AN UNEASY GREETING
canadiens GM marc Bergevin And max pacioretty exchange pleasantries At Jonathan Drouin’s golf tournament on thursday, while Agent Allan Walsh looks on. The HABs Are Committed to trading Pacioretty, it’s only A matter of when, Stu Cowan writes.
The question is no longer will the Canadiens trade captain Max Pacioretty, but when?
Pacioretty is heading into the final season of his six-year, US$27-million contract with a $4.5-million salary-cap hit and the Canadiens have yet to offer him an extension. Pacioretty and his agent, Allan Walsh, shouldn’t be holding their breath waiting for one as it becomes more clear each day that Canadiens GM Marc Bergevin has no interest in keeping his captain.
Before the start of the Jonathan Drouin Golf Tournament on Thursday at Le Mirage in Terrebonne, Pacioretty confirmed he will not negotiate a new contact extension with the Canadiens or any other team interested in acquiring him in a trade after the NHL season begins on Oct. 3.
“As I learned last year, it is very difficult to play to the best of your abilities when you have this much of a distraction,” said Pacioretty, who slumped to 17 goals last season while trade rumours swirled after scoring at least 30 in each of the four previous seasons.
“And I do understand that there will be a distraction regardless this season. But I want to try and make that as minimal as possible and I think it’s unfair for me and my teammates if I’m standing up here every day talking about my contract situation, talking to them about it every day. I think this will make it much easier on focusing about just playing hockey and that’s what I have to get back to doing and that’s what I’m looking forward to doing and that’s, I guess, the reason behind that.”
Does Pacioretty expect to be with the Canadiens when they open the season?
“I don’t know,” he said. “I’m really taking it one day at a time. It looks like right now I will be, I’m assuming. (Training) camp is right around the corner. Like I said, I just want to focus on putting on my skates and playing hockey. When you’re a kid growing up playing hockey you don’t dream about stuff like this. You don’t dream about contracts and all that … you dream about playing hockey and having fun and that’s really what I want to focus on right now.”
Pacioretty has made it very clear he wants to stay in Montreal, but Bergevin has shown absolutely no interest in keeping him. Now Pacioretty has put pressure on the GM to do something before the start of the season or risk losing him for nothing as an unrestricted free agent next summer.
“I’m not sad,” Pacioretty said about the situation. “I’m a bit surprised, but at the same time this is a business and I understand that part of it. The Montreal Canadiens have a job to do and they run a business and now I got to let my agent run my business and focus on just playing hockey and producing and trying to help this team win games.”