One thing that has been touched on lightly but perhaps not focused on much is the covid factor. I think perhaps that’s the “family reasons”. As some have mentioned with a new born on the way and a looming 4th covid wave, or 5th or whatever it is, that has to be a big factor. Especially with his wife being a nurse. She’s going to have definite opinions on covid, and being stuck on the wrong side of an international border cut off from family would be a legitimate concern.
The alleged events that went down on Tuesday night make sense and have a ring of truth. If they’re true no doubt when push came to shove and the Gaudreaus had their bluff called they were forced to reneg on the offer they’d extended to the Flames because they never had any intention of staying.
I found a comment John made at the end of his Columbus presser interesting…it was near the end during the Zoom questions. I’m paraphrasing, but he said they had decided they weren’t going back to Calgary and once that was decided the destination didn’t really matter. It was in reference to why he chose Columbus.
I have no problem with them not wanting to be cut off from family if another covid outbreak shuts down the border. That’s a legitimate family reason. But that decision would have been made well before Tuesday night. Potentially as early as when they found out they were having a baby. If that’s the case, leading everyone on until the last minute is gutless, deceitful and selfish. They may not have even shared that with his agent.
This is all speculation on my part. I’m just trying to make sense of a very bizarre situation, but it makes sense to me that covid concerns could have been the “family reasons”.
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