Posts like this one make him look a bit stupid imho:

@BWildeCTV
They've just never loved PK. They bridged him. Arbitrated him. Tried to trade him. Low balled him. Benched him. Critiqued him. What's next?
- Pecafan Fan

This is the truth some people don't want to hear. He got the deal he got after Bergevin finally was forced to cave. 29 other teams would've signed him last year. They took this to the wire and fought with all their might to not cave and give him what he wants. You don't go through with arbitration with a player you truly love and trust.

Jack Todd's piece was dead on. The thought of losing him and having him shine for someone else was stronger than anything else.

Yeah, Doughty's 7M for 8 years wasn't considered a bargain at the time.
- EssuieToutJeune

They gambled and it payed off.

Yeah, Doughty's 7M for 8 years wasn't considered a bargain at the time.
- EssuieToutJeune

Not at all, there was a similar wide spread reaction when he signed.

Tell us the joke so we can laugh too.
- hscesq

you never find anything I say funny so I'm not gonna waste my time or yours

This is the truth some people don't want to hear. He got the deal he got after Bergevin finally was forced to cave. 29 other teams would've signed him last year. They took this to the wire and fought with all their might to not cave and give him what he wants. You don't go through with arbitration with a player you truly love and trust.

Jack Todd's piece was dead on. The thought of losing him and having him shine for someone else was stronger than anything else.
- EricEngels

So they never loved PK and gave him a 72 million dollar contract.


Makes sense.

This is the truth some people don't want to hear. He got the deal he got after Bergevin finally was forced to cave. 29 other teams would've signed him last year. They took this to the wire and fought with all their might to not cave and give him what he wants. You don't go through with arbitration with a player you truly love and trust.

Jack Todd's piece was dead on. The thought of losing him and having him shine for someone else was stronger than anything else.
- EricEngels

Yeah, I'm going to disagree with you, Brian and Jack. But only 100%. This is a business Eric, and in the end, the best result was achieved for both parties. Let's move on.

you never find anything I say funny so I'm not gonna waste my time or yours
- Rayven

You're already doing it.

you never find anything I say funny so I'm not gonna waste my time or yours
- Rayven

So they never loved PK and gave him a 72 million dollar contract.


Makes sense.
- Pecafan Fan

If you want to dumb it down like that, there's no point in discussing it. Not at all a fair representation of what actually happened.

They gambled and it payed off.
- BashCH

Depends how you want to look at it. I like the bridge contract in the sense that it means having Subban locked up for his best UFA years. LA is going to be paying a fortune once Doughty's contract is up.

You're already doing it.
- BashCH

This is the truth some people don't want to hear. He got the deal he got after Bergevin finally was forced to cave. 29 other teams would've signed him last year. They took this to the wire and fought with all their might to not cave and give him what he wants. You don't go through with arbitration with a player you truly love and trust.

Jack Todd's piece was dead on. The thought of losing him and having him shine for someone else was stronger than anything else.
- EricEngels

Molson stepped in. MB wouldn't have caved on his own. He was told to give it to PK.

If you want to dumb it down like that, there's no point in discussing it. Not at all a fair representation of what actually happened.
- EricEngels

Hurt feelings aren't a fair representation of what actually happened.

This is the truth some people don't want to hear. He got the deal he got after Bergevin finally was forced to cave. 29 other teams would've signed him last year. They took this to the wire and fought with all their might to not cave and give him what he wants. You don't go through with arbitration with a player you truly love and trust.

Jack Todd's piece was dead on. The thought of losing him and having him shine for someone else was stronger than anything else.
- EricEngels

I think they love him and trust him enough to give him 72 million dollars over the next eight years.

If you want to dumb it down like that, there's no point in discussing it. Not at all a fair representation of what actually happened.
- EricEngels

so tell us what happened.

Yeah, I'm going to disagree with you, Brian and Jack. But only 100%. This is a business Eric, and in the end, the best result was achieved for both parties. Let's move on.
- hscesq

We will move on, Howard.
But as many hockey players and coaches and general managers say "It's not just about the end result, it's a process".

The process speaks volumes about why the end result was achieved. And I think that's all in this blog.

