Kotalik to play in Europe?

[buffhockey]

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Playing in Europe became an option after Kotalik did not report to the Sabres’ American Hockey League farm club in Rochester upon clearing waivers Monday.
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Sabres working on arrangements

 

[IPostedWhat]

So much for this:

I would lie if I would say I wasn't surprised, Kotalik said this week as the Sabres opened training camp. It's exciting, coming back here and seeing all of the guys and all of the people in this organization where I grew up and where I became an NHL player. I'm really happy and excited to be back.

You've got to believe in yourself, he said. And I'm taking it like an opportunity to show I can still be a good player in this league.

I hope that I will be on this team and I will do good things for this team, Kotalik said. I have a feeling that this is a really good hockey team. With the young exceptional talent coming up, it's really exciting.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/capitals/ales-kotalik-eager-to-make-most-of-second-chance-with-buffalo-sabres/2011/09/21/gIQAGNsBlK_story.html

 

[dash]

Meh, good riddance...

 

[sabresfaninthesouth]

We obviously can't afford to keep him up in Buffalo and I doubt he even tops the call-up list at this point given some of the young guys.

May as well give him the chance to play somewhere then, if not in Rochester.

 

[DaBoltsNIsles]

What bothers me is his salary won't count against the Sabres cap just like Redden with the Rangers.

Fortunatley I'm 99.999% sure this will be rectified when the league & players agree to a new CBA after this season.

If a team makes a mistake they should have to pay for it.

 

[sabresfaninthesouth]

What bothers me is his salary won't count against the Sabres cap just like Redden with the Rangers.

Fortunatley I'm 99.999% sure this will be rectified when the league & players agree to a new CBA after this season.

If a team makes a mistake they should have to pay for it.

I expect that the NHLPA will fight this change. If I recall from the debates when they signed this CBA, this was one term that the NHLPA required in order to agree to the cap, since it ensures that guys are still gonna get paid at least, because they can offload the salary (cap-wise at least) and still have money to hand out to other players.

 

[DaBoltsNIsles]

I expect that the NHLPA will fight this change. If I recall from the debates when they signed this CBA, this was one term that the NHLPA required in order to agree to the cap, since it ensures that guys are still gonna get paid at least, because they can offload the salary (cap-wise at least) and still have money to hand out to other players.

The biggest reason the players like it is because one player gets paid a NHL salary in the minors or overseas & another player gets his spot in the NHL. The reason the NHL will fight it big time is it gives some teams a competitive advantage.

There is going to be a big battle between the Cap ceiling teams & the Cap floor teams about this & a few other things like a hard Cap Ceiling & hard Cap floor. I fully expect infighting between the owners this time around.

 

[KennyBanyeah]

I agree with Bolts here. One way contracts (not ELC) should count against the Cap in some capacity.

Perhaps one way contracts in the minors count as .5 of their value?

 

[dash]

I agree with Bolts here. One way contracts (not ELC) should count against the Cap in some capacity.

Perhaps one way contracts in the minors count as .5 of their value?

I agree in principle, but you know darn well that the GMs will fight this tooth and nail. Let's say you have a malcontent who has a falling out with the coach and you don't want this to be a distraction for the team. If you bury him in the minors and only get 50% cap relief, that's a double whammy for the team.

 

[The Q stache]

I agree with Bolts here. One way contracts (not ELC) should count against the Cap in some capacity.

Perhaps one way contracts in the minors count as .5 of their value?

Well this would really bone young players if a guy on a 1 way deal is making 1.5 mil they aren't gonna send him down if they have him on the cap anyways.

 

[sabresfaninthesouth]

I don't disagree that the current system needs some changes (despite my team benefiting obviously).

I just don't think that the NHLPA will let this one go easily. If anything, I expect that the buyout process will get reformed more so that teams can get rid of the guy entirely rather than having to have him sit in the minors.

 

[awaz]

there's no way they dont give cap relief to teams for sending players to the minors.. the only way that happens is if they allow teams to truly cut a player.. like wipe him from the payroll entirely.. and the players aren't going to let that go

IMO you cant punish a team for making every little mistake.. sure some contracts are outrageous and teams should maybe get punished for those.. but how often have we seen guys sign contracts that look fair and good for both sides after huge seasons, only to collapse and do nothing? you cant hang a team for a situation like that

bet we can circle fan bases that would be for and against this one..

