Over the last few years, the Toronto Maple Leafs have made a habit out of using the long-term injured reserve list more than almost any other team in the league. Players like David Clarkson, Nathan Horton, Joffrey Lupul, and Stephane Robidas have all spent full seasons away from the team, apparently too injured to continue their career. While there has never been proof that an injury didn’t exist, Lupul has made it clear in the past that he wants to continue his playing career and once again took to social media to call out the Maple Leafs’ salary cap practices.
In an Instagram comment last night (via Kevin McGran of the Toronto Star), Lupul wrote that he was ready and just waiting for a call to play hockey again, and then subsequently said that the Maple Leafs’ “cheat” and “everyone lets them.” Fans and media alike have used the term “Robidas Island” to describe where Toronto sends their injured players, a tongue-in-cheek way of saying that they may just be more unwanted than unhealthy.
All of this has been speculation and rumor, though Jared Cowen leveled similar complaints towards the team after being bought out last summer. Now, Darren Dreger of TSN asked NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly to comment, which he declined:
We aren’t in a position to comment right now. That may or may not change when we know more.
That at least does sound like the league will be looking into it, a stance they also took when similar skepticism was shown at the Chicago Blackhawks’ Marian Hossa situation. Hossa has developed a skin condition because of prolonged exposure to the equipment, one that will prevent him from playing this season. His $5.28MM contract and Lupul’s $5.25MM deal will not count towards the salary cap this season.
And I accuse Lupul of being constantly injured and a waste of space for this team and other other team that may want him. I think it’s more of a preventive measure knowing at several points in the season he will end up being injured if he would be cleared to play.
That’s still illegal. They are cheating the system and are making more money available.
If it’s illegal the league will deal with it. Lupul’ s accusations mean nothing, he says he can play while the doctors say he can’t. I’d say it’s good cap management, not circumvention of the cap. The league is being sued by several ex-members over the whole concussion thing, so I’d go with the word of the doctors over the word of an oft-injured forward that posted he’s healthy enough to play on Twitter.
Did you hear the news genius? Toronto didn’t cheat, in terms of Lupul! Seems he backed off when Toronto called his bluff. Also, he will NOT seek a second opinion! I wonder why?????
Absolutely it’s illegal,you can tell cjmask is a Maple Loaf fan because anytime anyone say’s something bad about that woeful organization they whine.The league,so desperately,wants the Toronto franchise to be relevant that they will look the other way even when they know that they are making a complete mockery of league rules.
I am not a fan of Toronto and there is nothing illegal about any of this. This is all about a pro hockey team protecting itself from any type of lawsuit if they let this guy play. Bad contracts and injuries are in no way illegal. This guy has collected more money sitting at home than most of us will get in a lifetime of hard work. Case in point? Look up the case of Use Krupp to find out what he did to both Colorado and Detroit. And then, find out what he was doing to get caught with his injury scam. Talk about illegal!
Misspelled Uwe as in Krupp
It’s really not fair. What’s the point of a salary cap if you’re going to let the rich teams break the rules every year and spend more than they’re allowed.
You mean like Arizona taking on the cap hit of Datsyuk? They are hardly a rich team, yet they used the LTIR to get a prospect out of the deal. I’d say that’s not really fair either.
Without commenting one way or the other on the whole topic, Datsyuk’s contract was never placed on LTIR. His contract was a 35+ deal, meaning the cap hit would remain regardless of whether or not he was bought out or retired.
They took on that contract when he retired from the NHL to play in Russia.
Datsyuk couldn’t go on ltir, he was to old. Any team could do a trade like that. Only the rich teams like Toronto and Chicago are cheating the system. I hope players see what they’re doing and realize that those teams aren’t loyal to their players, and stay away from them
Hahaha players stay away from these teams?! Highly doubtful. Have you seen Lupul’s instagram!? He’s getting paid millions to stay on vacation. Players may be competitive but they aren’t idiots. If he’s really upset quit waiting for a call and get a second opinion if you think the team is cheating.
I’m sure he has or will. Especially if the nhlpa gets involved
NO SECOND OPINION!! Do you know what that means, Goatie???
How is Chicago cheating the system in regards to this case? Hossa’s skin condition/allergy caught up with him to the point where it’s no longer safe for him to play. I’m sure Chicago would love to have him play for them (instead of being on LTIR) if he could. If by “these teams aren’t loyal to their players” you mean the constant change they have on their roster from year to year, that has more to do with poor cap management combined with postseason success that forces the team to sell off valuable assets to stay below the cap. Every successful team, in any sport, goes through the same issues the Blackhawks go through with their roster turnover. The Blackhawks’ issue is compounded by the team being successful for the better part of this decade as opposed to being good for just one or two years.
