I always liked Deryk Engelend, seemed like he was love by his teamates. I know when he was first signed to that contract there was lots of hate going towards him. You can't fault him for signing that deal and in the end his contribution to the team was excellent. He stepped up his game when called upon and a lot of times he played much better defensively when he was given more minutes.
As for the contract that he signed with Vegas, I doubt that was an option for the Calgary Flames for a $1 mil salary + $1 mil in potential bonus's. I don't know the bonus structure for him but the base salary for the Flames would have been probably closer to $1.75 or so. Nevada is a no income tax state and that is where he lives during the off-season. The tax savings compared to a lower taxed jurisdiction are still quite large and judging from where he lives in Calgary, probably saving $50k a year in rent payments.
Him going to Vegas for a year or two also allows him to build up some goodwill with the organization and potentially land a nice gig with the team after he retires soon. The winters and the travel in Las Vegas might also have played a bit of a role too.
All the best to a guy who won over a LOT of Flames fans in the end!
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