Pastrnak ‘happy with what I’m getting’
Boston forward often used as a comparable with Nylander situation
For what it’s worth, David Pastrnak has no regrets about signing a six-year, $40-million (U.S.) contract with the Boston Bruins.
He missed one day of training camp last season, eschewing the notion of doing what his good buddy William Nylander is doing: waiting and hoping for a better deal.
“I just wanted to play,” Pastrnak said Monday before the Bruins faced the Maple Leafs at Scotiabank Arena. “My agent came up to me and said, ‘This is what you should sign.’ So I signed and I went to Boston.
“If you (told) me when I was15 years old that I was going to be playing for $6 million a year when I was 22, I don’t think (I’d have believed it),” said Pastrnak. “It’s a dream come true for me. I’m happy with what I’m getting.
“I could be playing in Czech for a couple of hundred bucks per month. I’m really happy.”
The continuing Nylander saga revolves around Pastrnak, with the average annual value (AAV) of Pastrnak’s salary — $6.67 million — looming over the negotiations between Nylander’s camp and the Leafs.
Both players were drafted in the first round in 2014 — Nylander eighth overall by the Maple Leafs; Pastrnak 25th overall by the Bruins — and put up similar point totals in the final year of their entry-level contracts — Pastrnak had 34 goals and 36 assists; Nylander 20 goals and 41 assists.
The Leafs can point to Pastrnak — and similar players such as Nikolaj Ehlers and Dylan Larkin, earning slightly less than Pastrnak and on similar career trajectories — to argue that’s what Nylander is worth.
Nylander’s camp was believed to be asking closer to the money earned by Edmonton’s Leon Draisaitl, whose AAV is $8.5 million, but according to Hock
ey Night in Canada they’ve moved off that position.
More likely, Nylander could look at Pastrnak’s cap-hit percentage. Pastrnak’s average salary represented 8.89 per cent of the salary cap when he signed. That same percentage of this year’s bigger cap would amount to about $7 million. Nylander is believed now to be asking slightly below that number with both long-term and shortterm deals being talked about.
Term is a big deal. The Leafs — believed to be sticking to $6.5 million a year on a long-term contract — are more likely to pay Nylander more on a sevenor eight-year deal, rewarding him for forgoing free agency at age 27 (five years away). They would pay less on a short-term deal.
Nylander has until Saturday to agree to terms in order to be eligible to play in the NHL this season.
“You have to give him some respect,” Pastrnak said. “He’s been sitting out a while. He’s patient. At the end of the day, he has to be patient and get what you think you deserve. It’s for your whole life.”
The two players come from different backgrounds — Pastrnak’s father died when the son was17, having left the Czech Republic to hone his skills in Sweden; Nylander’s father, Michael, was a longtime NHL player and is deeply involved in these negotiations — but developed a friendship dating back to their time together with Swedish club Sodertalje SK
With Pastrnak and the Bruins in town Monday, the two would normally spend some time together. Not this time.
“I miss him around here. Usually we grab dinner. I wish him well. Hopefully he signs soon,” said Pastrnak, who has stayed in touch with Nylander. “I do, but I don’t talk to him about this stuff. I knew how it was last year, everybody talks to you about contracts. So we don’t really talk about it.
“We both love hockey. It’s definitely hard for him to not play now. That’s what he’s going to do. I hope it will be over soon and he can play hockey.”