talkingcanes
03-06-2004, 01:58 PM
Saturday, March 6, 2004
By Scott Burnside
Special to ESPN.com
Whatever regret there may be, whatever second-guessing, wondering what might have been, they are prepared to live with.
If he decided to leave, Glen Wesley would be a hot commodity on the trade market.
In a trade season that has been as wild and woolly as they come, and with more surprises expected before Tuesday's 3 p.m. ET trade deadline, two of the game's standup guys, two players who would command significant interest on the open market and might well have been significant parts of a Stanley Cup run, have said thanks but no thanks.
While many of their colleagues will join the rent-a-player ranks, Ron Francis and Glen Wesley have opted not to waive their no-trade clauses and will finish out the season with the Carolina Hurricanes.
"If I hadn't won a Stanley Cup then I've said I'd be ready with my bags packed waiting for you to tell me which plane to get on," the man they call Ronnie Franchise said Friday night. "It's obviously not an easy decision."
Across the Hurricanes dressing room, Wesley, a man with two fewer Stanley Cup rings than his longtime teammate -- that is to say, none -- has come to the same difficult decision: In spite of the powerful lure of a ring, the lure of his family is greater.
"Last year it was a great opportunity for me," Wesley said. "My wife made a sacrifice for our family.
"I said 'no' this time around for family reasons more than anything else."
A year ago Wesley did waive his no-trade clause and was dealt to the Cup-hopeful Toronto Maple Leafs. Although he suffered a broken foot almost immediately upon his arrival in Toronto, the veteran defenseman was one of the team's best blue liners during the Leafs' seven-game opening round loss to the Philadelphia Flyers.
Although the experience lasted only five weeks and his family visited during March break, it was too much stress on his family. The couple's three children are young -- aged 11, 7 and 5 -- and Wesley decided the separation was not worth another turn at the playoff roulette table.
And so, in spite of encouragement from his wife, Barb, his childhood sweetheart from the couple's hometown of Red Deer, Alberta, with the 'Canes he will stay.
"She was telling me to go and I'm put in a tough situation, making a tough decision for myself," said Wesley. "It wasn't an easy decision. It was something I thought about for awhile."
Wesley and Francis have logged a combined 1,871 games for the Hartford/Carolina franchise. They have been the cornerstones of an organization that picked up and moved to the foreign soil of North Carolina during the summer of 1997, traveling hundreds of miles during that first season to home games in Greensboro.
They endured the death of teammate Steve Chiasson after the team's first playoff appearance in 1999, and then the unexpected embracing of hockey in Raleigh as the team surged to the Stanley Cup final in 2002, when they lost in five games to the Detroit Red Wings.
It is a team marked by unusual threads of loyalty, from the relationship between owner Peter Karmanos and general manager Jim Rutherford that dates back to their days in junior hockey in the Windsor/Detroit area, to the long association with former coach Paul Maurice to players like Wesley and Francis.
"It's really a non-story for me," Rutherford said. "I would not even consider asking them to waive [the no-trade clause].
"Certainly out of respect for them and what they've done for our organization."
Had either wanted to move to a playoff team, Rutherford said he would have done his best to make it happen, as he did a year ago with Wesley and as he is currently trying to do for defenseman Sean Hill. "I think it says something [about] the players," Rutherford said. "They have made their homes here. There's some good things that have happened that they've contributed to."
Francis joked that he joined the organization "just a couple of years ago, in 1981." And so, without overstating the emotional aspect of such decisions, the pull both men feel to this franchise, this community, has made the decision in some ways easier.
"We made a decision a couple of years ago to make Raleigh our home," said Francis whose three children are 13, 10 and 7.
“ If I hadn't won a Stanley Cup then I've said I'd be ready with my bags packed waiting for you to tell me which plane to get on. ”
— Ron Francis
Six months ago the Francises moved into a new home.
"I think it's very similar," Wesley said of the decision-making process the two have followed. "I think that plays into it, being with the organization so long. I wanted to stick it out, too.
"Obviously the last couple of years there have been some struggles. But if the team is able to generate some consistent goal scoring, I think we could be right back where we were."
But what if this is it?
For Francis, who just turned 41, this will almost certainly be the end of a Hall of Fame career. He owns a pair of Stanley Cup rings from his time in Pittsburgh (ironically, he was dealt to the Penguins from Hartford in one of the most lopsided trade deadline deals of all time) and he recently passed Maurice "Rocket" Richard in goals scored and is fourth all-time in points.
