Red Wings

[Malto Marko]

Sergi wanted the C to be a condition of his new contract and there was no way they were taking it away from Stevie.

This must not be forgotten about these negotiations.

[chemiclord]

Sergi wanted the C to be a condition of his new contract and there was no way they were taking it away from Stevie.

This must not be forgotten about these negotiations.

I had never heard that to be an actual thing Sergei asked for. I had heard a RUMOR that he had asked for it, but no one in the organization I had ever talked to said that was really a thing.

But hey, if it was, I can see that as rationale to tell him to pound sand. But again, to hold that against him 12 years after the fact would still be awfully petty.

[froot loops]

The way I described it is how it went down. They tried the used car salesman act in November. That's how it went down. Big surprise Marko takes ownership side in a money dispute. Jad has bought into the Wings PR, hook, line and sinker.

Mr. I was furious ar Scherzer as well, their offer was only 70 million less than what he got and if they want to get any premiere starters this year, they are going to have to pay north of 200 million. Mr. I isn't always right, in fact he's been wrong multiple times.

But again, the Fedorov thing was ridiculous, it is pure pettiness from Jad and I. Hang it in the rafters, he's not going to score anymore goals.

[Tom]

If I remember correctly, the Wings low balled him after the first Cup victory as well. When other comparable players were getting offers at $5-$7million/year, the Wings were offering him something like $3-$4million per year. I remember a national media guy (I think it was Bob Page) criticizing Sergei asking "how much was enough?" and "why does he need so much money?" They really tried to paint Sergei as a greedy person.

He signed the deal with Carolina because the Wings forced his hand.

I used to buy into the media portrayal of him being greedy and lazy but he really wasn't. I think he was one of the more misunderstood athletes in Detroit history. He was always compared to Steve Yzerman which really wasn't fair. Yzerman was very media savvy and knew how to answer questions like a "good North American bred kid". Sergei defected from the Soviet Union, became a star in the NHL, had tons of money and fame, and was being treated like a rock star in a relatively short period of time. John Niyo had a pretty good column about him in today's Detroit News.

http://www.detroitnews.com/story/sports/columnists/john-niyo/2015/11/10/niyo-fedorov-makes-hall-rafters/75555828/

[chemiclord]

If I remember correctly, the Wings low balled him after the first Cup victory as well. When other comparable players were getting offers at $5-$7million/year, the Wings were offering him something like $3-$4million per year. I remember a national media guy (I think it was Bob Page) criticizing Sergei asking "how much was enough?" and "why does he need so much money?" They really tried to paint Sergei as a greedy person.

He signed the deal with Carolina because the Wings forced his hand.

Yep. That's how it played out in reality.

The Wings on both occasions tried to lowball him. Why? Only Illitch and Holland knows. On both occasions, Sergei "broke the rules", and on the second time, Illitch had enough and basically made Fedorov's choice for him.

Did they just not have a good grasp on Fedorov's market value? Did they think Sergei "owed them a discount" because the Wings were the ones who stuck their neck out to help him out of the USSR? That, I don't know, and I could only speculate.

But the image that the fans wound up buying simply wasn't true (or incomplete to be generous). And at this point, Illitch is simply being a petty little shit about it all.

It's weird, and I won't pretend to understand why this, of all things, has been stuck in Mike Illitch's craw for over a decade.

[froot loops]

I'll never understand that low ball offer the first time. The big key was Sergei had to defect from the Soviet, he didn't have a plausible threat to go back home to Sweden like Nick. I'm a huge Lidstrom fan but he used Sweden as leverage every time his contract came up. He was not going back to Sweden in the prime of his career.

I followed the Wings extremely closely during those years and the only time I've heard that Sergei as a Captain was in here from Malto. It doesn't really add up, especially the part where it would have been immediate. Nothing about him suggested he wanted that. Plus with the iron grip Yzerman held on the dressing room, it wasn't realistic. Fedorov was flaky but not stupid.

[chemiclord]

The thing is, I don't consider that bumrush $5/50 offer a real one. There was absolutely no way Fedorov or the Red Wings would have expected him to sign that without having his agent looking it over. And I believe the Wings knew that. They did it intentionally to push the narrative that Fedorov just wanted out and "accepted" less money from Anaheim to do it.

[jaadam4]

yeah because getting someone to sign a 5 year 50 mil is a total bum rush. That Mr. I is such an asshole.

[froot loops]

I wouldn't sign any contract without the agent present. No way, no how.

[jaadam4]

Didn't realize you and chemi were there watching all of this go down.

That's amazing

[Malto Marko]

Is the reason there was no Agent present when the Wings made their offer because he fired his Agent ala Suh style?

[chemiclord]

No. He had an agent at the time. The Wings approached Fedorov after practice, where the agent wasn't present.

No, I don't know exactly what Sergei's response was. It could have been douchebag shithead. But I do know that after that point, each offer from the Wings was smaller.

I have no reason to believe that an organization like the Wings would have expected Fedorov to sign that contact without representation after a team practice. Therefore I have no reason to believe it was an honest offer.

[froot loops]

It was widely reported at the time. We're not making this up. Either the agent was out of the country or just not available.

[Malto Marko]

.....and this was after the Fedorov demand for a trade?

[froot loops]

Huh? He wasn't demanding a trade that season they were trying to negotiate a contract. We've went over this subject for years, do you forget?