nothing but hockey
Adam Foote is a traitor. Plain. Simple. End of story.
I suspected it all along, and now the proof has started to add up big time.
The following are just articles from the Dispatch - Just want to make sure I can have access to these. He disgusts me.
NHL Notebook: Foote forced his way out, sources say
Sunday, March 2, 2008 3:21 AM
By Aaron Portzline
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
The Blue Jackets have had four captains since they joined the NHL in 2000. They're still searching for their first good one.
Defenseman Adam Foote seemed to be the guy, especially this season when the stifling presence of president and general manager Doug MacLean was swept away by his offseason firing and Foote was allowed to truly run the dressing room.
But the events of Tuesday, the NHL's trade deadline day, sent a chill through the entire Blue Jackets organization, and Foote is now seen as more fraud than leader.
It's believed that Foote and his agent, Rick Curran, set their contract demands at a height they knew the Blue Jackets wouldn't accept.
Proof: The Blue Jackets moved up from their first offer of two years, $6 million to two years, $7 million, but Foote and Curran refused to budge from their initial demand of two years, $8 million.
When Howson suggested to Foote that the sides continue negotiating beyond the trade deadline -- that the Blue Jackets' playoff hopes, faint as they are, deserve a hearty attempt -- Foote responded in a way nobody could have predicted.
According to numerous NHL sources, Foote threatened to be "a bad teammate, a bad captain and a bad player" the rest of the season if he weren't re-signed or traded to his preferred destination -- the Colorado Avalanche, where his best NHL years were spent.
The Blue Jackets made a final plea, urging Foote to consider all that the Blue Jackets' ownership group, the coaching staff and the fans had done for him the past three seasons.
Again, according to sources, he responded by saying that he "doesn't owe anybody anything."
With that, Howson had no choice but to deem him un-captain-worthy and seek a trade. That he got a first-round draft pick out of the Avalanche is almost remarkable.
Foote had a private plane waiting for him here and equipment waiting for him in Calgary, where the Avalanche played Tuesday night.
It's believed that Foote got ugly only because he had to, that so many people -- his family, the Avalanche, etc. -- were counting on his arrival in Denver, and the Blue Jackets weren't playing along.
Foote has denied saying he would become a distraction.
"I would never say stuff like that. I'm a professional," he said. "I've never been that way throughout my career. All I told them is it would be too stressful for my wife and I to stay without knowing for sure I was part of the future there."
But think about it: Foote said he couldn't play the rest of this season without a contract extension, without knowing what his future held. But he hasn't signed an extension with the Avalanche.
The bet here is that he signs for far less than $3.5 million per season in Colorado. A further bet is that fans in Nationwide Arena won't forget how Foote orchestrated his departure.
Where do the Blue Jackets go from here? The plan is to not name a captain for the rest of the season, perhaps not until late in next season's training camp.
By then, there will have been plenty of time for a certain player to step forward and grab the mantle, to show that he's not only the Blue Jackets' best player on the ice, but the go-to guy in the room.
At this point in the Blue Jackets' existence, and at this point in his career, it has to be Rick Nash, doesn't it?
Rad Brad
It had to sting the Blue Jackets more than a little bit. Not only did they miss out on the Brad Richards sweepstakes at Tuesday's deadline, but Richards had a career-high five assists in his first game with the Stars two nights later.
Richards would have waived his no-trade clause to join the Jackets, but the Stars offered in trade something the Blue Jackets could not -- a proven NHL goaltender in the early stages of his career. Mike Smith, 25, now becomes the Lightning's latest attempt at a franchise goaltender.
Richards was asked about his willingness to join the Blue Jackets in an NHL conference call Friday. Here's what he said:
"Well, there was no list or anything that was rumored. I just told Jay (Feaster, Lightning general manager) that if the ownership was going to make him do this, we weren't going to hold him hostage with the no-trade clause, but we wanted to control our destiny.
"From the start, Jay told us that Dallas had the best offer, and we said Dallas would probably be the No. 1 pick if something happened. He said Columbus was coming in with an offer, and there were a couple of other teams, too.
"That's when I said if something falls through with Dallas, then maybe Columbus, because I have a good friendship with Freddy Modin, who I played with for the first six years of my career. And then, obviously, with some of their personnel -- Rick Nash and some of the younger guys -- I thought it would be an opportunity maybe to go and grow with that team. But it never really came down to that."
