The Sharks announced today that they have resigned forward Timo Meier to a four-year contract worth $24 million ($6 million AAV). Meier, who plays right wing, recorded 30 goals and added 36 assists in 70 games last season. Drafted ninth overall in the 2015 NHL Entry Draft by the Sharks, Meier has spent all three season of his NHL career with the Sharks. As he is coming off of his entry level deal, this contract is an enormous raise from his last one, which saw him make $5.025 million over three years (a $1,644,167 AAV with a $894,167 cap hit).
Lydia’s Reaction: I love this deal for the Sharks. They just resigned a very good young player for four more years at a pretty reasonable price tag. He has 54 goals and 54 assists in 193 career games, and was nearly a point per game player last season with 0.94 P/G. At just 22, it’s also safe to assume that he’ll improve and that last season is no fluke and we can actually expect him to produce at or around this rate. He’ll also still be an RFA at the end of his deal, making it that much better for the Sharks. The way it’s structured is a bit risky, as his salary for the final season of the deal is $10 million, which means his next qualifying offer will have to be that much, but if the Sharks are able to resign him before he becomes an RFA, that will be irrelevant. Even if they can’t, there’s a chance that he’ll be worth it if he continues improving and if the salary cap goes up more significantly than it has been. This deal looks excellent for the Sharks now, and I think it will only get better as time goes on. There’s no way the Sharks end up regretting this deal.
Stephen’s Reaction: This is a good deal for the Sharks. They sign a young winger that has been playing very well for them, for reasonable money and a very reasonable term. I’m going to be honest, I don’t know much about him, but every time I see him play, he is always hard on the forecheck and seems to put a few points every time I watch him play. I think Lydia covered it pretty well overall and I don’t want to just repeat her, so that’s all I’ve got to say on it.
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