Handling Roberto Luongo
It
can be argued that the NHL (or any other professional league) is purely a business,
and the players are simply the strategic pieces. From this perspective, there is no regard for
the players’ feelings or families. The
management does what they think is in the best interest of their club, at the
cost of their player’s well-being (Woodley, 2013). However, is there a line that can be
crossed? Some believe that this line was
in fact crossed in Vancouver (Rosen, 2013).
The history behind the situation was that Roberto Luongo was gradually
replaced throughout the 2012-2013 hockey season, by up and coming goaltender
Cory Schneider. Nothing seems unethical
about this process so far, except for the fact that throughout it, Roberto was
ridiculed by fans and management (NHL.com, 2013). The hostility towards Luongo was too much for
him to handle, so he began requesting for a trade (Rosen, 2013). However, due to his overpaid contract, no
team could afford him. Therefore, as the
season ended, the Canucks were still stuck with two great goaltenders, and one
had to go. To the dismay of most, Cory Schneider
was the goalie that was traded. Now, the
Vancouver Canucks are once again relying on the goalie that they mocked and
disregarded.
From Luongo’s view, many may wonder if
he will have the same desire to win for the Vancouver Canucks. After facing so much controversy, why would
someone ever want to represent such a team again? Management insists that they have rekindled
the relationship with Luongo and that he will be ready to play come puck drop
(Woodley, 2013). In their defense, hockey
is a business, and they play to win.
Management claims that they have the utmost belief and faith in Luongo
(Woodley, 2013). To prove this, they
constantly bring up past facts such as that Luongo was the goalie in net when
the Canadian Olympic hockey team won gold in the 2010 Olympics (Woodley, 2013). But, does Luongo have the same faith in
himself, and in his team? The
reassurance that everyone still believes in him is tough, as the belief in him
a few months ago was minimal.
The last season of hockey has been a
whirlwind of emotions for Roberto Luongo.
No doubt, he will have to physically and mentally prepare himself in the
off season for a highly anticipated return to the net of the Canucks in their
home opener. Every fan across the nation
will be watching his every move, just to see if he truly does believe he is
still the Canucks number one goaltender.
If he isn’t able to return to his previous form, then who is to
blame? Is it fair to blame management
for making a hockey decision (negatively effecting Luongo), or is it fair to
blame Luongo because he should know that the NHL is strictly a business? Either way, the blame will most likely fall
on Luongo, if he indeed underachieves this season. To conclude, the way the Vancouver Canucks
management handled the goalie fiasco in Vancouver was a nightmare. There was little to no respect for either
goalie, and to now expect Luongo to fully commit to the Vancouver Canucks again
is going to be tough. Hopefully, the
Vancouver Canucks organization can learn from this experience and treat their
players in the future with the utmost respect.
All in all, the decision made by management was a strategic one, but the
process of handling the players within the transaction was poorly conducted,
and could be viewed by some as unethical.
References
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