What does McDavid’s contract look like? Connor McDavid took one step closer to making the Edmonton Oilers on Day 3 of the team’s development camp without even stepping onto the ice at Rexall Place. Wasting no time, McDavid and the Oilers agreed to terms Friday on a three-year, entry-level contract that will pay him the rookie maximum.

Frank Seravalli TSN Senior Hockey Reporter Follow|Archive

Feeling his way through his first week as an Edmonton Oiler, Connor McDavid does not like to speak in certainties.

Seemingly every sentence that trickles from his mouth is filled with a clause - the “If I make the team” or “We’ll see in October” variety. He is respectful of the process.

Coach Todd McLellan answered for McDavid on Thursday, formally putting to rest the question that already seemed to be a foregone conclusion.

“Do I expect Connor McDavid to play here in Edmonton? I do. Let’s get that clear,” McLellan told reporters. “Connor, in the back of his mind, still knows he has to go out and earn it - and he does - but based on his skillset, his past, the high expectations that have been put on him at other levels, he’s been able to attain that.

“We expect for him to push for a job and play on our hockey club.”

McDavid took one step closer to that goal on Day 3 of the Oilers’ development camp without even stepping onto the ice at Rexall Place.

Wasting no time, McDavid and the Oilers agreed to terms Friday on a three-year, entry-level contract that will pay him the rookie maximum - news that hardly comes as a surprise. No. 2 pick Jack Eichel signed a similar max deal with the Sabres on Wednesday, officially leaving Boston University and the NCAA ranks in the process.

McDavid, 18, is now $92,500 richer by virtue his signing bonus, the maximum allowed for all entry-level players. It is a figure that likely pales in comparison to the endorsement contract he’s hauled in, particularly as the new face of CCM Hockey.

Unlike the NFL, where top pick rookies sign for incredible, guaranteed sums without even stepping onto the field, entry-level deals in the NHL are strictly governed.

So, what exactly does McDavid’s deal with the Oilers look like?

We know for sure his max salary is $925,000 in the NHL, as set by the Collective Bargaining Agreement.

The exact bonus structure of his contract is likely closely guarded, but quite a few of the items are standardized league-wide. Few rookies, though, end up with the maximum performance-based bonuses like McDavid negotiated.

Including his salary, McDavid can earn a maximum of $3,775,000 next season from the Oilers if he hits all of his performance-based bonuses.

In the NHL, those entry-level performance-based bonuses are broken down into two separate categories: “A” and “B.”

McDavid can earn a maximum of $850,000 from his “A” bonuses – or nearly double his yearly salary. Each one of the following categories can pay him no more than a $212,500 bonus:

> Time on Ice - Aggregate (total): must be in Top 6 among forwards on the team, minimum of 42 games played.

> Time on Ice - Per Game: must be in Top 6 among forwards on the team, minimum of 42 games played.

> Goals: minimum of 20

> Assists: minimum of 35

> Points: minimum of 60

> Points per game: minimum of 0.73, minimum of 42 games played.

> Plus/minus: must be in Top 3 among forwards, minimum of 42 games played.

> Member of post-season all-rookie team.

> All-Star Game participant.

> Awarded All-Star Game MVP.

In essence, McDavid and the Oilers could’ve picked four of the easiest of those to attain (say post-season all-rookie team, both time on ice figures, and assists) and made them each worth $212,500.

Playing five games each season, for instance, could trigger a maximum $25,000 bonus. There could also be a bonus (no maximum) for hitting 10 games and then another one after his 11th game. They’re all included in that maximum $850,000 of “A” bonuses.

Then, there is the “B” category, which focuses more around postseason awards and trophies. Finishing in the Top 5 of any major league award (Hart, Byng, Selke, Calder, etc.) would trigger a specific bonus - paid by the league and not the Oilers. He could also have negotiated bonuses in excess of the league stipulated bonuses for those same awards.

Without getting too complicated, McDavid will be fairly compensated if he instantly becomes the star everyone believes he will be, dollars the Oilers would only be thrilled to pay. All bonuses earned will be applied to the Oilers’ salary cap. The incentive here is solely on McDavid; like making the Oilers out of camp in October, he largely controls how much he will earn.

This is just the first of many lucrative deals to come - a rite of passage to make it official, and all the more real.

Frank Seravalli can be reached at frank.seravalli@bellmedia.ca.