Burke Blames Lowe For Higher Salaries

[RedFX 48]

I think its funny how Lowe offers everyone insane deals and they still turn him down.

[JayUp88 1]

Its true.

[10 Minute Misconduct 104]

Burke is right. I don't see why people are laughing at him. You wouldn't be laughing if someone offered Filppula an offer sheet for $4 mill right now and we couldnt match, would ya?

[russianswede919293 95]

You cannot sign an RFA without overpaying because it will be matched, it is a risk a team takes that he WILL be worth that amount within the contract.

The problem is the same as it was before the lockout the owners screw themselves.

The players can ask for whatever the hell they want to ask for. Its the owners that give it to them.

[russianswede919293 95]

Burke is right. I don't see why people are laughing at him. You wouldn't be laughing if someone offered Filppula an offer sheet for $4 mill right now and we couldnt match, would ya?

No but I think it would be smart if somebody did do it.

Filppula is worth about 2.5 million right now, but he is 24 years old and had a great post-season...He very well could be worth 4 million dollars within the next 3 years.

[StevieY9802 6]

Burke is right. I don't see why people are laughing at him. You wouldn't be laughing if someone offered Filppula an offer sheet for $4 mill right now and we couldnt match, would ya?

But like me and others have said if he didn't go and give $4mil to Bert he could have matched. And again you have to overpay for RFA's. If you were a GM out there and wanted to sign Filppula would you sign him to an offer sheet for 2-2.5 because thats what "he's worth" or would you overpay to get him now thinking he would be worth it down the road. The Wings would match it in a second if someone signed him for 2.5mil and scratch their heads at why they would do that.

I'm not saying I like it but RFA's are in play and to get them you have to overpay.

Edited July 3, 2008 by StevieY9802

[haroldsnepsts 4,826]

Burke is right. I don't see why people are laughing at him. You wouldn't be laughing if someone offered Filppula an offer sheet for $4 mill right now and we couldnt match, would ya?

No.

but I wouldn't be blaming that GM for the league wide inflation of salaries.

has Burke not noticed that the cap is also going up? And that with the cap, a lot of teams seem to be signing players for longer term, where they may be overpaying them at first, but hopefully will work out to be a bargain during the later part of the contract.

[Winged Scooter 0]

You totally miss the point. Burke simply stated that Lowe started overpaying for player. That is correct. Vanek, average player, is making 7 million a year. Do you think that is normal?

While I try to point out that Burke is right, all you do is to pick this bs: "That's whining, pure and simple. What right does he have to get a warning? Think anyone's going to give Ken Holland fair warning if they sign Flip to an offer sheet?"

Newsflash: I am not talking about this.

I am talking about rididculous overpaying for average players. Burke is 100% correct when he said Lowe started this s***. Burke is pissed that he had to pay big bucks to Perry. That's all.

I never said Lowe is bad GM, only that he started this crazy overpaying.

Your post only proves that your hatred towards Burke (not Ducks) makes you posting totally biased stuff without any thinking.

Oh PUH-lease, overpaying for players has been going on in EVERY MAJOR SPORT since before I was born. (which was a long 40 years ago...). Lowe hasn't done anything that a hundred GM's before him hasn't done. How soon you have forgotten Karmano's, PYSCHOTICALLY igonorant offer sheet that was given to one Sergei Fedorov????? I could list dozens upon dozens of examples in other sports as well, but that would be pointless. Is Lowe's indescretion magnified by the salary cap? Absloutely. Was it ignorance on his part? Undoubtely. I have no Ill will towards Burke, never met than man, and could care less who is and who he works for, BUT it sure does appear to me that he MAY be finger pointing at Lowe, to deflect some of the short comings of his team, and his own abilities as a GM. (IMHO)

[Detroit # 1 Fan 2,204]

It's not Lowes fault he had room, and wanted to better his team. Penner and Vanek were peaking young stars, and he tried to get them. IT IS LEGAL. Burke should just give it a rest already, Lowe didnt do anything wrong. All Burke had to do was offer Penner a contract for 2.25 over 4 years or whatever, sign Bertuzzi for less, Give Schnieder a little less, and we would've been playing them in the WCF this year. Burke made his bed, ******* sleep in it, and stop snoring so loud.

[Wings_Dynasty 267]

[Earthhuman 8]

He's at least partially right, but it probably shouldn't have been him to say it. Hypocrite.

EDIT: Imagine how Perry feels about that statement. A little betrayed, maybe.

Edited July 3, 2008 by Earthhuman

[stud_defenseman 1]

I noticed in your signature at the bottom you left out Sammy! What no sammy love??

[A.T.Hun 0]

It's always someone else's fault with ol' Burkie. Remember the "our goalie isn't the one flopping around" speech a few years back? No matter what kind of offer sheet there is, the draft pick compensation is high and there is still the salary cap to deal with which puts everyone on a level playing field. As Harold mentioned, if he hadn't signed Bert to that ridiculous contract, he might have an argument.

If someone would sign Flip to an offer sheet, I'd be upset and I'd miss him, but it would also mean that we'd have more leeway to sign Hossa long-term. If your argument is that we never should have signed Hossa for fear we'd lose Flip, well, that's just silly.