Hurt feelings aren't a fair representation of what actually happened.
- WaterBoy

Took some time to sign him because they were probably trying to get him at 8-8.5M$ a year. What a lack of respect !

Hurt feelings aren't a fair representation of what actually happened.
- WaterBoy

I think the discussion can be richer if the blog post is actually read.

Do you think I did? I stand by every single thing I said on Friday. I was adamant that if this thing amounted to a one-year settlement decided by the arbiter, that was a gross failure and some real bad business. To me, there were only two options after the arb hearing: Sign him to the deal he wants or trade him. There was no, let's re-evaluate in 6 months. No, let's sign him next summer. There was no point of return from where arbitration would've taken them had the ruling come down.

Someone came up to me this weekend and said, "I think Bergevin's a genius," and then said "you see!". Nothing genius about it. They could've signed him on Friday to the same deal he signed on Saturday. They made a play and the play failed and hurt both sides.

And, as I mentioned in my blog, it's disappointing we haven't heard from Bergevin. Because he should be trumpeting this new deal and reinforcing the idea that this was all just tough business. That will inevitably happen, but if you think he didn't take some of this personally as well, you're deluded.
- EricEngels

i think the media was justified in painting the situation as dire on Friday because it was. whatever happened between the hearing and the signing doesn't seem like it was all part of MB's plan. it seems there was a sharp course change at some point that no one saw coming. but just because the situation worked itself out, doesn't mean that things didn't look ugly at some point.

If you want to dumb it down like that, there's no point in discussing it. Not at all a fair representation of what actually happened.
- EricEngels

The way I see it, they negotiated a deal, a long, lucrative deal. The arbitration IS part of this process to protect the team (and the player). Could it have been done earlier? Maybe. Are the bridges burnt between Subban and the organization? No. He could have decided to sign the arbitrator deal and become UFA 2 years from now.

But as usual, Wilde went with the overly dramatic, sensational approach. It just irritates me.

The guy was literally crying on twitter the day Gorges was traded. It's his MO, it seems. The players can do no wrong...

We will move on, Howard.
But as many hockey players and coaches and general managers say "It's not just about the end result, it's a process".

The process speaks volumes about why the end result was achieved. And I think that's all in this blog.
- EricEngels

Well, we're not connected like you are, but from here, you're wrong.
PK's agent as to get as much of the blame as MB IMO.
Pretty sure both made a step, from 8 to 9 and from 10 to 9, to find an agreement. The question is, why not do it prior to the arb meeting?

This is the truth some people don't want to hear. He got the deal he got after Bergevin finally was forced to cave. 29 other teams would've signed him last year. They took this to the wire and fought with all their might to not cave and give him what he wants. You don't go through with arbitration with a player you truly love and trust.

Jack Todd's piece was dead on. The thought of losing him and having him shine for someone else was stronger than anything else.
- EricEngels

Like I already said

During the lockout

OMG STOOPID PLAYERS, GO BACK AND PLAY HOCKEY YOU DAMN RICH BABIES!!!

after the lockout

OMG STOOPID HABS, SIGN PK ALREADY GIVE HIM ALL THE MONEY HE WANTS AND STOP HURTING HIS FEELINGS!!!



if he got 9, it's because he was asking for more than that. It's called a negotiation process, people need to stop making it bigger or something it's not. With what I'm reading in the media, Bergevin should have just made him a blank check. Glad Bergevin seems to have a head on his shoulder unlike much of those drama queens.

I think the discussion can be richer if the blog post is actually read.
- EricEngels

so you and Jocelyn hang out at the games ? or was she just a failed experiment ?

We will move on, Howard.
But as many hockey players and coaches and general managers say "It's not just about the end result, it's a process".

The process speaks volumes about why the end result was achieved. And I think that's all in this blog.
- EricEngels

Eric - he signed for 8 years @ $9 Million per year. I may be taking a leap here, but I believe it's safe to say that if there were any hurt feelings, or any issues of trust acting as a barrier for a long term deal, they were all discussed and taken care of prior to the signing.

Well, we're not connected like you are, but from here, you're wrong.
PK's agent as to get as much of the blame as MB IMO.
Pretty sure both made a step, from 8 to 9 and from 10 to 9, to find an agreement. The question is, why not do it prior to the arb meeting?
- fidopro

*sigh*