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| (above) Brock Trotter spent last season in Latvia |
From: CBC.com
The Montreal Canadiens have signed former University of Denver star forward Brock Trotter to a one-year, two-way deal.
Trotter had nine goals and 17 assists in 49 games last season with Riga [Latvia] of the Kontinental Hockey League.
The five-foot-10, 180-pound left-winger had 57 goals and 78 assists in 172 games with the American Hockey League's Hamilton Bulldogs between 2007-10.
Trotter led the Bulldogs in goals with 36 in his last season with the team before going to play in Europe.
The undrafted 24-year-old previously joined Montreal as a free agent in 2008, but went scoreless in just two games played with the team.
10 comments:
Exile?
Trotter made $250K tax free with a free apartment and a free car. Riga is one of the nicest cities in Europe great city - attractive women everywhere, and all the Nordic conveniences. Most of the educated people there speak English too.
Now Trotter will be (unless he makes the NHL) making about $75K and playing in Hamilton, Ontario - the rust belt sphincter of Canada.
I still want to know why he left DU so abruptly. I heard something about cheating.
I thought it was the noise complaints from playing his skin flute too much...
No cheating.
Girl problems.
I agree...sounds like a downgrade to me. Good luck to him, though.
is he playing for the money or a life long dream of playing in the NHL?
Trotter has already played briefly in the NHL, but he, like all ambitious players, wants to play consistently there.
He had a great year two years ago and led his AHL team in scoring. When the Habs lowballed him on a resign offer, he took the bigger paycheck to hit the KHL and hope that he'd get some leverage to resign at the NHL level after a good year there. Trotter did not light up the KHL as he did the AHL, so he now has to take a two way AHL deal to continue his dream. most likely spending most of his time in Hamilton.
The reality is that if you are good enough, you'll play in the NHL no matter what league you come from. Trotter is one of those cusp players who can score in the AHL, but isn't yet fast enough for the NHL. Perhaps he'll get there someday, but the odds are unlikely.
He's still among the .00001% of hockey players good enough to make his living in the game he loves. Can't really ask for more than that....
Hey man, getting paid to play beats paying fees every month to play on a team of 30-something guys with 1 or 2 really good skaters, with guys with beerguts 4 nights a week, then waking up early and going to your crap job all day in an office and carrying regrets around on your shoulder. Good for him!
If he plays in the AHL his contract is for $105K, not bad for a young guy doing something he loves to do, especially after pocketing $250K tax free money last year. He also pocketed the nice $$ signing bonus from Montreal when he signed with them the first time back in 2008.
Yeah, he has done just fine. But if you can make 250K tax free and live in Europe for another year, why the heck not?? Sure beats toiling in the AHL, in my opinion. But what do I know. I only play a hockey player on TV.
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