Breaking this rule in this way is even worse now that the salary cap is barely rising each year. Allowing certain teams to avoid feeling the impact of bad contracts and freeing up room to allow them to make more signings using that cap space again defeats the entire purpose of having a salary cap and destroys any chance of a fair competitive balance. The Wild could have been far better a few years ago had they been able to stash Niklas Bäckström on the LTIR and sign someone else with the cap space than having to carry an extra goalie that was so bad they couldn’t play him. This situation comes up over time with every team because every team signs contracts that turn out to be bad deals. You can’t just pretend they don’t exist by shifting them off somewhere.
Nothing about any of this is illegal. Bad contracts & injuries are never illegal. Common sense?
What is really fair in this life ,Goat? A scam by an injured player happens more than you think. Read my comment about Uwe Krupp, in terms of what he tried to do to not only one team, but two different NHL teams.
You are not fair Goat, giving your opinion when you have no idea what you are talking about. Got proved wrong, yet AGAIN! Good job!!
The Hossa thing is bull. The Lupul thing is bull. And I wish the league would crack down on it.
Having said that, teams do need a legal way to get out of bad contracts. Without it, eventually the injured and overpaid players suck so much money out of the system that other players get underpaid or even squeezed out of the league.
He Trolls, you need to become a GM in both baseball & hockey because you seem to know it all. Injuries & bad contracts happen everyday and there is nothing illegal about either one. If these owners & general managers are foolish enough to sign these athletes to a LEGAL contract, there is nothing we can do about it. For the most part, these guys go to business school and/or sports management school so they are a whole lot more savvy than me and even you. Whether you like it or not, their decisions, are for the best interest of their teams. They could care less whether we like it or not. You don’t believe me? Call the front office of ANY pro sports team and see if you can get them to use your opinion about anything. Like I said, bad contracts and injuries are not illegal in any way, shape or form. And, by the way? Team doctors and specialists are also just a bit more intelligent than you or I.
Either way, if Lupul has a problem with it, he can take it up with the PA and the fact that he hasn’t yet and instead turned to Instagram to voice his displeasure should speak to the fact that the Leafs did not do anything wrong.
And perhaps they don’t want him on the team after he banged one of his teammates wives. That can’t be great for a dressing room lol
So yes. It appears Lupul knows a thing or two about cheating.
So what? There isn’t an exception in the salary cap that says a player can be dumped without a cap hit in the event he “bangs on of his teammates wives”. The issue is they are using the LTIR to avoid taking a cap hit from a bad contact; which is illegal under salary cap rules.
They are using LTIR for a player who wasn’t medically cleared by doctors to play. This whole conspiracy thing that it has anything to do with not wanting him on the team and circumventing the cap is based on no fact whatsoever other than an Instagram post that has since been removed.
There also IS the exception in the CBS that says a player can be placed on LTIR if doctors do not clear him to play, which is exactly what happened. There is no evidence that they broke any rules, therefore there is no issue that you’re claiming. Unless the PA or the league has him examined by another doctor who does clear him to play, these claims they have somehow cheated and it’s a conspiracy to lose the cap hit are not based in any fact whatsoever.
The controversy is that Lupul seems to be implying that the team doctors clear or don’t clear guys depending on what the team wants.
And Instagram is not the place to voice his grievance. That’s through the PA, which it appears that he did not do. Possibly after his medical confirmed he is in fact made of glass.
How long ago did he fail his physical? If he didn’t agree with it, the FIRST thing he should have done is grieve it with the union and find a second opinion. Not go on Instagram to whine about it. The simple facts that there has been no second opinion sought to this point, and that he has removed the instagram post, shows that he may not actually be healthy enough to play in the NHL.
Lou’s Lupul loophole?
LTIR cannot be used until the 2nd day of the season. The leafs need to be under the cap before day 1 of the season and that number includes players on LTIR. Including Lupul, Horton, and Robidas they are already under the cap. So this whole freeing up cap space argument is moot.
i’m not 100% on this but i think are over the cap at this moment…. they are allowed to be over because they have been granted “ long term cap relief” basically they asked the league for an exemption because they could prove one the players has no chance of playing this year… i believe that was Robidas but could have been Horton….
From what I can find they are sitting on $63.7 in active salary between active rosters and buyouts and salary retained. Meaning they have roughly $11.3 that they can carry until day #2 of the season. Robidas is no longer on LTIR and Lupul and Horton account for $10.55 so as far as I can see they are ok. Wish otherwise as I HATE the leafs and wish it forced their hand otherwise… But they look safe.
I’m a leaf fan….. if Lupul is ever declared fit to play Lou could trade him to a team that has salary cap room… an example would be Bracco, Rychel and Lupoul for some no name making less than a million and could be buried in the AHL and not count against the cap…. the team making the trade with Toronto pays and plays Lupol for one year and has a couplle of decent prospects for the future…Lou doesn’t need to do this at this time so why would he
Lou could trade him if he could find anyone to take his contract and the risk. Plus he’s soured a team or 2 in the past already too. But things are always sunny in maple leaf town.