How long until Ribeiro retracts his statement?

[Chadd 916]

Dopita didn't come over for a long time despite being considered one of the top players in Europe for years. Obviously a player like Forsberg will not get paid the same amount in Europe as he could make in the NHL. I do think it's likely that you will see 3-4 players per team that won't come over for third line or 3rd D pair money. Not to mention the guys that are currently in the AHL hoping to make the NHL so they get the better part of their 2 way deal.

[D3nZ 0]

Ribeiro taking back his comments.

http://www.rds.ca/hockey/chroniques/165668.html

http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/news_story.asp?id=103021 (English Version)

[headonaswivel 1]

We already knew he needed to grow a pair. This just supports it.

[MDE3 0]

The English version is a somewhat abbreviated version of the French....in the original French version of the article Rebeiro states "I wasn't misquoted..they flat out lied"....referring to the article in the press. Essentially he goes on to say that the writer created "a sheet of lies" that hid what Ribeiro really said. When asked if he changed his position on these issues as a result of calls from his fellow NHLPA members Ribeiro replied that he didn't really get any calls because all the players who know him, know his position on these issues already.

Reading between the lines, I suspect he may have stated that there was a need to control free agency driven salaries from both sides, and a need to get back to the table...and from there the writer extrapolated the rest.

[Jim Bob 0]

That only took a day longer than I expected.

[Jim Bob 0]

Some interesting stuff from Rhett Warrener and Brian Pothier:

http://slam.canoe.ca/Slam/Hockey/NHL/Calga.../29/692160.html

http://slam.canoe.ca/Slam/Hockey/NHL/Ottaw.../29/692159.html

[RadioGaGa 162]

Now Pierre Dagenais is talking.....what's with B (and C) level Habs shooting their mouths off. I know Riberio was the leading scorer last year, but in the grand scheme of things, still B list.

[kosydar 0]

If Saku had something to say, I'd listen. I have so much respect for the guy. The rest of the Habs can piss off for all I care, especially Ribiero.

[Chadd 916]

Now Pierre Dagenais is talking.....what's with B (and C) level Habs shooting their mouths off. I know Riberio was the leading scorer last year, but in the grand scheme of things, still B list.

I think the B and C level players all over the league are saying the same things. All of the things the union is fighting for won't benefit them and they can't afford to miss an entire season of paychecks.

[MDE3 0]

And in many cases the high end salary guys are not going to be the one's who will effect retribution later on lol...with a few notable exceptions of course.

I still think if the owners were in fact making money on their investments...they would not run the risk of losing the earnings for a full season...it defies the logic of avarice....give up the bird in hand for the one in the bush?

Hockey players probably spend more hours training for their "profession" than do most MD's, lawyers and other professionals(if you consider the time spent practicing from whenever they began to play), but many cases can only "work" in their chosen profession for less than 5 years.

Because of this one can understand the desire to have some kind of extreme guaranteed compensation over a short term. However these players chose their path in life, which never made any guarantees, and like so many other "pro" sports (notably sports like golf and pro boxing)I really feel that compensation must be more tied to actual current performance, than past glory. Make every game for a purse. We have seen too often that what was true for a player yesterday may no longer be the case tomorrow. Let the players who perform make the money they deserve, and those who fall short of expectations earn money commensurate with that performance.

[Eazy_b97 1]

I believe I got this from the paper, but its basically a salary cap that will effect the larger guys. There's around 1,000 guys in the NHLPA. 32 make over 6 mill, under a 100 make over 1.8 mill (league average). I think their will be a real push for a per player cap. Makes sense with almost 90% making under the league avg.

[Chadd 916]

I believe I got this from the paper, but its basically a salary cap that will effect the larger guys. There's around 1,000 guys in the NHLPA. 32 make over 6 mill, under a 100 make over 1.8 mill (league average). I think their will be a real push for a per player cap. Makes sense with almost 90% making under the league avg.

I think Bob McKenzie quoted similar numbers as well. Look at how well the player cap has worked in the NBA. Too many guys got "max out" deals and teams are stuck with bad contracts. making the max $6M is a little low in comparison.

[Eazy_b97 1]

At the very least (minus loopholes) it will limit bidding from going over a certain number, which is where alot of the problems have come from, as I see it at least. Their is definately some downsides, but I think it could help the current situation.