The Semi-Official Hockey Thread... Hat trick!
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Joined: May 2003
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From: Kelowna, BC
Holy Crap!!! Get a load of this story!!! 
DiPietro inks 15-year deal
It didn't take long for Garth Snow to conjure up memories of his predecessor, former New York Islanders general manager Mike Milbury.
According to Newsday in New York, Snow has topped Milbury's 10-year, $87.5 million US deal to forward Alexei Yashin in 2001 with a whopping 15-year pact worth $67.5 million to goaltender Rick DiPietro.
The Islanders will make an official announcement later on Tuesday.
"[Islanders owner] Charles Wang is trying to show he's committed to a building project, and DiPietro showed he's committed to the team and wants to be on Long Island," an NHL executive told the newspaper.
The contract is believed to be the longest in NHL history and second only in major North American pro sports to the 25-year, $25-million contract Magic Johnson signed with the NBA's Los Angeles Lakers in 1981.
"Clubs are free to make their own decisions within the confines laid out in the collective bargaining agreement and other applicable league rules," NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly told the Canadian Press. "Some decisions turn out well, others not so well.
"Time will tell whether this will be a good decision or a bad one for the Islanders."
DiPietro, a restricted free agent, reportedly is scheduled to receive $4.5 million in each season of the deal, which would rank the 24-year-old eighth among NHL goalies for the 2006-07 campaign.
Nikolai Khabibulin of the Chicago Blackhawks is currently the league's highest-paid netminder at $6.75 million a year.
DiPietro's contract would leave the Islanders $2 million under the NHL's current salary cap of $44 million, Newsday reported.
The newspaper also stated DiPietro is guaranteed the full $67.5 million if he suffers a career-ending injury. However, it's unclear what would happen if the five-foot-11 puckstopper were to retire before the deal expires.
DiPietro compiled a record of 30-24-5 with a 3.02 goals-against average and .900 save percentage in 63 games last season, his fourth in New York.
He had discussed a 15-year deal last summer with Wang after the NHL lockout when DiPietro expressed he wanted to spend his entire playing career on Long Island.
But obstacles regarding insurance over the course of the contract nixed a deal at the time, and DiPietro signed for one year and $2.5 million.
Both sides faced a deadline later this week when the Islanders open training camp in Halifax. Wang has a policy that players who aren't under contract at that time won't play during the season.
In 2000, DiPietro became the first-ever goalie chosen with the No. 1 pick, after spending just one year at Boston University.
It didn't take long for Garth Snow to conjure up memories of his predecessor, former New York Islanders general manager Mike Milbury.
According to Newsday in New York, Snow has topped Milbury's 10-year, $87.5 million US deal to forward Alexei Yashin in 2001 with a whopping 15-year pact worth $67.5 million to goaltender Rick DiPietro.
The Islanders will make an official announcement later on Tuesday.
"[Islanders owner] Charles Wang is trying to show he's committed to a building project, and DiPietro showed he's committed to the team and wants to be on Long Island," an NHL executive told the newspaper.
The contract is believed to be the longest in NHL history and second only in major North American pro sports to the 25-year, $25-million contract Magic Johnson signed with the NBA's Los Angeles Lakers in 1981.
"Clubs are free to make their own decisions within the confines laid out in the collective bargaining agreement and other applicable league rules," NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly told the Canadian Press. "Some decisions turn out well, others not so well.
"Time will tell whether this will be a good decision or a bad one for the Islanders."
DiPietro, a restricted free agent, reportedly is scheduled to receive $4.5 million in each season of the deal, which would rank the 24-year-old eighth among NHL goalies for the 2006-07 campaign.
Nikolai Khabibulin of the Chicago Blackhawks is currently the league's highest-paid netminder at $6.75 million a year.
DiPietro's contract would leave the Islanders $2 million under the NHL's current salary cap of $44 million, Newsday reported.
The newspaper also stated DiPietro is guaranteed the full $67.5 million if he suffers a career-ending injury. However, it's unclear what would happen if the five-foot-11 puckstopper were to retire before the deal expires.
DiPietro compiled a record of 30-24-5 with a 3.02 goals-against average and .900 save percentage in 63 games last season, his fourth in New York.
He had discussed a 15-year deal last summer with Wang after the NHL lockout when DiPietro expressed he wanted to spend his entire playing career on Long Island.
But obstacles regarding insurance over the course of the contract nixed a deal at the time, and DiPietro signed for one year and $2.5 million.
Both sides faced a deadline later this week when the Islanders open training camp in Halifax. Wang has a policy that players who aren't under contract at that time won't play during the season.
In 2000, DiPietro became the first-ever goalie chosen with the No. 1 pick, after spending just one year at Boston University.