I'll have to admit I am one of those who said he is a spoiled brat, but looking at the salary difference between being on the NHL roster...the AHL roster..and what he could earn in the KHL...I can understand it a little more... https://bluelinestation.com/2022/10/03/hate-new-york-rangers-winger-vitali-kravtsov/
So is the basis that he didn't want to live on $70K that we should not judge him? Well, every player who's in the AHL does, but what it told us more than anything, is that he wasn't willing to stay and prove he deserved to be in NY and play his ass off and force a call up. Instead, he chose the easy money in a comfortable environment to him.
Certainly not every AHL player has the opportunity to make ~10x their AHL salary by playing overseas. He may have gotten called up at some point last season had he stayed in the AHL though considering the frequency in which players get injured in the NHL. Pretty short-sighted on his part. The book isn't closed on him yet, he better show some serious skill otherwise we might be looking at Hunt on the 2nd line again before Halloween....
Correct me if i'm wrong, but my understanding is when a player decides to go to the KHL they cannot return to the NHL midseason and needs to wait until the KHL season is over? If so, that clearly tells you he chose money over fighting for a spot in the NHL, which, by the way, had he gotten called up at any point in the season he would have gotten a prorated NHL salary that may have been close to what he made in the KHL, or even more depending on timing.
You're right. And i fully agree...he was short-sighted, took the $ instead of sticking it out. At least they are giving him another chance to prove himself though I think its partially driven by trying to squeeze as much out of the high draft pick as they can.
