EZ Wealth and Money

At this point, John Davidson leaving the St. Louis Blues seems almost inevitable. The Blues have a new owner who is looking to trim managerial costs, and one look at the Blues hierarchy — Davidson, Doug Armstrong, Larry Pleau, Al MacInnis, Dave Taylor and coach Ken Hitchcock — and the dollar signs starts accumulating. That’s an impressive staff, full of hockey luminaries. They don’t come cheap.

Davidson has a 30-day window in his contract, and he’s using it with the blessing of the Blues. But Davidson’s next step could take a while. By all indications, him joining the Blue Jackets or another NHL club is not imminent.

The first step is for Davidson and the Blues to figure out how his departure from St. Louis will work. He has three years remaining on a contract that pays him nearly $2 million per season. Are the Blues responsible for all of that? Do they pay him a supplemental figure, should another NHL club hire him at less than $2 million per season? Are they responsible for one penny of it if he hooks on with another NHL club?

What impact does that 30-day window — closed as of today — have on all of this? Indications are that the Blues and new owner Tom Stillman are willing to extend Davidson’s negotiating window, making it easier for him to leave.

This could be days. It could be weeks. Nobody can say for sure. It’s a dicey time, with the NHL Draft on the horizon, NHL free agency right around the next turn. etc. The Blue Jackets, specifically, have the not-to-tiny matter of trading Rick Nash making its way to the front burner, too.

Bottom line: Stay tuned, but get some sleep.

– Aaron Portzline

aportzline@dispatch.com

twitter: @aportzline

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Article source: http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/sports/2012/06/09/tomlin-tames-series-champs.html