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(Report) Friedman: Van seriously thought about giving Jamie Been an Offer Sheet in Summer 2012


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http://www.cbc.ca/sports-content/hockey/opinion/2014/04/30-thoughts-ryan-getzlaf-for-mvp.html

15. With all of the discussion about Vancouver needing 21- to 25-year-old impact players, I think they seriously considered an offer sheet for Jamie Benn in the summer of 2012. Obviously, the owners don't have much use for one another, but bringing home a local boy (and a very good one) would've been a major coup. I can't confirm it, but I believe a one-year, $7.5-million US offer was the ballpark, which meant Dallas would've had to qualify him at that number for three more years, similar to what Calgary did to Colorado with Ryan O'Reilly

16. Why didn't it happen? Probably two reasons. First, Shea Weber's sheet was matched. And if that one didn't work, what would? Second, the Canucks were in a tight cap situation going into the lockout. It was hard to predict the outcome, and if they were over the cap, that would've created even more trouble. Anyway, fun to think about.

*Typo in the title sorry was trying to get it on here fast*

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Would have loved to get him, but it was unlikely I think. Maybe at that point there was a small chance since the Stars didn't have the financial backing at the same level they do now, but I still think they would have matched anything we could reasonably offer.

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I love Jamie Benn - who wouldn't love to have Jamie Benn - but there are some fundamental problems with such offer sheets - not the least of which is the utter hypocrisy at the heart of that style of management and contract trending in the face of lockout politics.

Offering a 22 year old with two 56 and 63 point seasons in the NHL 7.5 million dollars coming off his ELC deal at less than a million? Really bad optics to that imo. His 5 year 26 million deal may be a relative bargain for Dallas, but the 1 year 7.5 offersheet to pry him out... maybe not the best strategic or political option.

The other problem - that kind of offersheet would have cost the Canucks two 1sts, a 2nd and a 3rd.

How would folks feel about having given up Shinkaruk, Cassels, another 2nd, and this year's 6 or 7th overall pick for what could have potentially been one year of Jamie Benn and then the uncertainty of re-signing a young player who had the bar set at 7.5 million coming off his ELC?

Sounds like a lot of pipe dreaming in the end.

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This team just failed to qualify for the playoffs. Everyone will take a chance to say they "should have" gone through with the offer sheet because hindsight is 20/20.

I'm okay with the fact they didn't. The Jamie Benn we saw in 2013-2014 was dominant. But there was no way to predict he'd ever get to that level back in 2012. Fans would have been incensed if we gambled the future like that. There's no telling how our prospects will turn out but at least there's a small crop of them to invest in.

And of course, Shea Weber. Nobody thought the Predators would match. But it created a precedent.

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Jamie Benn? You mean the best natural goal scorer who ever played for the Kelowna Rockets? The guy who grew up within shouting distance of Vancouver, but nobody seemed to notice? The guy who went 129th in the 2007 draft, while Vancouver drafted Patrick White at 25th and Taylor Ellington at 33rd? Until we get some scouts who recognize talent, we will continue to hover in mediocrity. I cringe every time i see the lists of players we've passed by in order to choose guys who just never panned out. Very sad!

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