Did Robin Lehner’s Deal Just Shake Up the NHL Goalie Market?

What happens when a No. 1 goaltender signs for less than he likely could have gotten on the open market as a free agent? Well, that depends on the perspective from which you look at the question. In the case of the Vegas Golden Knights, it’s great to know you’ve locked in top-level netminder Robin Lehner for five years at a reasonable number. All the Golden Knights have to do now is move Marc-Andre Fleury’s salary. For the rest of the league and the goaltenders looking for work in it?.. that’s a different story.

Related: Golden Knights Sign G Lehner to 5-Yr Extension

After Lehner inked a new five-year extension with the Vegas Golden Knights on Saturday for $5 million per season, there was some immediate chatter that his deal is great for the Golden Knights but not so great for other goaltenders. $5 million is under market value for a goalie of his caliber and now, free agent backstops like Jacob Markstrom, Corey Crawford and others will be taking notice.

In just one example of the sentiments that might be making the rounds this weekend among the NHL goaltending community, Sean Shapiro of The Athletic writes: “Lehner could have gotten more IMO. Other goalies on market hurt a bit by that AAV.” Some are suggesting Lehner’s deal provides evidence this is certainly a buyer’s market on the goaltending front, even if Lehner’s deal was team-friendly because of the situation.

As the days unfold here and goalies come off the board, we’ll get a good read as to whether or not Lehner just cost a lot of people a lot of money.

Did Lehner Just Set the Market?

Big-ticket free agents have a tendency to set the market for other free agents who follow. Every GM looking for a goaltender in an uncertain economic flat-cap NHL will be saying, ‘You want how much? Sorry, look what Lehner just signed for!’

And, they’ll have a point since contracts often work on comparables.

For instance, Matthew Sekeres of TSN 1040 noted that he believes Lehner’s deal is now the baseline for a Jacob Markstrom’s new deal and while the Canucks might be happy to get Markstrom in at $5 million. His source notes Markstrom wants more term and “that may well suit the Canucks, who need to keep the AAV down for EP40, Hughes extensions next summer, and perhaps an OE-L acquisition.”

As for what it means for the Golden Knights organization, one has to wonder if the Golden Knights just made trading Marc-Andre Fleury even more difficult for themselves. Lehner looks like a steal compared to Fleury when it comes to salary and if his $7 million salary didn’t already look like too much money for teams to take on before, it certainly does now.

Even more interesting, David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period notes the team isn’t close to sending him elsewhere because they’re not keen on retaining any of his $7 million cap hit.

Next: Taylor Hall Open to Short-Term Deals in NHL Free Agency