There was a little back and forth regarding Alex Burrows’ status as a potential trading chip over the course of Saturday’s broadcast. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reported during the Saturday Headlines segment that Burrows would definitely be willing to waive his No Trade Clause in order to allow Canucks management to facilitate a potential trade if that was the direction that they decided they wanted to go in. However, when he was pressed for details after Saturday night’s game, he denied the claim and told reporters that he had never said he was willing to waive and further confirmed his desire to remain a Canuck. Sunday morning he even told reporters that he the last time he had spoken with his agent, it was to wish him a Merry Christmas. So what’s going on here?
There hasn’t been a lot of talk regarding potential trades with Burrows as the focus, primarily because of his age, the remaining length of his contract, and his overall decline in the last few years from his 20+ goal scoring seasons. He has 7 goals and 9 assists for a total of 16 points in 53 games so far this season, and is a -10 overall. He has one year remaining on a four year, $18 million deal and is owed $3 million in salary next year. He’ll be 35 this April. He remains an effective utility player, as he can slot in almost anywhere on any line if he’s asked to, and he is still one of the team’s top penalty killers, but his age and salary make him fairly unpalatable to other teams.
There’s also the fact that most of the rest of the NHL absolutely hates Alex Burrows – St. Louis, Boston, and Chicago are just a few examples of teams that you have to assume automatically just wouldn’t want him based on history alone.
He’s also, ironically, one of the very few fan favorite players left on this team. Roberto Luongo, Eddie Lack, Kevin Bieksa, and, to a lesser extent now, Ryan Kesler are just a few examples of personalities that were responsible for much of the character that the team enjoyed over the last few years that are now gone. Alex Burrows, the Dragon Slayer, is going to be one of the most difficult players to say goodbye to when the time comes. You almost can’t imagine the Canucks without him, which says a lot about the impact he’s made and what he’s meant to the team over the course of the last ten years.
All that being said, if a team called to express interest and was willing to offer something of value, you have to make the deal. Vancouver isn’t going to be bad enough for long enough to acquire enough new talent through the draft the way that some teams have been in recent years *COUGH*Oilers*COUGH* and free agency isn’t the best way to build a team. The best assets never make it there and the ones that do cost too much. The Canucks simply cannot afford to allow declining assets to either walk away for nothing or sit around until all value is gone. If you can get a draft pick or a prospect of some kind for Alexandre Burrows, you take it – even if it means retaining salary, which it certainly will.
As far as where the truth lies in this situation, you have to consider the source. Elliotte Friedman is not someone who has a reputation of just throwing something out there for the sake of having a conversation and taking up airtime. But, as far as management goes, this is a tricky, delicate situation involving a veteran, fan-favourite player who commands a lot of respect for the career he’s had and the contributions he’s made – not unlike one Dan Hamhuis, who is in a similar situation. Jim Benning and Trevor Linden wouldn’t approach a subject like this without an awareness for the sensitivity necessary for it not to become a circus when the team is already struggling enough as it is. So taking that into account, you may believe he honestly hasn’t been asked about it.
I think if it really came down to it and management approached Burrows and said, “Listen, we have an deal on the table. What do you want to do?” then he would waive. Not because he doesn’t want to stay, but because it would be what was best for the team. And if you could ever only say one thing about Alex Burrows, it’s that he puts the team first. Always. It’s how he made his career in Vancouver in the first place, and it sadly may be how he finishes it.
Burrows? Do We Really Need Him?
in Canucks Talk
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