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Jesse Puljujarvi took to Instagram to post an, “I’m doing great, but could use a new contract” type of update. Players will use social media to go into business for themselves (or at an agent’s urging) to try to get back into the conversation. Is it possible that JP could end up going the PTO route? It would be foolish to think that his group hasn’t reached out to multiple teams at this point.
If we’re talking about a PTO, Yzerman will probably have at least looked at the option. A low dollar “prove it” deal could be offered. It is very difficult to tell where this will all end. Very few pro athletes are marketing experts. This takes me to the end of the 80’s brat pack classic “The Breakfast Club” as the lyrics “don’t you forget about me” were capped nicely with Judd Nelson putting in an earring and doing an 80’s style fist pump freeze frame ending.
I’ve heard from at least one or two of you as to some appetite to put Puljujarvi on the camp roster and kick the tires. Others are lukewarm (or less than) on that path. Players find themselves on the outside looking in much more quickly than they think will happen. Let me know if there is a circumstance in which you would take a chance on JP and if you’d offer a deal or PTO.
For anyone who doesn’t want broadcast updates, stop reading now.
The separation of Disney from Charter happened in the middle of daily programming for ESPN watchers who love tennis. A few “factoids” came out about this. First, Spectrum/Charter was paying $9 per month per subscriber just for ESPN. In all, more than a dozen channels were pulled from 14.7 million customers. What wasn’t revealed was that the push for more money per sub was also matched to adding all of the channels to the lowest cost tier. All this happened while Charter was looking for ways to reduce cost, and the stock market blamed the mouse. If you follow the stock, it’s at under $80 per share for the first time in at least a decade. The worst part of it came out in a 12,000
CNBC report that things are fairly ugly behind the scenes.
Here’s the gist of what seems to be happening. Pulling ESPN and blaming the provider is a step toward streaming. Most of you know this is an appetite for the mouse regardless of backlash. The Hulu acquisition has been pushed forward, and pricing was floated. Potentially $84 per month for Hulu, $30 per month for ESPN. Now a spin is coming through that says, “your cable company won’t give you your sports, come to us directly”. It’s not working well at this point. ABC/ESPN reportedly lost 40% drop over the weekend. That’s costing ad dollars
If streaming is really going to cost 114, we’re right back to Cable numbers. The move was not well executed and the clock is set to 80 days for Bally. For some of you, ESPN is already a blank screen. Start to look at options of VPN to avoid blackout restrictions and you may be able to get away from having to pay for more than you want. Needless to say, it’s week to week right now.
Detroit Red Wings Blogger • 
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