Kaberle isn’t worried about potential buyout
Defenceman has slimmed down since last season
Tomas Kaberle had a lean and hungry look as he joined his Canadiens teammates Thursday at the club’s training facility in Brossard.
“I feel a lot better than last year,” said Kaberle, who was carrying a few extra pounds when he reported to the Carolina Hurricanes training camp before last season.
While Kaberle wouldn’t say how many pounds he has lost, he said he had lost weight and was looking forward to the resumption of play in the National Hockey League.
“I’ve been through this before and I knew what to expect,” he said of the lockout.
Kaberle trained with Tomas Plekanec and other Czech players this summer in Kladno, and after the lockout began he played 10 games in the Czech league.
“The last lockout I played the whole season, but this time I visited my family and then went back to Toronto to train,” Kaberle said. “Playing in Czech was fun, but the players want to be here. We had a lot of sellouts not only in Kladno, but in the whole league. The fans enjoyed it and hopefully we can start playing here soon and bring the fans back.”
The Canadiens acquired Kaberle in December when it was apparent Andrei Markov wouldn’t be available and Montreal needed help on the power play. Kaberle produced three goals and 29 assists, but was a minus-6
Kaberle’s contract — he carries a cap hit of $4.25 million — has led to speculation he will be bought out this summer, but the veteran defenceman said he’s not going to let that prospect weigh him down.
“Anybody can be bought out, but I don’t worry about things I can’t control,” he said. “I just want to play my game, move the puck forward and help this team make the playoffs.”
Kaberle. who spent parts of 12 seasons with Toronto, said he was surprised to hear that former Maple Leafs general manager Brian Burke was relieved of his duties Wednesday.
“But when you don’t win, there are going to be changes,” Kaberle said. Vote early, vote often: Defenceman Josh Gorges said he expects players to ratify the new collective bargaining agreement by a wide margin.
“There will be a few players who won’t be happy, but I expect that most of the players will approve it,” Gorges said.
Gorges said he expects the vote, which will be done electronically, to begin Friday, but that it could begin as early as Thursday night, which turned out to be the case as voting started at 8 p.m. and was to be concluded by 8 a.m. Saturday. A simple majority is needed to ratify the deal and it’s expected to be done in time for a Sunday start to training camp. No souvenir for Whitey: When defensive forward Ryan White scored a goal during Thursday’s workout, he treated the event as a milestone. He dug the puck out of the net and tossed it to the bench for safekeeping.
The players on the bench weren’t as impressed with the feat — they threw the puck back. Almost a full house: There were only a few veterans missing as the players worked out at Brossard for a second consecutive day. Andrei Markov returned from Russia on Thursday, while Alexei Emelin is expected back Friday. Plekanec wanted to get his sore ribs checked out Thursday before hitting the ice. The other absentee was P.K. Subban, who is waiting for a new contract. Talks are ongoing, but a deal can’t be signed until the new CBA is ratified.