Ever since Taylor Hall and Tyler Seguin were taken with the first two overall picks in the 2010 NHL Entry Draft, their careers have been compared side-by-side. This will be apparent now more than ever, as the two enter the final years of their respective deals. Luckily for Seguin, he just signed an 8-year extension worth roughly 78-million dollars (9,850,000 AAV), which will be in effect after this season. This deal will make him the highest paid Dallas Star, just ahead of Jamie Benn’s $9.5 million AAV. The new deal for Dallas’ elite forward may not only be a great benchmark for predicting the reigning MVP’s new deal but may also have a tremendous effect on it.

The Comparison

As mentioned above, both Hall and Seguin were taken #1 and #2 in the draft eight years ago. And rightfully so, as they both are the top two point producers from that draft. With over 529 games played, Hall is averaging 0.89 points per game and slightly less than 20 minutes per game. Through 590 games played, Seguin is averaging 0.86 points per game while playing about 18:00 minutes per game. As you can see Hall has the slight advantage in regard to traditional statistics. However, as you know they may not always tell the full story.

When looking at these star wingers advanced statistics, I examined their Corsi For (CF%) and Relative Corsi For (Rel CF%) — which measures how valuable the player is to their team — during the past three seasons. I found Seguin owns a 52.67 CF%, while Hall has a 52.13 CF%. Both of those are very similar and respectable numbers. However, Hall has proved to have more of an impact when on the ice. This is evident by Hall’s 5.93 Rel CF% in comparison to Seguin’s 1.87  Rel CF%. Along with these ratings, Hall is also the reigning MVP, which decides who is the most valuable to their team, which Hall certainly was this year.

The Contract

After closely comparing the two wingers you can see how similar their career production has been. However, a few things will ultimately factor in on making Hall slightly richer than Seguin. The fact that Hall means so much more to the Devils will definitely factor into his pay raise.

Seguin’s eight-year deal will take him to 34-years old and to certain decline after his prime. Look for the Devils to mirror Seguin’s deal identically in the length but be slightly more in salary. An 8-year extension worth just above the 10-million range for Hall looks like the answer. This will put him on a contract that is exactly equal to the likes of Ovechkin, Crosby, Eichel, and Kuznetsov in terms of average salary. Once this occurs, the Devils will have locked up the face of their franchise and reigning MVP for years to come.