Thursday, April 9, 2009 05:19 PM
Duhatschek: A done deal
Eric Duhatschek
It took some middle-of-the-night negotiations to get the language in the contract clarified, but eventually Jaromir Jagr did sign off on a deal with Russia's Avangard Omsk, which announced the coup on its website earlier today.
On Friday, Jagr's agent Pat Brisson confirmed that Jagr had signed “a letter of intent to play with Avangard Omsk Hockey team of the Russian CHL on or about 3 AM EST this morning.” In an email note, Brisson said: “I won't comment on the terms of the agreement at this time. It was a very difficult but personal decision to make in light of the many NHL teams interested in his services. He is grateful to the NHL and especially the Rangers in recent years."
Russia's Continental League was trying to sign a marquee player in its first year, supplanting the old Superleague, and Jagr seemed to their best hope of getting a player with star power to commit. The Rangers dropped out of negotiations Thursday after signing Markus Nilsson, but left the door open a crack, in case – as GM Glen Sather put it – things don't work out in Russia.
Brisson wouldn't go into details on the dollar value of the deal, but sources indicated the Russian contract will pay Jagr in the neighborhood of $6 to $7 million U.S. per season. The number that had been bandied about – three years, $35 million – is an extrapolation and this requires some explanation. The contracts that players sign in Russia are virtually tax free, meaning that if Jagr signs for $7 million, that'll be $7 million in his pocket. To get $7 million in his pocket, he would need to sign an NHL deal worth between $10 and $12 million per season, depending upon the tax laws in the state or province in which he plays – which is why these offers sound so big. The actual Russian tax rate is about 17 per cent; the teams generally cover the cost themselves, so the players net the entire gross amount of their contracts. It's like the Brick paying the GST on your Canada Day purchase – a nice arrangement if you can get it. Meanwhile, on the Dan Boyle front, that deal isn't official either – although sources continue to insist that the San Jose Sharks are the front-runners and will likely land him at some point later today, as they are Boyle's team of choice, in waiving a no-trade clause in the six-year, $40 million contract he signed with the Tampa Bay Lightning last February.
