So this must mean his NHL career is over? No other team could be stupid enough to sign him right?
Also with the cap, if he signs with another team before his contract with the habs is over, does that relive the habs of his cap hit? Or does it still count until the time when it's fully bought out.
Nope, we'd still be paying him. Ex: the Rangers signed Avery after Dallas bought him out, but Avery is still getting paid by the Stars.
It's kind of funny to hear Laraque call the Habs organization classless for releasing him during everything he is going through with Haiti, yet their organization donated more money than anyone associated with the NHL.
Maybe if he was doing his ****ing job he wouldn't have been released ?
BGL seem like a nice guy but he shouldn't bring Haiti into this since this has nothing to do with anything. Plus he's still getting paid so he just need to **** and just disappear.
The idea of Laraque was better then the reality of having him on the roster. The idea of fighting only other weight class approved players does nothing for me. It is nothing but a side show, and does nothing to add to team toughness, and does not buy one inch of free ice for skill players.
The kind of toughness he brought to the Habs is the kind that does nothing to influence the outcome of a game.
That said, he seemed like a nice guy. Good luck George.
Maybe if he was doing his ****ing job he wouldn't have been released ?
BGL seem like a nice guy but he shouldn't bring Haiti into this since this has nothing to do with anything. Plus he's still getting paid so he just need to **** and just disappear.
It really was a stupid thing for him to say.
This guy did absolutely nothing during his time with the Habs and should consider himself lucky to even be collecting a 1.5 million/year paycheck. His body is done and he is out of shape and can't even keep up with the speed of the game anymore. His mouth seems perfectly fine though...
He was nothing more than a distraction at this point. Good riddance.
So this must mean his NHL career is over? No other team could be stupid enough to sign him right?
Also with the cap, if he signs with another team before his contract with the habs is over, does that relive the habs of his cap hit? Or does it still count until the time when it's fully bought out.
A goon that refuses to fight is unemployable. Can't believe he's crapping on the Habs for paying him his full salary to sit on his couch. Heck, should have waived him and let his back get bent out of shape on those long AHL bus rides.
So Gainey signs him to a ridiculous contract, they don't use him at all and buy his contract out in the middle of the season with a cap hit of 500k for the next 2 years, when we'll need every penny to fit under the cap.
... what's next? Halak for a 4th rounder or future considerations?
There's no sugar-coating it folks : this organization is a joke. Continuous errors in player evaluation, overpayments and for the most part, terrible trades and signings.
Damn that NMC sucks, wish they coulda waived him down to minors where he belongs. I don't want the habs stuck with a buyout cap hit, every cap $ counts.
If he formally "retires" the cap hit comes off tho.
I guess the ball is in his court, if he really thinks he can still play (LOL) he will wait for buyout so he can sign, if he actually realizes he is a crippled husk of a player he will formally retire. The carrot to retire is he nets an extra $500,000 (gets $1.5m next year, as opposed to $1m over 2 years), that's not chump change.
There's no sugar-coating it folks : this organization is a joke. Continuous errors in player evaluation, overpayments and for the most part, terrible trades and signings.
freeing up cap space by moving a fighter who doesn't fight and can't play hockey, and rips on the coach every time he's benched.
Nope, we'd still be paying him. Ex: the Rangers signed Avery after Dallas bought him out, but Avery is still getting paid by the Stars.
Just to nit-pick...Avery was actually sent through re-entry waivers not bought out. Stars are still paying half his contract though.
But you are correct, the money he gets from our buyout stays with him on our cap no matter if he signs where somewhere else.
An example would be (I might not be remembering all the details correctly) I think during the first year of the new CBA Belfour made like 10 million dollars in total comp, half from his buyout and half from his new deal.
It was a poor example (I forgot Avery was on waivers at all) but Avery was claimed on re-entry waivers, so Dallas is still on the hook for half his salary until 2012.
It would be the same thing if someone were to sign Laraque after we bought him out though, we'd still have to pay his buyout.
I wonder what the breaking point was, to be honest, I was expecting that he would get bought out during the offseason.
Laraque said this to TSN: Bob Gainey contacted him Thursday morning and told him that head coach Jacques Martin didn't had any confidence in him anymore and the team believes they can win without the enforcer in the lineup.
Clearly, something happened between him and Martin? I mean, Laraque's uselessness was pretty evident last year and earlier this year too. Did Martin suddenly wake up Thursday and tell Gainey he needed Laraque gone?
I wonder what the breaking point was, to be honest, I was expecting that he would get bought out during the offseason.
Laraque said this to TSN: Bob Gainey contacted him Thursday morning and told him that head coach Jacques Martin didn't had any confidence in him anymore and the team believes they can win without the enforcer in the lineup.
Clearly, something happened between him and Martin? I mean, Laraque's uselessness was pretty evident last year and earlier this year too. Did Martin suddenly wake up Thursday and tell Gainey he needed Laraque gone?
A goon that refuses to fight is unemployable. Can't believe he's crapping on the Habs for paying him his full salary to sit on his couch. Heck, should have waived him and let his back get bent out of shape on those long AHL bus rides.
Ungrateful bugger.
Exactly, where the hell was he in New York when Redden and Avery fought our guys? He wanted to be more involved in the play, but he just couldn't, he's a fighter, an enforcer, his job was to fight, to protect the best players of our organization, at least we're sure he won't be like the other players who left the Habs and explose with their new team
freeing up cap space by moving a fighter who doesn't fight and can't play hockey, and rips on the coach every time he's benched.
HORRIBLE MOVE GAINEY
Well, Gainey's also the one who signed this fighter who can't play hockey (your words) to a 1.5M/yr contract with a no movement clause (which is why Laraque couldn't be sent to the minors and waived).
So yes, good that he's trying to fix the problem, but he's the one who made the mistake in the first place/
03-Mar-09 Claimed off waivers by the New York Rangers from the Dallas Stars.
02-Jul-08 Signed as an unrestricted free agent by the Dallas Stars.
Still, hototogisu is right you can be bought out, still collect money from team A and sign with team B right after and and get paid by both teams.
It happened with Holik a few years ago, he signed a multi year deal with the Rangers in 2002 (for like 9m$!!) was bought out in July 2005 and signed (as a UFA) with the Thrashers in august of 2005. So for the first few years of his new contract he was making the buyout from the Rangers + the salary from the Thrashers. And if I remember correctly both together were pretty much equal at was he was originally making with New-York (around 9M$).
Hard to do considering he isn't under contract to the Canadiens.
i was thinking the same things, when we will play against the Devils, the Bruins or the Maple Leafs call Neilson, it will be a pleasure for him to throw the gloves and prove he can be usefull ! I think a lot of guys like him will find themselves in the same situations, last season Parker retired, Cote don't play anymore with Philly, Brashear is useless with NY... If they can't score and bring somthing to the game, this kinda players are over.
Good luck Laraque, you looked like a nice guy. It's maybe times to hang'em up.
