Kukla's Korner Hockey
Afternoon Line
by Paul on 06/28/14 at 03:36 PM ET
Comments (8)
“I don’t get it. When you talk about winning and losing, I know you want to go to a team to win a Cup, but we’re as committed as anybody. Who knows, maybe we’re closer than anybody thinks."
“You have to sell your team all the time. But there are teams that are national TV or major markets. I get that. But what we have on the ice, what we have off the ice, no state taxes. There’s a lot of advantage to playing in Nashville. But you can ask Peter Forsberg what he thought about Nashville, or Paul Kariya, just to drop a few names of players who might be going to the Hall of Fame."
“I get it. That’s the way the world is right now. There’s a lot of entitlement."
-David Poile, GM of the Nashville Predators on Jason Spezza not wanting to play in Nashville. More from Greg Wyshynski of PuckDaddy.
Plus Ken Campbell of The Hockey News and Pierre LeBrun of ESPN on the same subject.
Filed in: NHL Teams, Nashville Predators, Ottawa Senators, | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: david+poile,
jason+spezza
Comments
Sounds like Poile has never come to grips with the reality that Nashville will never, ever be a destination for NHL players.
Posted by Primis on 06/28/14 at 06:36 PM ET
Why was a deal even negotiated if Nashville was on the list of ten teams he wouldn’t play for?
Posted by awould on 06/28/14 at 08:20 PM ET
Was Poile told about this before he wasted his time? Seems like Ottawa’s GM had some ulterior motive here.
Posted by awould on 06/28/14 at 08:21 PM ET
Ottawa leaking this information about how Spezza killed a trade to a destination we knew wasn’t on his list more than a week ago has no purpose other than PR for the team. If Murray can’t get absolute steal value for Spezza (and he can’t), then he has to work to make the Ottawa fans happy he could get whatever he ends up getting.
Unfortunately, this means trying to get the fanbase to turn on Spezza the same way they tried (and succeeded to a decent point) of getting the fanbase to turn on Alfredsson.
As for Poile’s complaints? Eh, he’s got basically the same job Murray has in this situation, bending the truth to do whatever it takes to save face/set up an “us against them” mentality for the fanbase.
It’s hard not to play a tiny violin for the GM of a club which for years and years ran itself like a bargain shop for talented prospects before they had to pay them. Granted, it’s been a few years since they started committing to pulling out of that model, but they’re not there yet.
Posted by J.J. from Kansas on 06/28/14 at 08:50 PM ET
Posted by J.J. from Kansas on 06/28/14 at 09:50 PM ET
That’s pretty much my take on it too, but I don’t see it working. I don’t have any thumb on the pulse of their fan base, but I think the cat’s out of the bag with their crap ownership and shady GM.
Posted by awould on 06/28/14 at 08:54 PM ET
Yeah, this debacle is making me downright loathe Senators brass. What are you thinking here, Murray? Waste another organizations time when you know the outcome will not be in their favor, just so you can throw a guy under the bus? And not just any guy but a guy who has been a centerpiece of your team for years? Now that’s the way to attract top talent to your team…
Posted by Iggy_Rules from Calgary, Canada on 06/29/14 at 08:12 AM ET
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Wow. Talk about being butt hurt. Boo frickety hoo.
Posted by Chris in Hockey Hell from Ann Arbor, MI but LIVING in Columbia, TN on 06/28/14 at 04:14 PM ET