Zeev Buium and the Vancouver Canucks just got a new benchmark to think about, and it came out of Colorado this weekend.
Cale Makar's record $20,400,000 extension has fans and analysts wondering what a similar path could eventually look like for Vancouver's own young defenseman.
Buium is still just 20, playing on his entry-level deal at a $966,667 cap hit after a rookie season that produced 26 points, 6 goals and 20 assists, in 76 games.
That came with a rough minus-33 rating, exactly the kind of number that makes some people want to see real proof before committing serious money.
The debate making the rounds is simple: if Buium ever puts together a 50 or 60-point breakout season running a power play, what does his next contract actually look like?
One argument says lock him up early anyway, since there's essentially no real downside if Vancouver ends up wrong about the bet.
The other side wants patience, arguing a single big season shouldn't be enough to hand out $11,000,000 or $12,000,000 annually on a long-term deal.
Why Buium is nowhere close to Makar money yet
Context matters here. Buium was the centerpiece asset Vancouver received in the Quinn Hughes trade, the same trade that's defined this entire rebuild.
That alone raises the stakes on whether he ever becomes the caliber of player that trade was built around in the first place.
If Vancouver gets this deal wrong, it doesn't just cost cap space. It slows down a rebuild that's already complicated enough for a fan base that's hungry for results now.
He starred at the University of Denver before turning pro, real pedigree that still hasn't fully translated to NHL production yet.
Is Buium anywhere near Makar's tier right now? Not remotely, and nobody serious is actually arguing that.
But if the breakout ever comes, the price tag on locking him up long term only grows the longer Vancouver waits to have that conversation.
For now, this stays exactly what it is: an interesting hypothetical hanging over a player who still has to prove it on the ice first.
Should the Canucks lock up Zeev Buium early or wait for him to prove it?
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