[Duck Guy 86]

THINK ABOUT IT PEOPLE if you where in burke's position at THAT TIME would u of signed penner for that much... some how i think alot of people would say burke is a idiot and fails at life if he said 1+1=2 Lowe DID offer penner a ridiculous contract.. That DID have a impact on why so many players where signing at ridiculous prices.. it IS NOT the only reason why but it sure did help.

Edited July 3, 2008 by Duck Guy

[MonkeyGoalie 14]

Yes there are other reasons out there for the raises in the amount of money get doled out for players but we don't see other GM out there complaining to the press about something that happened last year. He just needs to drop the issue and figure out how to deal with it, like other GM out there are doing.

[haroldsnepsts 4,826]

Can someone please explain to me in direct, concrete fashion how Lowe making two offer sheets last season to RFA's (yes they were overpaid, but they have to be if you don't want the other team to match) led to a league wide inflation of players' salaries?

[NHLrules? 32]

Pot meet kettle.

And in further news, Burke calls Lowe a douchebag.

[Echolalia 2,961]

Can someone please explain to me in direct, concrete fashion how Lowe making two offer sheets last season to RFA's (yes they were overpaid, but they have to be if you don't want the other team to match) led to a league wide inflation of players' salaries?

I sure as hell cannot.

[Duck Guy 86]

Can someone please explain to me in direct, concrete fashion how Lowe making two offer sheets last season to RFA's (yes they were overpaid, but they have to be if you don't want the other team to match) led to a league wide inflation of players' salaries?

a unproven rookie gets paid 4m a season for 5 years.. the guy who has been playing in the league longer says well if a rookie gets paid that much i should be paid WAY more then that. So his price goes up. Again I am not saying ZOMG LOWE IS THE ONLY REASON SUE HIM!!! i am just saying of course it will effect the asking price of other players but the players arent going to say at the press conference celebrating there outrageous contract "ya i ask that much cuz of lowe"

Edited July 3, 2008 by Duck Guy

[Reds4Life 51]

a unproven rookie gets paid 4m a season for 5 years.. the guy who has been playing in the league longer says well if a rookie gets paid that much i should be paid WAY more then that. So his price goes up.

Exactly. I do not understand how some of the Wings fans do not get this.

It's pointless to try to explain anything anyways since their hatred towards Burke is beyond ridiculous.

[haroldsnepsts 4,826]

a unproven rookie gets paid 4m a season for 5 years.. the guy who has been playing in the league longer says well if a rookie gets paid that much i should be paid WAY more then that. So his price goes up. Again I am not saying ZOMG LOWE IS THE ONLY REASON SUE HIM!!! i am just saying of course it will effect the asking price of other players but the players arent going to say at the press conference celebrating there outrageous contract "ya i ask that much cuz of lowe"

It depends on if we're talking about RFAs or UFAs here. I'm assuming your unproven rookie is essentially Penner. But as I've said, that's a unique situation. The unproven rookie is absolutely being overpaid because otherwise his team would match the offer and keep him. If you really want that player, you have to take a gamble, make it to painful for his team to match, and hope he eventually lives up to that salary. That's not a reflection of his market value.

His salary is a reflection of what a GM was willing to pay to take him from his current team, which is also dependent on that teams cap situation. In other words, that contract was basically what Edmonton could manage to pay Penner and put the screws to Anaheim, who was having cap difficulty. Sort of like a poker match between those two teams. That's a long way off from what a players market value is.

As for the guy who's been in the league longer, any GM worth his salt should be able to explain and stand firm on that distinction. If this player is a UFA, then his price has nothing to do with what happened to that rookie. If he's another RFA, maybe he could make that argument, but it's still a weak one. Lowe's move was a desperate gamble. That doesn't reasonably set the bar for what players should be paid because of all the unique circumstances surrounding it.

The greatest influence on inflated salaries are 1) the cap going up. 2) GM's that still have not learned restraint and can't seem to resist bidding wars. 3) GM's that sign players long term, often overpaying them early in their contract in hopes that it will become a bargain in later years. It's a strategy under the new CBA.

Lowe making two desperate offer sheets and overpaying one player did not lead to league wide inflation of salaries. Burke himself called it an act of desperation. It's not like RFA poaching will become widespread because most GMs aren't willing to give up all the picks and salary necessary to do that. And it would have to become widespread to have any real impact on players salaries across the league, because it has to be perceived as a real threat.

EDIT: Besides, Penner put up 47 points with Edmonton this year. What would a 6'4" 245 lb 25 year old that put up 47 points get on the open market? In a season or two, this may actually be a decent deal for Lowe.

Edited July 4, 2008 by haroldsnepsts

[haroldsnepsts 4,826]

Exactly. I do not understand how some of the Wings fans do not get this.

It's pointless to try to explain anything anyways since their hatred towards Burke is beyond ridiculous.

It's pointless for you to try and explain because you dismiss anyone who disagrees with you as being blinded by their hatred for Burke.

[KronwallCRUNCH 5]

Burke can suck it. He hardly even paid a salary last season for Niedermeyer/Selanne, so he needs to shut his mouth.

[Earthhuman 8]

Come to think of it, if he's going to blame somebody, blame Glen Sather, blame Philadelphia, blame the teams that sign someone to $10 million a year.

[Wings_Dynasty 267]

I noticed in your signature at the bottom you left out Sammy! What no sammy love??

No, not really. I think it is mostly Babs usage of him that pisses me off rather than his play. I just thinnk he should not be on the point on the PP, right handed shot or not.