All Turris, All The Time

Apologies for the overkill. It's just a little weird when a thought Nichols and I were kicking around on Monday night seemed to inch towards reality 24 hours later. This could be much ado about nothing, and for all I know Turris could be re-signed by the end of the week. But in the interest of laying bare what craven vultures we are at the6thsens, here's a few more scraps to pick over.

Ilya Parallels

Coyotes GM Don Maloney in an appearance last week on the FAN960:

Q: What's the latest on Kyle Turris?

Maloney: Well…we're uhh…we've really taken a position and this really came back with Bryzgalov that we'd not comment publicly on the status of negotiations. Quite frankly it's just when you start commenting every few minutes. It's a little for us when you have on reporter who follows us on a regular basis, I know up in Canadian cities you have 20 of em. We're talking, we're trying to get something done that makes sense. But we're certainly not there yet.

The last sentence being the key one – Maloney does not sound completely unlike he did here earlier in the summer talking Bryzgalov…

"We'd like to sign him to a contract that makes sense to him and sense to us, but he may want more than what we're prepared to pay." – 5/11/11

Less than 4 weeks later Bryz's rights were traded to the Flyers. The situations are obviously different, chiefly one being a UFA the other a RFA. However I suspect the Coyotes would have little patience if this contract impasse continues very far into the season. More than anything Phoenix needs to win if they stand any chance of stayng in the desert. Assets wasting away in absentia do them zero good when short term success is paramount.

Motives 

The other aspect of Burnside's piece that intrigued me was the sourcing:

Still, league sources told ESPN.com that Turris is looking for a three-year deal worth an average of slightly more than $4 million annually or a two-year deal worth slightly more than $3 million.

Now league sources is vague but not as vague as the standard "sources". I think we can rule out Turris's agent* as the culprit as he's quoted later on in the story. I like to think portraying one source as two differerent people would be frowned upon at ESPN, but maybe I'm naive.

Another possibility has this information coming out of the Coyotes front office. Few reporters are as plugged in as Burnside to the going-ons in Phoenix, his coverage of the ongoing ownership morass being exhibit A. It should be noted Bryzgalov's contract demands similarliy appeared in the press when negotiations broke down with the Yotes.

Turris and his people could be trying to force a trade, or the Coyotes could be trying to embarrass/shame him. Or some other party could be feeding this info to Burnside…or they may be false #'s altogether. Nevertheless the effect of this public airing of grievance will surely be a few more inquiries coming Don Maloney's way. Whether Murray is one of the interested suitors remains to be seen.

* Same representation as Wiercioch and Elliott. Don't see that favouring the Sens, call it a toss-up.