NHL asks IIHF, KHL to negate Hudler's KHL Contract

[wings1110 184]

i dont want him anymore. if hes willing to f*** us over to go play in russia then i say we shouldnt want him. i say if they make him come back we trade his ass

[LeftWinger 5,129]

That's how I view it as a fan...if he wanted to desert he would've taken a trade and left (or something to that effect)...Huds wanted to stay, that was obvious, yes, there is a thing called sacrificing for your team and teammates, but on the same note, there is also another situation that is called "lowballing" and not giving or trying to give what a player is deserved....

Some of you may not think he deserved it, some of us do.....I still think Holland didn't think everything through and things happened that he didn't expect and got out of hand. Am I Holland, no, am I a GM....no.....but that is my opinion, and I am titled to it.

Holland offered the absolute best he could offer him WITH THE LIMITED CAP SPACE HE HAS! WE HAD $3.5M IN CAP SPACE WITH ONLY 9 FORWARDS SIGNED!!! YEAH LETS GIVE HUDLER WHAT HE IS OWED AND HAVE ZERO CAP SPACE LEFT AND NLY 10 FORWARDS! Sometimes I don't understand the stupidity of some of the people on here who actually think Holand low-balled Hudler with the $2.5M offer...

So, Holland didn't think things thru? You can take it to the bank that Holland knew exactly everything Hudler had available to him. He already lost a couple other players to the KHL so, ya I would say he factors that in to ALL his FA's. And to insuniate that Holland got "tricked" by 25 year old Hudelr and Petr "Cheap Czech" Svoboda is laughable, very, very laughable. Holland knows exactly what he is doing. It is Hudler who didn't think things thrugh when his filed for arbitration THEN signed with the KHL! Plain stupidity. Now he stands the chance of losing out on the $5m tax free AND playing for the Detroit Red Wings because if he is forced to honor whatever the Arbitrator says, if it's anywhere near $2.5 or higher, Holland will cut him...

Why do you think Holland said, after Hudler signed, that he fully intends to go through with the arbitration process? BECAUSE HOLLAND KNOWS EVERYTHING ABOUT THE NHL AND BEING A GM! He knew the NHL's stance and that is why he didn't panic and offer Hudler more money than we have. Holland calls the shots, not Hudler, Not Svoboda. If I were Hudler, I'd fire Svoboda and find an agent that knows what he is doing and doesn't give his clients bad advice... So Long you "Clucking" Idiot!

[tux 0]

I guess I'm in the minority thinking that Hudler didn't go to arbitration to STAY with the Wings but did it because he knew the Wings cap issues and that they'd have to walk away from the deal, thus, making him a UFA.

There is NO way Hudler is as loyal as some here think,imo. Especially when he's been mad about the lack of playing time and after Filppula's contract.

Screw Hudler, let him walk.

Edited July 10, 2009 by tux

[skyphoenix 153]

Just let him go and move on. We already wasted too much time with it and the Free Agency is getting thinner by the day.

[sibiriak 84]

To be honest I think this is the standard response to this type of situation. The NHL wants to make it clear that they will not overlook the KHL's continued attempts to pouch NHL talent that is already signed. Put it this way- if they didn't do this they'd be implicitly approving the behaviour of the KHL in this situation.

Hudler didn't sign anything with any NHL team. What's next? Treating him buying a Prague-NY plane ticket as an "Intent to sign an NHL contract"? Remember when Malkin had actually signed a contract with Magnitogorsk, and everyone on this side of the Atlantic was saying that he didn't want to sign with Magnitogorsk and should be free to sign with Pittburgh?

Why don't they just slap a brand on Hudler's back and declare him property of the NHL til death?

C'mon. I just hope that the NHL and the KHL will come to a civilized agreement, that works the same both ways. If a palyer signed a contract with a team, he can't sign with another team (either league) unless his right-holder agrees, having been properly compensated. If a player is an RFA in either league, appropriate compensation mechanism should exist to transfer of his rights, if desired.

[LeftWinger 5,129]

Look at the cap...there is no way he was going to get $2.5 at all this year! The cap space is at $1.8 w/ Helm & Abby on there.....so maybe the contract terms are what they could not agree on......This whole $2.5 crap couldn't even be offered....so that should just be thrown out the window.

