Bob Gainey Is Finally Back To Work

During the NHL GM’S reunion in Detroit on Monday, Montreal Canadiens’ GM Bob Gainey said he has started talking contract to his RFAs and UFAs.

Gainey started negotiations with RFA Andrei Kostitsyn. Rumors have been circulating claiming that Kostitsyn received a huge offer from a Russian team, meaning he might not come back with the Habs next season. Both Gainey and Kostitsyn said they heard the rumors and that they are only rumors. Kostitsyn does want to stay in Montreal and expects negotiations to be easy and so does Gainey.

Gainey says Kostitsyn is one of their most important task for the off season since he has had an incredible 07-08 season. He is part of the Habs’ future and losing him to another team is not something Gainey believes is going to happen. Gainey’s discussions with other GM’s for possible trades are underway too.

If Kostitsyn does stay in Montreal, the team is going to arrange for his wife and daughter to be able to move from Bielorussia and come live with him in Montreal as early as next winter. I’m sure that makes the offer even more attractive for Kostitsyn, and let’s not forget that becoming a fan favorite in Montreal and playing with his brother are other important factors too.

Bob also said he intends on starting the negotiations with UFA offensive-defensemen Mark Streit in a couple of weeks. Streit already expressed his feelings on the situation by saying he loves playing in Montreal and is very thankful to the organization for giving him a chance to prove himself in the NHL. This means a lot for Streit and it is one big reason why he would accept a smaller, but still average, contract to stay in Montreal instead of going to another team for next season. The other reason is probably his Montrealer girlfriend, and I’m sure he’d like to stay here with her. Some rumors have already claimed that The Buffalo Sabres expressed some interest in acquiring Mark Streit’s services. Bob wants to keep him, but both him and Streit know money is going to be a big factor in the discussions. We’ll soon know how much Mark really wants to stay in Montreal…

Surprisingly, Gainey even mentioned the possibility of speaking to Michael Ryder about a new contract in Montreal next season. Ryder was perhaps the Habs’ biggest disappointment last season and the price to keep him is definitely going to be lower than the 2 millions contract he had. Gainey also said that defensemen Patrice Brisebois and center Brian Smolinski might still be part of the plans for next season.

Gainey has a lot of work on the table for next season, and one of his most important task is to decide what to do with forwards Alex Kovalev and Saku Koivu, both of them going into the last year of their contract. Who will he keep? Who will he let go? Who will get traded? A lot of hard decisions coming up for Mr.Gainey.

Among the other rumors circulating are the ones claiming that Gainey might also be on the verge of signing forward Chris Higgins and defenseman Mike Komisarek to long-term contracts. I say okay for Komisarek, but I’m not too sure about Higgins.