Slap shots
Sources in Detroit say the Blue Jackets wanted a first-round draft pick from the Red Wings for center Sergei Fedorov, who eventually was shipped to the Washington Capitals. "We had a little bit of interest, but our picks are deeper in each round than everybody else's," Red Wings general manager Ken Holland said. "For us to get anything, we have to be almost a round ahead of everybody else. So we didn't want to move the first rounder." … Pittsburgh gave up a boatload to get Atlanta's Marian Hossa -- Colby Armstrong, Erik Christensen, Angelo Esposito and a No. 1 pick. This will be a major gaffe if the Penguins don't re-sign Hossa. … Best deadline performance: Washington, for adding Fedorov to play with Alexander Semin on the No. 2 line and a goaltender for today and the future, in Cristobal Huet. Worst deadline performance: Montreal, for shipping Huet to the Caps for a No. 2 pick in 2009 and turning over the pipes to rookie Carey Price. Risky, risky. Also, the No. 2 pick is Anaheim's, so it'll likely be even lower in the pecking order. … The Sabres' self-mutilation continues. They offered pending unrestricted free agent Brian Campbell a three-year contract worth $17.25 million. When he declined, they traded him to San Jose for inconsistent winger Steve Bernier. Campbell wants a six-year deal, which he will get this summer.
Michael Arace commentary: Something stinks with Foote's story on staying put
Saturday, March 1, 2008 3:20 AM
By Michael Arace
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
Thoughts that have remained dormant for years have worked to the front of my brain this week. Wisps of memory have emerged, unbidden, and they're telling me that we've all been played by Adam Foote, that he is not the leader of men that he purported to be, and not just because he quit the Blue Jackets.
I worked the Hartford Whalers beat for two seasons, 1995 to '97. The owner was bent on moving the franchise, but he made it sound like he wanted to stay. It was a two-bit carnival performance. Anyway, before the relocation plans became official, a story broke about defenseman Gerald Diduck putting his house up for sale. Diduck said this was pure coincidence, which, of course, was a crock. I don't blame Diduck. As a player, he was caught in the middle of a bad situation.
The year before, Brendan Shanahan, the best player on the Whalers roster, a Rick Nash type in his prime, begged his way out of Hartford. Shanahan fancied himself too big for the city. He said he wanted to play for a winner and hinted at a desire to be with a more stable franchise. He sat at a news conference, flanked by management, and announced he wanted a trade.
There was an editorial cartoon in the Hartford Courant that showed a little kid weeping as he took his Shanahan jersey out to the curb and put it in the trash can. Many fans identified with this sense of betrayal. Others at least appreciated Shanahan's candor and figured if he didn't want to play for the team, at least he was man enough to admit it. So, ship him. Shanahan took abuse as penance until he was traded to Detroit.
Lesson No. 1: Foote said he put his Dublin house on the market last summer because he wanted to "downsize." What he didn't say was he was hunting for a smaller house in the greater Denver area.
Lesson No. 2: Foote professed shock that he was traded to the Colorado Avalanche -- yet he rigged the game for just this outcome.
Here's what we know:
Jackets management wanted to continue negotiating with Foote. It wanted him here for the final stretch of the season. It was willing to lose him without compensation this summer, if it came to that -- which is a testament to its soaring regard for the captain. But Foote wanted $4 million a year for two years, an exorbitant price -- and if he didn't get it, his demand was to be moved to Colorado. And make no mistake, it was a demand.
A private jet, possibly leased by Foote's agent, took off from Pittsburgh on Monday night -- some 16 hours before the trade deadline -- and parked itself at Port Columbus overnight. This is the jet that whisked Foote to Calgary in time for him to suit up for the Avalanche on Tuesday night. Foote prearranged to have a pile of tickets ready for his friends and family.
Here's is some educated guesswork:
Foote regretted the day he signed a free-agent contract with the Blue Jackets in 2005. He always planned on retiring in Colorado, something he revealed this week during contract negotiations. No doubt, he will sign for less money than
the Jackets were offering ($3.5 million a year) when he gets his final contract with the Avalanche this summer. Maybe a part of him wanted to finish the job here, but more of him wanted to get back to the high desert plain.
Fine. But at least be a man about it. When you're the captain and you dump your teammates and slight a city and its fans, be honest about your actions -- especially after you've cashed $12 million worth of checks. Don't hide behind a contract demand that was never going to be met. Don't profess to be shocked at a trade when you know there's a private jet waiting at the airport. And don't talk about "downsizing."
The Blue Jackets were five points out the playoffs when Foote fled. He obviously felt he didn't owe the fans anything, didn't owe his teammates anything, didn't owe the organization anything -- not even the truth. His exit strategy was to play us like dupes.
Thanks, Cap.
