I'm sure not all of the Washington Capitals fans are classless idiots. But each and every team has their fair share. A handful of Canadien fans last night showed that even our friendly neighbors from the north have a few that get out of hand after they themselves have had a few. And in DC tonight following Joffrey Lupul's series winning overtime goal the hometown fans were somewhat discontent. Looking to channel this discontent into something positive, they littered their home ice with trash and beer bottles. Apparently they aren't big Earth Day fans.
During a post-game interview Philadelphia Flyer Jeff Carter became the target of one of these upright citizens. I'm sure someone else will get a decent copy of the video up, but for now all I've got for you is this. A masterpiece shot from my Treo camcorder and uploaded to the very sketchy Blogger video. [alright, YouTube should be a little better.] [Someone got up a better version, not only with audio, but with a nice zoom on the classy gentleman]
Often I say no one hates the Flyers more than myself. I've personally sat in the Wachovia Center and received the verbal barbs of the Philadelphia faithful. But it guess it's apparent that while no one wants to see the Flyers lose as much as myself, there are plenty of idiots out there that harbor ill will that I simply can't match.
Everything being said, and assuming that this guy was at least somewhat sauced, you have to admit it's a pretty impressive shot. If the Wizards could shoot like that they probably wouldn't be down two games to nil in the first round of the NBA playoffs.
Today kicked off the beginning of the 2007 Arbitration Hearings, with the Washington Capitals and Brooks Liach on the top of the list. A restricted free agent may file for arbitration if negotiations between the player and the team holding their rights reach a stalemate. This off-season 30 players filed for arbitration on July 5th, 11 of those cases have since negotiated a new agreement.
In front of the Salary Arbitrator each side makes their case, with a great deal of attention paid to statistics and the compensation of other players with similar statistics and history. Within 24 hours the Arbitrator will fax the decision to both parties, and the team has 48 hours in which they must decide to agree or "walk" from the decision. If the team elects to walk from a decision the player becomes a Unrestricted Free Agent.
Brooks Liach
Year
Team
GP
G
A
Pts
2003-04
OTT
1
0
0
0
WAS
4
0
1
1
2005-06
WAS
73
7
14
21
2006-07
WAS
73
8
10
18
Career
151
15
25
40
Brooks Liach was drafted in the 6th round of the 2001 draft by the Ottawa Senators, and made his first appearance in the NHL during the 2003-04 season. It was post lock-out that Liach made an extended showing in the NHL. At 24 years old, with 151 NHL games under his belt, Brooks has accumulated 40 pts.
At the hearing the Liach camp may point to the Columbus Blue Jacket's recent resigning of 24 year old Alexander Svitov, who went for $2.25 over 2 years, to set the benchmark.
Alexander Svitov
Team
GP
G
A
Pts
2006-07
CLS
76
7
11
18
Career
179
13
24
37
On the other hand the Capitals can reference Vernon Fiddler's resigning with Nashville, 2 years $1.7 million.
Vernon Fiddler
Team
GP
G
A
Pts
2006-07
CLS
72
11
15
26
Career
148
23
21
44
In the end, I'd expect the decision to be closer to Fiddler's deal then Svitov's. Somewhere around $800,000 a year. Alexander Svitov received a more lucrative contract from the Blue Jackets because he's a past top draft pick (#3 overall in 2001) and has the potential to develop into a first line NHL forward.
