Hmm, missed that part.
Whether I agree with their assessment on the return is irrelevant. I still just don't understand why Chiarelli was denied a conversation with Iggy and why the phone's went quiet. Chiarelli said he called...I'm assuming more than once
Maybe this is just the disappointment talking, but I refuse to believe this negotiation was done in 100% good faith. Can't help but think the B's were just used to try and drive up the price.
With the general lack of details and the 'he said, she said' game going around, it's not easy figuring out what exactly happened. There are some key details however that can't be ignored. Namely, the fact that the Bruins scratched Khokolachev and Bartkowski. Teams rarely go that far unless they firmly believe is done, with little more than the paperwork left. Beyond that, remember, GM's aren't about to admit they made a mistake, especially if it carries a consequence. It sends a very bad signal to everyone watching. That being said, there's three possible ways this went down.
1. Iginla submits a list of four teams that he'll accept a trade to, those being the Bruins, Hawks, Kings and Penguins. Feaster goes to all them and manages to find three acceptable offers, as mentioned in the press conference. However, Feaster clearly prefers the Bruins offer and lets Chiarelli know, who then mistakenly believes this means the deal's done, and Iginla's a Bruin. He proceeds to scratch Khokolachev and Bartkowski, thinking he can announce the trade after the game while members of his staff leak the news to the media. However, Feaster as he claims, goes to Iginla and shows him the three offers and asks him which team he prefers. Iginla says the Penguins and the whole thing blows up.
2. In the second scenario, everything plays out the same way as in the previous one, except instead of Chiarelli misinterpreting Feaster's words, it's Feaster who directly tells his Boston counterpart that it's a done deal. Before even getting Iginla's signature, Feaster jumps the gun and wrongly assumes because Boston was one of the teams on the list, that it's okay to get a deal done without passing it by Iginla one last time. However, after letting everyone know it's a done deal, Feaster finally goes to Iginla to hit his approval (or Iginla goes to Feaster) only to find out that he'd rather go the Penguins. Feaster, once again, has egg on his face.
3. In this case, it starts the same way but instead of Feaster or Chiarelli screwing up, it's Iginla simply changing his mind. He first agrees to a deal with the Bruins, but then backs out after deciding playing Crosby is a much more enticing opportunity.
Now, considering these three scenarios, it seems obvious, at least to me, which one is more likely. From what we know of the Chiarelli, it doesn't seem likely that he would make that kind of mistake. He's been in the business for a while and by all accounts, seems to run a pretty tight ship.
Regarding Iginla suddenly changing his mind; well, it doesn't make a lot of sense. It's not like the opportunity to play with Crosby would have been a surprise. At worst, he may have listed four teams while really preferring to go the Pens, but only to allow the Flames to get the best possible offer. In that case, it wouldn't have been his failing that details were leaked or the Bruins believed they had won the sweepstakes.
So finally, all that's left is Feaster and the Flames management, and honestly, that kind of screw up seems to fit in pretty well with all of his other blunders. We know from previous cases that Feaster is full of hot air, that he has no compunction with blowing a lot of smoke to make it seem like it's always someones else's fault when things go wrong. Instead of standing at the podium and simply saying 'we believe the return is solid and those prospects will be players down the road,' in he instead attempts to shift all the blame for the weak return and miscommunication to Iginla's shoulders; saying he's the one who choose the deal and he's the one who choose the Penguins over the Bruins. Feaster clearly has no integrity, and we know that because if did, he'd resign like he said he would now that the team is rebuilding. So bottom line, it looks like responsibility for the 'miscommunication' most probably lies with the Flames management.
