Today the Boston Bruins signed both Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci to 1-year contracts. With both players returning to the Bruins it was an opportunity to bring back key members of the team that helped bring the team much success over the past decade. But with both players over the age of 35 it also meant the Bruins were able to get creative from a salary cap perspective.
The contracts signed by both Krejci and Bergeron came with performance bonuses. In Krejci's case this amount was $2,000,000 and for Bergeron $2,500,000. The only key to both players achieving this amount was games played totals.
With the Bruins already within $1,500,000 of the salary cap and needing to sign Pavel Zacha the signing bonuses on each deal were key. But those signing bonuses also signify something to the Bruins and Bruins fans alike.
If both Krejci and Bergeron hit their games played targets, which they likely will. Then the Bruins will be on the hook for $4,500,000 in performance bonuses. A bonus overage of that level will heavily impact the Bruins ability yo be competitive next season, especially with David Pastrnak and Jeremy Swayman who require new contracts.
