A very concerning statement has been issued by Cole Caufield regarding his upcoming contract, and it is very worrying

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Elias Adaime
April 26, 2023 (9:12)

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As you know, despite our anticipation that this issue would have been resolved at this point, the signing of Cole Caufield remains the primary concern for the Montreal Canadiens. Caufield will become a restricted free agent this summer, and it is now urgent for Kent Hughes and Jeff Gorton to find a solution.

Some observers suggest that the negotiation process is not progressing as quickly as desired, and that the young player's comments are not particularly reassuring.

On our side, we are not very concerned at the moment, but it's up to you to judge. It is true that if the situation were simple and easy, it would have been resolved a while ago.

In other words, according to journalist Eric Engels, Caufield will be asking for a higher salary than Nick Suzuki on a long-term contract. Caufield recently stated that even though he thinks about the team, he takes into account many factors such as his family and his life in general. (see end of article)

The journalist interprets this as a sign that the number 22 player does not intend to sacrifice millions of dollars to sign a long-term contract with the Canadiens.

I believe it is reasonable to assume, based on everything Caufield has said, that he has no intention of leaving millions on the table to sign long-term with the Canadiens. This only reinforces the idea that Kent Hughes would be able to turn water into wine if he can convince him to accept a smaller contract than Nick Suzuki's or even a contract similar to that of Matt Boldy.

Furthermore, Caufield is represented by Pat Brisson, considered the top agent in the NHL.

Unfortunately, it seems unlikely that he will make concessions for Kent Hughes, and everything suggests that if Caufield signs a long-term contract, he will demand a salary of more than eight million dollars per season.

Otherwise, there could be the possibility of a short-term contract to save money in the short term, but this could have negative consequences in the long run.

We will have to follow the development of this matter.

To return to Caufield's original statement reported by Marco Normandin:

Obviously, you think about the idea of accepting a lower salary to help the team. But at the end of the day, this is about you. You try to put the team first but in the long run, many factors come into play, like family and life in general.

- Cole Caufield

This example is representative, but there are others like it. It's important to highlight that we fully understand Caufield's position, and we would probably do the same thing if we were in his shoes.

Credit: HABSolument Fan and via Rumeursdetransaction.com

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