Iginla Extension

The Calgary Flames do not have to sign Jarome Iginla to an extension this summer. He still has 1 year remaining on his contract at $7M. Of course, that doesn't mean they won't.

Flames ownership and management seems steadfast in their support for Jarome, and you have to think they envision him finishing his career in Calgary. What better way to squash all the rumor-mongering involving an Iginla trade than to sign him to an extension? As of July 1st, they can do just that. And I think they will. So what kind of term & money would be reasonable?

After this weekends All-Star festivities, one name comes to mind from a comparable situation - Daniel Alfredsson. Alfie's current contract - a four year deal worth $19.5M ($4.875M cap hit), with a NMC - kicked in at age 37. His contract paid $7M in each of the first two seasons, $4.5M this season, and then $1M  next season.

Iggy will be 35 on July 1st, and has one year left at $7M, making him 36 when his current deal expires. And given that Mike Cammalleri will still be making $7M the season after Jarome's deal expires, I think its safe to assume Jarome will also make $7M that year. Also, Alex Tanguay has four years left on his deal, one it seems Jarome was instrumental in convincing Flames management to sign. So a 3 year extension for Jarome seems to make some sense... at least when you consider where ownership's state of mind is (WIN NOW!). Of course, signing any player that is 35+ to a multi-year deal, a full year before his current deal expires, demonstrates a wee bit of questionable judgement, but that's neither here nor there (you can throw the rulebook out when it comes to franchise players finishing their career in one jersey, right Sens?).

So if we decide on a three-year extension, what kind of cap hit are we talking? Using Alfie's contract as a guideline, would a 3-year extension paying $7M, $4M & $4M  ($5M cap hit) respectively make sense to either side? Does it make sense to you?