411mania- Inside The Penalty Box 08.26.08: Retire Or Return?

To Stay Or Go: Veterans Weighing The Option To Retire Against Another Run In The NHL

 

 

 

 
 

Mats Sundin Photo Credit: sportsnet.ca

All athletes are eventually faced with deciding whether they are capable both mentally and physically to return for another run in the sport they love, or simply hang ‘em up and call it a career. With the Brett Favre and Roger Clemens’ of the world, retirement isn’t as final as it used to be. However, any player that has to come to grips with the closing of his career wants to face the unenviable predicament as few times as possible.

Three of the greatest talents to ever apply their craft on NHL ice currently remain in limbo about their future in the sport, while another is certain he will return but is in no rush to ink a new deal. Mats Sundin, Joe Sakic and Peter Forsberg have made it quite clear that they’re taking their time in this truly life-altering decision. Meanwhile, Brendan Shanahan has made it known that he wants to play another year and preferably with the New York Rangers, yet will be patient and is willing to sign elsewhere if continuing his career on Broadway is not in the cards.

The most prolific of this bunch is Sundin. As the NHL turned toward the free agent frenzy of the summer on July 1, one of the most sought after players was Sundin. In addition to the Toronto Maple Leafs, several teams came out the chute offering big money deals to the 37-year center, including a reported $20 million offer over two years from the Vancouver Canucks. At the end of the day, though, Sundin stood pat in his stance to take his time and didn’t jump at the first top-notch contract to come his way. Insane or not, it’s August 26 and the Swedish forward remains a free agent. And despite claiming that he would make a decision by August, I don’t think there’s going to be one for at least another week or two. He could reasonably take this to the start of training camp.

411mania- Inside The Penalty Box 08.19.08: Minnesota Begins Process Toward Extension For Gaborik

 

 

Wild Execs Pay Visit To Gaborik
 

 

The Minnesota Wild look to lock up Marian Gaborik before he's eligible for free agency next summer.

 

Marian Gaborik is the last remaining original member of the Minnesota Wild organization. He will remain that way if team president and general manager Doug Risebrough, who has also been with the franchise since its inaugural season, gets his way.

Along with assistant general manager for hockey operations Tom Lynn, Risebrough paid a visit to Gaborik in his hometown of Trencin, Slovakia last week, according to The Canadian Press. With just one year remaining on his current contract, the Wild want to get started working toward an extension for their franchise winger and avoid having him pursue a spot in next summer’s free agent class.

The visit by Risebrough and Lynn began the process by educating Gaborik on the team’s “philosophy and plans, used statistics to sell the 26-year-old right wing on how he fits in Minnesota’s system, and took time to answer Gaborik’s questions about the team’s strategy and direction,” reports The Canadian Press.

Terms of a new contract were not discussed. Instead, Minnesota merely wanted to assure Gaborik that remaining with the Wild was a mutually beneficial decision for himself and the franchise on both a short-term and long-term basis. They also wanted to alleviate concerns on the part of Gaborik that his offensive skill would perhaps be stifled in Minnesota’s defense-first system and in the Western Conference, in general.

Gaborik’s agent, Ron Salcer, believes this was a good first step for Minnesota in its attempts to lock up their franchise wing.

“I have a lot of respect for how they handled that,” Salcer said, according to The Canadian Press. “It was a smart move on their behalf.”

Salcer, however, would not make any guarantees on this trip’s effectiveness toward Risebrough’s ultimate goal.

“As far as the future, it would be all hypothetical for me to speculate on what may or may not happen,” Salcer said. “We’re not saying no, we’re not saying yes to anything other than living up to our obligation to play this season. Then we’ll see.”

A lot of credit needs to be offered to Risebrough and Lynn for the lengths they were willing to go just to appeal to Gaborik to remain in Minnesota. Without even discussing money and years involved in an extension, he and Lynn made an unnecessary, yet intelligently outgoing, attempt to convince Gaborik that spending several more years with the Wild is the best move for him and the organization.

Regardless of the discourse, though, I don’t know how truly effective this visit is going to be. At the end of the day, athletes listen to the terms of a contract much sooner than they listen to team goals and philosophies. And Gaborik is no stranger to chasing dollars.

After concluding his rookie contract, Gaborik didn’t hesitate to hold out from training camp and the first month of the 2003-04 season because he was seeking a new contract worth at least $6.5 million per season. This was a ridiculous number at the time considering he was already being offered the second richest deal in NHL history coming out of an entry level contract in the form of three years at $9.5 million. He ended up settling for a three-year deal at $9.4 million and didn’t produce up to expectations in just 65 games played that season, registering only 18 goals and 40 points.

