The biggest news involving Bruins defenseman Charlie McAvoy on Saturday was that he was sent home before the Bruins played the Canucks because he hadn’t been feeling right since taking a hit against Edmonton on Oct. 11 in Boston.
But on Saturday’s “Headlines” segment during the second intermission of Sportsnet’s broadcast of the Hockey Night in Canada early games, analyst Nick Kypreos had news about McAvoy and a potential contract extension for the 20-year-old.
“But also starting to hear that there are conversations on a contract extension for Charlie McAvoy,” Kypreos said starting at 2:08 into the video below. “Of course he’s one of those ... young players looking for a long-term extension, he’d love to avoid the bridge contract. I think it’s safe to say that his representation will look toward the Aaron Ekblad contract extension with the Florida Panthers, which had an AAV of 7.5.
Ekblad officially signed his extension July 1, 2016. Not only does he cost the Panthers $7.5 million against their salary cap over eight seasons, but $29 million of the $60 million total is paid out in signing bonuses, giving him the type of lockout bonus numerous players around the league have received and someone of McAvoy’s stature will probably seek.