There’s a reason why fans and media members embraced Simon Gagne. On the ice, Gagne was a solid two-way player and exceptional goal-scorer who represented the organization with class and dignity.
Off the ice, win or lose, great game or awful one, No. 12 always talked. Always. Not once did Gagne ever say to me, “I just don’t feel like it.” While he may have said all the right things in our exclusive conversation on Wachovia SportsNite, he was clearly disappointed and upset that he couldn’t leave Philadelphia on his own terms. So what was true and what was myth?
There were a handful of teams, maybe five or six, that Gagne was actually willing to waive his no-trade clause for. That’s it. Gagne was becoming bothered by all the rumors floating around, and at times shielded himself from the distraction.
While he wouldn’t specifically spell out every team, despite various published reports, the Los Angeles Kings were not an option. He was never asked to consider a trade to LA, and there wasn’t a deal on the table to his knowledge. In fact, Gagne wasn’t too keen on joining a team in the Western Conference, an element I’m finding is at the top of a guy’s list when it comes to signing a contract or approving a trade – they don’t like the travel, especially when they’ve played their entire careers in the Eastern Time Zone and especially those who reside here during the offseason.
What were Gagne’s main deciding factors? Would you believe: cap space. Ironically, he didn’t want to be with a team in a similar situation the Flyers had put themselves for a couple of reasons. Primarily, he is not looking at this as a one-year rental. That may or may not be the situation in Tampa Bay, but he wanted to know that there would be plenty of cap room to sign a multi-year contract past this upcoming season.
Surprisingly, the Detroit Red Wings had expressed interest and wanted to add Gagne, but with less than $4 million in cap space, the idea of joining one of the most successful franchises in hockey didn’t seem too appealing. The same can be said for his hometown Montreal Canadiens.
Ironically, it was conversations with former Red Wing and Tampa GM Steve Yzerman sold him on the idea that he could become part of the Lightning’s rebuilding process, and Gagne feels they are a playoff team that will only get better.
Gagne learned a no-trade clause has its limitations and it’s not exactly iron clad. He made it quite clear a few weeks ago he did not waive his no-trade clause, nor did he want to, but over time, there was more and more pressure for him to do so.
As he told the Flyers’ media, “I pretty much had no choice.”
He believed loyalty, tenure and returning from injury earlier than expected in this year’s playoffs would hold merit. Still, Gagne wanted some control over the situation and he, along with his agent Bob Sauve, got involved to find a trade that would be in their best interest. (In case you’re wondering, the Lightning actually facilitated this deal.)
Clearly, the Flyers wanted to improve their defense, and by doing so, they had to clear some significant salary following the trade for Andrej Meszaros. Before this all happened, I thought Gagne and Scott Hartnell were the likely candidates. But Hartnell has three years left on a six-year deal, whereas Gagne was expendable. He’s a free agent after 2010-11, and he’s not the only one.
Jeff Carter, Claude Giroux, and Ville Leino are also in the final year of their current contracts, and with nearly $47 million already committed to next season, Gagne was clearly the odd-man out.
Gagne said if there’s one thing he would tell those younger players, try to sign a long-term contract, like Mike Richards’ who inked a 12-year deal, $60-million deal that won’t expire until 2020, tenure is almost more valuable than having a NTC.
