Yesterday I made a really bum-headed backhanded comment and received a warning because of it. My thoughts have actually changed a bit since then, but not because of the warning.
Anyway, I firmly believe Don Meehan had a lot to do with screwing over the Bruins yesterday. Certainly both Boston and Pittsburgh tried putting the screws to the Flames having that info leaked out that there were only 4 teams on his list. I firmly believe the finger was pointed by Chairelli at Meehan today, and subsequently Iginla, for having a last minute change of heart. Having said that, the 1st rounder which will probably be insignificant, is all we can really hope for out of this deal. If Feaster was a hockey guy part of the old boys club, they probably wouldn't have treated him this way, and that's unfortunate. But he handled the press conference with class and I'll give him credit for that. The way Meehan and Iggy handled it, wasn't right and they should have been up front that Boston shouldn't have been on the list. The Flames looked amateur because of the way the player handled it, and if anything this whole process showed me, if you're not part of the old boys club, you're really going to be taken advantage of.
The ROR offersheet was a debacle and it really pissed me off that the Flames and Feaster made such an error in judgement. Not only that, from top to bottom they lied about it and Feaster was essentially the scapegoat. He was to blame as was the others in the organization who overlooked the details.
Going forward for the rest of the week, I really think he's going to be in the same situation as the Iginla debacle. Kiprusoff and Bouwmeester are going to give a short list as well, and knowing the other GM's, they'll be happy to lowball him just as was done with the Iggy trade. Because of that, I don't know if a firesale will take place as it should happen. While I'd like Feaster to stand his ground and just say no to these vultures, it's probably in the organizations best interest to do a firesale at almost any cost.
Yesterday I was pissed, but now I really feel bad for the guy. It's clear that
a) the no movement clauses are killing their bargaining position
b) ownership has no real direction
c) the old boys club feeds on guys like Feaster
I think that puts him as an underdog and now I'm rooting for the guy to pull off something good. I don't know if you can have someone like Feaster running the team long-term because of "C" above, but I hope he can work something out. Hopefully Bouwmeester and Kiprusoff or anyone else doesn't give a narrow list.
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