After signing an under-value, long-term deal with the Nashville Predators, Ryan Ellis knows his contract will help the Predators remain competitive for the foreseeable future.

Brooks Bratten tweeted that Ellis is aware his new deal might be considered low by current NHL standards and while Ellis didn't come right out and admit he took less than he should have, he did admit his deal helps Nashville moving forward.

Ellis signed a long-term extension with the Predators earlier this week. It was a deal that, when compared to some of the contracts being handed out for defensemen of his caliber, was lucrative, but less than par. That doesn't seem to bother Ellis who said, “I’m getting paid more than enough to play hockey… It was just about coming across a fair deal that would work for both sides."

While Ellis' new contract is unquestionably helpful for the Predators and amazingly does not include any kind of trade protection, an argument can be made this his contract is not helpful for defensemen in the NHL as a whole.

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A lower than league-value deal could potentially hurt future blue line contracts. As players like Jacob Trouba, Jake Gardiner or Anton Stralman come up for extensions in the next couple summers, teams will use Ellis' deal as a comparable. For agents, it's hard to argue for a player who produces less than Ellis to make more per season. Still, considering Ellis' reputation as a young leader in Nashville, his deal is not a shocker.

Ellis added,"We have other guys that need to be signed in the future, and I had to do my part to keep this thing going in the right direction.”

The Predators are considered one of the better teams in the NHL's Western Conference which includes one of the top blue line corps in the league. Meanwhile, Predators GM David Poile is considered one of the best and most savvy GM's in hockey. This Ellis deal is just another example of his fine work.

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