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This is probably on the back burner for Jarmo Kekalainen right now given the draft is but a few weeks away and free agency opens just a couple days after, but sooner or later he'll need to give Sergei Bobrovsky a new contract.
Bobrovsky is entering the final season of a two-year $11.25 million deal, and based on his body of work over the last couple seasons, he's worthy of similar money and more term on his next contract.
While many are skeptical to consider Bobrovsky among the NHL's elite, his numbers over the last two years rival - and in many cases are better - than those considered to be the best of the best.
See for yourself.
Note: If you expand it to the last three seasons Bobrovsky still ranks in the top-5 in full strength save percentage.
As you can see, only Tuukka Rask has been better at 5 vs 5 over the last couple seasons. When it comes to short handed save percentage, Bobrovsky ranks 3rd best over the last two years behind Cory Schneider and Steve Mason, so Bobrovsky's stopping pucks at a high rate in all situations.
I'm not typically a fan of giving out goalies big contracts in either term of dollars, but at age 25 Bobrovsky seems like a safe bet to invest in. Goalies typically age well and can play at a high level well into their 30's, so there's no reason to believe Bobrovsky's play will dramatically decline over the coming years.
Personally, I'd try to play it safe and give him a 3-5 year contract worth $6 million give or take a couple hundred thousand. That said, with the cap expected to increase significantly over the next few years, Kekalainen would benefit from giving him more term if Bobrovsky's play can remain consistently near the top of the league.
Bobrovsky currently has the 11th highest salary among goaltenders signed through next season, but I expect his next contract to move him higher up the rankings, especially if Kekalainen waits until next summer and Bobrovsky has another strong season.
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What say you? If you were Kekalainen, what do you think would be a fair contract offer for Bobrovsky?
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