Sydor Isn’t Happy With Performance

The ups and downs of his contract negotiations were not easy for King defenseman Darryl Sydor, who, despite his apparent maturity, is still very much a 21-year-old.

So it should have been a major relief for him this week when he agreed to a four-year deal.

But it wasn’t.

Not when the contract is worth $3.6 million. In the deal’s first three years, he will make $700,000, $800,000 and $900,000. It escalates to $1.2 million in the final year, which is an option year.

It is the same amount that the Dallas Stars gave their promising 21-year-old defenseman, Derian Hatcher, but the contracts are structured differently. Sydor’s deal includes deferred money and Hatcher’s does not.

“It’s very generous,” Sydor said. “Right now, I don’t deserve it. I played awful (Wednesday in an 8-3 loss to Detroit). A player getting a contract like that should not be playing the way I am.”

Sydor is not the only struggling King, with many of them showing reluctance or inability to play a physical game on this trip.

Thursday, King Coach Barry Melrose held a vocal, back-to-the-basics practice at Winnipeg. He also unveiled a couple of new line combinations, putting Shawn McEachern at center with left wing Mike Donnelly and right wing Tony Granato, and moving Jari Kurri from center back to right wing with Wayne Gretzky and left wing Warren Rychel.