I can't see Ladue coming back, even though there is talk that his sister's babysitter's cousin's neighbor heard he was going to come back.
I suspect that if you asked most UND fans, "if one defenseman is going to leave early this year, who would you prefer it be", most fans would have picked Thompson. Not that he wasn't an important player back there. He just wasn't playing top four minutes and most would probably prefer he go rather than one of the two promising freshmen that also played in the bottom pair.
However, with Stecher gone, and almost certainly LaDue, it sure would have been nice to keep Thompson around for another year. Best of luck to him though.
That community is already in the process of dissolution where each man begins to eye his neighbor as a possible enemy, where non-conformity with the accepted creed, political as well as religious, is a mark of disaffection; where denunciation, without specification or backing, takes the place of evidence; where orthodoxy chokes freedom of dissent; where faith in the eventual supremacy of reason has become so timid that we dare not enter our convictions in the open lists, to win or lose.
There is talk on SS that if he signs now, he would be signing an entry level, 2 way contract but if he waits until after next year he would be a free agent. Could be a big difference in money. Don't know if that is true.
There is talk on SS that if he signs now, he would be signing an entry level, 2 way contract but if he waits until after next year he would be a free agent. Could be a big difference in money. Don't know if that is true.
My understanding is max rookie contract is the same either way, and it seems most teams typically offer the max. However, you can essentially pick your team as a free agent, so if you were drafted by a team that is very deep at your position, you might be better off waiting for an offer where you might have a better chance of seeing NHL ice sooner. Or if you just don't like the team that drafted you for some reason, you can hold out. (For example, Mike Reilly held out so he could play for the Wild, where his Dad is a minor owner, despite the fact the Wild is very deep at D.)
My understanding is max rookie contract is the same either way, and it seems most teams typically offer the max. However, you can essentially pick your team as a free agent, so if you were drafted by a team that is very deep at your position, you might be better off waiting for an offer where you might have a better chance of seeing NHL ice sooner. Or if you just don't like the team that drafted you for some reason, you can hold out. (For example, Mike Reilly held out so he could play for the Wild, where his Dad is a minor owner, despite the fact the Wild is very deep at D.)
Normally, this is true. However, if a player turns twenty-five (25) before September 15 of the year they sign their first contract, they are not restricted to the entry-level rules (i.e. 2-way contract). Rather, they can sign a 1-way contract. (See Matt Read and Matt Gilroy.) LaDue turns twenty-five (25) September 6, 2017, and therefore would be able to sign a 1-way contract if he stayed through his senior season. This is why the Kings are putting a ton of pressure on him to sign (both last offseason, and this offseason). He has a very unique opportunity.
North Dakota National Champions: 1959, 1963, 1980, 1982, 1987, 1997, 2000, 2016
I am all for college, but he is so ready and with the Kings, he is in a position to make an impact right out of the gate. They are a great organization who, at this point really need top end D. Win -Win for him. Also, getting near 25 years old, it would be a bad time for a college injury.
I am all for college, but he is so ready and with the Kings, he is in a position to make an impact right out of the gate. They are a great organization who, at this point really need top end D. Win -Win for him. Also, getting near 25 years old, it would be a bad time for a college injury.
He might be ready, but a 1-way contract has to be extremely enticing. Injuries can happen anytime, and he can always buy insurance to protect against such an injury. Now, if the Kings are guaranteeing a spot in the NHL next season that's a different story, but my guess is if they had made such a guarantee he would have already signed.
North Dakota National Champions: 1959, 1963, 1980, 1982, 1987, 1997, 2000, 2016
He might be ready, but a 1-way contract has to be extremely enticing. Injuries can happen anytime, and he can always buy insurance to protect against such an injury. Now, if the Kings are guaranteeing a spot in the NHL next season that's a different story, but my guess is if they had made such a guarantee he would have already signed.
(Didn't realize he was that old.) As for the injury argument, while the loss is huge monetarily if you weren't to make it due top injury, what are the odds? This is listed as a reason for turning pro/advancing early at many levels (especially when there is a player like this who seems to be ready), but it is extremely rare these days. Other than the freak back/neck injury, with modern medicine, most things no longer are career threatening. Concussion protocols reduce risk of second concussions before recovering from the first, and things like career ending knee injuries are a thing of the past.
The one consideration for a player this old not usually mentioned is if they are a person to whom making the max amount of money is important, there is a finite number of years he can be payed to play, and at 25 the end is closer than a lot of guys starting their pro careers. One would hope with the money a pro makes, this shouldn't enter the equation, but for some, it does.
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