As discussed earlier, Mats Sundin could have been a great asset for any team to acquire during the last two months of the playoff push. I stress "could have" because such a situation has become purely hypothetical. As of Sunday morning, Sundin informed the Leafs that he has no interest in waiving his no-trade clause.
Most interesting are the comments Sundin released in a statement regarding his reasons:
"I have always believed I would finish my career as a Toronto Maple Leaf so the actual request was still a very difficult one for me to contemplate."
And best of all:
"I cannot leave my teammates and join another NHL Club at this time. I have never believed in the concept of a rental player. It is my belief that winning the Stanley Cup is the greatest thing you can achieve in hockey but for me, in order to appreciate it you have to have been part of the entire journey and that means October through June."
What really boggles the mind is that, after these statements, most of the talk regarding this decision focuses on Sundin being portrayed as selfish. In a world where loyalty is hard to come by in any form, Sundin should be commended for his actions and statements.
Is it selfish that Sundin wants to win a Stanley Cup that actually has significant meanings? Maybe. Is it selfish that he won't provide the prospects to his team that would be garnered in a trade because he doesn't want to uproot his family for a short time? Sure.
And could anyone with any true moral fiber and depth look at this situation and blame Sundin for making such a decision? Hasn't Sundin earned just as much right, if not more than a player such as Scott Niedermayer to make a personal decision that could adversely affect his team?
Granted, the Leafs are in a tough situation. According to TSN Insider Bob Mckenzie, the Leafs asked Pavel Kubina, Darcy Tucker, Bryan McCabe, and Tomas Kaberle to waive their no-trade clauses, and all offered the same negative response. Most Leafs fans were hoping for a complete overhaul of the team and the beginning of a rebuilding phase for the franchise, both of which look bleak at best now.
None of that is Sundin's fault. After fourteen years with the same franchise, Sundin has earned the right to decide his future with said team. And any Leafs fan that would call their captain's desire to retire as a Leaf selfish should take a long look in the mirror, because that my friend is the pot calling the kettle black.
2 comments:
While Sundin's decision, and those of his teammates, must seem altruistic and noble to stay with the team...they really are no different from the player who demands a trade. In both situations, the player is significantly limiting the ability of the organization to manage its assets, and any no trade clause significantly lowers that player's value in the market when it's waived for only a small number of teams.
It would be better for the NHL and the players association to restrict no trade clauses, as they eliminate the free market for players in the league and overall lower the value, and hence salaries of the player. Rather than increaseing parity in the leauge, the salary cap and issues like this have locked the teams into a stranglehold preventing movement. I predict this will be a very slow day, as far as trade deadlines go...
I think one of the problems is also that certain teams are looking at their players, as you put it, as assets. Realistically, these are people. If you give them a no-trade clause and expect them to not exercise it, you're living in a fantasy world. I don't believe it was the no-trade clauses that restrict teams into a stranglehold, it's the teams themselves. Heck, Sundin, Kaberle, Kubina, Tucker, and McCabe didn't give themselves no-trade clauses, the team did.
I think the best commentary I've read on the subject came from HockeyBuzz.com's Eklund. Essentially, Eklund said he's ecstatic for the kids of Toronto who went to school on Monday wearing their Mats Sundin jerseys and that he remembers watching hockey when he was young before his favorite team won a championship. At that age, the championship would have been huge, but the players he admired were even bigger. I guess when good hockey people get into high positions in the NHL, they tend to forget about some of those things that were most important to the true hockey fans.
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