Olli Juolevi Posted May 14 Share Posted May 14 14 hours ago, JoeyJoeJoeJr. Shabadoo said: Wow, just saw this. I mean this happens from time to time, and I hope he gets the help he needs, but has it ever happened in the playoffs before? Especially to such an impactful player? Didn't he leave the team and enter stage 1 last year during the playoffs after the situation at the team hotel with the trafficked woman? Sounds like that was stage 1, stage 2 came earlier this season when he left for a bit, now he's at 3. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coconuts Posted May 14 Share Posted May 14 (edited) This is what.. the second time he's out the team in a bad spot around playoff time? Second year in a row? Gotta wonder if the Avs eventually terminate his deal, talented player or not. He's clearly struggling, and I have empathy for him, but that doesn't mean his choices haven't had a negative impact; you can feel for folks and understand them without excusing their actions. He's taken himself out of the equation during the Avs peak playoff window. They busted their asses all year and he takes himself out of games. He's been one of their best players, there's no way this didn't affect the Avs last night, and it may damage the trust some folks have for him. Could be the end of him being an Av. Edited May 14 by Coconuts Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coconuts Posted May 14 Share Posted May 14 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris12345 Posted May 14 Share Posted May 14 5 hours ago, DrJockitch said: Failed drug screen after being in the program twice before. Guess we know why he has been flying in the playoffs this year. Surprised it doesn’t happen more often. I wonder how players pass the piss test? Maybe only test if suspicious? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris12345 Posted May 14 Share Posted May 14 12 hours ago, Gnarcore said: I have a few myself. Also had a buddy whose buddy supplied the PGA... I knew about Johnson years before that hit the news. Oh yea it's there and it's real. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HKSR Posted May 14 Share Posted May 14 2 hours ago, Coconuts said: This is what.. the second time he's out the team in a bad spot around playoff time? Second year in a row? Gotta wonder if the Avs eventually terminate his deal, talented player or not. He's clearly struggling, and I have empathy for him, but that doesn't mean his choices haven't had a negative impact; you can feel for folks and understand them without excusing their actions. He's taken himself out of the equation during the Avs peak playoff window. They busted their asses all year and he takes himself out of games. He's been one of their best players, there's no way this didn't affect the Avs last night, and it may damage the trust some folks have for him. Could be the end of him being an Av. That dressing room has gotta be feeling all of this. Both personally in terms of team success, and for their teammate. I think they'd be best to terminate the contract before it becomes a more toxic issue overall. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coconuts Posted May 14 Share Posted May 14 3 minutes ago, HKSR said: That dressing room has gotta be feeling all of this. Both personally in terms of team success, and for their teammate. I think they'd be best to terminate the contract before it becomes a more toxic issue overall. It's tricky, because he's a really important player for them But it might be better to get out of it before he starts to trend down anyway, they got a cup win with the help of a reclamation project He'll be 30 next season, 6x6.125 remains Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HKSR Posted May 14 Share Posted May 14 11 minutes ago, Coconuts said: It's tricky, because he's a really important player for them But it might be better to get out of it before he starts to trend down anyway, they got a cup win with the help of a reclamation project He'll be 30 next season, 6x6.125 remains Important or not, his actions are impacting the entire team. It's toxic. I hope Val finds the help and guidance he needs to get outta this, but for Colorado, I think they need to consider the impact on the rest of the team. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coconuts Posted May 14 Share Posted May 14 2 minutes ago, HKSR said: Important or not, his actions are impacting the entire team. It's toxic. I hope Val finds the help and guidance he needs to get outta this, but for Colorado, I think they need to consider the impact on the rest of the team. I don't disagree, as alluded to in my original post. This is the second playoffs in a row shit has gone sideways with him, I'd be surprised if he hasn't broken some folks trust. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HKSR Posted May 14 Share Posted May 14 7 minutes ago, Coconuts said: I don't disagree, as alluded to in my original post. This is the second playoffs in a row shit has gone sideways with him, I'd be surprised if he hasn't broken some folks trust. I would think so... when did he have his first episode? Was it mid season? