Islanders and Matthew Barzal Close to Contract Agreement

Saturday, December 19, 2020

The New York Islanders and restricted free-agent Matthew Barzal are closing in on a new contract. The Islanders were carrying roughly $4 million in cap space, were dealt a blow to their roster which helped Barzal's situation when the news of Johnny Boychuk retiring surfaced.

According to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet, expect Barzal's next contract to be a bridge deal in the neighborhood of Brayden Point's average annual value of $6.75 million per season. Point's a great comparable for Barzal and the bridge deal makes a ton of sense for both sides because if Barzal was demanding a long-term max deal, the Islanders would need to trade a couple pieces off their roster.

Barzal is going to need to sacrifice a little bit for the long-term sustainable success of his team. 

Barzal was recently named in the top-10 players under the age of 25 across the NHL. The Islanders are hoping the 23-year-old can build off his 207 points in his first 234 games on Long Island.

Photo credit:  John McCreary/Icon Sportswire




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