Manny Legace Not Done Venting

Manny Legace had more harsh words for Bob Goodenow and NHLPA leadership Saturday afternoon, after venting on them ten days ago. Says Legace:

"We lost a season for no reason. We should've crumbled last September when the owners wanted a salary cap...It makes no sense what we ended up doing. For years, Bob was telling us, 'No cap. Owners aren't telling us the truth about their books.' Then out of nowhere, he gives the owners a 24-per cent rollback and it looked like we were panicking. Then after saying we wouldn't even consider a salary cap, he backed down on that at the last minute just before the lockout. It was too late, and now we're taking a worse deal."

On when the announcement of a deal will come:

"They're not going to announce anything until it's 100% finished and I'm sure they're not going to do it before the [baseball] all-star game. I'm hearing it's all but done and the lawyers have been looking over it, and that it could take 14 to 20 days."

On the situation with Dave Lewis:

"Lewie was everybody's good friend. It was hard for him to lay down the law and maybe guys got too comfortable...Scotty hated the world and treated everybody the same, from me to Steve Yzerman. Scotty would rip anybody, and had the personality of an ant. Dave was a great guy and we respected him, but we didn't fear him like we did Scotty. If you could've put a little of Scotty's demeanour into Dave, you'd have the absolute perfect coach...I don't know Babcock from a hole in the ground, other than the phenomenal job he did against us in the playoffs. Guys that played for him say he's a tough coach. Maybe that's what we need."

And to the fans:

"I would just like to apologize to them because this didn't have to happen."

Manny's comments on the NHLPA weren't any different than what he said on June 30th. It's interesting though, for him to say the deal could be more than two weeks away - especially when all signs point to Monday as a possible CBA announcement day. I also appreciate his brutal honestly talking about Dave Lewis and Scotty Bowman. I love that comment about Bowman having the "personality of an ant." And, finally, if the fans haven't heard it enough from the small group of players talking, Manny's sorry.