Normally I would add to the existing blog but this is a big number and big news.
Ladd, Byfuglien, Trouba asking Jets for $152M in contracts https://t.co/hlQFelFzv4
— Winnipeg Free Press (@WinnipegNews) December 14, 2015So there you have it- the two UFA players the Jets have to sign want a lot of money and the future pillar on defense wants even more. All added up, according to Tim Campbell and his "league and player sources" it will cost Mark Chipman and David Thomson close to $152 Million if this is who those three deals shake down.
Is Trouba a 7 million dollar defence man?
Is Buff a 6.875 million/year defence man and what about Ladd at 6.8?
So the rubber just hit the road and I guess the question I have is "why now?"
This morning on TSN 1290 Gary Lawless said that Buff's camp and the Jets GM Kevin Cheveldayoff had had the courtesy 'hello' chat but both were waiting for some one to present something to the other side as a starting point. So did one side do that and Tim Campbell got a call on the red phone? Not likely.
Where was this intricate insider knowledge during the deals with Bogosian, Stuart, Little and Wheeler? What about with Evander Kane, a player the Jets had been trying to manage for months if not years with his request to get out. Campbell didn't even know about the track suit in Vancouver.
To be clear I have no grudge towards Campbell, he's a pro and respected, I just don't think he's right but I'm not saying he's wrong either. What I don't understand is where this all came from?
If the Jets leaked it is it a ploy to get fan pressure on the team's side? That would appear to be a very risky tactic, especially this late in the game. Mind you with the sinking Canadian dollar it might make some people be far more palpable to a trade of one or both of Buff and Ladd now that they know the numbers Chevy is dealing with.
What if the agents leaked the numbers? Have they grown tired of the stalling and slow moving tactics of Cheveldayoff? Remember last week when Elliote Friedman reported that the Jets and Trouba's camp had an amicable agreement to pick up talks and negotiations after the season? If either side leaked this things went to a much worse place than amicable.
Nonetheless the fans and media have their starting point- let the games begin as the first one might be about trading