Name: That was quick: Blue Jackets sign Max Domi to two-year, $10.6 million contract
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That was quick: Blue Jackets sign Max Domi to two-year, $10.6 million contract

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Oct 7, 2020COLUMBUS, Ohio — Well, that didn’t take long.One day after , the have signed their new second-line center to a two-year contract that will pay him $4.6 million in 2020-21 and $6.0 million in 2021-22. The contract carries a $5.3 million annual cap hit.Domi, 25, would have been a restricted free agent on Friday. As it stands, he can hit unrestricted free agency after the 2021-22 season.Typically, teams like to “buy” at least one season of a prominent player’s UFA years — meaning a contract length of three years minimum for Domi — but Columbus GM Jarmo Kekäläinen said the shorter-term deal allowed for a lower salary-cap hit, along with other benefits.It is not an indication, he said, that Domi wants to hit UFA status as soon as possible. Longer-term contracts were discussed, both Kekäläinen and Domi’s agent, Darren Ferris, confirmed.“A year from now, we can be back at the (negotiating) table,” Kekäläinen said. “We’ll know him better then. It makes us a little more comfortable then to go long-term if we want to do that because we’ll know him better personally, how he fits on our team.“He would have done a longer-term deal if we agreed on the dollars, but we don’t want to go big dollars until we know how he fits with our team. Now we have him for two years minimum. He does like we expect him to do with our team, we can sign into his UFA years.”A longer-term deal would have increased the salary-cap figures and it would have tethered the Blue Jackets to a long-term contract at a time when clubs are trying to remain fiscally nimble.You don’t need to look too far on the horizon to see that the Blue Jackets have some major contracts expiring in two years. Add Domi to a list that includes defensemen and , forward and goaltenders and (though it’s doubtful both goaltenders will be here that long).The NHL’s salary cap is expected to be parked at $81.5 million for at least the next couple of seasons, so financial flexibility will be enormously important.“To be fiscally responsible, the team can only do so much on term that would make sense,” Ferris told The Athletic. “We both tried to get there (a longer term), but nothing made sense for either side. Unfortunately, with a hard cap, there’s not much that could be done.“We were only going to do one year in Montreal, so adding an extra year shows Max’s commitment to the Blue Jackets. If he did a one-year and has the year I know he will have, he would be looking at a hefty raise.”Two years ago in Montreal, Domi had career highs with 28-44-72, which would rank as one of the greatest seasons ever by a Columbus center.The Blue Jackets hope he can bring a second scoring line to life and that he can provide a jolt to their chronically inept power play. If there’s a concern about Domi’s game, it’s his tendency to drift and lose focus in the defensive zone.But coach has a way of keeping a player’s attention.Domi, who was acquired along with a third-round pick for on Monday, made it clear that he didn’t have much communication with coach . Anderson, his good friend, told him what to expect with Tortorella.“Andy said he’s a great coach who says it the way it is. He’ll never play head games with you,” Domi said. “If you’re playing hard and playing good, you’ll keep going back out there. If you’re not, you’ll hear about it.“To be honest, that’s how I was raised. That’s the way my dad treated it. There were never any games or anything like that. I’ve had 12-13 guys reach out who have played for him and said, ‘You’re gonna love Torts!’ It’s going to be tough. I expect that — that’s how it should be. I’m looking forward to the challenge.”(Photo: Jana Chytilova / Freestyle Photography / Getty Images)

Oct 7, 2020COLUMBUS, Ohio — Well, that didn’t take long.One day after , the have signed their new second-line center to a two-year contract that will pay him $4.6 million in 2020-21 and $6.0 million in 2021-22. The contract carries a $5.3 million annual cap hit.Domi, 25, would have been a restricted free agent on Friday. As it stands, he can hit unrestricted free agency after the 2021-22 season.Typically, teams like to “buy” at least one season of a prominent player’s UFA years — meaning a contract length of three years minimum for Domi — but Columbus GM Jarmo Kekäläinen said the...

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Aaron Portzline

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That was quick: Blue Jackets sign Max Domi to two-year, $10.6 million contract

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