[News] Kevin Hayes signs with the Rangers

[Poe969]

I keep coming here and hoping to see something from sureLoss...........I just want this to be over with!

[Enoch Root]

I'm guessing this hasn't created the frenzy he was hoping for

[Vulcan]

Well the threat of Gaudreau doing it sure caused a lot of angst around here and if he didn't sign this year, it was a good possibility he'd go the FA route next summer. I mean why not after doing your 4 years, wait a couple of months to call your own shots.

[old-fart]

Originally Posted by Textcritic

So, in 2012 there was Schultz, last year it was Knight, and then there is Kevin Hayes this year. There have been a handful of other players with little in the way of legitimate NHL prospects, but beyond them these three represent the bounty that has been caused by this "imbalance." Again, if it starts happening with bonafide blue chip draftees on a consistent basis, then there is indeed an issue. But as it stands now, the players who are good enough to make an NHL impact are almost always signed by the end of their juniour year by the team who drafted them. That is not likely to change, and by extension, it further means that it is not likely to be any more significant a "problem" in the future than it is today.

Schultz was a bit of a different case, wasn't he? I thought there was something involving either which league he was drafted out of or something that allowed him to become a free agent earlier than the standard 4 years that NCAA players typically have.

Knight was also never a free agent (although it appeared heading in that direction).

I would agree though, the system isn't really broken - it is what it is.

[timbit]

Originally Posted by Enoch Root

Look at the last 3 years and compare that to any prior 3 years. It is definitely becoming more popular. And each year there are more draftees going the NCAA route.

If you don't see a trend, fine. I certainly do.

Valid point.


http://www.collegehockeynews.com/rep...afted.php?st=y

[getbak]

Originally Posted by Enoch Root

It doesn't happen at all with CHL players, therefore there is an imbalance that needs to be addressed.

A simple solution is if a team doesn't want to run the risk of losing a player who has committed to the NCAA, they shouldn't draft players who have committed to the NCAA. It's no different than teams avoiding Russian players out of fear they'll either not come over to North America, or they'll choose to return home if they don't get treated they way they like.

Every team knows the potential risks when they draft a player. If they don't want to accept those risks, they're free to draft any of the hundreds of eligible CHL or European players available.

[Vulcan]

Originally Posted by old-fart

Schultz was a bit of a different case, wasn't he? I thought there was something involving either which league he was drafted out of or something that allowed him to become a free agent earlier than the standard 4 years that NCAA players typically have.

Knight was also never a free agent (although it appeared heading in that direction).

I would agree though, the system isn't really broken - it is what it is.

Schults did the standard 4 years, it's just that the first year was the BCHL and than 3 years in college.

[Parallex]

Originally Posted by old-fart

Schultz was a bit of a different case, wasn't he? I thought there was something involving either which league he was drafted out of or something that allowed him to become a free agent earlier than the standard 4 years that NCAA players typically have.

Not quite. The Schultz (and Wheeler) thing is that the rules allowed that, if a player plays an additional year of junior (So the USHL, BCHL, OPJHL, etc. etc.), after being drafted but before attending college if they deregister from school they can sign anywhere after 4 years. It allows him to become a free agent after 4 years time (just not after 4 school years) in Schultz's case he spent a year in the BCHL then went to school for three years exiting after his junior year at school.

[sureLoss]

Unfortunately I don't think the current system gets changed. At least not for the life of this CBA.

To rework the system, the CBA needs to be re-written and the NHLPA won't give up the rights for NCAA players unless the owners give up something else.

[tempz]

Originally Posted by sureLoss

Sounds like we may have a decision today:

Mark Divver @MarkDivver
Expecting news on Kevin Hayes by day's end. Was told a month ago that Avs were frontrunners. Will be interesting to see how it turns out.

If this guy is legit and he was told this by someone in Hayes camp, does this not indicate that tampering has taken place? Or are the tampering rules different because he isn't under contract, allowing him to speak with other teams prior to August 15th?

[mikeecho]

Originally Posted by tempz

If this guy is legit and he was told this by someone in Hayes camp, does this not indicate that tampering has taken place? Or are the tampering rules different because he isn't under contract, allowing him to speak with other teams prior to August 15th?

I would suspect tampering would be an issue if the Avs reached out to Hayes a month ago to try and recruit him.

If Hayes just likes what the Avs are doing and had them at the top of his list, then there's no tampering.

