Alexis Lafrenière could've sought out more money, but instead he took a pay cut to help out the Rangers financially.
When looking at Alexis Lafrenière’s new seven-year, $52 million contract extension, you can’t help but think he probably could have gotten more.
Yes, $52 million is nothing to snarl at, but given the way Lafrenière is ascending as a player, there’s a sense that this contract was a bargain for the New York Rangers.
Even his teammate Vincent Trocheck believes that Lafrenière is taking a pay cut.
“I personally think he’s doing good by the Rangers with this deal,” Trocheck said via The Athletic’s Peter Baugh.
The cap is expected to go up next offseason, giving Lafrenière even more of a reason to wait until the summer to receive a more lucrative contract or sign a short term contract
However, the 23-year-old forward wasn’t thinking that way and he felt that this seven-year contract was just the right deal for him.
“Not really,” Lafrenière said via Colin Stephenson of Newsday about if he considered taking a shorter term deal to wait for the cap to go up. “I think, you know, seven years was good... There was different options, but that's the one we we liked, and we took it.”
This is a sign of a young man who is putting the team over himself and is ensuring the Rangers have the cap flexibility to continue competing for Stanley Cups down the road.
Lafrenière is on his way to becoming a superstar in the NHL and he had every right to go seek out more money, but he didn’t do that and instead did the team a big favor that Chris Drury should be forever thankful for.
Now with all of this contract business finalized, Lafrenière is ready to solely focus on hockey and help the Rangers achieve their ultimate goals.
“It’s nice to get it done and just focus on the season and help the team win,” Lafrenière said.