Gaborik goes into next season in the final year of a three-year, $19 million that will pay him $7.5 million for the 2008-09 campaign. It’s believed the Wild are prepared to offer Gaborik a deal that would average $8.5 million a season. Such a salary would make Gaborik the fourth highest paid NHLer, behind only Alexander Ovechkin, Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin. But will it be enough for a player who could probably produce greater offers on the open market and perhaps move to a team with a more open system for offense?

As far as the latter is concerned, Gaborik is already an offensive machine. Despite being in the Jacques Lemaire coached defensive system, Gaborik has scored at least 30 goals in five of the previous six seasons and produced a career-high 42 scores last year. Lynn also noted that Gaborik ranks fourth in the NHL since the lockout in goals per game. He’s already doing a pretty good job scoring in Minnesota, even if it isn’t the most encouraging system for his offensive skills.

A move to a more open system could help him produce more goals. But so could remaining healthy. Gaborik has had his fair share of groin problems and is currently recovering from hip surgery. In his seven-season career, the 26-year old right wing has yet to play a full season’s worth of games (82).

Still, he proved he could score 30 goals in just 48 games (2006-07) and 38 goals in 65 games (2005-06). And in missing just five games last year, he set a career-high mark and put in 42 goals. So while a more offensive system couldn’t hurt in his efforts to solidify himself as a top-notch 50-plus goal scorer, staying healthy and not allowing personal issues (like contract holdouts) to prevent him from hitting the ice could help him achieve such a feat with Minnesota, as well.

I think Gaborik’s situation really revolves around the almighty dollar. If he can live with making $8.5 million per season, which I know is hard to feed one’s family on, then it’s possible Minnesota can continue it’s marriage with the face of the franchise for many more years to come. If Gaborik is intent on testing the market and receiving higher offers, it could spell the end of his tenure in Minnesota with the Wild.

Risebrough and Lynn have a month to get something worked out with Gaborik, since it’s difficult to negotiate during the season and teams would rather avoid disrupting the on-ice product with off-ice contract talks. If a deal isn’t reached, look for Gaborik to be the most highly publicized piece of trade bait in the NHL over the course of the season.

411mania.com – Inside The Penalty Box 08.12.08: McCabe Reconsidering Stance On No-Movement Clause

Defenseman Rethinking Stance On No-Movement Clause:
McCabe May Become Fletcher’s Latest Deposed Star

After a 23-point season in 2007-08, Bryan McCabe could be in his way out of Toronto if he waives his no-movement clause

Toronto Maple Leafs general manager Cliff Fletcher is apparently determined to have the 2008-09 version of his team look vastly different from the one sported at the Air Canada Centre over the past few seasons. Having eliminated Andrew Raycroft, Kyle Wellwood and Darcy Tucker from Toronto’s roster while subsequently replacing them with the likes of Niklas Hagman, Jeff Finger, Curtis Joseph, Jamal Mayers and Ryan Hollweg, Fletcher has pieced together a very new on-ice product. With Mats Sundin future as a member of the Maple Leafs, and the entire NHL for that matter, still in limbo, this drastic change could be all that more noticeable when the puck drops in October.

Fletcher’s sights are currently set on ridding Toronto of another player who’s worn the blue and white for several seasons. Defenseman Bryan McCabe has been on Fletcher’s trade radar since prior to the draft. He has been able to foil the GM’s position on moving him thanks to a no-movement clause in his contract. But the feeling of being pushed out by the team has apparently caused some discomfort for McCabe. As a result, he may be prepared to give Fletcher what he wants by waiving his no-movement clause.

If he chooses to waive the clause, McCabe is likely to be picky on where he ends up. I doubt he’ll accept a trade anywhere other than to a legitimate contender for the Stanley Cup. And that leaves Fletcher with the job of finding such a team that has enough room on the roster and in payroll to bring on the 33-year old, 12-year veteran. McCabe still has three years remaining on his current contract with salaries of $6.15 million next year and $4.15 million in 2009-10 and 2010-11. His annual hit toward the salary cap is $5.75 million.

Prior to last season, I would have figured it a no-brainer to bring aboard a defenseman the caliber of McCabe at under $6 million, especially considering the market of the NHL these days. In the year prior to the lock and the two following it, McCabe posted seasons with over 50 points and proved a be a great blue line goal scorer and power play contributor. He also provided a physical edge with over 86 penalty minutes in 2003-04 and over 110 in each of the 2005-06 and 2006-07 campaigns.

