Bryz doesn't care if he's bought out

[brelic]

From TSN. I would expect nothing less... the guy is a flake.

Ilya Bryzgalov may be growing weary of the goaltending carousel in Philadelphia, as the 32-year-old netminder spoke his mind prior to the Flyers' Tuesday night game against the New York Islanders.

When asked by the Courier-Post about the team's decision to sign newly-acquired netminder Steve Mason to a contract extension earlier this week and whether or not he was worried about the possibility of a compliance buyout, the usually-candid Russian did not disappoint in his response.

"To be honest, I don't care," he said. "Really, I don't care. I have no control on this, so why should I care?"

Signed by the Flyers to a nine-year, $51 million contract by the Flyers in the summer of 2011, Bryzgalov's tenure in Philadelphia has been characterized by colourful quotes and the inability to post the kind of elite numbers that made him an All-Star with the Phoenix Coyotes.

Bryzgalov was also ambivalent when asked about the possibility of remaining a Flyer beyond this season.

"You know, I have no control in this," he said. "I can't read the people's mind. I can't project things what they're thinking, that's why I'm not worried about things I can't control. I maybe want one thing and they want a different thing."

Bryzgalov has a 17-15-3 record with Philadelphia this season with an .896 save percentage and a 2.88 goals-against average.

When asked if he'd enjoy his off day by heading to the Beach on Long Island, the Russian was quick to make light of the situation.

"You can call it whatever you want, but it's not a beach," he told reporters. "A beach is somewhere in the Caribbean, somewhere in Florida where it's warm and you can swim. Here is dark water."

The Flyers - who have made the postseason every year since finishing with a league-low 56 points in 2006-07 - are in 12th place in the Eastern Conference, five points out of a playoff spot.

The team has been in search for a long-term impact goaltender since Ron Hextall emerged as a standout in the 1987 Stanley Cup playoffs. The team has made two trips to the Final since then relying on the likes of Brian Boucher and Michael Leighton.

Bryzgalov - who has posted a combined save percentage of just under .905 in a season and a half in Philly - has seven years and $34.5 million left on his contract and the salary cap is due to drop from $70.2 million this season to $64.3 million next season.

[Digityman]

I believe that might have sealed is fate. Not caring if you are going to be bought out or not means he doesn't care if he plays or not.

He has all the money he needs in the bank for the rest of his life (if played right). He just doesn't seem interested in playing, let alone winning.

Bye Bryz.

[off_the_post]

I believe that might have sealed is fate. Not caring if you are going to be bought out or not means he doesn't care if he plays or not.

He has all the money he needs in the bank for the rest of his life (if played right). He just doesn't seem interested in playing, let alone winning.

Bye Bryz.

I see his quote a bit different. I think he is saying he can not control who the Flyers sign or their decision about him. He can only control what he can which is his play and that is what he cares about. The article doesn't paint him in a good light that is for sure but perhaps he is a realist that and most goalies are flakes.

[radoran]

I see his quote a bit different. I think he is saying he can not control who the Flyers sign or their decision about him. He can only control what he can which is his play and that is what he cares about. The article doesn't paint him in a good light that is for sure but perhaps he is a realist that and most goalies are flakes.

I'd love to see what some North American "hockey cliches" translate to in Russian.

"I maybe want one thing and they want a different thing" does not say to me "I don't care if they buy me out." It's a realistic assessment of the situation.

Bryz has no control over whether the team buys him out. None.

[sarsippius]

Bryz might not care, but I do. Regardless of how the quote is interpreted, he has to go.

[albertaflyer]

From TSN. I would expect nothing less... the guy is a flake.

Ilya Bryzgalov may be growing weary of the goaltending carousel in Philadelphia, as the 32-year-old netminder spoke his mind prior to the Flyers' Tuesday night game against the New York Islanders.

When asked by the Courier-Post about the team's decision to sign newly-acquired netminder Steve Mason to a contract extension earlier this week and whether or not he was worried about the possibility of a compliance buyout, the usually-candid Russian did not disappoint in his response.

"To be honest, I don't care," he said. "Really, I don't care. I have no control on this, so why should I care?"

Signed by the Flyers to a nine-year, $51 million contract by the Flyers in the summer of 2011, Bryzgalov's tenure in Philadelphia has been characterized by colourful quotes and the inability to post the kind of elite numbers that made him an All-Star with the Phoenix Coyotes.

Bryzgalov was also ambivalent when asked about the possibility of remaining a Flyer beyond this season.

"You know, I have no control in this," he said. "I can't read the people's mind. I can't project things what they're thinking, that's why I'm not worried about things I can't control. I maybe want one thing and they want a different thing."

Bryzgalov has a 17-15-3 record with Philadelphia this season with an .896 save percentage and a 2.88 goals-against average.

When asked if he'd enjoy his off day by heading to the Beach on Long Island, the Russian was quick to make light of the situation.

"You can call it whatever you want, but it's not a beach," he told reporters. "A beach is somewhere in the Caribbean, somewhere in Florida where it's warm and you can swim. Here is dark water."

