Carolina Hurricanes: What’s next after the Sebastian Aho offer sheet?

The Carolina Hurricanes got blindsided by the Montreal Canadiens tossing an offer sheet at star center Sebastian Aho. What’s next for both parties?

Offer sheets are about as common as unicorns in the NHL. It figures the first one in six years has been used on the NHL’s equivalent of a unicorn – Carolina Hurricanes center Sebastian Aho. The Montreal Canadiens, armed with cap space and prospects, did the unthinkable by signing the RFA center to an offer sheet for five years and $42.27 million ($8.454 million), which Aho signed.

Aho was the perfect offer sheet target. He’s coming off a breakout season, during which he averaged over a point per game. Aho was underrated before last season. But the Canadiens offer sheet proves that is no longer true. Teams now realize how terrific Aho is.

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No one can blame the Canadiens here. Offer sheets are completely legal, even if they are rarely used. You could argue they should be used more because, other than drafting and trades, they’re the only way you can get stars during their best years.

Currently, the ball is in the Hurricanes court, for better or for worse. They alone will decide whether or not Aho remains in Carolina. This is far from an optimal situation, but it’s still a pretty good one for the Hurricanes.

If they elect not to match it, they will receive a first-round pick, second-round pick, and third-round pick in 2020. They will be the Canadiens’ own picks.

However, the Hurricanes will most likely match it. They wouldn’t have allowed their social media person to troll the Canadiens on Twitter if they weren’t going to match it. The Hurricanes got a nice bit of money thanks to their postseason run. Seven home games during the Stanley Cup Playoffs is good for business.

Don’t expect them to accept it right away. They have a week to think things over. And, considering the Canadiens just fired the first shot.  the Hurricanes probably don’t want to play nice with them. Making them wait is a petty thing to do, but if a team tries to handcuff you, why not give them a taste of their own medicine?

The best thing about the offer sheet is it gives the groundwork for Aho’s next contract. Montreal might have just saved Carolina the very lengthy process of negotiating an extension. $8.454 million is a steal for someone like Aho, whose best years are ahead of him.

It is, however, not completely optimal. Because it’s a five-year deal, Aho can only stay in Carolina for the next five years. The Hurricanes would have preferred to keep him around long-term, ideally for eight years.

Another interesting thing about the contract is how it is structured. Every detail about the offer sheet has to be matched. The Canadiens got creative in structuring the deal. Most of the contract is allocated to signing bonuses, which are due to players on July 1. There’s also a bit of a poison pill – Aho must be paid $21.7 million in under 12 months.

That’s an expensive price. But it’s one majority owner Thomas Dundon can easily afford. His net worth in 2015 was listed at $1.1 billion. It’s hard to imagine that has gone down much. If anything, it has likely increased.

Dundon paid over $400 million for the Hurricanes. He’s a businessman. Dundon understands how vital and critical keeping Aho around is, even if it means having to pay him out of his own pocket. Losing him would be far worse than any financial gain that would come from not having to pay him $21.7 million in 12 months.

Keep in mind the Hurricanes were willing to bite the bullet and buyout Patrick Marleau’s contract. Yes, the Toronto Maple Leafs needed to be incentivized to do it with a first-round pick. But money is not an issue for Dundon and their ownership group.

It is a bit troubling Aho was willing to sign the offer sheet. At the very least, that means he wouldn’t particularly mind playing for the Canadiens, and leaving the Hurricanes wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world for him.

However, the ball is in Carolina’s court right now, not Aho’s. The Hurricanes are the ones who decide where he will play for the next five years – Carolina or Montreal. Expect it to be the former because the Hurricanes can’t afford to not afford their star center.