Dubinsky Holdout Continues, Z Comes Running Back

As we enter Day Two of Rangers training camp, restricted free agent Brandon Dubinsky is still without a contract, and will continue to train on his own, away from the team until they come to an agreement. I have learned that it is possible for Dubinsky to participate in Tortorella's training camp, as long as Brandon foots the bill for his own insurance, something he obviously is not willing to do.

Here are some quotes from Dubi on the matter, courtesy of Larry Brooks at the NY Post:
"It's killing me not to be in camp with my teammates. I feel terrible about it," Dubinsky told The Post . I didn't come to New York three weeks ago to start skating and training in order not to be there, but we haven't been able to reach a deal. I don't want to comment on the negotiations, but this is all part of the business, and it's unfortunate."

Well Dubi, I am going to have to side with Tortorella on this one, labeling the situation "stupid" and not "unfortunate". If you did not read Tortorella's comments concerning Dubinsky's absence from yesterday's article, you can do so HERE.

The Rangers increased their original offer of $522,500 to $700,000 according to Brooks, but Brandon and his agent, Kurt Overhardt are looking for double that amount, which is around $1.4 million.

"I get the team concept, I get the importance of being there with the guys and going through a tough camp with them from the get-go," Dubinsky said. "It's not a question of not wanting to be there. Everybody knows how much I love New York and playing for the Rangers."

If he understands the importance of being at camp from the get-go, then he should have been at camp from the get-go. As I mentioned above, he could have easily attended, just had to pay his own insurance, which I doubt would even put a dent is his bank account.

All in all, either side is going to give in, and give the other what they want, or Dubinsky will not be playing for the Rangers next season. It is as simple as that. I will be keeping a close eye on this situation in the next couple of days, and will share any information that I become aware of with readers.

Another tidbit from the end of Brook's article stated this:
"The Post has learned that the agent for Nikolai Zherdev, who rejected the Rangers' $3.25 million qualifier and then became a free agent when the team walked away from his $3.9 million arbitration award, called the club this week offering to return for $3.25 million. The offer was refused."

Nothing much to say about this other than it is pathetic. Zherdev felt he was worth much more than reality tells us he is, so he puts us through arbitration, we reject the reward, he becomes an un-restricted free agent. Now, when he realizes that he overvalued himself and no teams are willing to sign him at his $3.9 million price tag, he comes running to Sather for a cheap contract, just so he can play. Sather's very wise answer: NO.

Stay tuned for news from day two of training camp.....
(Photo courtesy of getty Images)