Connor McDavid accepts an AAV contract extension of 12.5 million dollars with the Oilers

By Daniel Nugent-Bowman, Chris Johnston and Pierre Lebrun

Edmonton’s Oilers have completed the most important affairs of their offseason, and in the foreseeable future, while Captain Connor McDavid signed a contract extension on Monday. The agreement is two years and has an annual average value of $ 12.5 million.

The extension of McDavid will have taken into account at the start of the 2026-20 campaign, keeping the 28-year-old megastar under the control of the team for three seasons. He still has one more season on the AAV contract of $ 12.5 million over eight years which he signed on July 5, 2017, a year before the expiration of his entry -level contract.

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McDavid had already won the Hart and Art Ross trophies once when he signed his last contract. Since then, he has cemented as one of the greatest players in NHL history. He won the Hart three times, the Ross art five times, the Rocket Richard trophy in 2022-23 and the Conn Smythe trophy in 2024.

Last season, he became the fourth youngest and fourth fastest player in NHL history to reach 1,000 points at 27, 306 days and 659 games. He has up to 1,082 points in 712 games during his career. He also has 150 points in 96 playoff competitions, which placed the third behind Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux at 1.53 points per game.

The oilers could poorly face McDavid after this coming season. Given his curriculum vitae and his status as a best sport player, McDavid could have become the first player in the era wage-cap to sign for the maximum of 20%, whatever the term. There would not have been a word of criticism.

Instead, he took a discount, just as he did a little over eight years ago. However, he did not sign another extension of eight years maximum, something good friend and running mate Leon Draisaitl last summer.

This extension represents something of a softer commitment and a compromise for McDavid. It is a spectacle of loyalty and good faith towards his teammates, the organization, and the former long-standing agent Jeff Jackson, who became the CEO of the team’s hockey operations in August 2023. He has roots in the city, and his wife, Lauren, opened a restaurant in downtown Edmonton called Bar Trove earlier this year.

However, he clearly told his end -of -year availability that victory is his top priority, which he also noted earlier in the season. The Oilers have not yet won a championship despite the consecutive appearances of the Stanley Cup final. They lack high -level perspectives and the main members of the list age.

With McDavid in a trailer, there should be little concern about the team’s ability to face, but it does not lock for almost a decade in case things are taking place on the side.

This story will be updated.

(Photo: Katharine Lotze / Getty Images)