[Bandwagon In Flames]

Originally Posted by tempz

To add to what people have already provided in reply to this particular post, here are his stats before and after joining Johnny Hockey's line:

Before: 14 GP, 8G, 13A, 21 Points - 1.50 points per game
After: 26 GP, 19G, 25A, 44 Points - 1.69 points per game

There are other factors involved with players having breakout years, not just who they are playing with.

This is a good stat to point out, but I don't think it tells everything as there are a couple other factors to consider.

I'm not sure how many power play points Hayes got before/afterwards, but he likely went from the 1st to 2nd power play unit when moving to Gaudreau's line. Less pp time will usually mean less production. He'd also be facing tougher competition when playing even strength on the top line.

His production without Gaudreau is surprising and impressive nonetheless.

[sureLoss]

Originally Posted by tempz

If this guy is legit and he was told this by someone in Hayes camp, does this not indicate that tampering has taken place? Or are the tampering rules different because he isn't under contract, allowing him to speak with other teams prior to August 15th?

No there are no special rules, but the statement itself doesn't prove tampering.

The Avalanche being front runners could have been based on analysis that Hayes and his agent made based on team depth, organizational strengths and weaknesses, personal preference, etc. without any undue communication with the Avalanche.

Tampering requires a high standard of proof, and unless there is an e-mail or recorded phone call between the Avalanche and Hayes, you can't say tampering occurred.

Now I am not naive enough to say tampering never happens, but statements like that don't prove that it occurred.

[Parallex]

Originally Posted by tempz

If this guy is legit and he was told this by someone in Hayes camp, does this not indicate that tampering has taken place?

Depends on the source... if the source was someone on the Aves then sure but if it cames from Hayes camp then it could easily just be the guy expressing his fondness for the Aves (and "frontrunner" status inferred).

Regardless tampering happens all the time. I mean look at how quickly free agent deals were signed in the past... you really believe that there were multimillion dollar deals negotiated, signed, and delivered in mere minutes? Pretty sure there are were a lot of unwritten rules in the past that allowed it and the new 5 day negotiation window is just those unwritten rules being codified.

[SuperMatt18]

Damn, saw Sureloss posted and thought there was some new news.

[CliffFletcher]

Originally Posted by djsFlames

Also any player passionate about the game you think would want to play in Canada.

Do you think Drew Doughty is passionate about the game? In a recent Hockey News article he commented on how much higher profile the Kings players have in L.A. now that they've won the Cup. Then he lamented the fact that it's like playing in Canada now, where you get recognized everywhere, and how "that sucks."

Erik Duhatschek commented during the playoffs that Mike Richards and Jeff Carter enjoy playing in L.A. much more than in Philadelphia, because they hated the media pressure and profile of playing in a hockey market. Whatever you may think of them as people, they're pretty passionate hockey players.

Many of the young players in the NHL like to enjoy their millionaire party lifestyle in anonymity away from the rink, and many of the married ones are married to American women, who do not want to live outside the U.S. Canadian teams are at a real disadvantage in attracting players. It sucks, but it does no good to pretend otherwise.

[mikeecho]

Re: Tampering, the league seems to be pretty hands off with it for the most part but I wonder (if the league ever really drew a line) where the line would be.

If the Flames did a post season exit interview with Gaudreau and in a round about way told him told him they'd love to have a guy like Hayes on the team, he'd have a great opportunity, etc... knowing Gaudreau and Hayes would be spending a lot of time all summer together at camps and chit chatting about Hayes future... would that cross the line? Probably hard to prove most cases (as others have mentioned) without a smoking gun like an e-mail or something concrete.

[Da_Chief]

So we're still one of the finalists?

I change my view on him, he's gonna be great!

[Badgers Nose]

If I could make millions of dollars doing something I love and the only caveat was leaving my home country, it would be pretty easy to leave and never look back.

i.e. something just about every great Brazilian soccer player has to do.

[StrykerSteve]

The Kevin Hayes sweepstakes are expected to come to a conclusion Monday. Mark Divver of The Providence Journal reports the 22-year-old unrestricted free agent will make a decision "by day's end."

As many as five teams are believed to be in the running to sign the Boston College standout, but Divver further reports the Colorado Avalanche are believed to be the frontrunners.

The Calgary Flames and Boston Bruins have been named as other serious contenders, with Hayes's decision likely to come down to where he will be able to get the best combination of playing time and salary.

http://www.thescore.com/nhl/news/558017

Nothing new in there, but it's the very latest.