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NHL ENTRY DRAFTJune 23, 2001Marshall JohnstonMIAMI, FLORIDA Q. Marshall, are you relieved to have the whole Alexei Yashin saga behind you? MARSHALL JOHNSTON: Well, we're looking forward to turning the page. We're looking forward to moving on. To be that critical would be unfair because Alexei brought a lot of success and contributed to a lot of the Ottawa Senators' previous success, but the Ottawa Senators are going to be in Ottawa a long time, and we felt that this was an opportunity for us to move on. Q. Marshall, could you talk a little over the last 24, 48 hours whether you knew that this was going to happen, how everything came together? MARSHALL JOHNSTON: Well, first of all, we didn't know it was going to happen. We were looking for ways to try to improve our franchise and our club. But as far as being able to project that something would happen, I think that would be wrong. Q. How did it come together then, Marshall? MARSHALL JOHNSTON: Well, especially at this time, historically and there are and have been deals made. I think it's sometimes overblown a bit because there have been a lot of deals made over the draft time, but historically there's precedence for this and so everybody's together in one place and you're talking and there are draft picks involved and so it's understandable and natural. And we expected to have talks about improving our club if we could, and it wasn't just restricted to Alexei Yashin. Q. Marshall, was Jason Spezza kind of always the vice that you were seeking going into this draft? Were you that kind of enamored about him, try and trade up and down? MARSHALL JOHNSTON: Well, when you say always, I suppose first of all we didn't know if we could ever get the pick, but obviously Jason was a high-profile player, someone who we would like to get if we could. His potential is very good. We do have to understand that he is 18 years old and we have to understand that, for example, we are giving up a 40-goal star for someone that hasn't played a game in the League, but that's all part of what's going on. Q. Marshall, what convinced you that this was fair value for such an asset like Alexei Yashin? MARSHALL JOHNSTON: Well, I don't know that any of us know what the marketplace is until you get into the -- until you get into the market, and when it comes down, it changes. It changes from year to year. But in our view, at this time, this was a fair deal. And that's why we made it. Q. Marshall, you had said the other day that you would be disappointed if you left here and you weren't a better team. Do you feel like you are a better team now? MARSHALL JOHNSTON: Yes. I'm not sure that I can promise this on October the 8th, at the first game of the season, but ultimately I feel that we will be a better team. I feel we have improved the team. End of FastScripts.... |
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