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Archive for July 3rd, 2008
It Was My Pleasure
Thursday, July 3rd, 2008Well Played
Thursday, July 3rd, 2008But here is more. We were still talking after our deal was rejected at three years for $5 million and we were one of the teams that kept driving the price up. I felt that we didn’t want to be used as a stalking horse and to be party to a deal that kept driving a players’ price up when we couldn’t consummate a deal and where we could be left without a number one goaltender. We are quite fortunate that George McPhee had a plan B. We landed a number one goaltender and in retrospect, the term and deal economics are better for our team. It gives us more optionality and we have a player who truly wanted to play in DC in front of our great fans. And we weren’t considered a team that did bad deals in free agency.
It is now time to look forward NOT backwards. No more discussion of the past, just looking forward to our next set of signings; to rookie camp; and then onward to welcoming Jose Theodore to our city and to our team. Go Caps!
One Man’s Ceiling is Another Man’s Floor
Thursday, July 3rd, 2008At least we didn’t make this list. :-)
Will All Trees Continue to Grow to Heaven?
Thursday, July 3rd, 2008So will the NHL salary cap continue to grow year after year?
Is hockey inoculated from the real world economic downturn?
Will the Canadian dollar continue to be stronger than the American dollar?
Will consumers keep paying higher and higher ticket prices to help owners pay free agents long term contracts?
Is the new CBA better than the old CBA? For instance, what would a 22-year-old restricted free agent have made as a RFA under the old system?
Will offer sheets remain a viable threat against owners in the future?
What happens if the salary cap ever does go down?
Why would the players’ union EVER complain about this system? 
The players have so much leverage. RFA years have now become like UFA years and UFA is reached at a younger age. There is arbitration and there is now the threat of offer sheets. There are always new owners coming into the league that want to make “a splash” for their market. It is a great time to be a player in the NHL. Plus the players get a disproportionate share of the revenues and the revenue growth compared to the owners, a good deal for the players and their agents.
There are a lot of questions to be answered over the coming years. There are a lot of decisions being made today that will look dumb in the not too distant future. We are all at risk except for the players that get guaranteed contracts and the bloggers and message board posters that never have to live truly with the consequences of their words and recommendations. We live in interesting times, don’t we?
Come On Out
Thursday, July 3rd, 2008It is fun and free. Check it out.
Vote Early and Vote Often
Thursday, July 3rd, 2008Details on Alex Ovechkin and the ESPYs are here.