During the team's last trip to Toronto, Francis, who is from Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, grabbed the puck after scoring the game-winning goal, acknowledging it may have been his last game there. His parents were on hand to mark the occasion.
An analytical man, Francis has made lists marking the pros and cons of his decision to stay in Carolina and what may lie ahead.
If there is no hockey next season, it is difficult to imagine Francis returning.
Wesley, 35, is nearing the end of his 17th NHL season. He has been to the Stanley Cup final three times, twice with Boston and once with Carolina. He talks like a player who still imagines his future in the game.
But with the uncertainty surrounding the end of the collective bargaining agreement and the potential for a lockout that may scuttle all of next season, the future for defensemen in their late 30s is uncertain.
"Nobody knows. That's the whole interesting part of it," Wesley acknowledged.
Does he allow himself to wonder if that final afternoon game on April 4 against Florida will be it?
"I haven't thought that far into it," he said.
If it is it, will he regret not going to Rutherford and asking him to find him another home, if only for a few weeks?
"That's one of the things I talked about with my wife," he said. "That was part of the thought process."
"I've had some great experiences in the playoffs," he said. "Unfortunately it didn't happen for me."
Wesley said it hasn't been the topic of discussion in the locker room, which he and Francis are thankful for. But the other players understand the statement they're making.
"I think that's what you want in an organization," said Kevyn Adams. "A team that cares about its players and players that care about the community.
"It's a great thing to have, loyal people in the organization."
But Adams is quick to appreciate the other side of this sharp career sword. "You couldn't fault players for going the other way. If the opportunity's there, you can't fault a guy for taking it," Adams said.
That is the kind of decision Hill reluctantly arrived at in recent days. After appearing to be ready to follow the pattern established by Wesley and Francis, Hill decided he wanted another shot at a championship. The rugged defenseman won a Cup as a member of the '93 Montreal Canadiens but played in only three games.
"I'd like a more expanded role than playing one game each round," he said.
An important member of the '02 'Canes lineup, Hill admitted he's played the best hockey of his career in Carolina.
"It'd have to be a pretty interesting offer for me to go," the 34-year-old Duluth, Minn., native said. "I just wish that something could work out here but that remains to be seen."
Scott Burnside is a freelance writer based in Atlanta and is a frequent contributor to ESPN.com.
By Scott Burnside
Special to ESPN.com
Whatever regret there may be, whatever second-guessing, wondering what might have been, they are prepared to live with.
If he decided to leave, Glen Wesley would be a hot commodity on the trade market.
In a trade season that has been as wild and woolly as they come, and with more surprises expected before Tuesday's 3 p.m. ET trade deadline, two of the game's standup guys, two players who would command significant interest on the open market and might well have been significant parts of a Stanley Cup run, have said thanks but no thanks.
While many of their colleagues will join the rent-a-player ranks, Ron Francis and Glen Wesley have opted not to waive their no-trade clauses and will finish out the season with the Carolina Hurricanes.
"If I hadn't won a Stanley Cup then I've said I'd be ready with my bags packed waiting for you to tell me which plane to get on," the man they call Ronnie Franchise said Friday night. "It's obviously not an easy decision."
Across the Hurricanes dressing room, Wesley, a man with two fewer Stanley Cup rings than his longtime teammate -- that is to say, none -- has come to the same difficult decision: In spite of the powerful lure of a ring, the lure of his family is greater.
"Last year it was a great opportunity for me," Wesley said. "My wife made a sacrifice for our family.
"I said 'no' this time around for family reasons more than anything else."
A year ago Wesley did waive his no-trade clause and was dealt to the Cup-hopeful Toronto Maple Leafs. Although he suffered a broken foot almost immediately upon his arrival in Toronto, the veteran defenseman was one of the team's best blue liners during the Leafs' seven-game opening round loss to the Philadelphia Flyers.
Although the experience lasted only five weeks and his family visited during March break, it was too much stress on his family. The couple's three children are young -- aged 11, 7 and 5 -- and Wesley decided the separation was not worth another turn at the playoff roulette table.
And so, in spite of encouragement from his wife, Barb, his childhood sweetheart from the couple's hometown of Red Deer, Alberta, with the 'Canes he will stay.
"She was telling me to go and I'm put in a tough situation, making a tough decision for myself," said Wesley. "It wasn't an easy decision. It was something I thought about for awhile."
