What Does A Drake Batherson Contract Extension Actually Look Like?

Drake Batherson enters the offensive zone during the Senators' 2-1 Game 3 loss against the Carolina Hurricanes. (Credit: @Senators)

The clock is ticking for the Ottawa Senators to sign winger Drake Batherson to a contract extension.

The forward met with the media Tuesday morning during the Senators Charity Open at Rideau View Golf Club in Manotick, saying that he wants to stay in Ottawa.

“I think it'd be nice just to get it done before the season and not have that distraction when the game starts, so I'm not sure what will happen, but hopefully it gets done before then,” said Batherson.

“I want to get it done before camp,” he added.

Training camp gets underway in just one week. But perhaps more importantly, the NHL’s new Collective Bargaining Agreement also goes into effect on Sept. 15. Under the new CBA, a one-year reduction in maximum contract lengths goes into effect across the board.

This means Batherson would lose out on a potential eighth year on a new deal. He could also only sign for six-years, should he decide to test unrestricted free agency next summer.

For Steve Staios, the question is less about how many years and more about how much money.

Batherson is entering his sixth and final season of a very team-friendly contract that pays him $4.975 Million per season. This is the 28-year-old’s best opportunity to cash-in on a long-term deal with a hefty raise.

The days of the flat-cap “8x8” contracts are over, when the Senators were able to lock up cornerstone pieces Jake Sanderson (2023) and Tim Stützle (2022). If Batherson is to stay, he will almost certainly become the highest-paid player in franchise history.

But, what should that contract look like?

For starters, Batherson is coming off an elite offensive season, setting career highs with 33 goals and 71 points in 79 games.

The right winger has improved his raw point total for eight consecutive seasons, tying Vic Stasiuk for the most consecutive seasons of raw point improvement in NHL history.

Batherson is an important part of the Senators powerplay, which will undoubtedly look very different with the departure of Brady Tkachuk’s net-front presence. He also doesn’t shy away from physicality, using his large 6'3" frame to record 122 hits last season.

However, his defensive play does often leave some to be desired. To put it simply, Batherson isn’t going to generate the Selke Trophy talk that a Shane Pinto will.

Fortunately for Batherson, offensive production is often what gets you paid in this league. He’s also got two pretty close comparable players that recently signed long-term deals: Alex Tuch (WSH) and Adrian Kempe (LAK).

2025-26 Stats	Drake Batherson	Alex Tuch	Adrian Kempe
Games Played (GP)	79	79	81
Goals (G)	33	33	36
Assists (A)	38	33	37
Points (PTS)	71	66	73
Plus / Minus (+/-)	-7	+24	+14
Contract Extension		8 X $10.5M	8 X $10.625M

Purely on points, Batherson outperformed Tuch and matched Kempe (73 points) punch-for-punch over an 82-game pace. He hit the identical 33-goal mark that Tuch did, and clearly possesses the high-end finishing talent teams pay a premium dollar for.

At 28 years old, he is also younger than both Tuch and Kempe. If Batherson was to hit the open market next summer, it’s hard not to think he could fetch upwards of $12 Million on a six-year deal elsewhere.

Will something in the $10.5 Million range get it done on an eight-year deal before Tuesday’s CBA deadline? That remains to be seen.

It’s time for Batherson to decide if Ottawa is indeed the hill he will choose, and for Staios to decide if he’s worth the price tag.