In December 2009, both Toews and Kane signed five year deals worth $31.5 million, for an annual cap hit of $6.3 million.  Interesting article at Madhouse Enforcer arguing that Kane and Toews Cost Too Much.

Citing Ryan Getzlaf's contract which carries a cap hit of 5.33, the author asks, "Imagine if both Johnny and Kaner's cap hit was 5.3. That's another $1.6 million in cap space the Hawks would have had (actually its more like $2.0 million). That's a huge difference, and at least would have kept Andrew Ladd in Chicago, the player they miss most from last year."

Which got me thinking about what will happen when it is time to re-sign Crosby and Malkin, et al.

Focusing on forwards, here are the cap hits of some other top caliber players in the NHL:

• DBrown - 3.18
• Lucic - 4.08
• Eriksson - 4.27
• Backes - 4.50
• Kesler - 5.00
• Plekanec - 5.00
• Getzlaf - 5.33
• Perry - 5.33
• St. Louis - 5.63
• HSedin - 6.10
• DSedin - 6.10
• Toews - 6.30
• PKane - 6.30
• Datsyuk - 6.70
• Semin - 6.70
• NBackstrom - 6.70
• MKoivu - 6.75
• Kopitar - 6.80
• Spezza - 7.00
• JThornton - 7.00
• Iginla - 7.00
• Gaborik - 7.50
• RNash - 7.80
• BRichards - 7.80
• EStaal - 8.25
• Ovechkin - 9.54

Some of these contracts seem like bargains -- not only Getzlaf, but also Kesler, Backes, DBrown, the Sedin twins, Perry! and a few others.  Some of these contracts seem pretty bad -- Spezza and Semin, especially.

I did not include "cap circumvention" deals like the really long-term contracts that Kovalchuk, Zetterberg, Hossa, and MRichards signed as that strategy appears to no longer be an option.

In any event, did Chicago overpay for Toews and/or Kane?

What about the Penguins? Crosby is worth the max, but what about the other top forwards:  JStaal, Malkin, Kunitz, and Neal?  What are their comparables?