SLAM! Sports
SLAM! Hockey
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
COLUMNS
NHL
The Teams
Full Schedule
Monthly Schedule
Standings
Statistics
Rosters
Injury list
Movement
Trades
Hits Gallery
INTERACTIVE
JUNIOR
MORE HOCKEY
ALSO ON SLAM!
Tuesday, November 9, 1999
Game over for AWOL Alexei?
Yashin ignores Sens' deadline to return
When the clock struck midnight on what could be the end of his NHL season, Alexei Yashin was sound asleep in his Swiss apartment.
"I'm not going anywhere," a defiant Yashin told the Sun last night from his holdout hideaway in Kloten, Switzerland. "I haven't changed my plans at all. I'm just going to wait and see what happens."
After ignoring yesterday's "drop-dead" date from GM Marshall Johnston to return to the Senators, Yashin faces the prospect of being suspended for the rest of the season -- and could be in for a legal battle.
It's believed Johnston could issue a statement today saying that Yashin will no longer be welcomed back this year and he'll still owe the club the final year of his contract at $3.6 million US next season.
"I'm ignoring this date," said Yashin. "I don't know why anybody set this deadline anyway. It doesn't mean anything to me and I'm not going to worry about it. Maybe, they set this for themselves.
'KEEP PRACTISING'
"I'm just going to stay here, keep practising and keep trying to improve myself as a hockey player. I've stated my position before on this and it hasn't changed just because they set some deadline."
Senators president Roy Mlakar and Johnston have refused to comment because they have a legal agreement with the league not to give out details of the letter faxed to Yashin and the NHL Players Association.
Still, it's expected once the league and the Senators take action to suspend Yashin for the rest of the season, they're going to face a legal battle with the players' union.
League vice-president Bill Daly told the Washington Post Sunday the NHLPA has sent the league a letter "reserving their rights" to take legal action against any suspension, but union president Bob Goodenow has refused comment.
"I've stated it before and I'll say it again: The deadline doesn't change a thing," said Yashin's New Jersey-based agent Mark Gandler, who is in Switzerland with Yashin's parents Valery and Tatiana.
"Our plan is for Alexei to keep working out here until this situation is resolved with a trade or a new contract.
"He's going to stay here and he's going to stay in good shape. That part is not going to change," Gandler said.
Still, this decision could set a precedent for the rest of the league. Should Yashin report to honour the final year of his $3.6-million US contract, the collective bargaining agreement clearly states he has to be paid.
That's where this case could set a precedent because it's expected an independent arbitrator is going to have to be called in if Yashin challenges the season-long suspension and the demand for another year on his contract.
"I know the Senators have the backing of the league in this case but I don't know if this one is as much of a slam-dunk as they seem to think it is," said an NHL executive, who agreed to speak anonymously.
CAN'T CHANGE RULES
"My personal feeling is that if a guy shows up at camp you have to start paying him and that's the way it's set out in the CBA with the players. You can't just go changing the rules."
Yashin has heard the rumours he's about to return to Ottawa and had a good laugh when asked if he was at the Macdonald-Cartier Airport. One local radio station was offering a $1,000 reward for the first Yashin sighting called into its news tip line.
"I'm going to be on the next flight back to Ottawa," laughed Yashin, who was grocery shopping in Kloten with Gandler when contacted by the Sun. "Make sure everybody is there to greet me at the airport."
According to the NHL, Yashin will no longer be welcomed in Ottawa this season. Now, it could be up to a judge to decide if that's the case.
THE RECAP
- WHAT: Ottawa Senators centre Alexei Yashin had until midnight last night to give up his holdout and report to training camp. He remained in Switzerland yesterday and let the deadline pass without bothering to report. He now faces a suspension for the rest of the season and if he reports next year could be forced to play at the $3.6-million US salary he was supposed to receive this season.
- WHAT'S NEXT: Senators president Roy Mlakar and GM Marshall Johnston could announce as early as today that Yashin has been suspended for the rest of the season. If that's the case, the NHL Players Association has informed the league it's "reserving the right" to take legal action against any suspension. An independent arbitrator could be called into the case and there is some belief the whole issue may end up in court.
 Bert's back on blades Blue Jays boot game Bombers drop Peterson Felicien rebuilds race | Visit our Polls Archive |