Wesley and Francis have logged a combined 1,871 games for the Hartford/Carolina franchise. They have been the cornerstones of an organization that picked up and moved to the foreign soil of North Carolina during the summer of 1997, traveling hundreds of miles during that first season to home games in Greensboro.
They endured the death of teammate Steve Chiasson after the team's first playoff appearance in 1999, and then the unexpected embracing of hockey in Raleigh as the team surged to the Stanley Cup final in 2002, when they lost in five games to the Detroit Red Wings.
It is a team marked by unusual threads of loyalty, from the relationship between owner Peter Karmanos and general manager Jim Rutherford that dates back to their days in junior hockey in the Windsor/Detroit area, to the long association with former coach Paul Maurice to players like Wesley and Francis.
"It's really a non-story for me," Rutherford said. "I would not even consider asking them to waive [the no-trade clause].
"Certainly out of respect for them and what they've done for our organization."
Had either wanted to move to a playoff team, Rutherford said he would have done his best to make it happen, as he did a year ago with Wesley and as he is currently trying to do for defenseman Sean Hill. "I think it says something [about] the players," Rutherford said. "They have made their homes here. There's some good things that have happened that they've contributed to."
Francis joked that he joined the organization "just a couple of years ago, in 1981." And so, without overstating the emotional aspect of such decisions, the pull both men feel to this franchise, this community, has made the decision in some ways easier.
"We made a decision a couple of years ago to make Raleigh our home," said Francis whose three children are 13, 10 and 7.
“ If I hadn't won a Stanley Cup then I've said I'd be ready with my bags packed waiting for you to tell me which plane to get on. ”
— Ron Francis
Six months ago the Francises moved into a new home.
"I think it's very similar," Wesley said of the decision-making process the two have followed. "I think that plays into it, being with the organization so long. I wanted to stick it out, too.
"Obviously the last couple of years there have been some struggles. But if the team is able to generate some consistent goal scoring, I think we could be right back where we were."
But what if this is it?
For Francis, who just turned 41, this will almost certainly be the end of a Hall of Fame career. He owns a pair of Stanley Cup rings from his time in Pittsburgh (ironically, he was dealt to the Penguins from Hartford in one of the most lopsided trade deadline deals of all time) and he recently passed Maurice "Rocket" Richard in goals scored and is fourth all-time in points.
During the team's last trip to Toronto, Francis, who is from Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, grabbed the puck after scoring the game-winning goal, acknowledging it may have been his last game there. His parents were on hand to mark the occasion.
An analytical man, Francis has made lists marking the pros and cons of his decision to stay in Carolina and what may lie ahead.
If there is no hockey next season, it is difficult to imagine Francis returning.
Wesley, 35, is nearing the end of his 17th NHL season. He has been to the Stanley Cup final three times, twice with Boston and once with Carolina. He talks like a player who still imagines his future in the game.
But with the uncertainty surrounding the end of the collective bargaining agreement and the potential for a lockout that may scuttle all of next season, the future for defensemen in their late 30s is uncertain.
"Nobody knows. That's the whole interesting part of it," Wesley acknowledged.
Does he allow himself to wonder if that final afternoon game on April 4 against Florida will be it?
"I haven't thought that far into it," he said.
If it is it, will he regret not going to Rutherford and asking him to find him another home, if only for a few weeks?
"That's one of the things I talked about with my wife," he said. "That was part of the thought process."
"I've had some great experiences in the playoffs," he said. "Unfortunately it didn't happen for me."
Wesley said it hasn't been the topic of discussion in the locker room, which he and Francis are thankful for. But the other players understand the statement they're making.
"I think that's what you want in an organization," said Kevyn Adams. "A team that cares about its players and players that care about the community.
"It's a great thing to have, loyal people in the organization."
But Adams is quick to appreciate the other side of this sharp career sword. "You couldn't fault players for going the other way. If the opportunity's there, you can't fault a guy for taking it," Adams said.
That is the kind of decision Hill reluctantly arrived at in recent days. After appearing to be ready to follow the pattern established by Wesley and Francis, Hill decided he wanted another shot at a championship. The rugged defenseman won a Cup as a member of the '93 Montreal Canadiens but played in only three games.
"I'd like a more expanded role than playing one game each round," he said.
An important member of the '02 'Canes lineup, Hill admitted he's played the best hockey of his career in Carolina.
"It'd have to be a pretty interesting offer for me to go," the 34-year-old Duluth, Minn., native said. "I just wish that something could work out here but that remains to be seen."
Scott Burnside is a freelance writer based in Atlanta and is a frequent contributor to ESPN.com.