Connolly On Long-term IR

[HockeyFan T]

Long-term means what?

[apuszczalowski]

Long-term means what?

It isn't going to be short term, j/k

 

I believe it puts him out for a few months instead of just a couple weeks

 

Its not like the NFL where the player is done for the year

[Taro T]

Long-term means what?

Considering he has already missed 10+ games and 24+ days, it means absolutely nothing for his ability to get back on the ice.

 

It is strictly a salary cap move and will allow the Sabres to bring another player(s) up from Ra-cha-cha if they so choose.

[DWarner]

I don't understand why this wasn't done earlier (even if we didn't have to bring anyone else up). It seems Timmy's return has been way off for a while now.

[Bmwolf21]

DWarner, you're not the only one wondering that...it seemed that this should have been done at least a couple weeks ago, when we were getting close to the 10 game mark and TC couldn't even exercise...

[HockeyFan T]

Considering he has already missed 10+ games and 24+ days, it means absolutely nothing for his ability to get back on the ice.

 

It is strictly a salary cap move and will allow the Sabres to bring another player(s) up from Ra-cha-cha if they so choose.

So, if he got healthy before Christmas, he would be allowed to join the team? There is nothing about putting him on IR that would prevent him from coming back this fall rather than next spring?

 

If this is true and considering the source I assume it is - I too wonder what prevented the Sabres from doing it sooner? Maybe they were just showing optimism until they had to clear some cap room.

 

I assume they are still paying Timmy his money and putting him on IR only gives them the OK to spend more? Maybe it's like why get a new credit card when your wife has your other cards maxed out?

 

I don't expect him to be ready until spring at the earliest. My bet is that he won't be back until 2007-2008. Hopefully, if/when he does return that he has received the best medical advice and he's truly ready.

[Taro T]

I don't understand why this wasn't done earlier (even if we didn't have to bring anyone else up). It seems Timmy's return has been way off for a while now.

They didn't do it earlier because there was no need for them to do it earlier. Considering that Paetsch was on the roster and in a pinch Campbell could take a shift or 2 at forward if the team did dress 7 defensemen and only 11 forwards due to injury or illness, the Sabres didn't need another forward on the roster. They gained absolutely nothing by filing the paperwork early.

 

Your question is similar to asking "why don't people pay their taxes before April 15". Because they don't need to do it and could get a very small benefit (interest for a couple of months on the amount still owed on 4/15).

 

So, if he got healthy before Christmas, he would be allowed to join the team? There is nothing about putting him on IR that would prevent him from coming back this fall rather than next spring?

 

If this is true and considering the source I assume it is - I too wonder what prevented the Sabres from doing it sooner? Maybe they were just showing optimism until they had to clear some cap room.

 

I assume they are still paying Timmy his money and putting him on IR only gives them the OK to spend more? Maybe it's like why get a new credit card when your wife has your other cards maxed out?

 

I don't expect him to be ready until spring at the earliest. My bet is that he won't be back until 2007-2008. Hopefully, if/when he does return that he has received the best medical advice and he's truly ready.

Correct. Ditto.

 

See response to DWarner.

 

Essentially correct.

[DWarner]

But how do teams "save cap space" by only calling up players for a day or two? I seem to remember hearing something about banking cap space for the end of the season based on the team salary at each day in the season. Would having TC on long term IR the last month (and not bringing another player into the fold) saved us cap money to be used at someother time in the season?

 

Just wondering, that's all. Thanks for all your help dave_b.

[shrader]

But how do teams "save cap space" by only calling up players for a day or two? I seem to remember hearing something about banking cap space for the end of the season based on the team salary at each day in the season. Would having TC on long term IR the last month (and not bringing another player into the fold) saved us cap money to be used at someother time in the season?

 

Just wondering, that's all. Thanks for all your help dave_b.

 

The team doesn't gain any actual cap space by placing Connolly on long term IR. The only relief they get is being able to go over the cap by an amount equal to Connolly's salary. With or without him on longterm IR, the team was walking away ~$200K of cap space.

[Taro T]

But how do teams "save cap space" by only calling up players for a day or two? I seem to remember hearing something about banking cap space for the end of the season based on the team salary at each day in the season. Would having TC on long term IR the last month (and not bringing another player into the fold) saved us cap money to be used at someother time in the season?

 

Just wondering, that's all. Thanks for all your help dave_b.

Players get paid (or more accurately, accrue pay) on a daily basis. So, by only calling players up on game days and sending them back down the next, a team could effectively reduce a player's salary down to ~1/3 of what it is nominally. (Note: for actual pay that only works for players on 2 way contracts; for counting average salary towards the salary cap it works for any player under the age of 35 regardless of contract status. So teams do save salary cap space by shuffling players back and forth from the roster. Also, a team that did this throughout the entire season would get a reputation for ****ing with their players and would have a hard time getting free agents to want to play in such an environment.)

 

The Sabres are currently only ~$100k under the salary cap. So on a daily basis they are banking towards future salary cap spending ~$600/day, and should have banked ~$15k so far. It definitely is small peanuts, but at the trade deadline, that $15k (or whatever it grows to) might make the difference in the Sabres being able to pull off a deal or not. It's doubtful, but possible.

 

Once the Sabres bring another player up to the roster, the team's salary cap salary will count as $44MM and they will bank no additional salary cap space. So, I would not be surprised to see the Sabres bring an extra player onto the roster for road trips and then send him back to Ra-cha-cha after the team is back in Buffalo.

 

Timmy's salary counts towards the salary cap regardless of whether he is on the active roster, IR, or BLTI-IR. Placing him on BLTI-IR allows the Sabres to exceed the cap without facing penalties. But if the team is (permissibly) over the salary cap, for banking purposes the team is at the salary cap (even though they could still bring another player or 2 onto the roster without exceeding their "revised" cap while Timmy is on BLTI-IR).

[rickshaw]

The Canucks did this a lot last year. They'd call a guy up for a game. Fly him back to Manitoba the next. Then they'd fly him back the next day to play on game day, then fly him back.

 

The NHL rules state you have to physically send the player back, not just do it via written transactions. They probably spend just as much on flights as they do salary, but flights don't count against the cap.

[Bmwolf21]

IIRC, the Flyers did something similar - with the Phantoms playing in the next building over, I think the Flyers would have a few Phantoms players practice with the big club, officially recall them for the game, then send them right back down...