TSN: Bruce Garrioch and Claire Hanna on Shane Pinto and his situation with the Ottawa Senators.
** NHLRumors.com transcription
Hanna: “Shane Pinto skated for the first time with the Ottawa Senators this season and before he learned he was going to have to serve a 41-game suspension, one of the hottest topics was his contract, and we still doesn’t have one with the Ottawa Senators. So Bruce, where do things stand with that?
Garrioch: “Well, look, Claire, I don’t think this is a negotiation that’s going to take very long. I would expect at some point in the next seven days, Shane Pinto will sign his qualifying offer that he received from the Senators in the summer, which is close to $875,000 for one season.
I think they have talked about a longer term and something like that could come down, come down the road, but Claire, I think right now, both sides just want to get pen to paper on a one-year deal and get Shane Pinto back on the ice.”
Hanna: “Now the first game he’ll be eligible to play is January 21st against the Philadelphia Flyers. Head Coach Jack Martin says he expects Pinto to suit up in that game. Was that the original plan though for the Ottawa Senators.”
Garrioch: “Claire, I don’t think so. I think under previous management the plan was for him to go to Belleville and play some games in the American Hockey League to get ready for the National Hockey League. This is going to be a difficult jump for him. He’s coming into a team that’s struggling, but he’s also coming into a team that needs him badly. He’ll be able to chip in and help where he can, but that’s going to be difficult in game 42 against teams that are in a playoff race.”
Hanna: “Now it’s believed Shane Pinto signed an NDA, so he didn’t want to talk too much about the details of his 41-game suspension. But with gambling being so omnipresent right now in the NHL, do you think the League and the Players Association are doing enough to support players?”
Garrioch: “No, I think it’s incumbent on everybody to do a better job. You know, Shane Pinto was wearing a betting out on his helmet today. The irony in that has to be seen by everyone.
Look, Shane Pinto is trying to help other players by telling his story when they reach out to him and letting them know exactly what he did, so they don’t make the same mistake. Shane Pinto is doing the best he can in a difficult situation.”
Hanna: “Well, Pinto will be eligible to suit up in just over a week and by the time he plays, it will be 283 days since his last game with the Ottawa Senators.”