Sundin Saga drawing to a close?

As I’m sure most of you who have been following the Mats Sundin story since it began already know, several sources have reported that Sundin would be making his decision on if, and where, he would being playing next season within the next two weeks-around late July, early August. RDS also reported that Sundin would make his decision on August 1st, which is only six days away. So will Sundin finally end the drama and sign a deal? Will it be Vancouver? Montreal? Toronto? Or will Sundin decide it’s time to hang up the skates and move on to the next chapter of his life? Only time will tell, but the clock is ticking, and if Sundin wants to keep his promise and attend the training camp of whatever team he chooses, he’d be better to decide sooner than later.

This topic has of course been beaten to death, but with the decision supposedly fast-approaching, let’s take another look at the four options that Mats Sundin is presented with and go over the pros and cons of each:

Retirement: Many believe Mats will not retire, but who knows what the big Swede is thinking. It could be that he’s worn out and instead of taking another grueling year of punishment and pain, all he has to do is say “I’m done” and he can go home and relax, and not have to worry about leading a team, causing havoc in front of the other team’s net but getting harassed by defenseman and incoming pucks, not have to worry about dealing with the media, be it in any of the three potential landing spots. On the other hand, if he still has the itch, if he still has the drive and wants to play another year to compete for a Cup, and we are pretty sure he still does, don’t be surprised to see Sundin back next year-he isn’t done.

Vancouver: Vancouver seems very confident that they will win the Sundin sweepstakes, and why shouldn’t they be? They may not be considered a Cup contender just yet, but if Sundin signs and if Mike Gillis swings a deal for Antoine Vermette, all of a sudden Vancouver goes from having a mediocre, sub-par offense to a force to be reckoned with-add those two names to a group consisting of Henrik and Daniel Sedin, Steve Bernier, and Pavol Demitra…that’s a pretty good top-six, with just a winger missing. Another thing that Vancouver has going for them is the fact that they offered Sundin a whopping two year, 20 million dollar deal that make Sundin the highest paid player in the league-he’d be making more than Crosby, Ovechkin, and Lecavalier!

The only thing that Vancouver has against it is that even if they sign Sundin, are they truly capable of making a serious Cup run? By all means it is possible, especially when you have Roberto Luongo between the pipes. His success hasn’t translated into the team’s success, so there are still a lot of questions heading into this season for the Canucks.

Montreal: A large amount of die-hard Leafs fans won’t be to pleased if Sundin ends up in Habland. Signing with the enemy after 13 years of service to Toronto? Preposterous! How could he?! Well Leafs fans, if you really love Sundin as much as you say, you thank him for what he has done, and move on. After 13 years in Toronto, several which weren’t as satisfying as others, he more than deserves the chance to choose where he wants to play-and if he chooses Montreal, so be it. Being a Habs fan, I’m not sure what Leafs fans are feeling during all this, and I have put myself in their shoes-how would I feel if Saku Koivu left next summer when he is slated to be a UFA? I don’t want to think about that now, but hockey is a business, and sometimes you have to move on.

Now back to Sundin. Montreal showed serious interest when they went out and acquired his rights at the draft, but Sundin didn’t know what he wanted yet so he hit the market…and still wasn’t sure. Which brings us to now. Why play for Montreal? Several reasons.

1. If he wants a shot at the Cup, he has a better chance of doing it in Montreal than in Vancouver or Toronto. Last year the Habs proved all their critics wrong by winning the Eastern Conference, and despite a disappointing exit at the hands of the Philadelphia Flyers, the Habs youngsters showed their potential and with a year under their belts guys like Carey Price, Andrei and Sergei Kostitsyn, Ryan O’Byrne, Tomas Plekanec, Chris Higgins, Guillaume Latendresse, Josh Gorges, etc., will be better this season. Add in a solid mix of veterans-a rejuvenated Kovalev, Koivu, Markov, Komisarek, and newly acquired Alex Tanguay and Georges Laraque, the Habs are that much better. The Habs were not a fluke, they were for real. If Sundin joined the attack that lead the league in goals last year…!

2. It being the centennial season, what better time to win #25! With all the celebrations going on in the city, the buzz is greater than ever before. The fans and players alike know the importance of this season, and with the help of Sundin, it could amount to something so great, something we haven’t seen since 1993…

Of course, being a member of the Bleu-Blanc-Rouge has its downsides. There are of course, the taxes, but I’m sure Mats has plenty stored in the bank to take a hit to his wallet for a chance at Lord Stanley’s trophy…and who can forget the media, the ones who sing your praises when you score the game winner, the ones who are shipping you out if you hit the post. The pressure of playing in Montreal is immense-Montreal is the undisputed hockey mecca of the world, so of course, there will be pressure. There will be expectations. The fans are passionate and know the game extremely well. They will tell you when your disappointing them. They will tell you when your playing well. And they will rejoice with you when you win. Who wouldn’t want to win a Cup here, especially this year, the Centennial season?

Toronto: Last but not least, the team who is holding their heads high but are truly crushed. The Leafs are acting like they can move on without Sundin, but deep down the pain is there, saddening Leaf fans, players, and management alike. When the face of your franchise is considering leaving, and is pretty much ready to leave, of course your not going to be happy. What’s worse, Sundin would have brought in such a great return the Leafs rebuilding process would have been in full swing come the Draft. Instead, Sundin did not waive his no-trade, and the Leafs were left empty-handed. They also didn’t get anything for him when they traded his rights to the Habs, since he decided to wait until July 1. The final blow would be Sundin inking a contract with another team, especially Montreal, the arch-enemy, and the Leafs watching on in dismay as their captain, their leader, their most prized possession, walks away-and the Leafs have nothing to show for it. Like I said before, it is a business, but to see it end like this for the Leafs…the bad luck just won’t go away.

Their is still hope however. It had been Sundin’s home for 13 years now, and as a player, familiarity is nice. Being in one place for 13 years, Sundin is no doubt considering returning for the 14th year, but he knows full well that if he does, there will be no shot at the Cup-Toronto is in a rebuilding phase. Sundin returning might even be a disadvantage for the Leafs-if they want a shot at John Tavares, they can’t be adding a bonafide superstar to their roster-especially one that wants to win at all costs. Sundin would make them better, resulting in most probably another year as a bubble team, falling out of contention at the end, and not having a high draft pick to take another player to go along with Luke Schenn to build the franchise around. When you look at it this way, the Leafs can turn it around fast-they have the building blocks in goal with Toskala and eventually Pogge, they have Schenn on the blue line, and with some luck (and a last place finish) they could be looking at adding “The Next Next One”, John Tavares (The first Next belongs to Sidney Crosby of course!).

All in all, it doesn’t matter what GM’s, coaches, players, analysts, journalists, or bloggers think. The ball is in Sundin’s court, the puck is on his stick, now it’s up to him to decide?

Vancouver, where a fortune awaits?

Toronto, home sweet home?

Montreal, potential glory?

Retirement, and the title “Leaf Legend”?

August 1st is right around the corner my friends. The anticipation is growing once more (and hopefully for the final time). It’s almost time to find out what jersey Mats Sundin puts on come October.

Almost time.