The Flyers - who have made the postseason every year since finishing with a league-low 56 points in 2006-07 - are in 12th place in the Eastern Conference, five points out of a playoff spot.

The team has been in search for a long-term impact goaltender since Ron Hextall emerged as a standout in the 1987 Stanley Cup playoffs. The team has made two trips to the Final since then relying on the likes of Brian Boucher and Michael Leighton.

Bryzgalov - who has posted a combined save percentage of just under .905 in a season and a half in Philly - has seven years and $34.5 million left on his contract and the salary cap is due to drop from $70.2 million this season to $64.3 million next season.

Hey if my company was going to pay me to sit at home, sign me up. And I could go get another job and make more money. Sweet deal.

[JackStraw]

I see his quote a bit different. I think he is saying he can not control who the Flyers sign or their decision about him. He can only control what he can which is his play and that is what he cares about. The article doesn't paint him in a good light that is for sure but perhaps he is a realist that and most goalies are flakes.

I see it the same way. One of Bryzgalov's "problems" is that he is painfully honest. That doesn't always play well in professional sports but it is kind of refreshing. Regardless, it's not going to go over well in the media or with the fans, and maybe not with the team.

[TedZep]

Hey if my company was going to pay me to sit at home, sign me up. And I could go get another job and make more money. Sweet deal.

That's some pretty awesome work, if you can get it!

I see Bryzgalov's point in not worrying about circumstances beyond his control. Except not letting so many pucks into the net is not beyond is control, crappy defense or not.

[canoli]

translation or no translation it's rarely wise to say "I don't care" when it relates to your job. If he's such an honest soul who just can't help speaking his mind...well he's 30 years old right? He should've learned by now to keep his mouth shut when somebody asks him a leading question like "How do you feel about possibly being bought out this summer?"

[JackStraw]

translation or no translation it's rarely wise to say "I don't care" when it relates to your job. If he's such an honest soul who just can't help speaking his mind...well he's 30 years old right? He should've learned by now to keep his mouth shut when somebody asks him a leading question like "How do you feel about possibly being bought out this summer?"

He probably has to say something, if he just says "no comment" or turns away then the press will make a big deal out of that. It's a no win situation for a player. It's "gotcha journalism", something that has been refined to an art form in Philadelphia. I think any player asked that question would give essentially the same answer, but some might phrase it a little better than our Russian philosopher goaltender.

[ruxpin]

I see his quote a bit different. I think he is saying he can not control who the Flyers sign or their decision about him. He can only control what he can which is his play and that is what he cares about. The article doesn't paint him in a good light that is for sure but perhaps he is a realist that and most goalies are flakes.

I agree with this. I understand it can be taken at least two ways and literally "I could care less" is a possibility. I just saw it as a guy with English as a second language trying to say "I can't control it so I'm not going to let it bother me and I'm not going to talk about it."

[radoran]

If someone wanted to give me $1.6M a year for the next 14 years AND allow me to make money working for someone else, quite frankly, I wouldn't care either.

What bothers me the most about this, is a team that's going to admit a $23M mistake AND keep the same people who made the mistake in charge of fixing it.

[canoli]

I disagree. I don't think there's any "gotcha" in asking a likely target of an amnesty buyout how he feels about it.

I don't want to be too hard on the guy, he said everything right except the "I don't care" part. And then he repeated it. This isn't Bob-barely-spik-English this is a guy who's been around a long time. He knows what "I don't care" means; he knows it's not the same as "I can't control somebody else."

[albertaflyer]

All he has to say is "that's out of my control, all I can do is play hockey" and that's it. There is no story there. But he always gives a little more. You would think he would have learned his lesson with the Philly press. They love a good quote.

[flyerrod]

I am sure the media spot light combined with some of the best ill timed remarks of all time and throw in too many to mention gaffes in net and we have a guy who has been beaten down by the system. It is all the media's fault that he has left in an inordinate amount of soft goals regardless of the patchwork defense. Bryzgalov was brought in to be "THE GUY" . He now needs to be bought out because he is "THAT GUY"..... Apathy never suits a goalie well......

[radoran]

All he has to say is "that's out of my control, all I can do is play hockey" and that's it. There is no story there. But he always gives a little more. You would think he would have learned his lesson with the Philly press. They love a good quote.

Seriously, now, the "down side" for Bryzgalov is getting $1.6M a year for the next 14 years AND being able to make money somewhere else.

That's the "down side."

The Flyers created this situation and they need to own the results of it. The vast majority of people on this board would happily throw Bryz over the side as soon as possible.

And now they're pissed off that this doesn't bother Bryzgalov?

Put your analyst on danger money baby.

[ruxpin]

translation or no translation it's rarely wise to say "I don't care" when it relates to your job. If he's such an honest soul who just can't help speaking his mind...well he's 30 years old right? He should've learned by now to keep his mouth shut when somebody asks him a leading question like "How do you feel about possibly being bought out this summer?"

