Niedermayer not retiring yet, but won’t show up for camp

While Anaheim Ducks defenseman Scott Niedermayer still hasn’t decided whether to continue playing in the NHL or retire, he will not attend the Ducks’ training camp, reports Pierre LeBrun of the Toronto Sun.

“He hasn’t decided that he wants to retire but I know he’s not certain he wants to start this soon,” Niedermayer’s agent Kevin Epp said Wednesday.

The Ducks blueliner will try to “clear the air” on his situation when he meets with media in Anaheim on Thursday.

According to some sources, Niedermayer met with Ducks GM Brian Burke Wednesday morning, though the Burke would neither confirm nor deny any such meeting took place. Whatever the case, the Ducks GM says that he will give Niedermayer all the time he needs to make up his mind.

“I think there’s a misperception out there that this is somehow inconveniencing us. And it’s not,” Burke told The Canadian Press on Wednesday. “We want this player to return. The phone call we don’t want is that he’s going to retire. The fact he’s undecided and this might stretch into the start of the year, this is not a crisis mode for us.”

“This is good news. Because it means he hasn’t made the one phone call we don’t want him to make.”

Should Niedermayer make good on his stance of not attending training camp, the Ducks will have to suspend him in order to get relief under the salary cap. If he’s not suspended, Niedermayer’s $6.75 cap hit would still count towards the Ducks’ cap, who currently sit at $49 million.