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  4. title => "Some clarification on why Bruins may opt for ATO with Charlie McAvoy rather than playing him in the NHL"
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  6. article_body => "<p>The second BU\u2019s season ended, Bruins fans were champing (it\u2019s champing, not chomping; look it up) at the bit to get sophomore defenseman Charlie McAvoy to the NHL.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>So <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/TSNBobMcKenzie\/status\/846758348808687616\" target=\"_blank\">when word emerged from Bob McKenzie that it\u2019s looking like McAvoy will join Providence on an amateur tryout<\/a>, eyes rolled. Why not sign McAvoy to his three-year entry level contract, have him stay in Boston and get some NHL experience. After all, we hear over and over that as long as you don\u2019t play 10 NHL games, a year doesn\u2019t get burned.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>The answer is because that 10-game thing doesn\u2019t apply to everyone. It applies when talking about teenagers who are coming from the CHL, which is when the issue most commonly pops up, a la Tyler Seguin in 2010-11.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Yet much like it didn\u2019t apply to Torey Krug when he signed with the Bruins in 2012, it doesn\u2019t apply to McAvoy now. The reason some kids can play nine games and then go away without a year being burned is because their contract slides. Players who are 18 or 19 years old as of Sept. 15 of their signing year see their deal moved back a year as long as they don\u2019t play 10 NHL games, including the playoffs.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>For players who are 19 as of Sept. 15 of the <em>year<\/em>&nbsp;they sign (not season) and turn 20 between Sept. 16 and Dec. 31, their contract does not slide. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.capfriendly.com\/faq#els\" target=\"_blank\">This is all explained neatly here.<\/a>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><strong>If you\u2019ve fallen asleep by this point, wake up right quick<\/strong>. McAvoy is 19 and will turn 20 on Dec. 21. That means that if McAvoy and signs and plays an NHL game this season, one year will be burned off his entry-level deal, making him up for a new deal after the 2018-19 season rather than the 2019-20 season. Same goes for Jakob Forsbacka-Karlsson, who already is 20.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>The Bruins actually used this drawback to their advantage when they signed Krug. The B\u2019s let the 20-year-old Krug play in an NHL game after he signed, which got him to restricted free agency a year earlier. The promise to play him and burn that year was likely a reason Krug chose to sign with the B\u2019s as an undrafted free agent.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>So for now, yes, an ATO is the safe play for the Bruins if they want to maximize the value of McAvoy\u2019s entry level deal. His NHL career might have to wait until the fall.&nbsp;<br>&nbsp;<\/p>\n"
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Bruins

Bruins

The second BU’s season ended, Bruins fans were champing (it’s champing, not chomping; look it up) at the bit to get sophomore defenseman Charlie McAvoy to the NHL. 

So when word emerged from Bob McKenzie that it’s looking like McAvoy will join Providence on an amateur tryout, eyes rolled. Why not sign McAvoy to his three-year entry level contract, have him stay in Boston and get some NHL experience. After all, we hear over and over that as long as you don’t play 10 NHL games, a year doesn’t get burned. 

The answer is because that 10-game thing doesn’t apply to everyone. It applies when talking about teenagers who are coming from the CHL, which is when the issue most commonly pops up, a la Tyler Seguin in 2010-11. 

Yet much like it didn’t apply to Torey Krug when he signed with the Bruins in 2012, it doesn’t apply to McAvoy now. The reason some kids can play nine games and then go away without a year being burned is because their contract slides. Players who are 18 or 19 years old as of Sept. 15 of their signing year see their deal moved back a year as long as they don’t play 10 NHL games, including the playoffs. 

For players who are 19 as of Sept. 15 of the year they sign (not season) and turn 20 between Sept. 16 and Dec. 31, their contract does not slide. This is all explained neatly here. 

 

If you’ve fallen asleep by this point, wake up right quick. McAvoy is 19 and will turn 20 on Dec. 21. That means that if McAvoy and signs and plays an NHL game this season, one year will be burned off his entry-level deal, making him up for a new deal after the 2018-19 season rather than the 2019-20 season. Same goes for Jakob Forsbacka-Karlsson, who already is 20. 

The Bruins actually used this drawback to their advantage when they signed Krug. The B’s let the 20-year-old Krug play in an NHL game after he signed, which got him to restricted free agency a year earlier. The promise to play him and burn that year was likely a reason Krug chose to sign with the B’s as an undrafted free agent. 

So for now, yes, an ATO is the safe play for the Bruins if they want to maximize the value of McAvoy’s entry level deal. His NHL career might have to wait until the fall.