|
No Kaning Around Anymore!!!! |
|
|
|
|
|
Follow me here @teddier
It's the middle of August and still there is no word from, or even hint of settlement between, Evander Kane and the Winnipeg Jets. While the city and fans do a slow burn over the demise and who is responsible for the beloved and beleaguered Winnipeg BlueBombers football team, the return of the hockey team's burgeoning superstar still remains unanswered.
Former HB contributor Al Cimaglia @AlCimaglia reminded me again via twitter about the very simple situation with Evander Kane, what are the reasons the deal has not been sealed?
It breaks down to several possible answers but none of them may be satisfying to the fans of the Winnipeg Jets.
It's all about the money? Or it it?
Is 29 million for 6 years enough? One would think between the contract signed by Jeff Skinner followed up yesterday by the 6 year 27 million deal Pacrioretty negotiated that Evander Kane and the Winnipeg Jets must be close. On August 8th I wrote that the deal between the Hurricanes and Skinner would and should likely mean the Jets and Kane must see some common ground thus accelerating a finalized deal. If Pacrioretty signing for the same term and less money than what Kane has apparently been offered is good news for the Jets, they need to act on it as the parties can't be that far apart.
Is it about the term?
With little to no word or even rumour from Kane's camp there is much to speculate about as to why the term of the deal is a sticking point. Essentially Kane has been asked to give up a few years of unrestricted free agency and should he agree, is the 4 years asked too many? There's a gamble here and somewhere I'm sure Kane's agent and the player know exactly what issues the NHLPA is willing to die on the hill for in this round of negotiations. Kane's camp could be confident that coming out of this CBA there is no way the PA settles for reduced access to free agency. They could be prepared to wait thus believing the value for those years goes up.
Is it about the team?
Not a disparaging word has been said or uttered by anyone associated the Jets or players about Kane. Nor has the player himself mentioned anything since the season ended- in fact he's mentioned little about anything this off season. So the questions will persist, does he want to be in Winnipeg?
Only Kane and his camp know but the answer to this question probably includes the above two topics. For any leverage Kane needs an offer sheet and what GM is going to do one right now after the Weber debacle? The Jets' ownership is capitalized as well as any in North American pro-sports and they are not going to let a future star and franchise player walk for nothing. However it doesn't mean they want to blindly throw money at a player either.
The ownership of the Jets wants players who want to be Winnipeg Jets. Judging by the deal Enstrom signed (a player wanting to stay a Jet) ownership is prepared to pay and pay well. Kane could be in that same camp if he chooses to be, all he has to do is decide for how long and how much. With the recent negotiated deals for Skinner and Pacriocetty it's hard to imagine Kane would demand more.
There are reasons this deal still lingers unconsummated and that's why questions and speculation grows. As Al said to me- when it's signed the usual rhetoric will accompany the news but with something so important languishing well into the late summer we'll all be asking after- why did it take so long? For Kane those forthcoming answers may be a bit harder to answer and for some of the Winnipeg Jets fans, harder to believe.
Winnipeg Jets Blogger •Winnipeg Jets Writer • 
Join the Discussion:
»