The Edmonton Oilers are continuing to get work done through the summer, retaining the services of Raphael Lavoie after the forward signed his qualifying offer. Let’s take a look at the impact the contract has and what it might mean for the futures of both Lavoie and the Oilers.
The qualifying offer
The contract itself is a one-year, two-way deal, meaning that Lavoie will make a different amount based on whether he plays in the AHL or the NHL next season. In the NHL his deal is worth $874,125, while in the AHL it is worth $70,000.
The first thing that stands out is the large discrepancy in pay, a surefire way to motivate Lavoie for a productive summer of training. If there was any doubt that Lavoie wouldn’t be putting his best into an offseason of improvement, we can all appreciate how this alone might change the equation.
The second thing that stands out, and the more pertinent observation from a fan perspective is that this might make the Oilers cap situation that much tighter. The Oilers will likely be filled to the brim of the NHL salary cap’s upper limit through the 2023-24 season, a reality in which every cap dollar matters. With a cap hit roughly $100,000 over the league minimum, and an NHL roster spot that is anything but assured, Lavoie will have to be that much better for the Oilers to carry him on the NHL roster.
The compromise here is clear, and tells us a little bit about each side and their respective projections on the season ahead. Crassly, the Oilers have deemed the cap hit above league minimum as worth the cost for a motivated Lavoie, insurance. Meanwhile, Lavoie has clearly announced his intentions to earn an NHL spot out of camp, betting on himself with a boom-or-bust two-way deal.
With a lower cap hit than he likely deserves, this offers Lavoie a greater chance to make the team out of camp. If it came down to two players, one with a $950K or $1M cap hit, Lavoie’s choice to sign a lesser deal with lesser pay should break the tie. He’s betting on himself and sacrificing money he could have easily made for a chance to skate with the big boys next season.
Let’s go Lavoie
As fans, we should be encouraged by Lavoie’s brashness. Optimistically, the year and a half of mediocre AHL production is really the only blemish on Lavoie’s otherwise sterling developmental path. Lavoie is clearly confident that this dry stretch was the anomaly, and we can see the reasoning here as Lavoie has excelled in the QMJHL, the Allsvenskan, and eventually the AHL since being drafted by the Oilers in the 2nd round of the 2019 NHL Entry Draft.
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