Four reasons why Kaiden Guhle signed a six-year contract

Kent Hughes hasn’t done much to improve his roster since the start of the off-season. He’s signed Alex Barré-Boulet (NHL) and Laurent Dauphin (AHL)… and he’s let Chris Wideman, Jesse Ylonen, Colin White and Jesse Ylonen go. It looks like this…

But the Habs GM hasn’t been idle on the contract extension front.

Arber Xhekaj and Justin Barron each signed a two-year bridge contract, Juraj Slafkovsky signed an eight-year deal (at a lower salary than Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield), and Kaiden Guhle has just agreed to the terms of a new six-season contract.

Note that Xhekaj and Barron’s contracts will begin as early as the 2024-25 season, while Slafkovsky’s and Guhle’s will start in 2025-26.

So, the Habs’ roster is quite complete.

Two things to keep an eye on between now and the end of the off-season: Patrik Laine and Kent Hughes’ willingness to complete another Sean Monahan/Jeff Petry-style transaction.

But back to the signing of the day, Kaiden Guhle.

Guhle, unlike Xhekaj and Barron, didn’t sign a two-year bridge contract. Both he and the Habs were comfortable with a multi-season contract.

By 2025-26, Guhle will be the Habs’ highest-paid defenseman ($5.55 million per season).

But why didn’t he extend his contract for six years, and not eight like Slafkovsky? Why will he become an unrestricted free agent at age 29?

1. Yes, Slafkovsky got two more years on his deal, but since he arrived in the NHL two years faster than Guhle, he too will be 29 when his next contract expires. You get the feeling that Kent Hughes is responsible and doesn’t want to extend his young stars until they’re 30 or more. There’salways a risk for a hockey player in his thirties…

Suzuki (29) and Caufield (30) will also be eligible for autonomy before or at the very beginning of their thirties.

If Guhle had signed for eight years, he would have been 31 at the end of his new deal. Kent Hughes prefers to bet on the next six or seven seasons (open window), rather than risk hurting the team in the very long term. Maybe Marc Bergevin should have thought like that… #Anderson #Gallagher

2. Each year of autonomy purchased by a long-term contract costs more than a year when the player would not have been unrestricted autonomous.

With Slafkovsky, Kent Hughes bought four years of complete autonomy, while with Guhle, he bought only two. If Kent Hughes had wanted to sign Guhle for eight years – which he may have tried to do by talking to Guhle’s agent – it would have taken an average annual salary of at least $7 or $7.5 million, not just $5.55 million. The Canadiens’ GM preferred to play it safe.

3. Guhle, like Arber Xhekaj, has already had to deal with several injuries in his first two NHL seasons. In 2022-23, Guhle played just 44 games, and last season he missed 12. Many of these absences were due to head injuries (concussions).

He was even unable to complete the world championships this spring.

Fragile players generally don’t play until they’re 40. Maybe not even until 35!

So, in Guhle’s case, six years rather than eight was probably a better bet…

4. Habs management is now convinced that Juraj Slaflovsky is and will be a first line player in the NHL. Are we as convinced about Kaiden Guhle’s role (first pair)? There’s also Mike Matheson, Lane Hutson, Arber Xhekaj, Jordan Harris, Adam Engstrom and Jayden Struble on the left side of the defense… #MoreDepth

And I hope we don’t move Kaiden Guhle to the right again, and that if we do, we only do so while waiting for Reinbacher te Mailloux to blossom.

Note that last April, experts were predicting an Alex Vlasic-style contract (six years/$4.6 million per season) for Kaiden Guhle. Experience and the fact that Guhle is taxed in Quebec have boosted the Montreal defenseman’s average annual salary.

Guhle was still the second most-used defenseman by Stéphane Robidas and Martin St-Louis in 2023-24. His new contract could become a real steal, if he can stay healthy.