Who the hell would ask another GM to recall another player??
"Hey, would you mind giving me this guy for free while being stuck with half his cap hit? Thanks!"
Actually this happpens more than you might think...not for big ticket guys, but for low-cost guys and when there's a lot of cap space on a team, they will do this for a couple of reasons:
1) Even though a guy who gets sent down doesn't count against the NHL team's cap, the team is still paying his salary, so the cost to the team does get cut in half...if there's lots of cap room and the hit is relatively small why not cut your costs in half...Not all the teams are like the Rangers or Leafs in terms of profitability...paying guys to play in the AHL can seriously cut into net profits...
2) Even though it is a business, there is also some sense of obligation to let a guy get another chance to stick in the NHL if another team wants him. If Redden were a million dollar guy and someone wanted him, would Sather eat a $500K cap hit in order to let him have another chance? Wouldn't surprise me....if it didn't do a lot of damage to the cap space.
Who the hell would ask another GM to recall another player??
"Hey, would you mind giving me this guy for free while being stuck with half his cap hit? Thanks!"
I don't think it's that crazy. Someone may be assuming it's a Souray/Edmonton where the demotion is personality related, which I don't think is true 100% here but not all that odd to believe with Avery.
And frankly, I bet Sather asked Dallas to waive Avery which benefitted both teams: Dallas ditched him and half the salary and Sather gave the team a kick in the pants.
In general, I get the impression that most GMs are very upfront with each other, to the point of collusion in some instances. I wouldn't doubt for a second that Sather asked every GM when he recalled Avery this season if they had intentions of claiming him.
I wonder if this team legitimately wants Avery or if they are also trying to screw the Rangers out of cap space. The Rangers are a top team in the league and have a target on its backs now. I'm sure some teams would love for the Rangers to carry some dead cap space to make things more difficult for them during the deadline.
Sather is right... if a team is genuinely interested in Avery, then they should trade for him and run the risk of putting him on re-entry waivers. The more I think of it, the more I think it's a ridiculous request by the other team... "Can you please put Avery on re-entry waivers so we can claim him and you'll be saddled with half his cap hit?" I hope Sather laughed in that GM's face.
.......You mean.....exactly what we did when we re-acquired him from Dallas?
People are seriously underestimating a few things. First Glen is not out to ruin Avery's NHL career for good. As many have mentioned, he would do him a favor as long as it doesn't hurt the Rangers. Most people would in these situations. Also, I don't understand why it's so hard for people to understand that a lot of these GM's are friendly with one another, and when you do something minor like this to help someone out, it's considered a favor. That favor, at one point or another, might be repaid in a situation where we need one. This kind of stuff happens. It's not blasphemous.
.......You mean.....exactly what we did when we re-acquired him from Dallas?
Totally different situation. Dallas was so desperate to get rid of Avery that they were willing to put up with carrying his cap hit and paying half of his salary for the remaining 3 and a half years of his contract.
If the Rangers had their way they would probably be content with letting Avery play in the AHL, unlike the Stars who wanted Avery as far away from their team and prospects as possible. But Slats has always liked Avery and is trying to help him find a NHL team. He won't, however, help Sean find a new team if it means the Rangers have to carry dead cap space.
Sean Avery’s agent Pat Morris has been given permission to try finding his client a job in the Kontinental Hockey League, but given Avery’s big heart, he may not find a fit: “Each team is allowed five imports, and Sean doesn’t want to take anyone’s job away from them,” Morris said. The agent also said a few teams were interested in acquiring Avery — including Florida — but there wasn’t a fit given a salary hit of $2 million that isn’t befitting a third- or fourth-liner.
sather not letting avery go to another team is the end of his tenure?
Well seeing how he's a FA at the end of the season and Sather doesn't seem to have any desire to put him on re-entry waivers and risk having a team claim him and have dead capspace — yeah I think it's the end of Avery's career as a Ranger.
they made a mistake in giving him 3.85 million a year and not conferring with the leadership of the team to see if he would be a fit.
They were begging someone, ANYONE to take him on re-entry.
The Rangers had already denied his demands for that kind of scratch, why would they do the stars any favord by claiming him on reg. waivers when they could have him for less than they were offering him a few days later on re-entry.
