Via Gord Stellick, "Salaries of free agent signees didn't play well"
Found this interesting from Kuklas Korner, and interviewer Gord Stellick of CBC.
Quote:
Buffalo Sabre GM Darcy Regier acknowledged to me on a Hockey Night in Canada Radio interview that free agency has its drawbacks along with its positives. The Sabres were aggressive in adding the likes of Robyn Regeher, Christian Ehrhoff and Ville Leino with a new owner willing to open his wallet. The downside, as Regier and the Sabres soon found out was that it also through the appropriate pecking order of their team salaries out of whack. The newcomers were making more than Sabre holdovers that were more talented players.
That didn’t play well in the Sabre dressing room and was a significant reason for their struggles in the first half of the season.
Significant reason? I doubt Darcy told him that. It wouldn't surprise me if it came into play, but wouldn't this have gotten more response if there were a legitimate source?
Significant reason? I doubt Darcy told him that. It wouldn't surprise me if it came into play, but wouldn't this have gotten more response if there were a legitimate source?
The only thing I see directly attributed to Regier is the ups and downs of free agency.
But they played well in Europe and in the first month of the season. Why didn't it affect them then? How come in magically started affecting their play a month or so in then just vanished at the all star break?
But they played well in Europe and in the first month of the season. Why didn't it affect them then? How come in magically started affecting their play a month or so in then just vanished at the all star break?
After Lucic ran Miller, he chirped the Sabres on their FA salaries.
I am looking into this a little too much, but i can't take a blog/article seriously when they spell "through" when they mean "threw."
I am sure there is something behind the salaries and the pecking order that Darcy "through out of whack" but i doubt it was the largest factor in the Sabres' struggles.
I would say injuries and chemistry played a larger role.
e- keep forgetting the Lucic hit and how it effectively neutered this Sabres squad.
It is possible that once the chips were down, when the injury crisis was growing to its ridiculous peak, that people in the 'room were having issues with payroll at that point. The Euro-trip was all sunshine and roses. It's not until Miller's truckin' and the injury plague that some things start to fray -- wouldn't surprise that money is one of 'em. Hope the guys have grown up a bit, since in the "real" world of NHL rosters, this is far more regular.
__________________
It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it. - Aristotle
Really? Jealousy over salaries? Grow the **** up. You are all millionaires and live in the cheapest city to live in in the entire country. If that isn't proof that there needs to be significant changes in the locker room, I don't know what is.
It is possible that once the chips were down, when the injury crisis was growing to its ridiculous peak, that people in the 'room were having issues with payroll at that point. The Euro-trip was all sunshine and roses. It's not until Miller's truckin' and the injury plague that some things start to fray -- wouldn't surprise that money is one of 'em. Hope the guys have grown up a bit, since in the "real" world of NHL rosters, this is far more regular.
THIS I could see happening, but I'd still quibble over the word choice.
THIS I could see happening, but I'd still quibble over the word choice.
It's not the first place I've heard this sort of rumbling -- not the authoring, the salary thing. First time I've seen it in print though... Once things got "hard" some hard feelings came up.
Roy: "You gave Leino more money than I make, when I've had multiple 70+ point seasons FOR YOU and he's had 1 decent season on a stacked team?!?!?!?"
Yep, we've mentioned this before as a group in passing but it is totally believable.
Honestly, he was the first person that came to mind. I don't mean to single him out and I know nobody honestly knows what kind of person Roy is, or what his thoughts are. But with everything that has been said about the guy over the years, it's hard not to think he would/act be like that.
yeah I'm not at all surprised, I think a lot of HFers suspected some butt hurtedness from the likes of Stafford and a few other poutty mouths.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Fly Boy
Honestly, he was the first person that came to mind. I don't mean to single him out and I know nobody honestly knows what kind of person Roy is, or what his thoughts are. But with everything that has been said about the guy over the years, it's hard not to think he would/act be like that.
The only forwards making more than Stafford and Roy are Vanek and Leino ($6m this year). Vanek has been here some time, so I doubt those guys would have an issue now considering Vanek's more expensive years are out of the way. And I don't really see why Stafford would be "butthurt" when he just signed a lucrative contract in the offseason, and probably recognizes that the cap hit is somewhat stifled by the fact that there were RFA years in there. Roy's salary is going up ($4.5m this year, $5.5m next year), so I can't really see him being too upset about things, either--given that he's a UFA next summer, I'd be happy as a clam if I were him knowing that some owner is going to give me a huge payday in short order.
If anyone's mad, I think it'd be the guys who the organization went to the wall with to keep their salaries down so that they could afford the UFAs: Weber, Grags, and Enroth.
I'd like to hear the actual words from Darcy first, too
But they played well in Europe and in the first month of the season. Why didn't it affect them then? How come in magically started affecting their play a month or so in then just vanished at the all star break?
It would seem obvious why - when they began the season with 10-5 in the first 15 games or so, the prevailing logic was that the newcomers (Leino, Ehrhoff) needed time to "gel" and were given the benefit of the doubt for not getting off to great starts. However, by the 30 game mark, the losses started happening more often while the production / play of the new guys still wasn't contributing as was expected. It's possible too that Leino's reluctance to play center and asking the coach to put him on wing probably didn't help his cause in terms of gaining the respect of his new teammates.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Chainshot
It is possible that once the chips were down, when the injury crisis was growing to its ridiculous peak, that people in the 'room were having issues with payroll at that point. The Euro-trip was all sunshine and roses. It's not until Miller's truckin' and the injury plague that some things start to fray -- wouldn't surprise that money is one of 'em. Hope the guys have grown up a bit, since in the "real" world of NHL rosters, this is far more regular.
Very possible - especially when many of the underachievers that got big raises in the summer (Leino, Stafford, Ehrhoff) weren't the first ones to get injured and were thus being relied to help pick up the slack for the ones that were knocked out by injuries.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Chainshot
It's not the first place I've heard this sort of rumbling -- not the authoring, the salary thing. First time I've seen it in print though... Once things got "hard" some hard feelings came up.
I remember Elliotte Friedman bringing up the salary resentment issue on a HNIC broadcast last fall, as did EJ Hradek on NHL Live. I think Friedman implied he heard the rumblings from "someone close to the organization".
.
