The veteran forward returns to Ottawa on a one-year deal that, in all likelihood, will pay him $4 million in 2026-27.
Claude Giroux is back for another season with the Senators, and it's looking more and more like he'll finish his career in his hometown.
Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman reported on Monday night that Giroux will be returning to Ottawa for another season, and now, as Puckpedia.com first reported, we have the financial details of the 38-year-old's contract with the Sens.
Puckpedia says that Giroux's deal for next season is a one-year contract with a base salary of $2 million. As was the case last year, he has some performance bonuses baked in.
He'll get an extra $1.5 million if he reaches 10 games played, and another $500,000 at 40 games.
At a glance, that 10-game bonus seems like a weird incentive for a veteran who's missed a total of one game in four years with Ottawa. Granted, he is 38, but he'll cross that threshold easily. It's actually a cap play because any bonuses Giroux hits in 2026-27 will count after the season is over, if there's room. If there is no room, the bonus payments would carry over to the following season as "overages."
There's also another $500,000 on the table if the Senators reach the Eastern Conference Final and another half-million on top of that if they reach the Stanley Cup Final.
So, in all likelihood, Giroux's compensation this season will be $4 million plus a chance to make another million if the Sens go deep.
As you'd expect, with Giroux and his family so deeply rooted in Ottawa, the deal includes a full no-movement clause, and it's easy now to imagine Giroux finishing his NHL career with the Sens.
The deal is a little less complicated than the deal he signed last year.
That deal also had a $2 million base salary, but then $250K each for 20/30/60 Games, $250K for making the playoffs + 50 GP, $500K for a round one series win, $250K for a round two series win, $500K for a round 3 series win, and $500K for winning the Stanley Cup. And he had to play in at least 50% of the Sens' playoff games.
After Brady Tkachuk and Daniel Alfredson both exited the organization for division rivals this summer, it's nice to see Giroux sticking around.
By Steve Warne
The Hockey News
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