It took some time, but Montreal Canadiens’ GM Kent Hughes completed his most important mission, signing sophomore defenseman Lane Hutson to a long-term contract, which could still be for a maximum term of eight years, before the next CBA restricts the term to seven years.
Better yet, the man in charge managed to complete the signing for a very reasonable AAV of $8.85 million. Considering that Luke Hughes and Jackson Lacombe both signed eight-year contracts with a $9 million AAV recently, this is an absolute coup for the executive. The deal ties Hutson to the Habs until the end of the 2033-34 season, when he’ll become a UFA at 30 years old.
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Unsurprisingly, much of the contract is comprised of signing bonuses; in fact, those account for $55 million, or approximately 78% of the total contract value of $70.8 million. You can see the complete breakdown of the contract on Puckpedia. A modified no-trade clause also kicks in at the start of year six, which allows Hutson the possibility to give a list of 10 teams he cannot be traded to.
This deal is more than a simple contract for the Canadiens’ GM. When he acquired Noah Dobson, Hughes agreed to an eight-year deal with a $9.5 million AAV. For me, that meant he was aiming to have Dobson be his top defenseman, and he would look to sign his other defenseman to contracts that respected that fact, just like he signed his forwards to contracts that respected Nick Suzuki’s status as his top forward. Of course, with the salary cap set to rise in a big way, the Suzuki contract won’t remain the top one in the future, but on the blueline, it does seem like Dobson’s could be for a while. It’s worth mentioning, however, that Hughes considers Dobson’s contract to be a different animal since it’s not a contract coming out of his ELC.
There’s no denying that Hughes’ past as an agent has perfectly prepared him to be a general manager. Just like the way the players respect Martin St-Louis because he’s been through it all on the ice, Hughes has been through it all representing so many players over the years, which puts him in the correct position to preach that players who accept to leave a bit of money on the table end up being the most successful. There’s a reason why he spoke openly about Patrice Bergeron’s past negotiations with the Boston Bruins and how he would always accept less money than what he was worth on the market.
Unlike his GM counterpart with the Florida Panthers, Bill Zito, Hughes cannot put forward the low amount of tax dollars players pay in his market, but he can sell the idea that everyone is buying in and willing to leave some money on the table for the good of the team. Hughes is building a culture: Cole Caufield, Juraj Slafkovsky, Kaiden Guhle, and Jake Evans have all done it. While that doesn’t force a player to do the same, it sure sets a good example. So did the fact that the best player in the world, Connor McDavid, signed a deal far below market value. While GMs do not generally get to speak to the players, in these negotiations, Hughes conceded that it helped to talk on the phone with everyone.
Speaking to the media this morning, Hughes said:
What that says about Hutson is that he loves playing in Montreal, and he wants the team to be in a position to win.- Hughes on Hutson
Over the course of the weekend, Hughes spoke to Hutson, and he explained that the youngster wanted to ensure the Canadiens were aware of his desire to stay with the Team and his commitment to hard work. The GM cut him off and said that there wouldn’t be an eight-year if the team didn’t know how Hutson was at his core and how committed he was to being the best version of himself.
The fact that the contract was so heavily discussed on social media was clearly becoming a distraction for both the team and Hutson. When asked if the signing would be a relief for the youngster, the GM said that it’s always the case for a hockey player. When you put pen to paper, you don’t have to worry about it anymore, and you can focus on playing hockey. There’s no need to worry about financial issues, about what people or even your teammates are thinking about the fact that you haven’t signed yet, it’s done and dusted, and it’s time to move forward.
Hughes also confirmed that it was always the plan for the Canadiens to sign Hutson for eight years. Still, he added that all the talk and reports that were not necessarily true hindered negotiations because both sides were reading those reports. When pressed to say what was reported and wasn’t true, he refused to comment.
While the organization wanted to get the contract signed before the start of the season, it all worked out fine. For the agreement to be finalized on Thanksgiving is movie-script worthy, as the team, players, and fans are certainly all grateful to have Hutson as evidenced by their reaction when St-Louis announced the deal to them at the end of practice. After that signing, though, chances are they are also all grateful to have Hughes, who has achieved a colossal task here.
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