Juraj Slafkovsky is locked in at $7,600,000 through 2033, and that number already looks like a bargain for the Montreal Canadiens.
Daily Faceoff put it bluntly this week, calling the AAV absolutely insane value given where Slafkovsky's game is trending.
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Slafkovsky posted 30 goals and 43 assists for 73 points in 82 games this past season, still just 22 years old and clearly improving year over year.
He added 6 goals and 6 assists for 12 points across 19 playoff games too, real production when the games actually mattered.
A seven year runway at that price is exactly the kind of contract that ages beautifully if a player keeps developing the way Slafkovsky has.
That's the real skill in team building. Locking in a rising player before the breakout fully arrives, rather than paying market rate after the fact.
Hughes has built a young core locked in for years
This isn't an isolated move either. GM Kent Hughes has quietly stacked long term value across this entire young core.
Nick Suzuki carries a $7,875,000 cap hit after a 101 point season, arguably the best bargain on the whole roster given what that kind of production actually costs elsewhere.
Cole Caufield sits at $7,850,000 following a 51 goal campaign, another number that looks cheap the moment you compare it to what elite scoring wingers get paid around the league.
Lane Hutson locked in his own long term future too, signing an 8-year, $70,800,000 extension back in October 2025 that kicks in for 2026-27 and runs through 2033-34, worth $8,850,000 annually.
Ivan Demidov just locked in eight years and $73,200,000 as a 20-year-old, betting his ceiling justifies the term before he ever hits restricted free agency.
Add all of that together, and Montreal has built a young core that's simultaneously performing at an elite level and still relatively cheap against the cap.
That combination doesn't happen by accident. It happens when a front office identifies talent early and moves before the price catches up to the production.
Slafkovsky's deal is another example of that pattern, and if his numbers keep climbing the way they have the past two seasons, this contract only gets more lopsided in Montreal's favor.
For a team that's improved four straight seasons, having this much young talent signed long term at these numbers is exactly why betting against this organization keeps looking like the wrong move.
Is Juraj Slafkovsky's contract the best value deal on the Canadiens' roster?
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