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UPDATE II: JP Barry says the following, via OS: "The fact is this was a negotiation concerning impending free agency," Barry said. "We made multiple offers and invited them to negotiate. They provided a number on the weekend prior to July 5 and said this is all they can do due to internal budget restrictions."
UPDATE: Bryan Murray is
pissed at JP Barry, and perhaps tangentially, Daniel Alfredsson.
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The summer of innumerable contradictions in the Ottawa Senators organization following the loss of captain Daniel Alfredsson to the Detroit Red Wings has taken another bizarre turn.
I've never particularly understood why the team didn't just sever ties the more cutthroat way, and say as a matter of fact that Daniel Alfredsson wasn't worth the money he was asking for. It's brutal and probably inaccurate, but the organization could've stayed consistent in their reasoning for letting the most-storied player in franchise history walk to a division rival.
What Ottawa chose to do: lie, and cover lies with lies, and cover those lies with newer lies. Bryan Murray and Eugene Melnyk have spent the past month contradicting one another's stories, and each time it's pointed out in this space or elsewhere, one of the two rush to the media to try and put another spin on how things went down. It's really remarkable.
Well, Ottawa Senators executives have another problem now, and that's the updated timeline of events provided by Daniel Alfredsson as he bid a fond farewell to the city of Ottawa on Thursday morning.
The rhetoric pumped out about Daniel Alfredsson jumping ship to win a Stanley Cup, as it appeared since day one, turned out to be false. Alfredsson stated today that the reason he looked for another team was because contract negotiations broke down with the organization, and on more than one occasion:
Even if you've been closely following this story, that right there is a new wrinkle to what was public knowledge. Bryan Murray had been consistent in saying that the team's first round of negotiations with the player started during the NHL draft. I'll give Murray the benefit of the doubt in that he may have just been referring to negotiations
this summer, but it does seem like a painful misrepresentation at the very least. There were many back-and-forths prior, and they all went south.
Alfredsson's main argument against the Ottawa brass was that he wanted to be compensated in some way for accepting a contract he implied was created to circumvent the cap. The final year on his deal -- paying $1MM annual -- was to have some effect on his next deal on the team, a deal that he apparently cut with the team prior to negotiations:
What kind of agreement was made? Would love to hear elaboration on that.
Continuing: in retrospect -- unless you've been reading this little space for the past month, in which you likely already know -- the
selfish decision made solely on winning the Stanley Cup was basically made up to save Ottawa's face.
I'll end it on this amusing note. Said Daniel Alfredsson of Ottawa GM Bryan Murray:
Sounds like a guy who understands Bryan Murray receives his marching orders from the man above. Seems like promises were broken aplenty, and as the pieces fell, Alfredsson soured more and more on his future with the team.
And, for what its worth: not a single reference to owner and longtime boss Eugene Melnyk.
It's going to be as interesting as it will be hilarious to see who in the media will still be carrying Gene's water after this to maintain access. Sun Media seems like a lock. As recent as August 4th (!),
Bruce Garrioch shot down all conspiracy theories about money being an issue, saying the captain left solely for a shot at a championship.
Hook, line, sinker.
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