Since when does the filing of a civil law suit instantly mean the target of the lawsuit is guilty? Note what I said… the filing of a civil law suit.
For those unaware, a civil suit has been filed against pending UFA Mike Ribeiro alleging all sorts of inappropriate behavior and seeking significant monetary damages. The details of the suit have been widely publicized and I will not go through them again here, but apparently, that kind of publicity is all you need for be proven guilty in the court of public opinion… or at least in our “instant satisfaction… world we live in today.
A rumor/report came out yesterday that the Predators and Ribeiro were discussing contract terms and that the Predators “made an offer… and that Ribeiro would be talking to other teams during the upcoming visit period. Normal negotiating ploys and fairly innocuous stuff, but… social media, at that point, lost its’ collective mind, trying and convicting the pending UFA on all charges… I was amazed at some of the stuff I read (I know, I shouldn't be)
Wait… what? Oh… that’s right … there aren’t any charges… this is a civil complaint.
The comments from 501 Broadway have been fairly consistent. The team said it when the story broke in March and said it again over the past week or so when the suit was filed. The message has been that all of this was disclosed, the filing of this suit was not exactly news to the team.
But don’t let the facts get in the way of a good story.
Don’t misunderstand me… I am NOT condoning or defending any actions here… if the allegations end up being proven, I will lead the pack in calling for the appropriate punishment. But as I write this on June 26, 2015, we know that some pretty disgusting allegations have been made… and nothing has been proven.
That is ALL we know about the situation.
We all know that Ribeiro has had trouble, the stories surrounding this player were well known for years. However, since coming to Nashville, he has been a model citizen and really has seemed to turn his life around. That being said, it certainly doesn’t mean he gets a pass for any of his actions prior to that turnaround.
Look… it doesn’t matter if Ribeiro re-signs in Nashville or goes somewhere else… all I am saying is that all the facts need to come out before we tar and feather the target of an unresolved civil lawsuit. This has nothing to do with on ice performance, or team needs or wants, or sports at all quite frankly…
It’s about being fair to everyone involved in this situation, and right now… that ain’t happening. Let’s let all the facts come out before deciding if/when someone should lose their livelihood.
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The Predators announced the signing of Mike Fisher today… two more years at a cap hit of $4.4 million. Looks like Isiah’s daddy will be hanging around in Music City.
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Random Notes
- One more SlapShot Radio to go… we will have a review of the winners and loser on draft day and a first take on UFA day… coming up this Wednesday on 94.9 Game 2.
- Draft day is here and you have to wonder if anything happens from the Preds table in Sunrise… the Ribeiro situation certainly should have the phones burning up… perhaps a forward from Edmonton… a center from Arizona??
- As I write this… the Predators do not have a first round pick so things should be pretty quiet, unless the trade winds start blowing…
- The schedule was released yesterday and I am working on my annual schedule review… that should be posted over the weekend.
- The SlapShot Radio Road Trip is on… the fourth annual trip looks to be heading to Florida in February! We are doing a two game trip to both Tampa and Florida for the Preds back to back on Friday/Saturday 2/12 & 2/13… if you are interested, go to the SlapShot Radio Facebook page for details.
- Round one of the NHL Entry Draft will start at 6pm CDT on NBCSN tonight… round two starts at 9am tomorrow morning on NHL Network.
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