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coconuts Posted May 14 Share Posted May 14 4 minutes ago, HKSR said: I would think so... when did he have his first episode? Was it mid season? Nichushkin spent time in the player assistance program earlier this season. He also missed the final five games of Colorado’s 2023 playoff series against the Seattle Kraken after leaving the team for what the club termed “personal reasons.” A Seattle police report later revealed that an intoxicated woman was found in Nichushkin’s hotel room the morning before Game 3 of that series in Seattle. https://www.denverpost.com/2024/05/13/valeri-nichushkin-suspended-nhl-player-assistance-program/ The bit about the woman, that kinda just disappeared and nothing ever seemed to come of it, one can assume it's probably drug related though, and that she may have been trafficked, you'd have to dig a little https://www.denverpost.com/2023/04/27/valeri-nichushkin-seattle-incident-police-medical-response/?_gl=1*u9uc3s*_ga*Z3RRVUpnYU9Eck9EZ1ZCVDdfNGpFVkgxRWpIWWZnczF2dzhPTjU2cE56U3JMMlUydjJHelRsMEpTM1owRG1iWg..*_ga_9X3Z9L7GQJ*MTcxNTcxMjI4OS4xLjEuMTcxNTcxMjYzNS4wLjAuMA.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HKSR Posted May 14 Share Posted May 14 5 minutes ago, Coconuts said: Nichushkin spent time in the player assistance program earlier this season. He also missed the final five games of Colorado’s 2023 playoff series against the Seattle Kraken after leaving the team for what the club termed “personal reasons.” A Seattle police report later revealed that an intoxicated woman was found in Nichushkin’s hotel room the morning before Game 3 of that series in Seattle. https://www.denverpost.com/2024/05/13/valeri-nichushkin-suspended-nhl-player-assistance-program/ The bit about the woman, that kinda just disappeared and nothing ever seemed to come of it, one can assume it's probably drug related though, and that she may have been trafficked, you'd have to dig a little https://www.denverpost.com/2023/04/27/valeri-nichushkin-seattle-incident-police-medical-response/?_gl=1*u9uc3s*_ga*Z3RRVUpnYU9Eck9EZ1ZCVDdfNGpFVkgxRWpIWWZnczF2dzhPTjU2cE56U3JMMlUydjJHelRsMEpTM1owRG1iWg..*_ga_9X3Z9L7GQJ*MTcxNTcxMjI4OS4xLjEuMTcxNTcxMjYzNS4wLjAuMA.. Oh ok, so it was last year's playoffs, earlier this season, and now this year's playoffs... wow... 3 times in a year is brutal... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coconuts Posted May 14 Share Posted May 14 (edited) 17 minutes ago, HKSR said: Oh ok, so it was last year's playoffs, earlier this season, and now this year's playoffs... wow... 3 times in a year is brutal... No doubt, no doubt. The tricky thing is he's clearly involved with the NHL assistance program, so he's within the cogs of the machine even if he is suspended for six months. I think it's going to be tough for the Avs to get out of his contract in the near future, NHLPA would go to bat for him. He's got one more crack at it before stage four, which would likely be curtains for his NHL career. Stage four entails suspension without pay for at least one year and reinstatement is not assured. If the Avs are to move on I think it'd have to be a mutual termination of the contract, which seems unlikely as Nichushkin would probably be hard pressed to secure a larger bag at this point. Teams would likely be willing to take a flyer on him, but overall he'd probably earn less. Edited May 14 by Coconuts Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HKSR Posted May 14 Share Posted May 14 1 minute ago, Coconuts said: No doubt, no doubt. The tricky thing is he's clearly involved with the NHL assistance program, so he's within the cogs of the machine even if he is suspended for six months. I think it's going to be tough for the Avs to get out of his contract in the near future, NHLPA would go to bat for him. He's got one more crack at it before stage four, which would likely be curtains for his NHL career. Stage four entails suspension without pay for at least one year and reinstatement is not assured. If the Avs are to move on I think it'd have to be a mutual termination of the contract, which seems unlikely as Nichushkin would probably be hard pressed to secure a larger bag at this point. Teams would likely be willing to take a flyer on him, but overall he'd probably earn less. I guess his cap hit won't count while he's suspended... ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DrJockitch Posted May 14 Share Posted May 14 (edited) 1 hour ago, chris12345 said: I wonder how players pass the piss test? Maybe only test if suspicious? They are only doing it on him because he has been through the first 2 phases of the assistance program. He was shut down last playoffs for substance related issues as well and likely contributed to why his career blew up in Dallas. Edited May 14 by DrJockitch 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coconuts Posted May 14 Share Posted May 14 2 minutes ago, HKSR said: I guess his cap hit won't count while he's suspended... ? I'm not sure, capfriendly has him towards the bottom in his own subsection Even if it is though, they'd have to come on him coming back at some point so I question what they could actually do with the space even if it were available to be used https://www.capfriendly.com/teams/avalanche Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
