Comparing Datsyuk’s Deal to other NHL’ers
I decided to take a quick look at other NHL players who have deals that are close to what Pavel Datsyuk just re-signed for. I also decided to take a look at guys who are roughly the same age. I came up with a “rating” for each player which is simply adding the player’s point total and plus/minus rating. This gives some weight to two-way play, which is clearly one of Pavel Datsyuk’s strengths. I was surprised at how well Datsyuk does by this measure.
| Player | Rating | Salary |
| Joe Thornton | 135 | $6.67m |
| Pavel Datsyuk | 124 | $6.7m |
| Daniel Briere | 113 | $5m |
| Marian Hossa | 113 | $6m |
| Vincent Lecavalier | 110 | $7.167m |
| Martin St. Louis | 108 | $6m |
| Jarome Iginla | 107 | $7m |
| Olli Jokinen | 102 | $5m |
| Ilya Kovalchuk | 72 | $5m |
| Patrik Elias | 67 | $7.5m |
| Simon Gagne | 65 | $5.25m |
| Brad Richards | 53 | $7.8m |
Datsyuk compares favorably with Joe Thornton, who has also had questions about his performance in the playoffs. The concern is that the deal is for seven years, which really limits Detroit’s flexibility. But if Datsyuk can start to produce during the playoffs and if the salary cap continues to grow it could be a reasonable deal. Pavel Datsyuk Red Wings
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[…] Half of those players were signed prior to hitting the free agent market this summer, so Ken Holland deserves credit for getting those deals done, as Datsyuk and Holmstrom likely would have received lucrative offers as free agents. At the time there was some concern about signing Datsyuk to an extension, but as I pointed out in this article he compares favorably with other younger players who make a similar amount of money. Datsyuk will make roughly the same money next season that Joe Thornton currently makes. Oh, and he leads the Western Conference in the playoffs for goals scored and in assists. That contract is looking like a pretty good deal right now. Tomas Holmstrom is getting noticed for his contract as well. He extended his contract with the Red Wings for three more years at $2.25 million per year. Mike Brophy of the Hockey News wonders how many 30 goal scorers are as affordable as Homer: In his past two seasons, the 34-year-old from Pieta, Sweden has enjoyed career-high years of 29 and then 30 goals, making it hard to believe he didn’t test the free agent waters. … “When I hear people talk, they say the best people in front of the net are Ryan Smyth and Tomas Holmstrom,” Holland says. “The past two years, Tomas has really taken his game to the next level. We all thought coming into the new NHL, with the new set of rules, the game was geared toward skaters and Tomas isn’t a skater. It is probably one of the weaker parts of his game, but he has really thrived. […]