The Rangers are not desperate to move Sean Avery. Therein lies the difference in situations.
My heart bleeds (as my French teacher in high school used to say--as she marked students late on their delaney card as they whined about how the bus wouldn't pick them up) for a player who made the mistake of being greedy and signed with a team that was a horrible fit from the get-go.
Another team wants Avery? Let them trade some useless spare piece the Rangers are willing to take and keep part of his cap hit off the Rangers books.
Totally different situation. Dallas was so desperate to get rid of Avery that they were willing to put up with carrying his cap hit and paying half of his salary for the remaining 3 and a half years of his contract.
If the Rangers had their way they would probably be content with letting Avery play in the AHL, unlike the Stars who wanted Avery as far away from their team and prospects as possible. But Slats has always liked Avery and is trying to help him find a NHL team. He won't, however, help Sean find a new team if it means the Rangers have to carry dead cap space.
I understand but your comment made it sound like it was unbelievable that another GM would ask someone to do this. We're still talking about the same player here, and a player whom its clear the coach wants nothing to do with this team. It's not like other teams don't realize that.
My heart bleeds (as my French teacher in high school used to say--as she marked students late on their delaney card as they whined about how the bus wouldn't pick them up) for a player who made the mistake of being greedy and signed with a team that was a horrible fit from the get-go.
Another team wants Avery? Let them trade some useless spare piece the Rangers are willing to take and keep part of his cap hit off the Rangers books.
I understand but your comment made it sound like it was unbelievable that another GM would ask someone to do this. We're still talking about the same player here, and a player whom its clear the coach wants nothing to do with this team. It's not like other teams don't realize that.
And other teams also realize that the Rangers would be on the hook for half of Avery's cap hit if they want to claim him on re-entry waivers. Nice try by the other GM but that's not something Sather would ever agree to. If the Rangers viewed Avery as a toxic player that had to be removed from the organization ASAP, then maybe Sather would carry the dead space but that's clearly not the case as they have no issues with Avery playing with the Whale.
This is another example of the cap hurting the team and a player. Redden is toiling in the minors because it pays $6+ million a year. But he knows that the cap is preventing him from getting a chance to play in the NHL again. Otherwise the Rangers would just pay him off as they did in the old days. The Rangers would have no problem letting Avery go if it didn't hurt the team. But because the NHL wants to be widely popular instead of just a better league they insist on allowing cities that can't compete in the NHL in so the true hockey markets are forced to sacrifice their game.
I don't think it's out of the question that the following happens, although it is unlikely:
We get hit with some injuries in the playoffs. Avery comes up and plays and scores some huge goals for us while hitting everything in sight, making all of us wonder why he couldn't play like this consistently for the past two years.
Then, in the offseason Avery is re-signed at just above league-minimum to be our 12th/13th forward.
This is another example of the cap hurting the team and a player. Redden is toiling in the minors because it pays $6+ million a year. But he knows that the cap is preventing him from getting a chance to play in the NHL again. Otherwise the Rangers would just pay him off as they did in the old days. The Rangers would have no problem letting Avery go if it didn't hurt the team. But because the NHL wants to be widely popular instead of just a better league they insist on allowing cities that can't compete in the NHL in so the true hockey markets are forced to sacrifice their game.
Eh, you have a point to a degree, but the other end of the spectrum is what goes on in MLB where 3-4 teams and two in particular can and do spend way more than every other team and thus, are perennial front runners simply because their owners are richer. I don't think that's necessarily a better scenario, even though our beloved Rangers would be the one spending the most. Although, we spent that much during the dark ages and still missed the playoffs every year. I guess it shows that chemistry is so much more a factor in hockey than in baseball, where everything is individualized. Always an interesting debate as both sides have valid complaints about the other.
Brooks mentioned AHL players on one way contracts. The Islanders don't have AHL players on one way contracts.
Nearly every single Islanders player is an AHL player on a one-way contract.
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"Of course giving Sather cap space is like giving teenagers whiskey and car keys." - SBOB "Watching Sather build a team is like watching a blind man with no fingers trying to put together an elaborate puzzle." - Shadowtron
Sestito still on the make a wish tour. - rholt168
