Spider-Man NL Posted June 4, 2005 Share Posted June 4, 2005 By PAT HICKEY The Gazette Friday, June 03, 2005 I'm happy to hear that Guy Lafleur and Canadiens president Pierre Boivin will be sitting down soon to hammer out a new contract that will allow The Flower to continue as one of the team's ambassadors. But I'd feel a lot better if the NHL lockout was settled and the Canadiens could start signing a long list of players, including captain Saku Koivu and goaltender Jose Theodore The bad news is that, depending on the terms of the new collective agreement and the status of the 2004-05 contracts, the Canadiens have as few as seven players signed for the 2005-06 season, which means general manager Bob Gainey and aide Julian Brisebois are going to have a busy summer. We can tell you that any rumours you've heard about defenceman Andrei Markov signing a contract with Moscow Dynamo are not correct. A couple of my pen pals reported that Markov had signed a deal with no NHL escape clause. Markov has received some offers, but he's waiting, along with the rest of us, to see what the new deal brings. As for Lafleur, his contract - and those of the other ambassadors - actually ran out in March and the team elected to put the ambassadors program on hold until the lockout is settled. Lafleur has continued to honour commitments to the team, including an appearance this week to hand out the Guy Lafleur Awards for Excellence. These awards go to hockey players who excel in the classroom, and it's a case of do as I say and not as I did. Lafleur is the first to admit he neglected his education, but points out: "Lucky for me, I was a good hockey player." ESPN still in the picture: The premier all-sports TV network is still interested in carrying NHL games; it simply isn't interested in paying for them. ESPN, which paid the league $120 million in 2003-04, was pushing for a profit-sharing deal similar to the one the NHL will have with NBC, and it was the NHL that walked away from the table. It now appears the league is trying to make the same mistake it made in the early 1990s, when it signed on with Sports Channel America, an alliance of regional sports networks that never worked. The league is reportedly talking to Spike TV and the Fox Sports Net, a more successful clone of SCA. The problem with Fox is that several of its outlets are in direct competition with regional sports networks that carry local NHL teams. The idea of Spike carrying NHL games is laughable. This is a Viacom subsidiary that is trying to forge an identity after starting life as The Nashville Network. Its previous experience with sports includes WWE wrestling, the Pro Bull Riding circuit and Arena Football. It's not a great neighbourhood. The NHL would be better off realizing that its U.S. TV package is worth nothing and has to be rebuilt from the ground up. It would be a lot easier to do this with ESPN, which offers the NHL added value in terms of exposure on Sportscentral, ESPNews and ESPN radio. phickey@thegazette.canwest.com © The Gazette (Montreal) 2005 <img src=http://slam.canoe.ca/Slam/Hockey/NHL/2005/03/02/gainey_bob250.jpg> [Edited on 2005/6/4 by Spider-Man NL] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trizzak Posted June 4, 2005 Share Posted June 4, 2005 So I guess the contracts aren't being pushed up a year like some had speculated? (Last years contracts become this years contracts) That certainly creates a bit of freedom for the GM's (some overpaid players suddenly back to nothing) but will mean a lot of signings all around. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fanpuck33_ Posted June 4, 2005 Share Posted June 4, 2005 His quote about Markov sounds good, hopefully it's true. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trizzak Posted June 4, 2005 Share Posted June 4, 2005 Originally posted by Fanpuck33His quote about Markov sounds good, hopefully it's true. If it isn't...we're ######ed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leafs Suck Posted June 7, 2005 Share Posted June 7, 2005 Not really. Even if Markov never came back, I wouldn't fret over it. Komisarek is ready to step in and be a top 4 Dman for the Habs. Hopefully Hainey can build of a strong finish and step in as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
puck7x Posted June 13, 2005 Share Posted June 13, 2005 Originally posted by Leafs SuckNot really. Even if Markov never came back, I wouldn't fret over it. Komisarek is ready to step in and be a top 4 Dman for the Habs. Hopefully Hainey can build of a strong finish and step in as well. Not really, since Komisarek has already stepped in, and is apart of the top-6. Plus he's right D,... Markov is Left D. We'd have a huge hole on LD without Markov, we'd have Souray then Bouillon/Hainsey... It makes me want to puke. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prime Minister Koivu Posted June 18, 2005 Share Posted June 18, 2005 It would hurt to lose Markov. There are alot of questions about our team. The article said that depending on the outcome of the CBA the Habs could have as few as 7 people with contracts! That leaves a huge amount of people to sign =$. I hope Hainsey is ready to step up. Komisarek is already counted on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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