He believes those took a toll on the big defenceman, too. But it adds extra layers to the dispute.Īnother said not to dismiss the divides that occurred in the Jets’ dressing room last season, and how Byfuglien felt about all that. “If he can avoid going to training camp, getting poked and prodded, just resting on his own,” one former teammate added, “I think he’d like that. “That’s Dustin being Dustin,” they say, with a laugh. Some of his friends and teammates have said no one is surprised he’d do the exact opposite of what should be done or what is expected. Right from the beginning, other teams questioned why, if Byfuglien was still bothered by his injury, he didn’t just show up to camp, accept a rehab assignment and get paid.Īnyone who knows Byfuglien is well aware of his unique personality. And they are prepared to strenuously defend that. This is, in the minds of the player, his agency (Octagon), and the NHLPA, a legitimate hockey injury. From what I understand, the dispute is whether or not both sides already knew this and it isn’t a revelation. I don’t spend much time in my Twitter mentions, but, apparently, a few people took that to mean he injured it doing something else in the summer. However, the timing of that injury is also in dispute. I’ve been told there was a broken bone in his foot, also fixed in the procedure. If he hadn’t been thinking of playing, he wouldn’t have returned to the provincial capital.īyfuglien recently had surgery to repair the damage. The proof, he feels, is that he moved his family back to Manitoba. The NHL season is a grind, and Byfuglien wasn’t excited about beginning it in pain. He hasn’t spoken on this matter, but, according to a few sources, maintains that this was when he began thinking about retirement. It was only when he re-started skating immediately prior to training camp that he realized the ankle hadn’t healed. He didn’t dispute the finding of the physical, and figured that, with a summer of rest, any lingering issues would disappear.īyfuglien didn’t complain about pain during the summer because he didn’t skate. He feels the Jets were well aware he wasn’t anywhere close to 100 per cent. He played hard against the Blues, averaging 25:42, with eight points in six games. They put their bodies on the line, especially at playoff time. The league also feels Winnipeg did nothing wrong in this situation and should not be penalized.īYFUGLIEN, HIS REPRESENTATIVES AND THE NHLPAĭuring the 2018-19 season, Byfuglien had two lengthy absences due to ankle problems, returning to full-time action with a week to go in the regular season. A player signing it, then successfully disputing it months later would lead to major legal league-wide consequences. In the reporting of this story, one thing was made clear to me: the NHL will fight hard to protect the integrity of the year-end physical. It is, I’m told, the NHL’s position that those results were never disputed during the summer and that, when Byfuglien informed the team that he wasn’t going to play, he said he’d lost his passion for hockey. If a player disputes the findings on Form 25A, he can seek a second opinion. There is also something called “Form 25A” - which labels you as “fit” or “unfit” - that must be signed by the doctor. Louis Blues, multiple sources indicate it pronounced him “fit to play.” According to Brian Burke, who has some expertise in these matters, these checkups must be signed by the doctor, the medical trainer and the player. Taken after the Jets were eliminated in the first round by the St. That edict is from the league itself, which will take the lead on Byfgulien’s file.Īt issue is Byfuglien’s season-ending physical. The clamps are tight, he’s trying not to pour gasoline on the fire. There’s a reason Jets GM Kevin Cheveldayoff is being evasive. But here is what I can tell you, from both parties’ perspectives. With that in mind, it is foolish to claim I know everything. There’s a question I always ask when trying to find out why things occur the way they do: “What don’t I know?” In this case, the answer is “a lot.” This is probably going to arbitration, and, when lawyers are involved, certain information will be kept private until it must be presented.
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