6of1_halfdozenofother Posted May 14 Share Posted May 14 16 minutes ago, Coconuts said: as Nichushkin would probably be hard pressed to secure a larger bag at this point Not sure a bigger bag would help his substance use issues... wait, what? 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
King Heffy Posted May 14 Share Posted May 14 (edited) 3 hours ago, Coconuts said: This is a good framework for how the NHL should handle diving. At some point, the chances do have to run out. Baffling the NHL cracks down on this and not on problems that impact the actual product on the ice. Edited May 14 by King Heffy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coconuts Posted May 14 Share Posted May 14 (edited) 28 minutes ago, King Heffy said: This is a good framework for how the NHL should handle diving. At some point, the chances do have to run out. Baffling the NHL cracks down on this and not on problems that impact the actual product on the ice. Somehow I get the sense that drug use is higher up on the rung than diving But yes, having a punishment template in place wouldn't hurt, but that'd still require it actually being called Edited May 14 by Coconuts 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
qwijjibo Posted May 14 Share Posted May 14 15 hours ago, AngryGoose said: Suspended w/o pay? That’s a hardline to take and makes me think Val pissed off some people along the way… It's his 3rd strike. There's only one more level and there's no guarantee of reinstatement at that point 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
King Heffy Posted May 14 Share Posted May 14 54 minutes ago, Coconuts said: Somehow I get the sense that drug use is higher up on the rung than diving But yes, having a punishment template in place wouldn't hurt, but that'd still require it actually being called I guess my frustration is seeing him paying that kind of price for something so widespread in the league. Ultimately, I just want guys in his position to be able to get the help they need. Hell, the Team Canada guys got to take a "leave of absence" and I think that would be the better approach here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coconuts Posted May 14 Share Posted May 14 28 minutes ago, King Heffy said: I guess my frustration is seeing him paying that kind of price for something so widespread in the league. Ultimately, I just want guys in his position to be able to get the help they need. Hell, the Team Canada guys got to take a "leave of absence" and I think that would be the better approach here. I dunno, that's a can worms, but substance misuse and addiction often are. No bones about it, more guys likely utilize things than we're aware of, moreso things that can quickly be out of one's system. Hockey players generally come from positions of privilege, hockey isn't cheap and a lot of players come from families with means. It's not shocking guys making hundreds of thousands to millions of dollars would indulge, particularly when they're younger. I'd imagine the player assistance program is a means of helping players get help, it'd be interesting to see a less punitive approach though. That being said, I'm not sure what that'd look like. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DrJockitch Posted May 14 Share Posted May 14 36 minutes ago, Coconuts said: I dunno, that's a can worms, but substance misuse and addiction often are. No bones about it, more guys likely utilize things than we're aware of, moreso things that can quickly be out of one's system. Hockey players generally come from positions of privilege, hockey isn't cheap and a lot of players come from families with means. It's not shocking guys making hundreds of thousands to millions of dollars would indulge, particularly when they're younger. I'd imagine the player assistance program is a means of helping players get help, it'd be interesting to see a less punitive approach though. That being said, I'm not sure what that'd look like. Yeah that is complicated. The first stage is not punitive but it get progressively harsher which seems reasonable as the carrot has failed so now the stick. ‘This is as you noted a sport of young privileged men for the most part and there is always an influx of teenagers coming in so not having someone setting that example is important and being able to make an example of someone can have value as much as I prefer to focus on the helping the person with the issue. It is harsh now but this is third stage and he was caught doing illicit things during the playoffs again. At this stage we know he has an issue and a significant one, being suspended in last years playoff was not enough of a deterrent and so the penalty is stiffer. Often in this situation you are waiting for rock bottom and losing millions of dollars may help push him to that point where he finally gets the help he needs. May seem cruel but ultimately may save his life. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hammertime Posted May 15 Share Posted May 15 Literally just turned it on sweet! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coconuts Posted May 15 Share Posted May 15 Ooof Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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