Perhaps Jeff Gorton hadn’t read the entire script when he declared that Cole Caufield and the Canadiens were about to sign a new pact.
It was last January.
Players today have more and more career options. They can get full autonomy at 25 if they start their National League career at 18. Or they can exercise their right to autonomy without compensation at age 27.
For the past year or two, advisors have been much more cautious, especially with the prospect that the salary cap could increase over the next few years. They want to make sure their customers will benefit.
Pat Brisson represents Cole Caufield, as we know.
On the negotiating table, there are several scenarios under study for both the Canadian and Caufield.
Are we going to sign a seven or eight year agreement?
Are we going to sign a three or four year agreement, so will the athlete bet on his talent? Auston Matthews did. Jason Robertson too.
Are we going to wonder about the future of the company which still holds the rights to the athlete? Without a doubt.
Play in another city
In short, there are always several factors to consider. In the past, money was the priority. It’s always like that. But the possibility of going to play in another city, that of joining a team with great ambitions, that also attracts attention.
Caufield and his agent know very well what the market can offer the athlete. It is for this reason that they take their time before making a decision.
Geoff Molson, the owner of the team, underlined, Wednesday, that it was not necessary to worry, that the Canadian will come to an agreement with the young player, after all, the organization holds the exclusive rights on Caufield to unless a hostile offer is tabled by another formation, an offer that the Canadian would certainly match.
The decision will be Caufield’s. He could choose Montreal for several years. Or for three or four years and then negotiate a lucrative agreement for seven or eight seasons if he firmly believes that the organization is growing rapidly and that it will achieve its objectives. He can opt for a contract that will allow him to review his career plan before obtaining autonomy without compensation and then consider moving to the United States.
Scenarios involving several very interesting options.
Gallant on the grill
Gerard Gallant doesn’t want to hear about rumors that the owners of the New York Rangers are questioning his status with the organization. He is absolutely right since he will not have the last word.
Is he the main responsible for the defeat of the Rangers? Should we rather look in the direction of Chris Drury, the general manager? Rangers lost because star players simply failed to live up to expectations, quite the contrary. Young players? They have unfortunately evolved into a system that gives very little importance to membership development.
In this regard, is Gallant the man for the job? Shouldn’t we ask ourselves a question? Will the Rangers have to change their management philosophy?
If so, then might as well guide the new philosophy with a new staff…
Andrew Brunette’s name is the conversation starter in Calgary. He is the assistant coach of the New Jersey Devils. Last year, he replaced Joel Quenneville with the Panthers. Could he relaunch Jonathan Huberdeau who had made an arrow of all woods under the direction of Brunette?
Since it is about the Flames, the veterans of the team did not hide that they wanted to hear nothing more about the Darryl Sutter regime. They did not miss the opportunity to come back to the file of the young players of the team and the daily management of the veteran coach.
The owners quickly realized that there was a deep malaise in the culture of the company and that the responsible was Sutter…
11 against 5
Game 1 of the series between the Vegas Golden Knights and the Edmonton Oilers: Leon Draisaitl scores four goals and the Oilers lose.
The day before in Dallas, Joe Pavelski had scored four goals in the loss of the Stars. What to remember from this first game between Edmonton and Vegas, 11 Golden Knights players collected at least one point.
Among the Oilers, only five have participated in the mark. Draisaitl played 24.06 minutes, Connor McDavid 24.01 minutes, Zac Hyman 23.27 minutes, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins 20.15 minutes. How many Golden Knights forwards have played 20+ minutes? None…
To watch, the file of Valeri Nichushkin. What decision will the leaders of the Avalanche make? What will be the verdict of the investigation into the events in Seattle? What will be the position of the National League Players Association? Nichushkin signed an eight-year, $49 million contract last summer.