Quote:
Originally Posted by FlamesAddiction
Kucherov was injured, but other players get the same kind of injury and play through it and have surgery in the offseason. I have no doubt that Kucherov opted for the surgery earlier to help Tampa stack the team for the playoffs. I also think they could have activated him earlier and chose not to in order to stay cap compliant. I'm not even mad. It's within the rules and they executed the plan perfectly. They were a good enough team that they didn't need to worry about the regular season. Who wouldn't do that for the team if they asked? I think fans overly romanticize being a player and just playing for the love of the game, but for these guys, it's a business and their business plan is to win a championship for their club. They will do whatever it takes.
Do I think it debases the game somewhat? Yeah, I do. Do I blame them for doing it? Not really. Should the NHL fix it for the future... most definitely.
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Kucherov did have surgery in the offseason. Not that early but still off season. It’s almost certain they held him out for a couple weeks after his full recovery. But that is pretty minor IMO. And if TBL planned the whole thing they were pretty gutsy - playing an entire season without their best player, a league MVP. And they didn’t even sign some elite player with the cap room.
But if Stone stays out without surgery and for even longer, it will be more blatant, and I bet the rules get changes. Especially since it is to add a $10M player.