seven years), and Nashville centre Filip Forsberg (six years). The Florida Panthers signed 20-year-old defenceman Aaron Ekblad to an eight-year deal one year before he was even due a new contract.

Likely to follow suit in the weeks ahead are the Flames' Johnny Gaudreau and Sean Monahan as well as the Lightning's Nikita Kucherov and Ducks' Hampus Lindholm.

Francis said Rask has become a trusted player in every situation for Carolina, a "solid kid" who works hard and is driven to improve. "When you have that kind of fire in a guy and that kind of player then we're really comfortable with a longer-term commitment to a player like that," Francis said of Rask, who had a career-high 21 goals and 48 points last season.

The Hurricanes GM believes the former Hurricanes second-rounder is trending upward and will benefit from an improved supporting cast which now includes Lee Stempniak and talented former first-rounder Teuvo Teravainen.

Like many teams these days he was willing to bet on upside.

"I don't think either side wins if it's a lopsided deal," said Francis, a Hall of Fame centre who sits third all-time in games played. "Now we may pay a guy and he struggles and it looks that way (but) we may pay a guy and he blossoms and it looks like it's unfair to the player. But I think when you go into a negotiation and a deal, at least my approach is we want to try and strike a deal that's fair for both sides and I think that's the best way to build your relationships moving forward."