Here’s the latest from the Jimmy Vesey-is-going-UFA saga -- on Tuesday, Preds assistant GM Paul Fenton went on Sportsnet’s Hockey Central and broke down, in significant detail, the conversation he had with Vesey prior to the Feb. 29 trade deadline.
The excerpt:
Fenton: I spoke with [Vesey] after the consolation game at the Boston Garden, outside the locker room [at the Beanpot Tournament, in early February].
I asked the player three times if he was signing with us. I said that I realized he was in a tough position, that I was asking him this, but we needed to know from a lineup standpoint, and for our trade deadline plans, as to what he was going to do. We would not fill his spot, because we believe he had top-6 potential to play for us.
And I was told that [he would sign with us].
Sportsnet: So what did he say to you, when you asked him three times?
Fenton: Yes. I’m going to sign with the Nashville Predators.
Fenton also mentioned that Nashville, as an organization, has always made a point of not asking players to leave school early, instead letting prospects decide how they want to dictate their collegiate careers.
This would appear to be in lockstep with what GM David Poile said about Vesey last summer, noting this particular institution held special significance.
“It’s Harvard, right?” Poile said. “We know that.”