 

[BOSSMANPC]

Guys we're talking Kotalik here. Didn't he spent half the season on farm last season? So this is no surprise.

 

[DaBoltsNIsles]

there's no way they dont give cap relief to teams for sending players to the minors.. the only way that happens is if they allow teams to truly cut a player.. like wipe him from the payroll entirely.. and the players aren't going to let that go

IMO you cant punish a team for making every little mistake.. sure some contracts are outrageous and teams should maybe get punished for those.. but how often have we seen guys sign contracts that look fair and good for both sides after huge seasons, only to collapse and do nothing? you cant hang a team for a situation like that

bet we can circle fan bases that would be for and against this one..

So it's okay for Redden to be making 5 million in the minors & the Rangers can just right it off & not take any cap hit? Sorry I consider that circumventing the salary cap.

 

[awaz]

So it's okay for Redden to be making 5 million in the minors & the Rangers can just right it off & not take any cap hit? Sorry I consider that circumventing the salary cap.

imo, its not.. the salary cap is so all teams are operating with a roster thats under the same number.. and everyone's roster is under 62 mil this season.. having wade redden in the minors doesn't have a positive (or negative) factor for the team, and therefore shouldnt count against the cap

the cap should be the total of anyone that can produce for you on the ice on a given night.. guys that are in the minors on that night can not effect play on the ice, and therefore shouldn't count against the cap

 

[DaBoltsNIsles]

imo, its not.. the salary cap is so all teams are operating with a roster thats under the same number.. and everyone's roster is under 62 mil this season.. having wade redden in the minors doesn't have a positive (or negative) factor for the team, and therefore shouldnt count against the cap

the cap should be the total of anyone that can produce for you on the ice on a given night.. guys that are in the minors on that night can not effect play on the ice, and therefore shouldn't count against the cap

Players like Redden & Kotalik signed NHL contracts & are paid their NHL salary while playing in the minors or overseas. For teams like NYR & Buffalo it gives them a competitive advantage to be able to pay their salaries & not have any of it count against their cap.

 

[awaz]

Players like Redden & Kotalik signed NHL contracts & are paid their NHL salary while playing in the minors or overseas. For teams like NYR & Buffalo it gives them a competitive advantage to be able to pay their salaries & not have any of it count against their cap.

why? because there's a handful of teams that cant afford to put people through waivers and continue paying them, if its a bad contract? so the big market teams are more willing to spend big on players because they know they can just waive them if it doesn't work out.. i suppose thats true.. but i just dont agree w/ locking teams in to stuff.. sometimes a contract looks good when its signed, and through injuries or whatever, the contract ends up being a terrible contract.. i think there should be a way out of that

and aside from sending players through waivers, the only way i can see that happening is if the next CBA doesn't guarantee contracts so they can cut players that dont perform to their salaries.. and with all the concussion stuff and worry over career ending injuries, there's no way the players will cave on that

i assume your disgruntled-ness comes from the dipietro and rolston contracts, because the isles cant afford to pay them in the minors, but could use their salaries to become more competitive.. that sucks, but rooting for a team that is financially strapped sucks.. IMO if the NHL wants to make it fairer for the financially strapped teams they need to contract a couple teams so there is more money (and talent) to go around, or put some kind of contract restrictions (like a length restriction, or salary increase restrictions)..

 

[DaBoltsNIsles]

why? because there's a handful of teams that cant afford to put people through waivers and continue paying them, if its a bad contract? so the big market teams are more willing to spend big on players because they know they can just waive them if it doesn't work out.. i suppose thats true.. but i just dont agree w/ locking teams in to stuff.. sometimes a contract looks good when its signed, and through injuries or whatever, the contract ends up being a terrible contract.. i think there should be a way out of that

and aside from sending players through waivers, the only way i can see that happening is if the next CBA doesn't guarantee contracts so they can cut players that dont perform to their salaries.. and with all the concussion stuff and worry over career ending injuries, there's no way the players will cave on that

i assume your disgruntled-ness comes from the dipietro and rolston contracts, because the isles cant afford to pay them in the minors, but could use their salaries to become more competitive.. that sucks, but rooting for a team that is financially strapped sucks.. IMO if the NHL wants to make it fairer for the financially strapped teams they need to contract a couple teams so there is more money (and talent) to go around, or put some kind of contract restrictions (like a length restriction, or salary increase restrictions)..

