Robert Luongo

 

 

 

ove him or hate him, Roberto Luongo
is here to stay.

That was the news out of Canucks
GM Mike Gillis’ office when he announced
that the superstar goalie had agreed to play
basically the rest of his career in Vancouver
by signing a mammoth 12-year, $64 million
contract that runs through 2022-23 and will
see him remain in a Vancouver jersey until
he is 43 years old, assuming he doesn’t retire
before the life of the deal is concluded.

Luongo, 30, has one year remaining on
his current pact with the team that will pay
him $7.5 million for the upcoming season, so
the new deal won’t kick in until 2010-11. Long
term, front loaded contracts have become the
trend of late, and Luongo’s deal is no different.
He will make $10 million next season but the
annual salary cap hit over the course of the
contract is just $5.333 million.

Now, I’ve made no secret that I am far
from a Luongo fan, but any logical person had
to admit that $5.333 million is a ridiculously
low number for a player of Luongo’s calibre.
For a Vezina Trophy finalist, the potential
starter for Team Canada at the 2010 Olympics
and beyond and a goaltender that is widely

The Luongo deal is good for the Canucks

accepted as one of the three best on the planet,
you can’t ask for anything better.

The cap hit gets even sweeter when you
compare it to what other players are making.
Both the Sedin twins cap numbers are higher
and when matched up with other goaltenders
around the league, Luongo’s cap hit checks in
at eighth in the NHL. When you’ve locked in a
player like Luongo for less than what Nicklas
Backstrom, J.S. Gigure and Cristobal Huet are
making, you know you’re in good shape.

The best part about this deal though is
the relief factor. After tumultuous previous
two seasons, filled with hints and comments
from Luongo questioning his future with the
Canucks, it’s an unquestionable weight-off-
the-shoulders moment for the team and its
fans. On the open market a goalie like Luongo
could command virtually whatever he wanted,
so to get him for what we did is a relative
steal.

This means that Vancouver’s highest paid
player now makes $6.1 million against the cap,
which is a very comfortable number to work
with. In the future, this gives Gillis room to
go out and acquire that star player who can
put the club over the top. It allows the team

 

~

Garth

McLennan
sports editor

 
  
 

|

to resign Ryan Kesler, who is a UFA after this
season, to a long-term contract.

Finally though, it’s a measure of the
type of team that is beginning to formulate
in Vancouver. Luongo has had some less-
than-stellar moments during his tenure with
the Canucks but this was a classy move by
a player who has clearly set winning as his
number one priority. When you also consider
that Alex Burrows left millions on the table
to re-sign here for the next four years and that
the Sedins are committed for the foreseeable
future, the Canucks now have an undisputed
core for the first time in years. That is the
secret to success that the Detroit Red Wings
have been adhering to for years now; convince
your key players to sign for less in the hopes
of winning a Stanley Cup and attracting other
big name stars.

The only piece left to sign on for the long
haul is Kesler, who was Vancouver’s team
MVP last season, but from everything he’s
said over the past few months he seems keen
to accept less for the good of the team.

Finally, things are really looking up for
the Vancouver Canucks.

 

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