Taking on Trouble: Dany Heatley's Saga

Occasionally, our NHL FanHouse e-mail address (nhlfanhouse@gmail.com) gets an e-mail that isn't trying to sell us prescription drugs at a discounted price or hook us up with rich young singles. Following Dany Heatley's conference call on Friday, we received the following question from a reader:

After hearing his "press conference" on Friday, I'd be interested in knowing if any of you guys would still take Dany Heatley on your team?

Susan Slusser: If pro sports teams turned away prima donnas and players with issues, there would be a lot less talent in the various leagues. Any team that has the need would jump at Heatley and it looks like a few have tried.

Bruce Ciskie: I'd love to be the tough guy here, but the bottom line is that a team is going to take any opportunity available to them to get better. This includes the Senators. Under no circumstances would any team in their right mind give up major assets for a guy deemed to be a cancer both on the ice and on the salary cap. However, not every team is "in their right mind."

Tom Mantzouranis: The question isn't whether a team would take a Dany Heatley; I think we've all seen that teams in all sports will gamble on talent despite the personality. The question is whether I would take him on my team, and I wouldn't. There have simply been too many models in team sports that prove that character can trump talent in both ways. Character can create a whole greater than the sum of parts, and character (or lack thereof) can also weigh a talented team down. I can see taking an educated risk on a question mark depending on the player and circumstances, but I don't think Heatley is the type of transcendent player who warrants that type of effort and stress. I'd be content letting him be someone else's problem if I'm running a team.

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There's no question that in professional sports talent trumps off-field or "chemistry" concerns in many, many situations, and there's no question that Dany Heatley is a gifted goal-scorer and top-line player. But is he worth the headaches off the ice? His first public comments this offseason left just as many questions as answers as he continuely danced around the issue of his possible trade to Edmonton and cited a diminished role as being the reason for his trade request.

The Falconer at Bird Watchers Anonymous offered up a post on Sunday recalling Heatley's exit from Atlanta, while Don Brennan of the Ottawa Sun penned an article on Saturday detailing how the Senators are bracing for a training camp circus if the team can't work out a deal that is acceptable to Heatley (which seems likely at this point). Heatley first spoke to the media on Friday, and according to veteran center Mike Fisher, via Brennan, he has yet to address his teammates in Ottawa: "Maybe he was feeling bad about the situation and trying to hide from it as much as he could. I don't know what he was thinking. But I don't think he's talked to any of the guys."

Fisher continued:

"It looks right now like he's going to be back, and if that's the case, I'm sure he's going to give everything he has," said Fisher. "No question, it's going to be different. It's going to be a circus. But as long as he works hard and is a positive guy, that's all we want. If he contributes like he can and helps us win, that's all we want. "He'll want to address the guys .... yeah, I'm disappointed, but I can move on. As long as he proves he wants to play and play hard, under the coach's system, like the rest of us. It's what we're all paid to do."

All of that being said, here's the question for the readers: Would you want your team to trade for Dany Heatley given the events of this offseason?

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

8-24-2009 @ 11:29PM

wofats said...

Re: Would I take Heater on my team?
Nope. I'm right in the same train of thought as Tom Mantzouranis. Character counts in many intangible ways to the health of a club. Existing drama is never a place to willingly start when trying to build cohesion in a locker room.

8-25-2009 @ 2:27AM

thetrutheh said...

we would think that heatley would be grateful he is not in prison for manslaughter. its players like him that don't deserve anything but the wrath of fans. if he does not want to play, send him to the minors.