They aren’t being quiet about it; Alex Tuch is joining the Washington Capitals. According to Elliotte Friedman on Wednesday, the contract includes an 8-year extension worth $10.5 million every season.
A 30-year-old winger who just scored 66 points in 79 regular-season games with the Buffalo Sabres has guaranteed $84 million.
Real numbers exist. The length is assertive. And Washington just gave a loud statement regarding where they believe this franchise is going.
At +24, with 33 goals and 33 assists, Tuch completed the regular season. Additionally, he scored two game-winning goals in 13 postseason contests. The counting numbers are essentially at an even strength, and he isn’t a power play expert.
He is now in a different stratosphere thanks to his $10.5 million average annual value. Consider it in this manner: in Buffalo, Tage Thompson’s cap hit is $7.14 million, so he will earn more per year than Thompson. Tuch is being compensated like a franchise cornerstone rather than a supplementary part.
Tuch’s $10.5 million stake in Washington raises serious cap issues.
Chris Patrick, the General Manager of Washington, has been systematic since taking office. This is a swing, though. On the back end, an eight-year contract for a forward who will be 31 next season comes with substantial risk, the type that often plagues teams ten years down the road.
The Lindy Ruff era’s best record, 109 points and a division title, was achieved during Buffalo’s season. Although losing Tuch doesn’t deplete the team, it does take away among the few individuals who played short-handed, finished with a +24, and could be relied upon during critical periods of the game.
The Capitals, on the other hand, had 95 points and 43 wins. Spencer Carbery needs top-six help, and Tuch is unquestionably that.
Friedman noted Wednesday he still isn’t sure how all the pieces fit. That’s the part worth watching. Return packages in deals like this can change the picture entirely.
A trade of this scale, with an extension locked in, doesn’t happen unless both sides already had the framework agreed to. The Capitals believe in this.
Whether Tuch at $10.5 million is the piece that pushes Washington over the top, or the contract that eventually anchors them down, is a question Chris Patrick is betting eight years he has right.
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