There is a way out of a bad contract. It's called buying the player out of it.

Actually the Isles use Dipietro's deal to reach the floor. Heck Yashin has a cap hit of over 2 million per because they BOUGHT him out.

I don't mind Rolston's contract. That trade worked out for both teams. The Devils wanted to buy out Rolston, but couldn't because he was 35 when he signed the contract. Hunter had 2 years at 2 million per left on his deal. The Devils saved 3 million right away & bought out Hunter which saves them even more. However, Hunter will be on their cap for the next 4 years.

For the Islanders they get Rolston for 1 season at just over 5 million. After that he's off the books.

 

[awaz]

There is a way out of a bad contract. It's called buying the player out of it.

Actually the Isles use Dipietro's deal to reach the floor. Heck Yashin has a cap hit of over 2 million per because they BOUGHT him out.

I don't mind Rolston's contract. That trade worked out for both teams. The Devils wanted to buy out Rolston, but couldn't because he was 35 when he signed the contract. Hunter had 2 years at 2 million per left on his deal. The Devils saved 3 million right away & bought out Hunter which saves them even more. However, Hunter will be on their cap for the next 4 years.

For the Islanders they get Rolston for 1 season at just over 5 million. After that he's off the books.

so your irritation is because they bought out yashin and it costs them 2 mil in cap space? why would they buy him out and pay 2/3rds of the remaining salary over twice the duration of the contract as a cap hit?

i dont really understand why you're frustrated with this.. its not cap circumvention, they aren't overpaying the cap for the players that take the ice.. and like you said the isles need to overpay people to reach the floor, so its not that other teams can overpay ppl..

i guess you just want a stiffer punishment for people who sign long contracts that bite them in the ass?

 

[CatScrap]

No matter what sport you look at, or business or anything else for that matter, the team or company that has the bigger bankroll will always have a bit of an advantage over their cash strapped counterparts. There is no way to fix this.

If you go to a system that let's players be cut completely do you think that fixes it? No, look at the NFL, big market teams still have the advantage.

Well how about all 1 way contracts count against the cap? What about players like enroth or ellis on the sabers? You are misunderstanding the point of a one way contract. It's to give the player security as to his wage, not guarantee him NHL playing time. Enroth after a fantastic showing last year actually took a pay cut in order to secure a one way contract and thus secure that he will be paid a certain salary no matter what. For example, what if the sabers acquired Rask via trade and sent enroth to the minors? Should they be on the line for his salary? No.

After a teM decides to send a current NHL player to the minors he must first clear waivers, during this time, a reAl NHL calibre player should be picked up by another team.

This waiver system is the only place you could really find a place to "fix" the system so teams can't stash salary in the AHL. The way you could do this is by changing the rules of cap hits a bit. First off, if a player is placed on waivers and picked up by a new team, his current team should have to take some responsibility for his contract, both in pay and cap hit. For example, let's say buffalo's newest centre, leino busts this year and pegula and all his money decide to put him on waivers and go in a different direction. Let's say Columbus decides to claim him on waivers. A new rule can make the sabers pay 1/3 of his salary that is left on his contract as well as make the team take a salary cap hit equivalent of 1/3 of his salary cap Hit.

A New Rule like thisnwill serve two purposes. One, it will hold Teams partiales acountable for their contract Decksluke and make stashing contracts in the minors harter to do, and thus Aborten the Gap begasen large and Small market Teams. And two it will Appeal to th nhlpa in that it will allow Players who Gould habe eben Sent to the minors and Seen their Carrera stagnate get a Second Chance to play real NHL minutes with Abiture Team AMD continue their NHL careers. This will allow the morrisons and kotaliks to get a fair Shot, while Kreolin their original Team from getrübt off Scott free.

My two cent anyways