Oh, hell no. Now both sides are just being stupid. This deal is reasonable, but if Army & Hicks are serious that this team can contend w/out Marty, they're crazy. Did they even WATCH that 20-game stretch last year w/Tugger in goal? It almost lost us the West. JUST SIGN THE F'ING DEAL, MARTY!!
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Stars beef up their offer; Turco brushes it away
$12 million over 3 years rejected; Hicks says it's team's final offer
02:46 AM CDT on Thursday, September 11, 2003
By RICHARD DURRETT / The Dallas Morning News
FRISCO – Stars general manager Doug Armstrong said Wednesday night that goaltender Marty Turco refused the Stars' latest contract offer, a deal worth $12 million over three years.
Owner Tom Hicks said it was the club's final offer, and Armstrong said the Stars are prepared to go without Turco to training camp, which begins officially with a team meeting at 8 p.m. Thursday. The season opener is Oct. 8.
"We feel as an organization we tried to step up, and he's going to go a different direction," Armstrong said. "We've made him an offer that goes above and beyond what he's accomplished. We're going to go to training camp with what we have, which I think is a strong team. The organization is deeper than one person.
"If it turns out that Marty was the sole key to the team, than I've underpaid for one and overpaid 22 others. It's unfortunate that Marty has chosen this path for his career, but so be it."
Turco's agent, Kurt Overhardt, declined to comment on specific numbers in the contracts but said he presented the Stars with alternative offers and was "going to continue to work to get a deal done."
Armstrong said he is content to go into training camp with Ron Tugnutt as the No. 1 goalie. He said he would look to see what other options were available in the next few weeks before making any decisions in regard to who starts the season in goal.
The sides had a meeting Wednesday afternoon in which the Stars presented their new offer. The three-year deal was a significant shift from the club's previous offer of a few days ago, which was a one-year deal worth approximately $3.5 million. At that time, Turco's side wanted a multi-year contract worth about $4.5 million per season.
"We think it's a stretch on our part, but it reflects our belief that Marty can be a great goaltender," Hicks said before Turco rejected Wednesday's offer. "The fact is, he's only done it one year, and you've got to prove yourself in the playoffs."
The sides met just moments after Anaheim goaltender Jean-Sebastien Giguere agreed to terms on a four-year contract worth an average of nearly $5 million a season. Giguere won the Conn Smythe Trophy last season as playoff MVP and defeated Turco and the Stars in the second round.
"With Giguere signing, it was an affirmation of where we are in the marketplace," Overhardt said. "We feel Giguere's offer solidified our position. Marty still wants to be in camp."
Overhardt did not want to comment on what exactly he didn't like about the Stars' offer or how he thought Turco's salary should compare to Giguere's.
In Turco's first full season as the starting goaltender in Dallas, he was 31-10-10 with a 1.72 goals-against average, the NHL's lowest since World War II. Turco, who made $850,000 last season, was 6-6 in the playoffs with a 1.88 GAA. Even though Turco, 28, hasn't had a contract, he has skated with teammates almost every day the last two weeks.
Tugnutt, who was Turco's backup last season, said Tuesday that he was prepared to step in for Turco at training camp and beyond, if necessary.
"I know the importance of Marty signing, but I also know that negotiations aren't usually easy," said Tugnutt, who was 7-7-3 with a 2.59 GAA during the 17 games he started last season when Turco was out with an ankle injury. "I worked hard all summer, and I knew that this could be an issue, and I'm ready to take on whatever responsibility I need to."
Edit: Deadline is past, Turco is officially a holdout. I am so annoyed right now.