Agent Ritch Winter was on Bob Stauffer's show today. He accused Kevin Lowe as being a hypocrite with respect to his recent comments on new Canucks GM, Mike Gillis, who allegedly "screwed" the Oilers in the Michael Nylander saga.
The reasoning? Kevin Lowe pulled a similar stunt to Bryan Murray, then GM of the Anaheim ducks. Murray, Comrie, Winter had all believed a deal was complete, before Lowe came out and asked 2.5M from Mike Comrie. I recall later that day, Lowe laughed with a smirk on his face, "Well, I've always been told if I want something...I have to ask."
Hard to disagree with Ritch Winter (profile can be seen here - thanks to DSF from HF for the link).
Vancouver, Anaheim, Buffalo, Calgary, Ottawa. That's 17.25% of the league the Oilers may not be able to deal with as long as Kevin Lowe is the GM.
Will Lowe stop the bleeding? Does Winter have a legitimate point?
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Kinda unfair to include Edmonton, Calgary and Vancouver there, no?
I mean, regardless of the GM, I don't see the Oilers being able to make a move there, and you doubled your numbers in doing so.
Vancouver is included in their as Lowe mentioned yesterday he doesn't think he'll be dealing with Gillis.
I'll give you Calgary and Edmonton. Still, Lowe's comments yesterday didn't make sense from an organizational perspective, and that's the underlying point I was trying to make.
Not dealing with Vancouver or Calgary or any other NW team is hardly a hinderance. Hell, you have to be a bit of a dipshit to deal within the conference unless you're really giving it to the other guy prison-style *coughProngercough*
Ottawa? Hadn't heard that Murray is still bitter about that Comrie businesses (which is another shit stain on Lowe's C.V.).
Not dealing with Vancouver or Calgary or any other NW team is hardly a hinderance.
The Oilers acquired Roloson a few years ago from Minnesota.
Colorado traded Tanguay to Calgary. Drury was another guy traded from the Avs to the Flames.
In-division aren't out of the norm - I guess geography and rivalry makes the Oilers, Flames, and Canucks unnatural trading partners.
Winter may have a point, but he's still an asshole. I wrote a long post about his various hijinks, but I just linked to it elsewhere and I promised my therapist I'd only blogwhore once a day.
I suspect there's any number of GMs others would prefer not to deal with, and Lowe's the only one talking about it.
I do not understand whatsoever why Lowe would think its a good idea to bash a peer in the media like he did. His head seems to be getting a little large these days. Has Gillis responded?
pjo, overstating it I think.
Even Burke said that he'd let his second in command talk to the Oilers if trade talk was necessary. (sorry -- lazy to look up the link, but even the bighead didn't rule it out)
Not that a VAN deal would ever likely occur, but the same safety valve applies.
An Ottawa deal was in play (as bad as it was) at the draft last summer, so Bryan Murray may not have held a grudge.
While I agree that Lowe is being a hypocrite, it is only so because both Lowe and Gillis did things wrong in the Comrie and Nylander fiascos respectively.
Lowe being a hypocrite doesn't wipe out Gillis's mistake. It just makes them both wrong.
On Buffalo -- I agree.
Lowe has a massive ego, but I think if there was a deal he thought he could do with any of those teams that would help the Oilers, he would do it.
That of course would still make him a hypocrite because he says he wouldn't deal with those teams.
I think it's just classic Lowe bravado.
rich winter is an agent. that's the job you take when you realize that even lawyers must adhere to a minimal level of business ethics. i can't think of anyone less qualified to give an opinion on how to properly close a deal. i also get the sense that he has a serious bone to pick with lowe. he makes sure to throw a shot in everytime he makes it on stauffer's show. meh...besides it was comrie. does anyone really care about a third line centre dating a third rate pop star? i didn' think so.
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