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Originally Posted by PeteMoss
Honestly - do you think the other players care about classy? You may have made one guy happy (Hiller) and irritated the other 22 guys who have to play in front of him (or sit while he plays).
Is anyone going to turn down going to Minnesota because they pretended Backstrom wasn't on the team for the past year despite the fact he has way more goodwill with the Wild being there for so long than Hiller does with the Flames.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by PeteMoss
He's keeping 1 player happy while annoying the other players (and not just the other goalies).
I can understand giving Backstrom a start in Minnesota... that's fine. But I really doubt Hiller in 10 years is going to be sitting back thinking of these last few starts.
I don't particularly care that he's playing. But acting like its some class move doesn't work for me.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by PeteMoss
Seems like Hartley and everyone else is much more about making Hiller/Backstrom happy than worried about the team who I'm sure rolls their eyes when Hiller starts just the like the fans.
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How do you know for sure the other 22 guys on the ice are upset and rolling their eyes with the goalies starting? That is your own personal assumption.
A more likely scenario is that 22 guys know that this string of games is meaningless. Sure, they want to win. Right now, it is more about personal performances in order to secure a spot on the team next season. I also would imagine that these guys share a locker room, right? Do they dislike Hiller? Do they dislike Backstrom? I would think they are rather supportive of Hiller and Backstrom, not rolling their eyes when they see that player start.
It could be them down the road. They will feel assured that when it comes down to them winding down or just going through a horrible spell of their own, that the organization wouldn't just ostracize them and feed them to the wolves.
I have some serious reservations that they are getting annoyed and rolling their eyes. In fact, Backstrom was just praised by Hamilton (leading to some over-the-top speculation that he was throwing the other two under the bus).
Hiller helped get this team into the playoffs last year. He has had a horrible year. He won't return. Everyone knows it is all about him trying to do well enough to secure an NHL contract for next season, rather than have to leave the NHL and go to Europe. The other 22 guys on the team I am sure are 100% aware of his situation, and the last thing I bet they are doing is rolling their eyes.
And do players care about stuff like this? Hell yeah. Players always sign-up for a chance to win + money. That is the two biggest motivators. However, do they also know when certain teams have terrible management, coaching, or treat their players terribly? Yes. It is a small fraternity. There are agents that players from all teams use. Yes, it does make an impact on if a player wants to sign somewhere. Wouldn't you consider it if you were a player? Sure, the ones that are just trying to cash-in on what could be their biggest contract would put it down the list, but I am sure most players do in fact care how they will be treated throughout their time in a new organization.
Fans are the only ones I would expect are rolling their eyes.