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Canadiens Have Money To Spend
by Paul on 06/20/09 at 08:27 AM ET
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from Pat Hickey of the Montreal Gazette,
For the first time since the lockout, the salary cap won’t rise. But it is expected to be in the $54 million-$56 million U.S. range, and the Canadiens have 11 NHL players under contract with a commitment of only $23.5 million.
General manager Bob Gainey gave himself a great deal of flexibility by finishing the season with 10 players who could become unrestricted free agents on July 1 as well as three restricted free agents. But there is also the potential of gaping holes in the roster.
For starters, Gainey must make decisions on which of his own potential UFAs to keep, and hope that the keepers also decide they want to stay in Montreal.
Once that task is completed, the next step will be to assess the available free agents and hope he can lure some of them to Montreal. This has proved to be a difficult task in the past, but money shouldn’t be a problem.
Filed in: NHL Teams, Montreal Canadiens | KK Hockey | Permalink
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It’s one thing to play in front of passionate fans - some stories make the Montreal fans seem more like a herd of crazed stalkers. And with the flak that Koivu got for not speaking French, it seems as though the politicians have a wierdly proprietary attitude toward the team, too.
No wonder they have a tough time getting players to sign with them - I suspect with some of the French-Canadian players, it’s because they know exactly what kind of scrutiny their personal lives would draw if they played for them. They might also be reluctant to subject their wives and children to that kind of attention, too.
Posted by Baroque from Michigan on 06/20/09 at 08:44 PM ET
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Montreal might have tons of money to spend, but do players really want to play there? Those fans are passionate, though very stubborn, spoiled, and demanding.
Posted by cs6687 on 06/20/09 at 12:50 PM ET