HOF

[TriCitySam]

I enjoyed some of the speeches, Hutch, Cliff Harris and Jimbo in particular. But thought Jimmy Johnson was terrible.

[c_hawkbob]

I recorded it and used the FF button liberally, caught about 30 seconds of Johnson's, that was plenty.

I was pretty staunchly in the 'Huck Futch' camp until seeing him and Robbie speak. I guess if he and Holmgren can put things behind them I can.

[TriCitySam]

Well...not sure I understood the reason for using the poison pill, but the Hawks FO clearly messed it up. Hutch wanted to stay and they FU by not getting him signed and using the transition tag. Reportedly Holmgren didn’t know it, thought we were using franchise tag.

[c_hawkbob]

The reason for the PP was 'because they could' (though I was shocked it was upheld). And I totally agree it was all our fault in the first place, it wasn't the entire FO's doing. Tim Ruskell flew solo on this f**k up, waiting until Holmes was on vacation to slap the T Tag on Hutch to try and save a few bucks.

[RiverDog]

Well...not sure I understood the reason for using the poison pill, but the Hawks FO clearly messed it up. Hutch wanted to stay and they FU by not getting him signed and using the transition tag. Reportedly Holmgren didn’t know it, thought we were using franchise tag.

Hutch wanted to stay? So why did he sign with Minny? Did the Devil make him do it?

[NorthHawk]

Huge money at the time. A one time take it or leave it offer from the Vikings that was going to be pulled if he didn't sign it quickly.

[RiverDog]

Huge money at the time. A one time take it or leave it offer from the Vikings that was going to be pulled if he didn't sign it quickly.

Irrelevant. Hutch's agent is the one that came up with the proposal so it wasn't a big surprise. He knew when he signed it that there was no way that the Hawks would be able to match the Viking's offer.

I don't blame Hutch for taking the money but I saw it as being very disingenuous. When Ruskell put the TT on him Hutch said that he only wanted to test the market and see what he was worth. The deal was that Ruskell would match what ever offer Hutch brought back. It was a dirty underhanded trick and Ruskell got played for a sucker. If Ruskell had any idea that Hutch would pull such a stunt there's no way he would have put the TT on him. I blame both Hutch as well as TR.

[NorthHawk]

Ruskell for sure is the villain in my books. A team just can't afford to put in danger one of its best assets when a simple tag would suffice.

[RiverDog]

Ruskell for sure is the villain in my books. A team just can't afford to put in danger one of its best assets when a simple tag would suffice.

Oh, he is in mine, too. It was the biggest managerial blunder in franchise history, and that includes trades and drafts. But I'm not absolving Hutch one little bit. He gave everyone the impression that it wasn't all about money then turns his back on a 13-3 conference champ and signs a huge, fat contract with a .500ish team. It reminded me of Alex Rodriguez. Hutch is one of the main reasons why I'm so cynical of player's supposed loyalty to their teams and their fans. I'm glad that he never made another Super Bowl.

[TriCitySam]

Hutch wanted to stay? So why did he sign with Minny? Did the Devil make him do it?

That's according to John Clayton. He said Hutch very much wanted to stay in Seattle and he talked to him on his way out of town and Hutch was pretty down about the way it played out. He said he mentioned to Holmgren that they were putting the transition tag on Hutch and his response was "No were not, we're going to franchise him". So you're right, it's confusing on why the PP came into play - unless it was a case of his agent (Tom Condon) being on a trip because he found the PP loophole and Hutch was PO'd about the way the FO handled it. Clayton also said it was Mike Reinfeldt that engineered the transition tag. But it was clear in his speech he was close to many of the Hawks (Tobek, Chris Gray), and would have loved to have played next to Walter his whole career.

[RiverDog]

Hutch wanted to stay? So why did he sign with Minny? Did the Devil make him do it?

That's according to John Clayton. He said Hutch very much wanted to stay in Seattle and he talked to him on his way out of town and Hutch was pretty down about the way it played out. He said he mentioned to Holmgren that they were putting the transition tag on Hutch and his response was "No were not, we're going to franchise him". So you're right, it's confusing on why the PP came into play - unless it was a case of his agent (Tom Condon) being on a trip because he found the PP loophole and Hutch was PO'd about the way the FO handled it. Clayton also said it was Mike Reinfeldt that engineered the transition tag. But it was clear in his speech he was close to many of the Hawks (Tobek, Chris Gray), and would have loved to have played next to Walter his whole career.

OK, thanks for the explanation. I have no doubt that Hutch, in retrospect, regrets the incident. But he can't have it both ways. He can't sign a contract he knew would end his time with the Hawks then subsequently claim that he didn't want to leave.

As far as the origination of the poison pill, my recollection is that it was Hutch's agent's idea, which defeats the notion that Hutch signed on the spur of the moment. He would have had plenty of time to think it over. Even if it wasn't Hutch's side that came up with the PP and if it is true that they gave him a 24 hour take-it-or-leave-it deadline, it still doesn't change anything, at least not in my mind.

Ruskell thought he was doing Hutch a favor by allowing him to go out and test the market. Hutchinson made him look like a fool.