Tampa Bay Lightning winger Nikita Kucherov has only gotten better year after year, and the team has taken notice. Just a season after he picked up a career-high 100 points, the Lightning have decided not to wait until next year when Kucherov would be a free agent to reward him. The team announced on Tuesday that it signed the star right wing to an eight year extension worth $76 million — $9.5 million in average annual value — effective next season.
The deal makes Kucherov the second-highest paid right wing in the NHL, trailing only the Blackhawks’ Patrick Kane ($10.5 million AAV). Kucherov’s $44.5 million signing bonus is heavily proliferated. He’ll make $1 million base salary when the extension kicks in in 2019, with an $11 million bonus. Cap Friendly has the full breakdown of Kucherov’s contract here:
The signing is huge for the Lightning, who also signed defenseman Ryan McDonagh to a seven year contract extension worth $47.25 million July 1. Steve Yzerman seems intent on keeping his team together, and a team that in June looked to have a very busy 2019 offseason ahead of it is now looking like it could be one of the quieter ones next year. Anton Stralman and Dan Girardi will be some of the key free agents, but it looks far more manageable with Kucherov and McDonagh locked up.
The team’s core of Steven Stamkos, Victor Hedman, Kucherov and McDonagh is now locked up until the 2024 offseason. J.T. Miller, the first-line left-winger, is on contract until the 2023 offseason. The Lightning have a lot of players on big contracts. It may be risky, but the core is still young, and it has paid dividends. Kucherov jumped from scoring 65 and 66 points in 2014 and 2015 to 85 and 100 points in 2017 and 2018. He’s only 25, so this contract, despite the high price tag and year count, is relatively low risk.