And to say he won't give his all....that is ridiculous....would you take a pay cut to play for the team you loved, knowing that you would get a raise in the next coming years, but not play your all.....so then after that the GM would say "forget your raise...I'm trading your ass..." THINK ABOUT THAT!

When have you known Happy Huds to not give his all?!?! He has to in order to stay in the NHL and play for anyone, let alone the Wings.

Silly goose.

WTF? Am I listening to someone who supports Sarah Palin or John Kerry? This whole post is a back peddle of everything you fought me over the last week or so!

If he LOVED playing for this team, he should've taken the slight pay increase to play here instead of filing arbitration, another piss poor decision by Svoboda...

[egroen 384]

Hudler didn't sign anything with any NHL team. What's next? Treating him buying a Prague-NY plane ticket as an "Intent to sign an NHL contract"? Remember when Malkin had actually signed a contract with Magnitogorsk, and everyone on this side of the Atlantic was saying that he didn't want to sign with Magnitogorsk and should be free to sign with Pittburgh?

Why don't they just slap a brand on Hudler's back and declare him property of the NHL til death?

C'mon. I just hope that the NHL and the KHL will come to a civilized agreement, that works the same both ways. If a palyer signed a contract with a team, he can't sign with another team (either league) unless his right-holder agrees, having been properly compensated. If a player is an RFA in either league, appropriate compensation mechanism should exist to transfer of his rights, if desired.

Malkin was before Radulov.

Dynamo, in court, attempted to hold Ovechkin from the NHL under their arbitration award but the judge at the time ruled a "written agreement" was necessary to be binding.

[HudlerFanatic 4]

WTF? Am I listening to someone who supports Sarah Palin or John Kerry? This whole post is a back peddle of everything you fought me over the last week or so!

If he LOVED playing for this team, he should've taken the slight pay increase to play here instead of filing arbitration, another piss poor decision by Svoboda...

Dude, the part you bolded is how things get taken out of context. (in the political world if you are going there)..ready the rest of the sentence.....I was merely saying that why would Hudler take a pay cut or no raise to only come back and play half ass! He wouldn't do that....the whole sentence LeftWinger.....so no, it's not a back peddle from anything I said, that was meant for all the people saying that he would not play to his full ability, in which their cases are oxymoronic, b/c those same people say he can't play anyway...so then why do they care....

The point, in case I need to say it again...is why would someone take a contract NOT to get what they deserve and then play like crap b/c their pissed about not making money...so at the end of that year when their said pay is to be negotiated then the GM would say 'screw off-you didn't give it your all like we agreed, so you're not getting your raise"....

Does that make better since.

Im not a damn English major! Just read the whole sentence and if didn't make sense, read it again.

[ltgator333 3]

The NHL is just going to come out of this with a black eye.

I don't blame Hudler. I think him going to Russia was probably the best thing that could've happened for the wings and for Hudler.

If Detroit is ok with this then what's the NHL's problem with this? To me it just looks like they're trying to throw their weight around with the Russian league again and possibly trying to force Holland to eat Hudler's pending contract or walk away and make him a UFA. It's the only thing I could see the league getting out of this.

[LeftWinger 5,129]

Dude, the part you bolded is how things get taken out of context. (in the political world if you are going there)..ready the rest of the sentence.....I was merely saying that why would Hudler take a pay cut or no raise to only come back and play half ass! He wouldn't do that....the whole sentence LeftWinger.....so no, it's not a back peddle from anything I said, that was meant for all the people saying that he would not play to his full ability, in which their cases are oxymoronic, b/c those same people say he can't play anyway...so then why do they care....

The point, in case I need to say it again...is why would someone take a contract NOT to get what they deserve and then play like crap b/c their pissed about not making money...so at the end of that year when their said pay is to be negotiated then the GM would say 'screw off-you didn't give it your all like we agreed, so you're not getting your raise"....

Does that make better since.

Im not a damn English major! Just read the whole sentence and if didn't make sense, read it again.

I was merely making a joke about all the "Hudler should get this, get that, etc.." Yet when said he should play at less than his value, you flamed me. Now you say you'd take him at small contract for one year. I was referring to you saying I voted for the illegal ALien in which led me to blieve you voted the other way, but you chaged your story about Hudler like Joh Kerry changed his stories all the time.

Stop taking things so serious! Not all men are pricks ya know? Joke around once in a while (or remember the things you say to other users, then maybe some of these things make more sense the first time....)

