Matthew Savoie's next contract with the Oilers might cost a lot more than his current $886,667 cap hit.
A number started making the rounds Wednesday afternoon: a long-term Savoie extension worth $5.5 million to $6 million a year.
A long term deal for #Oilers forward Matt Savoie would be around $5.5M to $6M per year based on recent comparables in Mavrik Bourque & Cole Perfetti.
Savoie just turned 22 and is still playing on his rookie deal. That jump is a lot for some fans to process.
He put together 37 points this season on 18 goals and 19 assists across 82 games, finishing plus-6.
Five of those goals came on the power play, two were shorthanded, and five were game-winners.
Over his last 10 games, Savoie has 5 points on 3 goals and 2 assists, including one power play tally in that stretch.
Savoie's rookie cap hit expires as Oilers face a decision
He carried some of that into the playoffs, picking up an assist across 6 games, though he closed that run at minus-1.
Edmonton's cap sheet is already loaded. Leon Draisaitl sits at $14 million, and Connor McDavid takes up another $12.5 million.
So where exactly does a $6 million winger fit into that math?
Handing Savoie that price tag would be a bold swing for a front office that still has bigger holes to patch.
It's a bit like remodeling the kitchen before fixing the roof. Looks nice, but the priorities feel off.
Edmonton finished second in the Pacific Division this season, even with a 14th overall ranking weighing down the resume.
The Oilers were sturdier at home too, going 22-14-5, compared to a 19-16-6 record on the road.
They closed the year 41-30-11 with a plus-13 goal differential and rode a one-game win streak into the offseason.
New head coach Mike Babcock only stepped behind the bench on June 23, and how he uses Savoie next season could shape what GM Stan Bowman is willing to pay him.
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Bourque and Perfetti gave agents a real number to point to. Whether Edmonton actually writes that check is the question nobody in the front office wants to answer yet.
Should the Oilers commit $6 million a year to Matthew Savoie?
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