I think people are making more of this than it actually is.
Clearly Sudbury tried to move him but they couldn’t find the right package.
I have been a proponent of teams waiting deeper into the season to see how the existing team performs. It allows the GM to put the emphasis on the existing players to prove augmenting the existing team is meaningful. Teams shouldn’t be relying on adding players to get competitive. They should already be competitive and then add to maintain their competitiveness or put them over the top dominant.
The issue is there are multiple potential players out there and a bunch of teams that have not determined if they want to make the big investment. If you were to GM of Erie, would you make a move for Musty now because he’s the one available? Or, would you wait until Jan. 1, get a stronger sense of who is actually available and make your selection based on that? It also frees them up to dangle Challenger. I mean, if Jett Luchanko is available as a two year player and you are Staios and have a two year Championship window, would you acquire Musty or Luchanko? I’d take Luchanko for a two year run. If I were Richmond, I Amy do the same since they could be really good again next year.
I think this is a situation where the opposition GM’s need to see how the market unfolds before they decide which players they will target and prioritize.
Additionally, waiting until Jan 1 allows for the ‘08s to be freed up for deals.
Also, if Musty is going to Team USA, he likely will only need to play in a Wolves Uniform for a little over a month. Then he joins Team USA for the WJHC. He plays 5 weeks and is gone for another 4-5 weeks with Team USA. So, not a big deal.
What will the players think? Who cares? It is a “hired gun” for around 5 weeks that will help them win games. He will be treated like a hired gun. He likely will have a few really close friends that he hangs out with and that won’t change. As long as he comes in with the attitude that he is going to work hard and expend the appropriate level of effort, the players will respect that. If he sulks and dogs it then that’s a different story but the internal competitiveness of players at that level usually takes over and guides them. I don’t think we will see any real issues.