Salutations, Mr. Bettman!
With the NHL Lockout in full effect, more and more players are electing to stay sharp by playing in Europe. The latest to announce plans to relocate barring a new CBA is Bruins’ defenseman Andrew Ference. Earlier tonight he tweeted: Going back to my old team,Ceske Budejovice,on Oct 7 barring any CBA.I’ll buy any Bostonian a Budvar (Budweiser) if I see you there.
Ference played for HC Ceske Budejovice during the canceled 2004-2005 season, also due to a work stoppage. He’ll be playing in the same league as teammate David Krejci, who leaves this weekend to play for HC Pardubice. Dennis Seidenberg is reportedly contemplating heading to his native Germany until terms are agreed upon for a new collective bargaining agreement, and judging by the fact that the NHL cancelled preseason games for the entire month of September today, that probably won’t happen any time soon. I’m less than trilled that these guys are going to be playing overseas where I can’t watch them, but if Ference wants to fly me out to Europe AND buy me a beer, I’ll gladly take him up on that offer.
