These Players Are The Best Value In The NHL

A few weeks ago, we took a look at some of the worst-valued contracts in the NHL, and now today, we will do the opposite and look at some of the players that are giving the best value to their team in terms of performance compared to cap hit. For this, we will not utilize any players currently playing under an entry-level contract. We will only consider players playing under an agreement signed after their ELC has expired.

We begin in New Jersey with forward Stefan Noesen, who played last season under the first year of a three-year $8.25MM contract he signed as a free agent last summer. The 32-year-old journeyman did not have a perfect first year in his return to the Devils, but he did post over 20 goals for the first time in his career and was highly effective on the power play. His even-strength numbers were also good, and he set a career-high in hits with 152. Noesen played more than he ever has in an NHL jersey and was probably asked to do too much sometimes, leading to incredibly high turnover numbers (73 turnovers in 78 games). Overall, it’s not a bad return for a player making just $2.75MM per season.

Sticking in the Metropolitan Division, we move to Washington center Dylan Strome, who just completed a career year with 29 goals and 53 assists in 82 games. The 28-year-old was non-tendered by the Chicago Blackhawks in the summer of 2022, a move that has been a disaster for Chicago, given that the 2015 third-overall pick has developed into a top-six scoring center. Washington was happy to scoop up Strome on a one-year deal for $3.5MM, then extended him a short time later to a five-year, $25MM contract.

In the first two years of that deal, Strome has not missed a game and has averaged 28 goals and 46 assists while playing 17:40, which is not bad for $5MM annually. With three years left on that deal, it’s not impossible to imagine Strome replicating his production in the future, and there is an outside chance he will find another gear. Washington has Strome locked in for three more years and should be able to extract more value from him going forward.

Next up is defenseman Jaccob Slavin of the Carolina Hurricanes. Slavin’s game is somewhat unheralded, given that he is one of the top defensive defensemen in the NHL. Slavin was extended last July and will go into the first year of that eight-year deal in the fall. The contract is heavily loaded with signing bonuses, and the 31-year-old will carry an AAV of $6.395MM.

As good as Slavin has been defensively, his deal has a risk if the aging curve is not kind to him, which often isn’t with more defensively minded players. However, for at least next year, he will be underpaid for his elite work in Carolina’s defensive zone, and it should be a while before his game starts to slip dramatically.

Switching over to the Western Conference, Winnipeg Jets defenseman Josh Morrissey’s contract has been of incredible value to the team. The 30-year-old just completed his fifth year of the deal, and he has been unbelievable for Winnipeg, particularly in the past three years, where he has averaged over 24 minutes of ice time per game and has garnered Norris Trophy consideration every year.

Morrissey is making just $6.25MM against the cap, and with three years left on the contract, he will likely finish his deal just as his age begins to affect his production. He has remained a solid two-way defenseman who found another level offensively; that said, his offensive production has fallen a bit in the past two seasons, but he still produces points at a much higher level than when he initially signed his eight-year extension. The contract is a steal.

Next, we begin to get into some of the more obvious candidates, and it starts with Cale Makar, who just posted a career year offensively with 30 goals and 62 assists in 80 games. Aside from being elite offensively, Makar has developed a sneaky defensive side to a game that relies on his terrific skating and positional awareness. Makar is making $9MM annually for another two seasons and will be eligible for an extension next summer. Until he signs a new deal, Makar should continue to comfortably outperform his contract, which is saying something for someone making the kind of money he is.

Remaining in the West, we look at the best player in the world. Connor McDavid was once the highest-paid player in the NHL, but will enter next season possibly as low as fifth. That shouldn’t last long, though, as McDavid is eligible to sign an extension this summer and will most likely be the top-paid player in the game again in 2026-27 when his new deal kicks in. McDavid will carry a $12.5MM cap hit into next season and should considerably outperform it, given that he has posted 100 points in every season except for his rookie season (in which he was injured for nearly half of it) and the 2019-20 season (which was shortened due to the pandemic).

McDavid remains the best in the world, and if he indeed signs in Edmonton, he will top Leon Draisaitl’s $14MM AAV. McDavid has stated publicly that his first desire is to win, which, if true, means he will likely leave money on the table. However, if it does go for a significant number, it’s not impossible to imagine him getting close to the $20MM annual figure.

Moving back to the Eastern Conference and Tampa Bay Lightning winger Nikita Kucherov. The soon-to-be 32-year-old has registered three straight 100-point seasons and has picked up plenty of hardware along the way, including back-to-back Art Ross Trophies in the last two years. Kucherov has two years left on his contract with a cap hit of $9.5MM and should have plenty of good production left in him as he moves into his mid-30s. Kucherov’s eight-year $76MM contract has been a massive steal for Tampa Bay as Kucherov has done nothing but win cups and pick-up awards during this run.

Next, we have a pair of Hughes brothers, defenseman Quinn Hughes and forward Jack Hughes. Quinn is entering the second-to-last season of his contract, and at $ 7.85MM, he has been a massive bargain for the Vancouver Canucks. Quinn will hit free agency at 27 years old and should finally get a contract much closer to the value he is producing on the ice. In the meantime, Vancouver should continue to see incredible value from last year’s Norris Trophy winner for top defenseman in the NHL.

Vancouver could face an issue in talking extension with Hughes because he has expressed an interest in playing with his brothers, who are both currently in New Jersey. That takes us to Devils forward Jack, who, like his brother Quinn, has been outplaying his contract for quite some time. Jack has five years left on his contract and is making a tick more at $8MM annually, which should remain an excellent value for the Devils until he is a restricted free agent in 2030. Some might argue that Jack misses too many games, and it’s a fair point to bring up, but given the production on the ice the past three seasons, it’s fair to see that it is one of the best values in the NHL.

Finally, we wrap up with the most outstanding value ever in the NHL: Pittsburgh Penguins forward Sidney Crosby. Despite being the best player in the world for most of his 20-year run in the NHL, Crosby has never carried a cap hit higher than $8.7MM and just re-signed last fall on a two-year deal for the same number. Crosby might be turning 38 in a few months, but at this point in his career, he remains one of the most valuable in the NHL and should continue to put up points for the Penguins even if they stay in a rebuild for the entirety of his two-year deal.

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