The Hockeycentric Top-10: Overpaid NHL Stars

Every GM in the NHL has at some point coughed up too much cash to a star player. It could be the pressure from ownership to retain homegrown talent, or to bring in one of a small handful of available game-breaking free agents. Sometimes (Bob Gainey, Glen Sather) there’s just no way to grasp the motivation behind enlarged contracts.

Amazingly, four of our ten choices are contracts that have actually changed hands via trade — another sign of General Managers and their willingness to take risks in order to better their hockey clubs, despite what financial tensions might later result. All of the following players are valued by their respective franchises, but also equally deserving of a pay decrease.

(All numbers represent cap hit in millions.)

10. Lubomir Visnovsky, Edmonton Oilers – 5.6
After posting 67 points in the transitional post-lockout year, Lubomir has been hampered by injuries and heightened expectations as a result of his contract. Still a formidable offensive defenseman and a help on the powerplay, he makes more than teammate Sheldon Souray (5.4), and Sheldon is more valuable to the Oilers.

9. Jason Spezza, Ottawa Senators – 7
The Mississauga, Ontario native put up an incredible 92 points as a 24-year-old, and still appeared to have room for growth. Spezza has unquestionably regressed since his breakout season, scoring only 73 points last year over a full 82 game schedule. Maybe it’s a result of all the time he spends giggling during post-game media scrums, or the scrutiny he faces after repeatedly turning the puck over at the opposing blueline. The good news for Ottawa is that Spezza has shown more of a willingness to play on both sides of the puck this year, so perhaps he will earn his full paycheque down the road.

8. Kimmo Timonen, Philadelphia Flyers – 6.33
Until Chris Pronger arrived in Philly this year, Timonen was the team’s top defenseman. Although the Flyers were one of the dominant Eastern Conference teams last year, they lacked the presence of a true #1 d-man — which Pronger is, and a role which Timonen was unfortunately asked to play for two seasons. He is finally playing the support role which he is best suited for, but it’s problematic that his cap hit will be 2.4 million more than Pronger’s starting next year.

7. Daniel Briere, Philadelphia Flyers – 6.5
Back-to-back Flyers! When Briere signed this deal, he was supposed to fit into Philly’s cap structure as the #1 centreman. Much to Paul Holmgren’s surprise, a couple of young chaps named Richards and Carter decided to have breakout seasons months after the signing of Briere. Injury troubles have prevented Danny from fully taking flight in Philadelphia, but it’s safe to predict he’ll never again match or surpass the 95 points he scored in his contract year.

6. Eric Staal, Carolina Hurricanes – 8.25
The eldest Staal was money in the 2009 playoffs, showing off his clutch goal-scoring ability on more than one occasion. Is Eric a top line talent? Absolutely. Can you build an offense around him? You bet. Is he worth 8.25 million? No chance. There is more than a 450 thousand dollar talent gap between Staal and Pittsburgh’s powerhouse Crosby/Malkin duo. Staal’s cap hit is the 4th highest among National Hockey League forwards, whereas his talent would put him in the 20-30 range among league elites.

5. Vincent Lecavalier, Tampa Bay Lightning – 7.7
More disturbing than the cap hit on Vinny’s contract is the term. Locked up for another 11 years, the Lightning are counting on the former 50-goal man to once again be a consistent goal scorer. At the very least, they should hope he overtakes Steven Stamkos as the team’s #1 centre.

4. Brian Campbell, Chicago Blackhawks – 7.14
Find someone who knows nothing about hockey and ask them to watch one period of a Chicago Blackhawks game. Then, ask them which Hawk stood out the most, and you’ll find that at least 8 out of 10 observers will point to Brian Campbell. One of the best skaters in the NHL, Campbell’s spin-o-rama antics and masterful powerplay quarterbackery earned him a great deal of attention as a free agent in 2008. He fits in well as a Blackhawk, but the whopping contract has already given Hawks’ management some headaches. Adding to the intrigue, both Duncan Keith and Brent Seabrook are better all-around defensemen than Campbell, and both are due for raises in the very near future.

3. Chris Drury, New York Rangers – 7.05
Chris Drury is the perfect definition of a second line centreman, and that’s just the role he played in Buffalo behind Daniel Briere. Drury does all of the little things that bring a team success — taking important faceoffs, sacrificing his body, killing penalties, and chipping in on the scoresheet. Drury will comfortably score between 50-65 points each year while playing an imposing defensive game. But for 7 million? As much value as Chris brings with his intangibles, any contract in the 7-million territory should be reserved for players who score 80+ points perennially.

2. Scott Gomez, Montreal Canadiens – 7.35
Glen Sather, you’ve done it again. Most people forget that Scott Gomez is a former 33-goal scorer, but what’s more notable is that Scott’s big payday came on the heels of a 13-goal season. That’s right, 13 goals and 60 points, but the “Alaskin Assassin” put pen to paper on a deal that emphatically spelled the end of Glen Sather’s status as a sane man. And while Gomez’s contract appeared unmovable, Bob Gainey came along in the summer of 2009 with a more severe case of the crazies, surrendering his top defensive prospect (Ryan McDonagh) and the disgruntled Chris Higgins in exchange for Gomez.

1. Brad Richards, Dallas Stars – 7.8
In the spring of 2006, a then-26-year-old Richards cashed in at the expense of Cup-drunk management, and equally because of the newly implemented salary cap system, which GMs (needless to say) hadn’t quite grasped. (Well, evidently they still haven’t…) Upon signing the deal, Richards became the NHL’s second highest paid player, behind only Jaromir Jagr. Though a very talented playmaker, Richards isn’t even in the discussion for the Canadian Olympic team, and has considerably less star power than many players with lesser salaries.

For more Hockeycentric Top-10’s, check out the ever-growing archive here.

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