The part I bolded means, if I loved playing for a team and wanted a smaller contract (because of cap issues) for 1 year with the guarantee of payday the next, I would've approached the Gm and TOLD him, listen I know we have cap issue, lets get this year done for $1.5m so we can have a great team again, then next year we'll talk, instead of turning down $2.5 million and filing for arbitration THEN signing to play half way around the world... That what I would have done if I LOVED a team and was willing to play cheap for one year,I wold have skipped all the nonsense going on right now. But he didn't, so he doesn't obviously love this team as much as soe folk think... but I agree, why come back and play at all if you are gonna be peeved about taking a paycut, with prospects of geting paid next year. I could see if you weren't gonna get paid next season and all you had was this measley half off contract...

Edited July 11, 2009 by LeftWinger

[GoWings1905 2,694]

Hudler is in the prime of his career, coming off a 57-point season. Offering him a one-year contract would be a complete insult. The window of opportunity to make money in a professional career doesn't come around frequently. Hudler deserved the same contract (or very close to it) terms as Filppula. It was just unfortunate that he got absurd money in the KHL, which overwhelmed a very fair offer from the Red Wings. To insinuate that Hudler doesn't care about the Red Wings by not taking a contract well below his value isn't very reasonable. This whole situation isn't really the Red Wings nor Hudler's fault. It was tough circumstances from the KHL that left Hudler to make the best decision for him personally.

Edited July 11, 2009 by GoWings1905

[skyphoenix 153]

If Hudler is getting the $5mil a season in the KHL like I just read, then its definitely more than hes worth. Hudler is not that good, 57-points or not. He was on one of the best offensive teams in the NHL last season, of course his points are going to go up. I dont see him scoring too many points in the KHL but I will make sure to watch it to see if he makes me eat my words or not. He seems very one-dimensional to me.

Edited July 11, 2009 by skyphoenix

[egroen 384]

If Hudler is getting the $5mil a season in the KHL like I just read, then its definitely more than hes worth. Hudler is not that good, 57-points or not. He was on one of the best offensive teams in the NHL last season, of course his points are going to go up. I dont see him scoring too many points in the KHL but I will make sure to watch it to see if he makes me eat my words or not. He seems very one-dimensional to me.

I actually think he will tear it up in the KHL.... he'll be playing on a first line.

[VikingMark 5]

Holland isn't happy..

http://blog.mlive.com/snapshots/2009/07/ke...at_nhls_de.html

[jenova0 0]

The NHL is just going to come out of this with a black eye.

I don't blame Hudler. I think him going to Russia was probably the best thing that could've happened for the wings and for Hudler.

If Detroit is ok with this then what's the NHL's problem with this? To me it just looks like they're trying to throw their weight around with the Russian league again and possibly trying to force Holland to eat Hudler's pending contract or walk away and make him a UFA. It's the only thing I could see the league getting out of this.

QFT. I absolutely agree with you on all points. I too believe the Wings are fine with this and would happily resign him next year when they have more cap space.

[russianswede919293 95]

This better result in Hudler back because otherwise there will be nobody worth signing left once we know. I never wanted him but Moen who many wanted already signed, so every day this drags on the Wings cannot sign anybody in case Hudler winds up back, so they now effectively have no cap space until we know what is up with Jiri...

[eva unit zero 271]

Honestly, if Hudler ends up not coming back...

I am perfectly fine with not being able to sign a free agent on top of what we have, and here's why:

Datsyuk/Zetterberg/Holmstrom

Franzen/Filppula/Leino

Cleary/Helm/Abdelkader

Maltby/Draper/Oulahen/Newbury?

If we find out that we have no Hudler, then we let Maltby, Oulahen and Newbury fight over the wing spots on the fourth line, with one of them as the spare forward.

If Hudler is back, then it's probably a 21-man lineup, and Oulahen may or may not still be in the organization.

[sibiriak 84]

Malkin was before Radulov.

Dynamo, in court, attempted to hold Ovechkin from the NHL under their arbitration award but the judge at the time ruled a "written agreement" was necessary to be binding.

Thank you for reminding me about OV, He did have status equivalent to an RFA in Russia, when Washington sugned him. This should complicate NHL's case nicely .

