Day Thirteen: Washington Capitals
Current Goalie: Tomas Vokoun
Current Captain: Alexander Ovechkin
Current Assistant Captains: Nicklas Backstrom, Mike Knuble
I hate the Capitals. Pretty sure Boudreau travels the world and samples different buffets during the off season with Marian Gaborik bemoaning the fact they don’t have Stanley Cups. I’m waiting with bated breathe for his launch of a food blog, cookbook, and housewares. That is all.
This rant requires some reader participation; I need you to forget as you read this I am a New York Ranger and Calgary Flames fan. If you don’t, this post will seem a bit ridiculous.
Growing up, I never put much thought in to contracts or money for the NHL; I always looked at these men who loved hockey and happen to make money while doing so. Chalk it up to being naive and not understanding the politics of major league sports, but never really was overly concerned about the whole money aspect of the sport. I guess the first time I noticed the importance of money in sports would have in the MLB, but since this is not a baseball blog…
The first time I really started paying attention to money in the NHL, and not just my teams, was in the fall of 2006. For those of you unaware, this would have been when part-time goalie, full-time man of egg shells, Rick DiPietro resigned with the New York Islanders for 15-years, $67.5 million, roughly $4.5 million a year. Such a big stink was made about this contract, which then was paled in comparison to the 15-years, $100 million contract, roughly $6.66 million a year, over hyped asshole, winger Ilya Kovalchuk signed with the New Jersey Devils this past season. While these are not the only high paying, long term contracts floating around the NHL (Alexander Ovechkin, Mike Richards, more), the DiPietro one was, as I mentioned, the first one I really took note of, and the Kovalchuk one was headline grabbing for weeks.
While I understand some of the logic used in these long contracts (building a team around a player, creating a face for the franchise, and just overall roster stability), there are problems to this. Problems that far outweigh the positive, in my opinion. Mainly, sitting back and watching a player become complacent with below average playing. With a long term contract, there is no incentive, no reason to work your butt off to earn and keep your spot. Not many teams can afford to take on such a contract if the player starts to slack, and to prevent those who can afford you from picking you up, many teams throw in a No Trade/No Move Clause to guarantee the player a position. Sure, it’s a great incentive, but half the team (or more in some cases) should not have this in their contract, *ahem, Flames, ahem*.
Sure, I can continue bitching about the contracts, the overpaid super stars with bloated egos and point fingers at the problem, or I can make the suggestion that dozens of people and I have mentioned: short contracts, limited NTC/NMC and contract extensions per team (like no more than two players with those clauses, one of each) are the way to go. This way every year, two years, or max three years, a player would be forced to step up.
Now in now way am I accusing any of the earlier mentioned players of doing any of this, that is up for you to decide, but as a Rangers fan, I’ve watched it happen *ahem Gaborik ahem*. And as a Flames fan, I know what 11 NTC/NMC does to a franchises options. If a player is really jelling with your team, resign him at the end of his contract, if he ends up being a bust, you’ve wasted a year, or three at most. 15 years is a long time to be saddled with a player, management changes, the style of the team is altered, and hey, injuries happen. It’s a scary truth, but with the way certain guys are playing, x-rays of them must look crash test dummy-esque. It might not be career ending injuries, but someone like DiPietro, who gets hurt and is out for months at a time, puts a strain on the team. Look, fantastic for you if your team’s long term contract pays off, but I don’t think it’s worth it, that’s just me.
Not even Henrik likes these long term contracts
Hate the idea? Love the idea? Leave a comment, tweet at me, get in touch with me. But honestly, I don’t the NHLPA or Buttman reads my blog or gives a crap about what the NHL fan thinks, after all, the NHL is all about the all mighty dollar, not upholding the sport’s traditions [I think I just found my next rant], so in the end it doesn’t matter what we think.
Thanks to CapGeek for the numbers, @damnitjason for pointing me in a direction for a rant (and giving me a future rant), and Gary Buttman for his endless supply of anger causing decisions.
Washington Capitals
Formerly/aka N/A
Founded in 1974
Stanley Cups: 0
Original Six Status: No
Currently placed second in the Eastern Conference, with a guaranteed playoff spot, the Washington Capitals are bringing back the fun in the NHL. With Alexander Ovechkin leading the way, there are glimpses of the the 1980’s era Edmonton Oilers with Wayne Gretzky as captain. While Ovechkin does not have the leadership skills of Gretzky yet, there is potential for a dynasty. While life pre-Ovechkin was dismal, there is great hope in their future.
To further prove how dismal life was pre-Ovechkin, the opening season for the Capitals still holds the record for least points received, at a paltry 21 points. Their record was 8-67-5.
Notable Players (not named Alexander Ovechkin):
Nicklas Backstrom
Michal Neuvirth
A big huge hug goes out to my friend Dave (who can be found here: http://mathematicallyyours.tumblr.com) for helping me put this post together!
HockeyN3rd 