Top NHL Performers in the Final Seasons of Their Entry-Level Contracts

Young NHL players on expiring rookie deals are building a very strong case for their value to their clubs, including some on the Red Wings, Kings, and more.

In the hard-cap NHL, successful teams need meaningful contributions from players on inexpensive entry-level contracts.

The youngsters who deliver the goods don't just make their teams better — they also set themselves up for big paydays down the road. And this year's crop of soon-to-be first-time RFAs also have the advantage of rolling into their negotiations right when the salary cap starts to rise again.

As we roll into the biggest games of the season, keep an eye on these four young guns, including one who already signed his extension. They're each playing out the final year of their entry-level deals while simultaneously establishing themselves as all but irreplaceable on their teams.

Drafted 13th overall in 2020, the Winnipeg native turned heads with a successful nine-game AHL audition as an 18-year-old during the pandemic-shortened 2020-21 season. With great wheels and a reputation for playing the right way, Seth Jarvis impressed no-nonsense coach Rod Brind'Amour enough to claim a top-six roster spot at 19.

His responsibilities have grown ever since.

This season, Jarvis is averaging 19:01  per game. He's second in goals (15) and points (35) on a Carolina team that sometimes struggles to generate offense. 

Jarvis leads all Hurricanes forwards in power-play ice time (3:12 per game) and is second only to perennial Selke Trophy contender Jordan Staal on the penalty kill (1:56). A righty, he has also added face-off duties to his repertoire this season.

When Andrei Svechnikov completed his entry-level deal in 2021, Carolina GM Don Waddell didn't hesitate to sign him to an eight-year extension. With Jarvis now trending sharply upward, expect him to receive the same treatment this summer.

Big-bodied players can take a little longer to find their way at the NHL level. At 21, 6-foot-5, 225-pound Quinton Byfield seems to be figuring things out.

After posting 33 points in his first 99 NHL games over three seasons, the second-overall pick from 2020 now has 34 points in 45 games with the Los Angeles Kings this season.

Slotting into the third-line center spot, Byfield has also become a key player on the Kings' first power-play unit, where his 11 man-advantage points are fourth-best on the team. He isn't logging penalty-killing time yet, but at plus-14, he's tied with two-time Selke winner Anze Kopitar for the best mark on the team in that category.

The Kings currently have less salary-cap flexibility for next season than the Hurricanes. Because of that, and because he took a little longer to break out, Byfield is less likely to snag an eight-year deal. He could also be eager to bet on himself — take less now and see if he can hit a Grand Slam in two or three years' time.

The audible gasp from the crowd in Rogers Arena when Steve Yzerman selected the big German sixth overall is one of the enduring memories of the 2019 draft. 

But the shockwaves didn't faze Moritz Seider, who showed tremendous maturity on his way to a 50-point rookie season and a Calder Trophy win in 2021-22. 

Seider set a high early standard for himself and has basically maintained it. His ice time and production are steady, and he has improved his shooting percentage and plus-minus as the Red Wings have raised their overall team standard. 

With only Dylan Larkin locked up long-term, Steve Yzerman should be looking to sign 22-year-old Seider and 21-year-old Lucas Raymond to franchise-player-type agreements when the pair reach RFA status this summer.

The first-rounders with the big reputations get the inside track on monster contracts. Ersson's contract is already set, but he now gets the next two years to build his case for a bigger payday in the Philadelphia Flyers' net. His performance has been a game-changer so far.

With Carter Hart now away from Philadelphia on a leave of absence, Ersson's play could make or break the Flyers' odds of converting this unexpectedly successful season into a playoff berth.

With the unpredictability of goalie development, Ersson shouldn't be judged for the fact that he was selected in the fifth round in 2018 when he was playing in Sweden's junior league.

First, he worked his way up to the SHL, where he saw plenty of pucks over two seasons. In 2021, he signed his entry-level deal with the Flyers and made his way to North America.

Ersson then spent a full season with the AHL's Lehigh Valley Phantoms before getting into 12 NHL games last year. This season, at age 24, he earned the backup job behind Hart and quickly grew his role into a 1A-1B situation. He has played more minutes and earned more wins than any other rookie stopper while splitting duties close to 50/50 and putting up slightly better numbers than Hart.

The streaky Flyers have lost three in a row but are still currently five points clear of the playoff bar in the East. 

If Ersson can help Philadelphia hold that position, it could set the tone for the next two years and help establish himself as a starting netminder in a year when few goalies have made positive gains in their careers.