IIHF agreement expired/ Bad news for Caps
 

http://www.insidehockey.com/russia/index.html

$2 Million Bounty

With the IIHF agreement expired, Moscow Dynamo has set their own price for the transfer of Alexander Ovechkin...

The NHL's agreement with the IIHF (International Ice Hockey Federation) has expired, and the timing couldn't be better for Moscow Dynamo or worse for the Washington Capitals. The Russian Super League team that holds the rights to Alexander Ovechkin, the first overall pick in the 2004 NHL Entry Draft, announced that a transfer fee of $2 million will be required for them to release him from his contract and allow him to join the Washington Capitals.

In the past, a standard transfer fee of $200,000 was the norm, but now teams will negotiate transfer rights on a case-by-case basis. As a result, Ovechkin could yield a spectacular return for Dynamo equivalent to ten players under the old agreement. Ovechkin has stated that he wants to play in the NHL next season - though he has one year remaining on his contract with Dynamo - and the Russian club has indicated that they will not stand in his way.

Widely considered to be the best prospect since Eric Lindros, Ovechkin is undoubtedly a very special player, and it will be very interesting to see whether the Washington Capitals and owner Ted Leonsis think he's $2 million special. If they don't, look for the Caps to investigate the possibility of trading the talented young forward to a team with the financial resources to meet Dynamo's demand.

Given that they're paying half of Jaromir Jagr's contract, it is quite possible that the Caps would deal Ovechkin to the Rangers in exchange for some fiscal forgiveness, perhaps as part of a deal that would send goaltending prospect Daniel Blackburn to Washington. While the NHL would not be thrilled to see the Rangers set a precedent by paying Dynamo $2 million for Ovechkin's rights, an argument could be made that the league would benefit greatly by having the potential superstar playing in one of its biggest markets.

Ovechkin was named to Russia's World Cup team, reminiscent of Lindros' appearance for Team Canada in the 1991 Canada Cup, and NHL GMs will get the opportunity to see first-hand how he can handle the pressure of playing in the spotlight of what should be an extremely competitive tournament. If he manages to dominate in that tournament of NHL All-Stars, look for his price to rise even higher, as both the Capitals and Dynamo seek to capitalize on this extremely valuable asset.

One thing is for certain, though. A package equivalent to what the Flyers gave up to get Lindros from the Quebec Nordiques is not in the cards. In that deal, Philadelphia gave up Peter Forsberg, Mike Ricci, Ron Hextall, Chris Simon, Kerry Huffman, Steve Duchesne, two first-round picks (one used to select Jocelyn Thibault and the other traded twice, eventually used by the Capitals to draft Nolan Baumgartner) and $15 million.

This ought to bring Herc runnin. :)

That's just a horrible article, especially for someone who writes for a hockey mag. A new IIHF agreement will be the first thing that is taken care of after a new CBA is in place. Will it be $200k like last time? No. Will it be $2M like Dynamo wants now? No. Will the Caps pay the $2M if they have to? Yes. Ovechkin is not getting traded for something as minor as a transfer fee. The author might want to look at what the Caps' payroll was, starting out last season. Leonsis said he had no problem going back up in the mid-50's (not gonna happen with a cap now), if the team was winning. He's not going to dump Ovechkin for $2M, and let the Rangers take some off their bill for Jagr. If it was allowable, Teddy would use the money owed Jagr if possible to count towards the cap floor at least for a year or two. The guy is obviously a Rangers fan if he thinks the Caps are so financially strapped that they need to only be bought off to give up AO's rights. But for a Rangers fan, you'd think he'd know that Blackburn is done. He has nerve damage in one of his shoulders, and can't wear a catching glove. He has to wear two blockers now. So either he doesn't know that, or he thinks a cheaper bill and a worthless prospect is all that the best prospect since Lindros is worth.

I think I read basically the same article about a month before the draft, but Blackburn wasn't the Rangers player that was included, it was Petr Prucha.

Really? Blackburn can't wear a catching glove? How the hell does he wear two blockers and play effectively?

and I forgot to add that depending on how the new CBA shakes out, the Caps might not owe anything more for Jagr. That's the extreme end, but when the trade was agreed to, there were also parameters included in it that dictated how much the Caps would owe depending on what the new CBA looked like.

I'm guessing DB isn't that effective with 2 blockers.

Its my opinion the rangers played blackburn to much to early they threw him in the fire when he was 18 that might have contributed to his injury.....