Johnny Hockey not showing a willingness to negotiate with the Flames
With the deadline of UFA signings looming, teams have until 11:59am ET on July 13th to get their UFA's locked up or risk losing them for nothing. One team in particular finds themselves in a tough situation, as the Calgary Flames have 11 skaters that are due new contracts. That list includes Johnny Gaudreau, their number one forward, who is definitely due a significant pay raise.
Gaudreau, 28, had a career year this season in every category. He scored 40 goals and had 75 assists for a total of 115 points. He has been a star for the Flames and is proving that he is the face of their team.
Per Frank Seravalli there has been talks between the Flames and Johnny's camp, but while talks have been ongoing, there has been virtually no actual negotiations taking place. For the Flames, this has to be alarming.
Seravalli mentions that money isn't an issue for the Flames and that they have no problem signing Johnny Hockey to a deal that has him locked up in Calgary for 8 more years, near $10M per season. The issue is that Johnny hasn't flat out told the Flames his intentions moving forward and nobody knows what he's thinking.
July 13th is getting closer and not having your top player signed is an issue. Johnny will likely set the bar for forwards this season and he's a player that every team would love to have. Will he decide to stay in Calgary or is the lack of communication a sign of the end?
| POLL | ||
JUIN 28 | 192 ANSWERS Johnny Hockey not showing a willingness to negotiate with the Flames Will Johnny Hockey re-up in Calgary this summer? | ||
| No, he's as good as gone | 103 | 53.6 % |
| Yes, he loves Calgary | 53 | 27.6 % |
| Not sure | 36 | 18.8 % |
| List of polls | ||
