Sportsnet: Elliotte Friedman on The Jeff Marek Show – Is McDavid on Pace for a Gretzky Chase? on why it may not be the right time for a Bo Horvat contract extension with the Vancouver Canucks.
Marek: “Vancouver comes off two wins, start to pull out of this skid and then they go right back into it in a game against, as you mentioned, the red hot New Jersey Devils.
Through all of it, Bo Horvat continues to play and Horvat continues to perform. Two goals night. 55 percent at the dot.
I think a lot of us are looking at this, I was on with Jamie and Drancer on 650, saying I have no explanation for why this deal isn’t done. Bo Horvat has to have this piano on his back still.
What is the latest, or maybe there is no latest with Bo Horvat? The center who continues to perform despite a lot of things around him, either on fire or crumbling.”
Friedman: “Well I don’t think much has changed unless it changed morning. I dont’ think much has changed. I think there is a stalemate there.
The thing you control Jeff is your effort and what you do. There could be a total tire fire going on around you but it doesn’t mean you have to let it affect the way you prepare for your job or you approach your job or you do your work.
There are always other things in life we can control. The world just seems like one gigantic tire fire right now but that does not give you an excuse not to perform at what you need to do. I give him credit, that’s what he’s doing. As bad as it’s been around him, he’s doing what he’s supposed to do, or one of the things and that’s score.
I think the problem is right now, I’ve had a lot of conversations with this over the years, is, I think one thing that could be an issue is, how do you do an extension while things are going like this?
It’s a tougher thing than you think. If your team is not expected to be very good, then that’s a different thing. But this is a team that was hoping to be a playoff team and they’re really not trending that way. I think that makes these kind of situations difficult.
night was November 1st, as you know Jeff I keep my November stat, which is if you’re four points out, I have to check the exact number, I didn’t look it up today, but it’s about 15 percent. There’s been about 60 teams that have been four points out on November 1st, in full seasons since 05-06, I think 10 or 12 of them have made the playoffs. So this year that’s Vancouver, that’s St. Louis, that’s Ottawa and that’s also one other team, Columbus. Anahiem and San Jose don’t count but the math is not good for them.
So historically, those four teams, you’re in deep. You’re in a really tough spot and I could see the Canucks looking at this and saying, ‘This is not the right time to do this.’
I know they wouldn’t be the only team that would feel that way.”
Marek: “That’s a really difficult position considering the player is a pending UFA. Like I don’t know, I don’t want to say it’s a frivolous way to look at negotiations. I don’t know. Maybe I’m just too sensitive to this situation but I don’t know that as a negotiating tactic, that puts the other side in the mood to do a deal. You know what I mean.”
Friedman: “You know what, I would generally agree with you Jeff. I think when you’re running a business you should decide if someone’s valuable to you or not, and you shouldn’t let necessarily outside noise affect it. That’s why you’re there. You’re paid to make those difficult decisions and you should do them to your heart’s desire.
I do think it does come up. I do think it’s something that does become a talking point.
Marek: “As they say, the only leverage you have in a negotiation is if you have the ability to walk away. And if you’re Bo Horvat, there are what Elliotte, about 30 other teams, 31 other teams that would want Bo Horvat on their squad.”
