I get the close to home thing. In fact I did the exact same thing when I had my second child. I moved from Washington DC, back to Calgary for less money. I probably would have moved to Edmonton, Lethbridge, Saskatoon or whatever if there was nothing for me in Calgary at the time. You can't put a price on having your kids grow up around their grandparents, uncles, aunts and cousins, as well as having that support system for your wife while she tries to cope with being a new mom. I don't know what it's like as a professional athlete, where you have millions of dollars at your disposal and are away from home half the time, but I imagine being away from home is a big reason why it's important for his wife to have her support system around her.
Each individual is also different. Maybe being with family is important for Johnny and his wife. To some, it might not be a big deal. Maybe they just prefer the lifestyle in America and they couldn't stand the idea of having their kids go to Canadian schools... that was actually part of the reason I moved back to Canada. Maybe he likes guns. Maybe he hates the weather here. Maybe he just wanted a change, just as some of us quit our jobs after 8 years for a seemingly lateral move. Who actually knows.
All that said, it doesn't mean that Johnny handled this well. I think he just strung the team along for the last few months and I'm fairly annoyed at how this all went down.
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