as informed in nbcsports

Leafs give Auston Matthews a fully loaded rookie deal – ProHockeyTalk

Click to share on WhatsApp (Opens in new window)Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)Click to share on Google+ (Opens in new window)Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window)Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)If Lou Lamoriello really was playing hard ball with Auston Matthews, give 2016's first overall pick credit for hitting it out of the park.The Toronto Maple Leafs announced that they signed the rookie forward to a three-year entry-level contract on Thursday.While the team didn't lay out the specifics of the deal, it sounds like Matthews got exactly the sort of deal he wanted … at least when you consider the stringent ceiling presented by rookie maximum rules in the CBA.

by the same token on thestar

Leafs' Lamoriello balks at bonus demands of Auston Matthews

The Leafs not only risk alienating Matthews and his camp — souring future talks when Matthews will have more leverage — but they may be sending a negative message to players around the league about how the team treats stars, he said."This one, to me, feels foolish," an NHL source not involved in the talks told The Star."I don't know what Lou's reward is if he wins for the amount of risk you take by going this direction."But some find it a curious way to do to business for a team that has invested heavily in building through youth, and spent so much time selling the pain of losing to land a player of Matthews' calibre.

besides thestar

Leafs, Auston Matthews agree to entry-level contract

"From our end of it, it was just a matter of when," said Lamoriello, insisting he wasn't in a rush."We had other players we had to sign, we had arbitration to prepare for.We didn't think it was a rush."It took almost a month for the Leafs to sign Matthews after drafting him No.

Leafs give Auston Matthews a fully loaded rookie deal – ProHockeyTalk

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Sunday, July 24, 2016