Quote:
Originally Posted by JohnnyB
If Columbus is where he wanted to be, I'm pretty sure he could have had eight years there in a sign and trade at 10.5 by being up-front with the Flames. Also, it's crazy that he ended up on a contract that isn't even front-loaded. Was nobody advising him on future vs. present value of the dollars on the table? It just seems he could have easily come out of this much richer, being where he chose to be, and without burnt bridges and a burnt legacy in a community he had been a part of for a long time. It's hard not to see this as a really bungled relationship and process. If I were a developing prospective NHL star, I would not even consider having Gross represent me in anything.
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This is the weird part.
No up front money and no signing bonus (which is a huge impact with Escrow).
I mentioned this earlier in the thread and it got lost in the shuffle but I found myself with a random conversation with somebody close to the family last night (not going to name names but a mod can PM me if they want).
Based on the conversation it really does sound like Johnny was truly torn by this decision to leave Calgary and it really was 50/50. Also it sounds like the family was as surprised as the rest of us that it’s Columbus in the end.
I really think this came down to Johnny really wanting Philly, and when that didn’t work out he just took the best offer that was in the East and closer to home, where he’s had some friends play. I don’t think it being a smaller market hurt either.
Honestly I have a feeling there might be some pressure on Lewis Gross today too, because I think everyone thought they would be offers of $10.5M AAV on the table and that just didn’t come to fruition.