Yeah, I get what you're saying. I just feel like it's "I don't care about that right now, I'm just trying to play hockey [sic]. That stuff isn't in my control and I'll worry about that when the time comes."

I really have no problem with the quote. I just think people are nitpicking because they don't like him (for some valid reasons and some for not-so-valid reasons).

[ruxpin]

If someone wanted to give me $1.6M a year for the next 14 years AND allow me to make money working for someone else, quite frankly, I wouldn't care either.

What bothers me the most about this, is a team that's going to admit a $23M mistake AND keep the same people who made the mistake in charge of fixing it.

SNIDER.MUST.GO.

[flyerrod]

@ruxpin

I hope they have one reserved for Jeremy Jacobs too.....Not sure how well that "Dollar" Bill will get along with the free spending Ed Snider.....

[Digityman]

Why can't he just say something like:

"I enjoy being a Flyer and I'm going to keep doing my best to help this team and organization. They invested a lot of money and time into me and I want to make sure I'm able to perform to my best of abilities."

or

"I work on my game every day to become a better player. The control I DO HAVE is my play on the ice which ultimately determines my status as a Flyer. I will keep working on my game as hard as I can so that I can make the question of a buyout an easy answer for management."

By him saying he doesn't care shows exactly what people see on the ice. He literally looks like he doesn't care.

Snider, Homer and all the other brass don't want to hear their $51m goalie doesn't care if he's bought out, regardless of whether he thinks it's in his control or not.

And, by the way, it's completely under his control. He's play determines whether he is bought out or not. WTF. Of course he has control.

[radoran]

He could be standing on his head and the team could still believe that it is worthwhile to get out from under the next seven years of the contract.

The team has total control over who they buy out and why.

"What we'd rather he said" is a fun exercise. But that's all it is.

If you are predisposed to dislike Bryzgalov, you will read his comments through that lens.

[King Knut]

Poor reporting. Bryz can't be growing weary of the Carousel in Philly because there hasn't been one since he got here... unless of course they're suggesting that a night off is a Carousel?

Bryz is a nut whose biggest problem with the press is that he doesn't understand humor in English and can't convey or translate it either way. He didn't know know that the day of the beach comment was a joke and no one knows when he's joking. It's all lost in the translation.

I think Bryz' fate is sealed, but not because of this.

That said, I don't want this team bringing in ANY goaltender who hasn't gone through a rigorous psych evaluation from here on out. I understand Mason has issues too... WTF HOMER!

Ilya Bryzgalov may be growing weary of the goaltending carousel in Philadelphia, as the 32-year-old netminder spoke his mind prior to the Flyers' Tuesday night game against the New York Islanders.

[ruxpin]

Why can't he just say something like:

"I enjoy being a Flyer and I'm going to keep doing my best to help this team and organization. They invested a lot of money and time into me and I want to make sure I'm able to perform to my best of abilities."

or

"I work on my game every day to become a better player. The control I DO HAVE is my play on the ice which ultimately determines my status as a Flyer. I will keep working on my game as hard as I can so that I can make the question of a buyout an easy answer for management."

By him saying he doesn't care shows exactly what people see on the ice. He literally looks like he doesn't care.

Snider, Homer and all the other brass don't want to hear their $51m goalie doesn't care if he's bought out, regardless of whether he thinks it's in his control or not.

And, by the way, it's completely under his control. He's play determines whether he is bought out or not. WTF. Of course he has control.

Oh my God, Digity. He's a foreign hockey player answering a question in a second language. He's not an orator and it wasn't a prepared speech.

If I had a dollar for every time a north american professional player said something to the effect "I can't worry about that right now" or "that's not in my control; that'll take care of itself" or "I just play the game; we'll worry about that in the offseason" I'd be rich enough not to have to work in the festering cess pool of hell that I currently do.

If I had a dollar for every time I heard a north american professional player say something similar to the above, I couldn't buy myself lunch.

He simply stated he doesn't --probably meaning he CAN'T--care about that right now. There are more pressing issues. I don't only excuse the answer, I applaud it.

[brelic]

Seriously, now, the "down side" for Bryzgalov is getting $1.6M a year for the next 14 years AND being able to make money somewhere else.

That's the "down side."

The Flyers created this situation and they need to own the results of it. The vast majority of people on this board would happily throw Bryz over the side as soon as possible.

And now they're pissed off that this doesn't bother Bryzgalov?

Put your analyst on danger money baby.

I'm not pissed off that it doesn't bother Bryz. I'm pissed off that Philly has run yet another player out of town, and this one in LESS THAN TWO SEASONS. That's just unbelievable to me. It really is a goalie graveyard here.

[Dynamo 47]

This is precisely why I want him gone. I was a fan of the signing originally (not of the length of the contract) but I simply think he doesn't have the mental toughness required to be "the man" in a major hockey market.

Amnesty him. Go with Mason the rest of the way and if he looks capable of shouldering the load make him the starter and shore up the defense and strengthen the team with the money freed up. Not to mention there will be other players who are capable and productive who will be amnestied and free to negotiate with any team.