The team owner’s blog is at its most powerful when he relates the innermost workings of the organization on one of the most important days in the hockey calendar. That’s what Ted did in post mortem-ing the team’s failed bid to land Chris Pronger:
“We were in the mix for a great vet player. The ask was for four of our young assets. We all had to chuckle in that this team was asking us to rebuild their team for them all in one fell swoop. Take one great player at the end of his career with a big contract in exchange for three player/prospects and a first round pick that could all join their lineup in the next two years and be in their lineup for a decade. As our GM said, “A sucker’s bet.” We had to pass. We want to add those players/prospects into OUR lineup over the next few years and continue our progression of improvement and stick to our plan. Also with our inability to make some trades, we couldn’t fit the player into our payroll structure in the out years.
“Managing the salary cap and contracts in the out years is vital to keeping a core team together. Every move has a ramification down the road. The knife will cut both ways. Sometimes prudence is better than risk. Sometimes the best moves you make are the moves you don’t make.”
Give it a read.
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