Zachary Bolduc: The length of the contract was the sticking point in the negotiations

Félix Forget
Zachary Bolduc: The length of the contract was the sticking point in the negotiations
Credit: Capture d'écran/YouTube

Yesterday afternoon, Zachary Bolduc (finally) signed a new contract with the Canadiens. The Quebec native, who had no contract in place for the upcoming season, ultimately signed a four-year deal.

He will earn an average annual salary of $4.2 million over the next four seasons and will become an unrestricted free agent at the end of the contract—which would not have been the case had he signed for three years or less.

We know that it took quite a while to resolve the situation. It's safe to assume that both sides would have liked to settle things earlier in the summer, but one factor slowed down the negotiations.

Kent Hughes, who discussed the matter with Renaud Lavoie (TVA Sports), mentioned that the length of the contract was the sticking point in the negotiations. That's what dragged out the process.

And listening to the GM, it's clear that there was the possibility of a two-year, three-year, or four-year deal.

It seems clear that for Bolduc, who experienced ups and downs last year, a long-term contract wasn't necessarily on the table. They clearly preferred a transitional contract that will allow everyone to reassess the situation with greater clarity in a few years.

If he establishes himself as an important part of the core, we'll start talking about a contract extension in three years.

It's worth noting that Hughes, of course, says he's comfortable with Bolduc signing a deal that takes him all the way to full free agency. It seems that a three-year deal may not have been what he wanted, given that he doesn't appear to be a big fan of the arbitration process.

In a league where the market changes at breakneck speed, letting an outside arbitrator determine a player's salary—in a process that often damages the relationship between the player and the team—is not a path the GM wanted to explore. And that's understandable.

So we'll see what the next few years hold for Bolduc, who ultimately decided to sign a four-year deal. And what's clear is that, like many of his teammates before him, salary wasn't necessarily his biggest concern during contract negotiations.


In Brief

– Great contract for Noah Ostlund.

– Yeah!

– Oh, really?

– Okay.

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