Sports network: Elliot Friedman and Jeff Marek on 32 Thoughts: Anything But Waffles Podcast.
** NHLRumors.com transcript
Marek: “… but you were talking about Ethan Baer on Saturday at hockey night. What’s up with Ethan Bear? There doesn’t seem to be room for a right shot D in the tavern here.
Friedman: “Look, he hasn’t played yet. Like I said, I don’t think there’s anything nefarious about it, Rod Brind’Amour is just picking the lineup he thinks gives him the best chance to win.
And after I reported it on Saturday night, I heard that there was indeed a trade request last summer. That he wanted to move on. Obviously, that didn’t happen.
And one of the things I heard, the Hurricanes told people, “Look, we don’t have a cap problem,” and they told people he’s an NHL defenseman. “He’s not playing for us right now, but he’s an NHL defenseman.”
Basically, they said, we have no problem with the cap, so it doesn’t make sense for us to leave 50 percent of his salary and then get a poor or minimal return.
So I think what they’re going to do is if somebody doesn’t fit, and I think Vancouver was one of the teams that kind of looked at it there.
To be honest, I also wonder if it makes sense for a team like Toronto, but it would also require moving people and bodies around. But definitely Vancouver was in it.
I think their position is that we don’t keep 50 percent for a failed deal. So if someone doesn’t come forward, I wonder if they just let them go. And I think on some level Bear will welcome that, because if somebody takes him, he’s going to go and play. But if someone doesn’t take him, then at least he plays in the Chicago AHL. I just think he wants to play.”
