Blackhawks GM thrilled Panarin earned his big bonus
Chicago Blackhawks general manager Stan Bowman made one thing abundantly clear Wednesday morning: He is thrilled Artemi Panarin earned a $1.725 million bonus in the rookie's contract.
"There's been a lot written about that," Bowman said. "I'm very happy for Artemi. I think, first and foremost, what a performance by him to come in and do what he did as a first-year player.
"It's always sort of puzzled me why people look at that as a bad thing."
Panarin scored 30 goals and added 47 assists during a remarkable campaign that has him as the front-runner for the Calder Trophy. His immediate chemistry on the ice with Patrick Kane is a huge reason Kane put together a career year and became the first American-born player to lead the NHL in scoring.
By finishing in the top 10 among forwards, Panarin earned that bonus, which will affect the Hawks' cap next season. Bowman said he will worry about that down the road.
"You look at the impact he had on our team, we wouldn't be where we are today without his contributions," Bowman said. "I mean, we were certainly rooting for him, not against him. I think the bonuses, we'll work that out. We always find a way to make that work."
Panarin's base salary was $812,500, but he will collect about $3.4 million thanks to the two bonuses he hit. The 24-year-old Russian could have chosen any NHL team before the season began, something Bowman knew when he signed him.
"He took a chance on us," Bowman said. "He had a lot of options. I think we owed it to him to put him in the best position to succeed."
Panarin has one year remaining on his deal, and the Hawks would like to sign him to a long-term deal, which could average $6 million a year - or more.
"I'm not going to negotiate in the media, but I've got a great relationship with (agent) Tom Lynn," Bowman said. "If you've been around our team enough, you know how much he enjoys being with the group here. I think he's fit in. It's like he's been with us for a few years now. It's incredible chemistry.
"I'm not going to speak for him. I think he's enjoyed his time here and he'll want to stay, and then it's just a matter of putting the deal together. Those things tend to come together once you get into it.
"I can't speculate, but I think we've had pretty good success finding ways to get those kind of deals done."