NO BUYOUT FOR LECAVALIER
The National Hockey League's buyout period begins 48 hours after the completion of the Stanley Cup Final. It will end on June 30th at 5 p.m. on the eve of the start of the free agency period. From the time the Flyers' season ended, Flyers general manager
Ron Hextall has made two things clear: he has no plan to buy out embattled veteran forward
Vincent Lecavalier nor does he think the former Tampa Bay icon fits in the team's plans moving forward.
While some outside the organization wondered if Hextall was bluffing, a source within the Flyers indicated that the general manager meant exactly what he said. When the buyout period opened yesterday, the Flyers did not submit a buyout offer to Lecavalier's agent,
Kent Hughes.
Shortly after the hiring of
Dave Hakstol as the Flyers' new head coach, Hextall was asked if he thought a change behind the bench -- albeit to someone's whose preferred system of play does not appear on the surface to mesh with Lecavalier's style of play -- could mean a fresh start for Lecavalier in Philly next season. The GM reiterated his previous statement.
Assuming the Flyers cannot trade him this month -- a virtual certainty because Lecavalier is owed a $2 million signing bonus installment on July 1st -- the ball is now in Lecavalier's court. The player said at his own post-season press conference that he does not want another season like the last two he had under former coach
Craig Berube. Furthermore, the player all but directly said that he wants out of Philadelphia.
After July 1st, Lecavalier may become somewhat more tradeable. Perhaps a cap floor team such as the Arizona Coyotes (who just lost their arena lease deal and are in dire need of forwards that can score goals) may have interest. The contract carries a $4.5 million cap hit this season but with "only" $2.5 million in real-dollar salary owed for the season after the Flyers write the $2 million up front check on July 1.
The Flyers' willingness to pick up part of Lecavalier's remaining salary could also increase their ability to trade the player. However, at least thus far, Hextall has not had interest in taking a chunk of Lecavalier's money on the Flyers cap.
Another option: a mutually agreed contract termination with the Flyers. This scenario is more economically feasible on July 2, 2016 than this summer. It has been a poorly kept secret that Lecavalier never had any intention of playing the fifth and final season (2017-18) of his Flyers contract. The fifth season, carrying a $3 million real-dollar salary, was added on a means of lowering the cap hit on the deal to $4.5 million despite paying $12 million over the first two seasons.
Lecavalier is owed a $500,000 bonus installment on July 2, 2016. Thus, to walk away on that date (assuming he had already figured on 2016-17 being his final season) would mean walking away from $2.5 million. Agreeing to contract termination with the Flyers on July 2, 2015 would mean walking away from $5.5 million. The player would have to very strongly covet his immediate unrestricted free agent freedom and be willing to sign a steeply discounted contract elsewhere to pursue that avenue this summer.
Last year, the Flyers reportedly had trades with Nashville and Florida that involved Lecavalier. Both deals fell through.
The Predators ownership supposedly balked at the idea of helping out the Flyers' cap situation -- a little payback for the
Shea Weber offer sheet of 2012 -- although both general manager
David Poile and Predators head coach
Peter Laviolette felt the veteran could help their team offensively. The Preds then looked elsewhere for help at center.
The Florida deal was discussed at the 2014 NHL Draft in Philadelphia. Supposedly, salary cap relief on Lecavalier was one piece of a multi-component blockbuster trade that would also have netted the Flyers the first overall pick of the 2014 Draft and the chance to draft already NHL-ready defenseman
Aaron Ekblad. Ultimately, the Panthers decided to stand pat.
At one point last offseason, it was rumored there was a potential deal with Ottawa but Lecavalier himself was not interested. This scenario was subsequently denied. The Nashville and Florida were not denied after the fact but no specifics were offered as to what would have to go the other way. The only thing said of the Florida scenario was that
Wayne Simmonds would
not have been involved despite media conjecture to the contrary.
With Lecavalier coming off a 2014-15 season that saw even his offensive confidence hit a low ebb, the task of finding a trade partner is tougher than it was a year ago when he was at least coming off a 20-goal season (albeit a dissatisfying one to all parties). Even so, the chances seem low that Lecavalier will be a member of the Flyers' opening night roster next season.
Right now, the Flyers are playing hardball with Hughes and Lecavalier. They aren't going to buy him out and take on a cap hit for six more seasons. They also have sent a very clear message that if Lecavalier opts to stay put to ensure he gets paid in full, he's probably going to remain a frequent healthy scratch or fourth liner just as he was under Berube.
