 |
| |
|
 |
 |
 |
|||||||||||
|
Big deals brewing Teams could unload big names on Draft DayPosted: Friday June 20, 2003 1:22 AMBy Bruce Garrioch, SLAM! Sports NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- The best entertainment in the Music City this weekend might be provided by the wheeling and dealing expected to take place at the NHL Entry Draft. While there's plenty of discussion surrounding Florida Panthers GM Rick Dudley's plans for the No. 1 overall pick -- and whether he'll keep it -- that's minor stuff compared to some of the action that might take place. As NHL officials started to flock here Wednesday for the annual Entry Draft that begins Saturday at the Gaylord Entertainment Center, the word is some of the league's biggest names could be on the move. "Right now, you can pretty well have any of the top players in the league as long as you're willing to pick up his salary," said an NHL executive last night. "That's all it takes because GMs just want to get rid of [big contracts]." Though it's been well documented the Washington Capitals are looking to move disappointing winger Jaromir Jagr and his $11 million salary, GM George McPhee also has two other targets on his budget chopping block. The Capitals recently picked up the option on Peter Bondra's contract, but sources indicate the winger has also been placed on the trade block along with center Robert Lang, who was signed last year as an unrestricted free agent. Still, the Caps are not alone in the salary dumping game. A high-ranking official confirmed the Dallas Stars are willing to move winger Bill Guerin ($8 million) and might even listen to the right offer for center Mike Modano. While it would take one special offer to pry Modano out of Dallas, Guerin is being shopped heavily around the league. It's also part of owner Tom Hicks' desire to get the Stars' $60 million payroll down to a more manageable level. The Stars are also trying to clear enough salary to enable them to keep their captain, unrestricted free agent defenceman Derian Hatcher. It doesn't stop there. The St. Louis Blues are willing to move winger Keith Tkachuk if they can find a team to take on his $8 million salary, while it's been widely reported Philadelphia is trying to dump winger John LeClair and his $7 million price tag. There's also talk the Tampa Bay Lightning are going to send goaltender Nikolai Khabibulin and his $6 million salary packing this weekend, while it's almost certain that Phoenix goalie Sean Burke ($4.5 million) will wind up wearing a Boston uniform. "If you had an expansion team and about $60 million to spend, you could build yourself a Stanley Cup contender with some of the players that teams are trying to trade right now. It's unbelievable," said another executive. "Every move is about money these days. In some cases, teams don't even want anything back because they just want to get rid of the contract. The problem is nobody can afford to take these guys. Some of them are great players and they can help, but they're not worth what they're being paid." With the Collective Bargaining Agreement set to expire after the 2003-04 season, teams have been warned to be ready for a long work stoppage. It's the size of these contracts that got teams in trouble in the first place and it's a certainty owners will push for some sort of salary restraint in the new CBA. "I don't know if all, or if any, of these guys are going to move, but they can certainly be had," said an executive. "Guys have spent money out of control and now they're trying to find a way to dig themselves out of the hole. "In any trade talks now, the first question asked is about the amount of money involved. How are GMs going to explain it to their fans if some of these deals get completed? They'll have to tell truth and say they're simply getting rid of money. You realize how much trouble the game is in." It's true all of the anticipation in the next few days is supposed to be about whether center Eric Staal or goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury will go No. 1 in the draft Saturday. But right now that seems to be the least of GMs' worries here. Right now, it's all about getting rid of past mistakes.  |
|
|||||||||
|
|||||||||||
