Dave Campbell, Associated Press
The Minnesota Wild signed star left wing Kirill Kaprizov to an eight-year, $136 million extension on Tuesday, giving him the richest contract in NHL history.
Kaprizov will count $17 million against the salary cap beginning next season. It’s the highest annual average salary of any player since the league’s cap era began in 2005, surpassing Edmonton’s Leon Draisaitl at $112 million over eight years ($14 million annual average). Alex Ovechkin’s 13-year, $124 million contract signed with Washington in 2008 was previously the highest total value.
Kaprizov’s contract sets a new bar at one of the most intriguing times in hockey. The best player in the world, Connor McDavid, is entering the final year of his contract with Edmonton and could become an unrestricted free agent on July 1. Jack Eichel and Artemi Panarin are also pending unrestricted free agents.
Kaprizov will play this season on the final year of a five-year, $45 million deal he signed in September 2021, when he started that contract by tallying 47 goals and 61 assists in 81 games in the 2021-22 season, all career highs.
Kaprizov won the Calder Trophy with 27 goals and 24 assists in 55 games in the pandemic-shortened 2020-21 season and has been the Wild’s most productive and dynamic player ever since. He received 99 of 100 first-place votes as the league’s top rookie, becoming the first Wild player to win the award.
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