I'm not sure I understand your point about Malkin being before Radulov. There's no precedent law here. The relationship between leagues is technically a relationship between two business structures in different countries, and such conflicts are traditionally resolved by applying the laws of the country that has jurisdiction in each case, unless there's an international or bilateral agreement that applies.

[LeftWinger 5,129]

This better result in Hudler back because otherwise there will be nobody worth signing left once we know. I never wanted him but Moen who many wanted already signed, so every day this drags on the Wings cannot sign anybody in case Hudler winds up back, so they now effectively have no cap space until we know what is up with Jiri...

If Holland waits for this to pan out BEFORE he signs anyone, then he is an idiot! He needs to fill 3 forward positions with the very little cap he has left. I guess if push comes to shove Abby can graduate early, but that is still only 11 forwards. Holland should get on with business and tell Svoboda too late! We need to move forward with our organization. Not knowing if Holland was interested in Moen, but we've already lost him, who 's next to go? Pretty soon it'll be down to ust re-signing Ryan Oulehan and giving him a spot, Mike Peca & Joe Dirt. Then talk about some fans who are going to resent Hudler and his agent! I already didn't like him, if this happens I am gonna blow a gasket! Tell the NHL to let Hudler go play in the KHL and get on with business, before ALL that is left is Joe Dirt...

[LeftWinger 5,129]

Honestly, if Hudler ends up not coming back...

I am perfectly fine with not being able to sign a free agent on top of what we have, and here's why:

Datsyuk/Zetterberg/Holmstrom

Franzen/Filppula/Leino

Cleary/Helm/Abdelkader

Maltby/Draper/Oulahen/Newbury?

If we find out that we have no Hudler, then we let Maltby, Oulahen and Newbury fight over the wing spots on the fourth line, with one of them as the spare forward.

If Hudler is back, then it's probably a 21-man lineup, and Oulahen may or may not still be in the organization.

I agree, but lets just make a decision already! Tell Huds to take off and lets go!

[55fan 5,133]

If this takes too long, we will be forced to wait until training camp and look at the GRG boys and FA invites to fill our roster.

I'm kind of surprised that Holland can't decide to just let Huds walk, although Holland may be hanging on just to see what kind of decision Huds gets in arbitration.

It's certainly keeping the offseason from getting boring.

[GoWings1905 2,694]

If Hudler is getting the $5mil a season in the KHL like I just read, then its definitely more than hes worth. Hudler is not that good, 57-points or not. He was on one of the best offensive teams in the NHL last season, of course his points are going to go up. I dont see him scoring too many points in the KHL but I will make sure to watch it to see if he makes me eat my words or not. He seems very one-dimensional to me.

What is wrong with Hudler being one-dimensional when the Red Wings NEED that dimension very badly right now? Not every player has to be a great two-way forward like Z or Datsyuk. Hudler is hardly ever on the ice enough anyways to really have a negative effect defensively.

[Wingseroo 0]

Best case scenario right now I would say is that Hudler wins a decision from arbiter that nets him a 3.25 mil roughly he plays in Russia this year and then Detroit negotiates some kind of real 4 or 5 year package next offseason... But Really if I am the Wings I might have to look at packaging Hudlers rights up with a player and/or pick or two in a trade...

[WingZNut13 99]

I agree, but lets just make a decision already! Tell Huds to take off and lets go!

I'm with you on this one. Huds obviously doesn't want to be somewhere were he can't make more than what he feels he is worth. If he is just looking for money...go to Russia. I don't give a s***. I just want the Wings to be able to sign the best possible team sooner rather than later. Whether it's with Huds or without Huds.

I think the NHL is *** for filing this grievance. Just let him go. Allow Holland to sign who he needs to because he can't do that till he knows Huds is gone 100%.(per that MLive Article)

[WingZNut13 99]

Best case scenario right now I would say is that Hudler wins a decision from arbiter that nets him a 3.25 mil roughly he plays in Russia this year and then Detroit negotiates some kind of real 4 or 5 year package next offseason... But Really if I am the Wings I might have to look at packaging Hudlers rights up with a player and/or pick or two in a trade...

No way this happens. Homer, El Capitan, Lebda, and Maltby are all UFA at the end of next season. There is no way the cap will grow unless the economy shoots to the high heavens. There is no way he could come back and get anything more than he would get this year. (We have to remember Buttman hates the Red Wings and will do anything to f*** them over. This is why the cap will probably just stay where it's or decrease)