Start Spreading The News, Z's Leaving Today . . .

By: Jeff Little • August 4th, 2009

My apologies to John Kander and Fred Ebb, the composer and lyricist, respectively, of New York, New York, for taking liberties with their song in the header — but it was too perfect to pass up.

Anyway, as expected, CBC is reporting here that the Rangers are walking away from the $3.9 million dollar arbitration award handed down to perennially troubled winger Nikolai Zherdev, thereby making Niki an unrestricted free agent. Let the speculation begin!!

Before anybody starts charging off in the wrong direction, Puck-Rakers is already reporting that the Jackets are not interested in staging a reunion with Z.

So, what is next? Here’s a hint . . . .
Континентальная хоккейная лига

About

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A native of the SF Bay Area, my first exposure to hockey was the SF/Oakland/California Golden Seals, including Charlie Finley and the white skates. Fast forward to the late 1980's when Gretzky and the Kings came up to the Bay Area for an exhibition game at the Oakland Coliseum Arena, for which we had glass seats. I was at the first San Jose Sharks game in the Cow Palace, and followed them for their first few pathetic years, before moving to Columbus in 1994. I attended the first pro-NHL rally downtown, and have been a season ticket holder since Day 1, wife & I are active in the Jacket Backers, and son is an avid fan as well. I cover the Jackets for Inside Hockey, and contribute regularly to a variety of hockey sites. I maintain contact with the Jackets organization, and like to dig into stories, bringing a fresh, and sometimes irreverent perspective to hockey.

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  1. Comment by Kevin M on 5 August 2009:

    You know, I have long felt that Z would end up in the KHL too. But the more I think about it, the more I realize that there are a lot of teams that are probably desperate enough to pay $4 million a year for a 50-60 point players. I could see him landing in Atlanta too to play with the Russian contingent that they're building.

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