After a long negotiating period, the Los Angeles Kings have finally reached an agreement with Adrian Kempe on a contract extension, and it's a savvy deal from the desk of Ken Holland.
It was reported Sunday that the 29-year-old Kempe was signed to an eight-year, $85 million extension that carries a $10.625 million AAV. That's nearly double his current contract, which he signed ahead of the 2022-23 season and is worth $5.5 million per year. The new deal will take effect in 2026-27 and run through the 2033-34 NHL campaign, when Kempe is 37.
Prior to putting pen to paper, the two sides were reportedly around $2 million apart when it came to agreeing on an annual salary. The Athletic reported that Holland was hoping for an AAV closer to $9.5 million, whereas Kempe's camp was looking for a figure closer to $11.5 million per year. The actual extension strikes almost a perfect balance between those, which makes it feel like a reasonable and good value deal.
It's worth noting that some projections had Kempe earning less than the $10.625 million figure he is going to be collecting starting next season. AFP Analytics, a sports consulting firm that specializes in evaluating contract value, had predicted that Kempe's extension was more likely to be a seven-year deal with an annual average of $9.175 million, which is lower than even Holland was supposedly bargaining for.
With the cap rising steadily, though, it's no surprise that Kempe would fetch slightly above the projection especially considering that the actual contract has one additional year over what AFP Analytics expected.
Kempe, a three-time 30-goal scorer, has had back-to-back seasons with over 70 points including a career-high 75 in the 2023-24 season. He's led the Kings in scoring for each of the last two campaigns and currently ranks first on the team with 19 points in as many games. Kempe's offense is only continuing to flourish year after year, so giving him 10.2% of the team's total salary cap seems to be spot on for what he's worth.
How does Kempe's contract compare to other NHL stars?
When taking the general landscape of NHL contracts into consideration, Kempe stacks up towards the top of the league's highest-paid players. Taking a look at the NHL's largest contracts for the 2026-27 season, Kempe ranks 18th in the league, sandwiched between teammate Drew Doughty and Sabres D-man Rasmus Dahlin's $11 million cap hit on the higher end, and Stars defenseman Thomas Harley's $10.587 million AAV on the lower side.
The next closest forwards to Kempe's new salary are Jonathan Huberdeau of the Calgary Flames, coming in with a cap hit of $10.5 million, and Boston Bruins superstar David Pastrnak at $11 million annually.
Despite all three of those forwards' contracts being separated by just half a million dollars, there is actually quite a broad spectrum when it comes to the value of each deal. Pastrnak, for example, is on a bargain of a deal based on the fact that he has recorded three straight seasons with over 100 points. That can certainly be ranked as one of the smartest contracts in the league, considering that he is the fifth highest-scoring player since the 2022-23 season and earns less than guys like Auston Matthews and William Nylander, who each rank below Pastrnak in terms of points over that time span.
On the other end, Huberdeau's deal is unfortunately considered among the worst in the league right now. In the past three years since signing the deal to remain in Calgary, he has cracked the 60 point mark just once, despite appearing in 79 or more games in each of those campaigns. The Flames seem to have jumped the gun by giving him $10.5 million each year and he has yet to live up to his paycheck.
So where does Kempe fall on the value scale, compared to those other similar contracts? Just like the actual dollar amount, the value on Kempe's extension seems to be a perfect compromise for both sides. It gives him a salary that he has earned as the guy leading the charge offensively for Los Angeles, but it will also retain its value and only get more reasonable as the salary cap continues to grow over the duration of his contract.