Something is fishy with this whole Brent Sutter leaving New Jersey situation.
We all know how hard it is to get the real story when we’re dealing with the NJ Devils and therefore there will be very little information leaking out of the Devils camp.
The bottom line here is that if Devils dictator Lou Lamoriello wanted Brent Sutter to remain the Head Coach of the Devils he would not be allowing his coach to just walk away with a year remaining on his deal.
Those who have spent time around Lou probably agree that he’s hardly concerned that Brent Sutter will not be coaching his team next season either.
Obviously it’s easy to assume Sutter will be joining his brother in Calgary but it’s not that simple. The Devils must first give Sutter permission to go coach another NHL team. Since is it being painted like Sutter is walking away on his own the Devils are not obligated to pay him what’s left on his contract or to allow him to go coach elsewhere in the NHL.
One thing that’s for certain when it comes to Lou Lamoriello, he’s all about business.
One thing that’s for sure here is that if Brent Sutter coaches the Flames next season he better not expect to make the same salary he was being paid by the Devils which I hear is in the $2 million range.
I spoke to someone very close to Brent Sutter today who tells me people shouldn’t automatically assume Brent is on his way to Calgary. Coaches aren’t allowed to just leave one team and join another the next day when they have a contract. It just doesn’t work that way.
There is no compensation in the NHL for management people who hop around from one place to the next and this includes Head Coach’s.
Several years ago when Marc Crawford left Colorado for Vancouver there was some controversy as to whether or not he resigned or if he was fired. Crawford claimed he was fired but eventually the Canucks were forced to hand over a draft pick to the Avalanche.
After this situation compensation was thrown out the window.
Don’t be surprised if Flames Ownership is pushing hard for Darryl Sutter to return behind the bench to coach. He’s arguably been their best Head Coach over the last several years.
Sources tell me things weren’t always that smooth for Brent in Jersey. He struggled adapting to coaching grown men after dealing with kids for all those years in Red Deer. It is a whole lot easier getting kids to play for you out of fear in the WHL than it is in the NHL. Professional players are protected with long-term contracts and aren’t nearly as easily intimidated as a 17 yr. old when it comes to Sutter’s intense coaching style.
The Sutter’s are very proud people and in the NHL you have to be able to stroke certain individuals every now and then. It was probably a very tough pill to swallow for Brent to hold back from criticizing goaltender Martin Brodeur when Marty wasn’t at his best. Holding back what you really think is never easy for any member of the legendary Sutter family.
You never know what takes place in meetings behind closed doors but don’t assume Brodeur wasn’t involved in Sutter not returning next season. It’s very safe to say Marty runs the team and has plenty of power within the Devils organization.
You knew a change was in the horizon for the Devils when Sutter cleaned out his office immediately following the season and didn’t hold any exit meetings with his players.
Rink Rats!
Word is Tampa Bay and the Islanders are both interested in drafting Swedish D-man Victor Hedman. This means T.B. is listening hard to all offers when it comes to moving out of the second overall spot.
Toronto continues to be very aggressive in moving up to #2 and have discussed trading Thomas Kaberle to the Lightning. Tampa Bay wants more than just Kaberle and is asking for a package including both Kaberle and Schenn.
Will the pressure from media and fans prevent Toronto from rebuilding their franchise the right way? It takes a lot of patience to construct a winning franchise and it will be interesting to see if Toronto can stay the course the way St. Louis has been able to do since the lockout. You have to draft well and develop your own players to really demonstrate the stability necessary to compete in the salary cap era. The win now mentality by spending in the open market may get you into the second round of the playoffs but chances are it won’t deliver a Cup.
Sources say Panthers Asst. GM Randy Sexton is not being considered a candidate to replace Jaques Martin as GM in Florida.
Hockey Canada will hold a pre-Olympic camp in Calgary August 24th-28th
USA will hold their camp one week before in Chicago.
People close to Scott Niedermayer believe his desire to play in the 2010 Olympics will ultimately impact his decision to return for another season.
Could it be any more obvious that Colorado is setting the table for Eric Lacroix to become the next GM for the Avalanche?
Avalanche forward Cody Mcleod will likely file for arbitration if no contract agreement is reached by the filing date.
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Blues Clues!
Brad Boyes is likely be the only Blues player being considered to attend Canada’s Pre- Olympic camp.
Look for T.J. Oshie and David Backes to attend the USA camp. If Erik Johnson is healthy enough he will be invited as well.
Look for the Blues to submit qualifying offers to Roman Polak and B.J. Crombeen if no agreement is reached by June 29th.
It is very possible Crombeen’s deal gets done first.
The Blues are now in the process of turning their focus to future UFA’s Keith Tkachuk, Mike Weaver, and Brad Winchester.
Good luck to Winchester if he’d rather test the market elsewhere in search of a 2 yr. deal.. Here’s a guy who never did much in any of his previous stops and finally has a coach who plays him in offensive situations and gives him decent minutes. Playing anywhere but St. Louis shouldn’t even be in his thought process.
The Blues did not lose any 2007 draft picks who were not signed by the June first deadline. Some teams failed to get all their 2007 picks signed and therefore they will become draft eligible later this month at the 2009 entry draft.
More to come,
Andy Strickland
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St Louis Blues Blogger •1380 ESPN • 
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