Two days after signing Lucas Raymond to an eight-year contract, Steve Yzerman and the Detroit Red Wings still need to find an agreement with stalwart 23-year-old defenseman Moritz Seider on a new deal.
Per new reporting from Chris Johnston of TSN, the Red Wings may not be to match the eight-year term of Raymond's deal with Seider, suggesting that Seider's new contract will likely wind up at six to seven years with an average annual value of roughly $8.5 million
Earlier this week came a suggestion that Detroit would like Seider's deal to come in under the AAV of captain Dylan Larkin's ($8.7 million). After signing Raymond, Detroit has just north of that remaining against the salary cap. With that context, Johnston's report passes the smell test, and it would make some measure of sense that Seider and Yzerman could compromise on AAV by agreeing to a slightly lesser term than either side might have hoped. While the eight-year term of Raymond's contract is certainly ideal, a six or seven-year extension would still very much be long-term, which is ultimately what the Red Wings want.
For now, all there is to do is wait, and it's worth noting that neither Raymond's new deal, nor Jonatan Berggren's was broken by an insider. Both were announced by the Red Wings themselves via press releases on the team's social media channels.
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