“Alexander Semin was a very top-end player in the league when the game was played at a slower pace. It’s now played at such a high level if you can’t skate it’s hard to compete. Alex lost a step and he tried to play on the outside too much because he didn’t have the speed.
“And then he didn’t buy into the culture that our coach (Bill Peters) was trying to get in the locker room. When you go to practice and you have 22 guys doing things the way the coach wants and one who doesn’t, it usually doesn’t end well. … In simple terms, we paid him $14 million to go away. When we talk about ownership, you don’t do that unless you have a commitment to winning and Pete Karmanos certainly has that.”
-Don Waddell, president of the Carolina Hurricanes on Alexander Semin (now with the Canadiens), who was bought out this summer. Chip Alexander of the News & Observer has more from Waddell on the Hurricanes.
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