Unfortunately, McCabe’s production slipped immensely last year, reverting back to numbers he posted during his days with the New York Islanders, Vancouver Canucks and Chicago Blackhawks.

Cliff Fletcher Is leaving his thumbprint on the Maple Leafs

Contrary to those years of his career, it must be considered that McCabe only suited up for 54 games last season thanks to groin and hand injuries. But in that time, he only posted 23 points and five goals. Over the course of a full 82-game schedule, he would have scored just 34 points. In a more reasonable 75 games, McCabe would have been a 31-point producer.

While it’s entirely possible that was just a fluke season torn down by injuries, there’s simply no guarantee he’ll return to 50-plus point production. And there’s just no room in today’s NHL to pay a defenseman, who isn’t exactly the greatest in his own zone, $5.75 million on average over three years when he’s only going to post 25-30 points.

Any team looking to acquire McCabe will hope he’s capable of returning to the form of a top two defenseman. But those same teams should also have some depth in case he’s not completely healthy and/or has really lost a bit of his offensive touch. And since McCabe’s destination would likely already be a contender, I would think depth wouldn’t be too much of an issue.

This is a situation McCabe should be more than willing to take advantage of. I whole-heartedly believe he should be thrilled about the chance to leave the cluster that is the Maple Leafs and embrace the possibility of continuing his career outside of Toronto. I can’t for the life of me understand why these players are so reluctant to leave Toronto, especially since the team has been nothing more than a laughing stock for the past few years. Based on the moves made by Fletcher this offseason and Sundin’s tenure with the team likely coming to a close, I don’t anticipate the Maple Leafs doing any better next season. A fresh start in another city could actually be a reprieve for McCabe.

Soon enough, I think he’ll realize that it’s really in his best interest to give the team what it wants and allow Fletcher to continue his questionable rampage over the Maple Leafs’ roster.

Photo Credit: Cliff Fletcher – cbc.ca

From 411mania.com

411mania – Inside The Penalty Box 08.05.08: Front Office Additions

Plenty of moves were made this summer to enhance their on-ice products. Now, both the Chicago Blackhawks and Edmonton Oilers took their changing ways upstairs, making some big moves to their front office staff heading into the 2008-09 season. In Chicago, family relations were able to force an end to the Scotty Bowman’s tenure with the Detroit Red Wings, while Kevin Lowe’s promotion to President of Hockey Operations for Rexall sports calls an end to his tenure as Oilers general manager.

Scotty Bowman Heads To Chicago

Scott Bowman Won three Stanley Cups while coaching Detroit

Scotty Bowman’s 15-year tenure with the Detroit Red Wings has come to an end. Introduced last Thursday as the new senior adviser of hockey operations with the Chicago Blackhawks, Bowman hopes to work with his son and Blackhawks assistant general manager, Stan Bowman, in making sure an impressive looking team remains on the upswing. Bowman will report to general manager Dale Tallon and serve as “an extra pair of eyes for Tallon, and to share his opinions on everything he sees, beginning in training camp,” according to The Chicago-Sun Times.

Bowman’s legacy will always be as a head coach. He spent 30 total years behind the bench starting in 1967 with the St. Louis Blues. The Blues made the Stanley Cup Finals in the first three of his four years as coach, getting swept twice by the Montreal Canadiens and once by the Boston Bruins before losing in the first round the next season. In 1971, Bowman joined the Canadiens and guided them to five Stanley Cups during his eight-year tenure, including the final four. He became general manager and also served as head coach with the Buffalo Sabres starting with the 1979-80 campaign and brought them to five straight playoff appearances. Bowman missed the playoffs in 1986 for the only time of his career when the Sabres failed to appear and was behind the bench for 12 of the Sabres’ games in 1986-87. He left in 1987 for an analyst position with the CBC. He returned in 1990 as Director of Player Personnel with the Pittsburgh Penguins and moved back behind the bench for the Penguins in 1991-92, helping them repeat as Stanley Cup Champions. He coached the Penguins one more year before heading to Detroit in 1993 and spending his final nine seasons as a head coach with the Red Wings, where he won three Cups. I’d say 30 years of coaching (one of which was only 12 games) with 28 playoff appearances and a record nine total Stanley Cups makes him the best coach in the history of NHL hockey.