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Why Would Foligno Re-Sign Now? |
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Please tell me how an NHL officiating crew could allow Ducks D Clayton Stoner to cross check Canadiens winger Max Pacioretty and not call a penalty on the play!
At the very least its a minor cross checking penalty. The hit was late and the puck was gone. Moreover, its a boarding major that caused an injury to the victim. Pacioretty left the game with an upper body injury. The human head and shoulders will lose a battle with the walls every single time.
No penalty on the ice. Will there be supplemental discipline from the NHL Department of Player Safety?
I say yes. Stoner will be slapped with a suspension for his douchey late hit.
Having said that, it won't surprise me in the least if/when the NHL decides not to review the dangerous play.
#NHLTypical
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Nick Foligno and the Columbus Blue Jackets are in the preliminary stages of negotiating a new long term contract extension. TSN's Bob McKenzie said Thursday night that the feisty winger is aiming to earn $5 million per season. Some may scoff Foligno’s asking price. Not me. I think that $5M+ per season is bang on for a player of his caliber and stature.
"The Blue Jackets are Foligno are discussing a new contract," McKenzie said on TSN.
"They're not far down the trail just yet, but Foligno certainly wants to stay in Columbus and Columbus would love to have him."
"It's going to be an expensive deal to do especially with Foligno shooting the lights out, I'd have to think that his number would start at north of $5 million per year."
Marcus Foligno’s older brother is having a career year thus far and is averaging nearly a point a game heading into his UFA summer. Foligno has scored 15 goals and has chipped in 14 assists for the Blue Jackets whose roster has been wiped out by devastating long term injuries to its key contributors.
Foligno tied his career best by scoring his 15th goal of the season, then scored his career high 16th goal in the third period against Washington on Thursday night. He also added an assist. Foligno is carrying the Blue Jax on his back and has done so all season. He has changed the way that people view his brand by lighting the lamp with regularity.
For years, he was considered a dogged defender who could score 10-15 goals and 20 assists a season. His metamorphosis has been impressive to watch so much so that Foligno is on pace to score 40 goals and 40 assists this season. I’m not saying that he will, however, he will easily eclipse his previous career high of 47 points (15G, 32A) that he accumulated in 2011-12 while with the Ottawa Senators. Foligno recorded his best career statistical season in the final year of his contract in Ottawa which prompted the Blue Jackets to sign him as a UFA to him $9.75 million ($$3,083,333 AAV) on a three year contract.
Foligno over-delivered on his current contract and will be looking to nearly double his annual salary. He will have a lot of leverage to use in his favor.
Three years ago, the Ottawa Senators liked Foligno’s production and his overall game, however, they knew that he would command and receive a huge pay raise on the open market. Today Blue Jackets GM Jarmo Kekalainen is in the same shoes that Bryan Murray was in back in 2011-12 which is to say, the player is going to get paid. Either the Blue Jackets or another club will be paying the Buffalo born Foligno.
The Jax can argue that Foligno is playing additional minutes while on the Jax top two lines this season due to injuries to top line LWs Scott Hartnell and Brandon Dubinsky. Kekalainen be wondering why he would pay Foligno, his third line LW, $25-$27 million over a 5 year term. Another factor in the Jax re-signing Foligno is the emergence of LWs Boone Jenner, Sonny Milano, and Kerby Rychel. Kekalainen will have to weigh the risk/reward of locking up Foligno long term to a fat contract. The kids have equal or greater talent to Foligno and will continue to push their way up the organizational depth chart. They will need playing time in the top 9 forward group in CBUS. Hartnell has four years remaining on his contract after this season. Dubinsky has six years remaining after this season. Perhaps Kekalainen will trade Foligno between now and the NHL trade deadline in March as the Jax are close to selecting Connor McDavid or Jack Eichel than they are to playing Sidney Crosby in the first roud of the playoffs again.
The Jax might want to trade Foligno, tank, scrape the bottom and become an NHL lottery team. Only Kekalainen, John Davidson and the owners of the Jax know the strategy and they aren’t revealing it to the public.
All in all, Foligno appears to be content in Columbus. The Jax appear to be happy with his contributions to their success in his two and a half seasons in college football country. When healthy, the Jax have a hard-working, skilled team that can be very entertaining to watch as evidenced by their first round playoff tussle that they eventually lost to the Pittsburgh Penguins in the spring of 2014. Their future is bright with young studs like Ryan Johansen, Boone Jenner, Matt Calvert, Cam Atkinson, Kerby Rychel, Sonny Milano, Alexander Wenneberg, Oscar Dansk and others on the come.
If you are Foligno, why would you sign a contract extension with the Blue Jackets now? Why not put that on hold and play out the rest of the season and see what the market will bear come July 2015?
Jax GM Kekalainen was seen in the Buffalo press box earlier this week. Is he doing his scouting diligence in advance of a trade with Buffalo? On Wednesday, the Sabres and Jax swapped minor league forwards Luke Adam for Jerry D’Amigo. Kekalainen didn’t drive four and half hours to Buffalo to trade a minor leaguer in person. He and Tim Murray may be working on a deal. Perhaps Nick Foligno is involved. Murray and Foligno have a relationship from their days working together in Ottawa. It would make all the sense in the world as the Sabres are looking to add players like Foligno who have solid core values and high character. Foligno is the exact type of gritty, skilled, unselfish, and respected vets that he would like to add to his emerging group of skilled young kids. I can see a day when Nick is riding alongside his kid brother Marcus while their proud Papa Mike watches from the lower seats with a wide grin on his face.
Stranger things have happened.
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