Rave Excited to Hit the Ice For Training Camp

[tcookie 927]

Phillip Rave's off-season was a little more stressful than he's used to, but as he prepares to report to Malmo's training camp this week, everything has worked itself out just as well as he'd hoped.

 

There was the matter of contract negotiations first and foremost this off-season, something Rave hadn't really experienced to the same level in prior seasons. Negotiating an entry-level contract is generally much more trivial, and when his first contract was up, he was still a young player looking for a break and Malmo was a clearly contending team, so there was little chance of anything conflicting on either side.

 

This time around, the end of Malmo's window of contention appears much closer, and a rebuild was a legitimate possibility especially given the team's playoff track record. Plus, coming off an 108-point season, Rave had the track record to ask for more than he did the last time around, and was likely to find a large market for his services if he'd opted to test free agency. Then there was the matter of a GM change in the middle of the off-season, which postponed meetings with players as new management took over and had to formulate their own plan before communicating it to the team.

 

But, at the end of the day, Rave got his wish. He's back in Malmo on a new three-year deal, and he's ready to go. "Circumstances ended up dragging that out longer than usual so it didn't feel like there was a lot of downtime for me this off-season. But now we're here, training camp is around the corner, the relationship with new management is great. Everything's worked out for the best and now I just can't wait to get back out on the ice."