Michael Arace is a sports reporter for The Dispatch.
I suspected it all along, and now the proof has started to add up big time.
The following are just articles from the Dispatch - Just want to make sure I can have access to these. He disgusts me.
NHL Notebook: Foote forced his way out, sources say
Sunday, March 2, 2008 3:21 AM
By Aaron Portzline
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
The Blue Jackets have had four captains since they joined the NHL in 2000. They're still searching for their first good one.
Defenseman Adam Foote seemed to be the guy, especially this season when the stifling presence of president and general manager Doug MacLean was swept away by his offseason firing and Foote was allowed to truly run the dressing room.
But the events of Tuesday, the NHL's trade deadline day, sent a chill through the entire Blue Jackets organization, and Foote is now seen as more fraud than leader.
It's believed that Foote and his agent, Rick Curran, set their contract demands at a height they knew the Blue Jackets wouldn't accept.
Proof: The Blue Jackets moved up from their first offer of two years, $6 million to two years, $7 million, but Foote and Curran refused to budge from their initial demand of two years, $8 million.
When Howson suggested to Foote that the sides continue negotiating beyond the trade deadline -- that the Blue Jackets' playoff hopes, faint as they are, deserve a hearty attempt -- Foote responded in a way nobody could have predicted.
According to numerous NHL sources, Foote threatened to be "a bad teammate, a bad captain and a bad player" the rest of the season if he weren't re-signed or traded to his preferred destination -- the Colorado Avalanche, where his best NHL years were spent.
The Blue Jackets made a final plea, urging Foote to consider all that the Blue Jackets' ownership group, the coaching staff and the fans had done for him the past three seasons.
Again, according to sources, he responded by saying that he "doesn't owe anybody anything."
With that, Howson had no choice but to deem him un-captain-worthy and seek a trade. That he got a first-round draft pick out of the Avalanche is almost remarkable.
Foote had a private plane waiting for him here and equipment waiting for him in Calgary, where the Avalanche played Tuesday night.
It's believed that Foote got ugly only because he had to, that so many people -- his family, the Avalanche, etc. -- were counting on his arrival in Denver, and the Blue Jackets weren't playing along.
Foote has denied saying he would become a distraction.
"I would never say stuff like that. I'm a professional," he said. "I've never been that way throughout my career. All I told them is it would be too stressful for my wife and I to stay without knowing for sure I was part of the future there."
But think about it: Foote said he couldn't play the rest of this season without a contract extension, without knowing what his future held. But he hasn't signed an extension with the Avalanche.
The bet here is that he signs for far less than $3.5 million per season in Colorado. A further bet is that fans in Nationwide Arena won't forget how Foote orchestrated his departure.
Where do the Blue Jackets go from here? The plan is to not name a captain for the rest of the season, perhaps not until late in next season's training camp.
By then, there will have been plenty of time for a certain player to step forward and grab the mantle, to show that he's not only the Blue Jackets' best player on the ice, but the go-to guy in the room.
At this point in the Blue Jackets' existence, and at this point in his career, it has to be Rick Nash, doesn't it?
Rad Brad
It had to sting the Blue Jackets more than a little bit. Not only did they miss out on the Brad Richards sweepstakes at Tuesday's deadline, but Richards had a career-high five assists in his first game with the Stars two nights later.
Richards would have waived his no-trade clause to join the Jackets, but the Stars offered in trade something the Blue Jackets could not -- a proven NHL goaltender in the early stages of his career. Mike Smith, 25, now becomes the Lightning's latest attempt at a franchise goaltender.
Richards was asked about his willingness to join the Blue Jackets in an NHL conference call Friday. Here's what he said:
"Well, there was no list or anything that was rumored. I just told Jay (Feaster, Lightning general manager) that if the ownership was going to make him do this, we weren't going to hold him hostage with the no-trade clause, but we wanted to control our destiny.
"From the start, Jay told us that Dallas had the best offer, and we said Dallas would probably be the No. 1 pick if something happened. He said Columbus was coming in with an offer, and there were a couple of other teams, too.
"That's when I said if something falls through with Dallas, then maybe Columbus, because I have a good friendship with Freddy Modin, who I played with for the first six years of my career. And then, obviously, with some of their personnel -- Rick Nash and some of the younger guys -- I thought it would be an opportunity maybe to go and grow with that team. But it never really came down to that."
