Putting the Kari Lehtonen Deal into Context
Kari Lehtonen was signed to a five year deal worth $29.5M. This puts his annual cap hit at $5.9M.
To frame Lehtonen’s deal in the proper context, we’ll look at all NHL goalies with a cap hit higher than Lehtonen’s and post each goalie’s EVSV% over the past five seasons:
| Goalie | Age | EVSV% | Cap Hit (M) | Duration |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pekka Rinne | 29 | .9284 | $7.0 | 7 |
| Henrik Lundqvist | 30 | .9270 | $6.875 | 6 |
| Carey Price | 25 | .9243 | $6.5 | 6 |
| Cam Ward | 28 | .9228 | $6.3 | 6 |
| Ryan Miller | 32 | .9231 | $6.25 | 5 |
| Niklas Backstrom | 34 | .9234 | $6.0 | 4 |
| Kari Lehtonen | 28 | .9256 | $5.9 | 5 |
Of the goalies with higher cap hits than Lehtonen, only Rinne and Lundqvist boast higher EVSV% numbers than Lehtonen over the past five years. You might question this deal on the grounds of durability, but a performance-based argument seems misplaced.
*Cap hit and salary duration data sourced from: Cap Geek
UK Rob -
When he plays, Lehtonen is one of the best Goalies in the NHL, IMO. Like is mentioned, his injuries might hurt the team a bit but that shouldn’t take anything away from this deal being an absolute steal as the guy is still under 30 years old and boasts one of the best consistent SV% in the league.