Connor McDavid’s next contract is already drawing wild numbers, but one Edmonton voice isn’t convinced the superstar is headed for the top of the market.
That chatter picked up after Leo Carlsson and Connor Bedard reset the NHL landscape with major new extensions, landing as the league’s highest- and third-highest-paid players. From there, the speculation turned to McDavid, the best player in the world, and what his next deal might look like when he’s eligible again.
On Spittin’ Chiclets, the discussion got ambitious fast, with $23 million and $25 million per season floated as possible price tags.
Edmonton Oilers analyst Jason Gregor isn’t buying that McDavid will chase that kind of number, especially if the Stanley Cup still isn’t in his hands when the next contract window opens.
“You think Connor McDavid is going to go and try to get $23 million? If Connor McDavid hasn’t won a cup in two years and his contract’s up, you think he’s going to want to go get as much as he can?
‘Cuz that will just lower his chance of winning. It makes no sense from a pure rational thought process.
McDavid wants to win, taking $23 million is not gonna do it. Whether it’s in Edmonton or anywhere, he’s not gonna do it.
Because he wants to win and he knows if he takes up too much, his chance of winning is less. It’s just how it goes,”
McDavid, 29, already has a two-year, $25 million extension with the Oilers that was signed in October and will kick in next season, in 2026-27.
Gregor’s argument is simple: McDavid’s priority is the Cup, not squeezing every last dollar out of his next deal. If he still hasn’t won by next summer, when he’s extension-eligible, or the summer after that, when free agency could be on the table, it’s difficult to picture him demanding a contract that would make roster-building harder.
His most recent deal backs that up. Even on a short-term extension, McDavid stayed at $12.5 million per year, a move that gave Edmonton more room to keep building around him.
For now, everything still comes back to what happens this season and next. McDavid’s next contract will be shaped by how he and the Oilers perform before that decision point arrives.
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