Lee Whitley
Canadiens General Manager Kent Hughes has said that during his long career as a player agent, players are happy “when hockey is going well,” no matter what city they are in.
But besides winning, there are certainly other factors that come into play when players reach free agency.
Jake Evans of the Canadiens could have become an unrestricted free agent this past summer, but instead decided to stay with the Canadiens, signing a four-year contract worth $11.4 million with an annual salary cap hit of $2.85 million. There is a saying: “happy wife, happy life” and family considerations also come into play when players achieve freedom of choice. Evans’ wife gave birth to twins this summer.
I asked Evans Friday morning what kinds of things he and his wife were looking for if he had gone the free-agent route.
“It depends on everyone, but you look at the city,” he said. “You ask players how they’re treated within the organization. You might look for teammates who you would play with in certain scenarios. I’m sure you want to hear me talk about taxes and some players would probably look at that ultimately. Facilities. There’s a lot of different things guys will look at. Weather is a big factor for some, I think.”
Evans was happy to stay in Montreal, but added with a chuckle: “Not because of the weather.”
#Habs #Mailbag #Canadiens #find #senior #tackle #top #teams