Barring a decision from the Lecavalier camp to mutually terminate with the Flyers in exchange for immediate unrestricted free agent status, the Flyers and the player alike are going to have to hope there's a post July 1st trade partner to be found. Philly can assist the opening of the trade market by biting the bullet on some sort of cap hit and Lecavalier can assist it by confirming to potential new teams that he doesn't intend to play beyond 2016-17.
*********
SARAH THERIEN'S GREATEST GIFT BENEFITED A NATION
Yesterday marked the ninth anniversary of the passing of
Chris Therien's 32-year-old sister,
Sarah Beth Therien, in Ottawa from sudden cardiac arrest.
Sarah, a longtime employee of the Canada Safety Council, was a bright, energetic and seemingly healthy young woman when she lapsed into unconsciousness following the onset of a heart arrhythmia. She never awoke. Parents
Emile and
Beth Therien were faced with the unspeakably painful decision of whether to keep her on breathing machines or to donate her organs so that others might live. The Theriens honored her spirit by choosing the latter on June 17, 2006.
In death, Sarah became a pioneer,
according to a 2014 CBC News report. She became the first Canadian in nearly four decades to donate her organs after cardiac death rather than brain death. Her organs were accepted and transplanted to others in need. Sarah donated both kidneys and corneas.
Sarah Beth Therien
The Theriens' selflessness inspired others in Canada to follow suit. According to the CBC, in the first six years after Sarah's passing, nearly 14 percent of all organ donations in Canada were now from donors who suffered cardiac deaths. Today, such donations from suitable donors are accepted in the provinces of Ontario, Quebec, Alberta, British Columbia and Nova Scotia.
Per the CBC report, the practice of cardiac death donations was already relatively commonplace in the United States, the United Kingdom and the Netherlands before it was accepted in Canada. The Sarah Therien case was truly a turning point for the country, opening the possibility of helping many more people in need of organ transplants.
At the time of Sarah's death, the Therien family asked that donations be made to the Canadian Sudden Arrhythmia Death Syndrome (SADS) Foundation (1-877-525-5995); 15-6400 Millcreek Drive, Suite 314, Mississauga, Ontario L5N 3E7. Chris Therien has also subsequently done awareness raising for
Simon's Fund and other worthy causes related to sudden cardiac death in children, student athletes and young adults such as Sarah.
Here, the longtime Flyers defenseman and current ice-level television broadcast commentator talks about how checking a heart can save a life:
********
TODAY IN FLYERS HISTORY: FLYERS ACQUIRE TIMONEN AND HARTNELL
On June 18, 2007, the Flyers acquired the rights to defenseman
Kimmo Timonen and left winger
Scott Hartnell from the Nashville Predators in exchange for the 2007 first-round pick the Flyers acquired from the Predators a few months earlier in trade for
Peter Forsberg. On the same day the rights to impending free agents Timonen and Hartnell were acquired, the Flyers also announced the signings of both players to six-year contracts.
In essence, in exchange for allowing Nashville to rent the services of impending unrestricted free agent Forsberg -- who was plagued with foot problems and would never again play a full season as part of an NHL team -- for the stretch run and playoffs, the Flyers acquired Timonen, Hartnell,
Scottie Upshall and
Ryan Parent.
********
NIITTY TURNS 35
Former Flyers goaltender and scout
Antero Niittymaki was born June 18, 1980 in Turku, Finland. Although his NHL career was inconsistent and affected -- in fact, prematurely ended -- by severe hip issues that required the surgical installation of a titanium hip replacement, Niittymaki still had a rather remarkable career outside the NHL.
Over the course of his relatively short career, Niittymaki collected a Calder Cup and playoff MVP honors at the AHL level with the Philadelphia Phantoms, an Olympic most valuable player selection and a silver medal for Finland at the 2006 Olympics in Turin, three Finnish championships (two as a starter) for TPS Turku and SM-Liiga rookie of the year honors with TPS.
After his retirement as a player, Niittymaki became a Flyers scout in Europe. Midway through the 2014-15 season, he became the general manager of TPS Turku. That precluded doing full-time scouting for the Flyers. However, he is still
listed as a scout on the Flyers' official website.
Philadelphia Flyers Blogger •NHL.com • 
Join the Discussion:
»