Charlie McAvoy has the play-off upper-hand
In the past two playoffs, the story would repeat with McAvoy having better stats at even-strength, while Werenski adds a ton to his numbers on the power play. Both players are ice-time giants; in the 2019 Stanley Cup Playoffs, Charlie McAvoy averaged 24:30 of the ice-time per game, while Werenski reached 26:37 of the time on the ice per contest.
Looking to other statistics; in the 2018-19 regular season, McAvoy had 91 blocks and 92 hits, while Werenski has marked 89 blocks and 67 hits. Keep in mind that Werenski didn’t miss a game, while McAvoy has missed 28 total meetings – safe to say that McAvoy is the more physical of the two.
To sum this up, McAvoy has better overall stats, mainly at the even-strength. However, Werenski has put more points on the board and he eats up more of his team’s ice-time. Besides, he has never been seriously injured and has played one year longer in the NHL than Charlie McAvoy. It’s almost as if McAvoy is clearly a better overall defenseman, but Werenski has proven himself that little bit more.
If Werenski settles down on a three-year deal worth $5.5 million per campaign, McAvoy shouldn’t reach that but should be right below it. That would be excellent news for the Boston Bruins and their short-term salary-cap crunch.
Notwithstanding, from a long-term standpoint, locking McAvoy to a long seven-year deal would be the best option. But as per source in Columbus, that’s also a preference of Zach Werenski, which is probably not happening.
However, it would be very interesting if both Werenski and McAvoy signed a same three-year deal, Werenski would take $5.5 million per year and McAvoy something less, let’s guess, $5 million per season deal. The comparison made in 2022 would look intriguing for sure.