hes more likely to never play a game again with Dallas either bcuz Nuke really didnt like his exp or Dallas taking this the wrong way.
He will prob sign an extension with that KHL team and when or if he wants to come back, he will be a UFA.
All we have heard from Val is that he would like to eventually return to Dallas in two years, and rumors of the Ruff thing, who knows if they are true.
From Nill all we have heard is that they had an offer for Val, rumored to be just one year, and that they would not budge from it, regardless of what was happening in the KHL. And that they hoped to get a more mature player when he returns. Lots of people have speculated that the more mature part was a burn by Nill, but honestly it seems sort of out of character for Nill to do that, so with out hearing his tone, I'm taking it as a more neutral statement. So both parties have said basically said they are hoping for a return to Dallas. Losing almost a full season really set back his development, at the beginning of the season he looked just off, probably didnt help that Ruff insisted on trying him at left wing during this time.
Imagine missing almost a full year of playing competitive hockey, then trying to come back and play on your off side, all while trying to implement a new shot (you could tell he was trying to elevate the puck more last season, but his accuracy just isn't there yet).
I'm hoping there isn't any bad blood between the two, Nill seems too much of a professional for their to be any on his end. As for Nuke, I would take any reports out of Russia with a grain of salt.
I think he needs at least another year to really get his game back on track, and regardless of whether he would go or cant go to the AHL, it cant happen now, he wouldn't have passed through waivers, so this is really the only option. The team he signed with is known for being a good defensive club, so hopefully he can work on that and his shot while over there. Even if Ruff is still here, if Nukes defensive game has improved he will likely be given more leeway. I also like that his contract has an opt out after the first year. With the Hudler signing and the young guys that will require waivers to be sent down to the AHL, if Nuke struggled again to start the season, he could have very well been given the Oleksiak and Nemeth treatment and found himself on the bench and lost another year of development time.
Ruff can be a good coach and still handle the teams youth poorly. He develops his opinions on a player and doesn't seem to change them. Take Jokipakka, he liked him in training camp and even though he was struggling took forever to give Nemeth or Oleksiak a chance last year. Sitting in the press box most of last season definitely wasnt helping either of those guys develop, and then when they did play it was usually after a long lay off, and even if they played well it was back to the press box. That is the most maddening thing about Ruff, you could have a great game then find your self scratched or given few minutes the next game. Some players respond positively to that, but I'm guessing it really frustrates others. Especially in a supposed meritocracy.
