Report: Details leaked from ugly Tatar negotiations

Detroit Red Wings sniper Tomas Tatar wants his money and he wants it now. Of course, if he can’t get it now, he’s fine with waiting for a judge to rule his worth in arbitration, but it’s clear given his contract demands that he feels secure that things will play out in his favor. 

Sportsnet reporter and NHL insider Elliotte Friedman revealed both sides of the coin today, releasing Tatar’s salary demands and the team’s firm offer:

That… actually seems reasonable given Tatar’s production the past couple seasons. Also when compared with some of the other “hard to swallow” salaries on the Wings’ roster, $5+ million for Tatar looks like a bargain. $3.85 million for Darren Helm? $4.25 million for Justin Abdelkader? $4.25 million for Jonathan Ericsson? Yikes. The team is swimming in bad contracts, so you can’t blame them for trying to get Tatar signed to the best ideal possible, but you do have to wonder how these hardline negotiations are affecting his psyche. 

Just a week ago Tatar claimed a one or two year commitment with the Wings would likely spell an end to his time in Detroit. Given the lack of offensive firepower on their current roster, they can hardly risk turning away a potential 30+ goal scorer.