Everything kind of lines up with the other poster's info in that I was told the Flames were a bit taken aback at the $11 million range of the counter. I had thought a counter offer was a good thing and this would get done but I hadn't heard the Murray Edwards piece, and if that's correct that does have me feeling a little less optimistic.
I figured Johnny's camp knew they had the Flames in a tough spot where they would overpay because the team wouldn't want it to come out afterwards that Johnny was willing to stay but the Flames wouldn't meet his number (the number also doesn't seem that unreasonable to me given how well he played last season in which he finished 2nd in scoring). But if Edwards is really involved then he seems like just the kind of business man that might walk away if he feels he's losing a deal.
I still feel this gets done though. There are always those pressure points that get each side feeling squirmy at different points of a negotiation, and it's always full of what-ifs until the handshake is made.
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