Slap shots
Sources in Detroit say the Blue Jackets wanted a first-round draft pick from the Red Wings for center Sergei Fedorov, who eventually was shipped to the Washington Capitals. "We had a little bit of interest, but our picks are deeper in each round than everybody else's," Red Wings general manager Ken Holland said. "For us to get anything, we have to be almost a round ahead of everybody else. So we didn't want to move the first rounder." … Pittsburgh gave up a boatload to get Atlanta's Marian Hossa -- Colby Armstrong, Erik Christensen, Angelo Esposito and a No. 1 pick. This will be a major gaffe if the Penguins don't re-sign Hossa. … Best deadline performance: Washington, for adding Fedorov to play with Alexander Semin on the No. 2 line and a goaltender for today and the future, in Cristobal Huet. Worst deadline performance: Montreal, for shipping Huet to the Caps for a No. 2 pick in 2009 and turning over the pipes to rookie Carey Price. Risky, risky. Also, the No. 2 pick is Anaheim's, so it'll likely be even lower in the pecking order. … The Sabres' self-mutilation continues. They offered pending unrestricted free agent Brian Campbell a three-year contract worth $17.25 million. When he declined, they traded him to San Jose for inconsistent winger Steve Bernier. Campbell wants a six-year deal, which he will get this summer.
Michael Arace commentary: Something stinks with Foote's story on staying put
Saturday, March 1, 2008 3:20 AM
By Michael Arace
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
Thoughts that have remained dormant for years have worked to the front of my brain this week. Wisps of memory have emerged, unbidden, and they're telling me that we've all been played by Adam Foote, that he is not the leader of men that he purported to be, and not just because he quit the Blue Jackets.
I worked the Hartford Whalers beat for two seasons, 1995 to '97. The owner was bent on moving the franchise, but he made it sound like he wanted to stay. It was a two-bit carnival performance. Anyway, before the relocation plans became official, a story broke about defenseman Gerald Diduck putting his house up for sale. Diduck said this was pure coincidence, which, of course, was a crock. I don't blame Diduck. As a player, he was caught in the middle of a bad situation.
The year before, Brendan Shanahan, the best player on the Whalers roster, a Rick Nash type in his prime, begged his way out of Hartford. Shanahan fancied himself too big for the city. He said he wanted to play for a winner and hinted at a desire to be with a more stable franchise. He sat at a news conference, flanked by management, and announced he wanted a trade.
There was an editorial cartoon in the Hartford Courant that showed a little kid weeping as he took his Shanahan jersey out to the curb and put it in the trash can. Many fans identified with this sense of betrayal. Others at least appreciated Shanahan's candor and figured if he didn't want to play for the team, at least he was man enough to admit it. So, ship him. Shanahan took abuse as penance until he was traded to Detroit.
Lesson No. 1: Foote said he put his Dublin house on the market last summer because he wanted to "downsize." What he didn't say was he was hunting for a smaller house in the greater Denver area.
Lesson No. 2: Foote professed shock that he was traded to the Colorado Avalanche -- yet he rigged the game for just this outcome.
Here's what we know:
Jackets management wanted to continue negotiating with Foote. It wanted him here for the final stretch of the season. It was willing to lose him without compensation this summer, if it came to that -- which is a testament to its soaring regard for the captain. But Foote wanted $4 million a year for two years, an exorbitant price -- and if he didn't get it, his demand was to be moved to Colorado. And make no mistake, it was a demand.
A private jet, possibly leased by Foote's agent, took off from Pittsburgh on Monday night -- some 16 hours before the trade deadline -- and parked itself at Port Columbus overnight. This is the jet that whisked Foote to Calgary in time for him to suit up for the Avalanche on Tuesday night. Foote prearranged to have a pile of tickets ready for his friends and family.
Here's is some educated guesswork:
Foote regretted the day he signed a free-agent contract with the Blue Jackets in 2005. He always planned on retiring in Colorado, something he revealed this week during contract negotiations. No doubt, he will sign for less money than
the Jackets were offering ($3.5 million a year) when he gets his final contract with the Avalanche this summer. Maybe a part of him wanted to finish the job here, but more of him wanted to get back to the high desert plain.
Fine. But at least be a man about it. When you're the captain and you dump your teammates and slight a city and its fans, be honest about your actions -- especially after you've cashed $12 million worth of checks. Don't hide behind a contract demand that was never going to be met. Don't profess to be shocked at a trade when you know there's a private jet waiting at the airport. And don't talk about "downsizing."
The Blue Jackets were five points out the playoffs when Foote fled. He obviously felt he didn't owe the fans anything, didn't owe his teammates anything, didn't owe the organization anything -- not even the truth. His exit strategy was to play us like dupes.
Thanks, Cap.
Michael Arace is a sports reporter for The Dispatch.