Cheveldayoff details mutual contract termination with Byfuglien

WINNIPEG - The Winnipeg Jets and Dustin Byfuglien came to a mutual agreement to terminate the 35-year-old defenceman's contract on Friday.
Although, that wasn't the end that general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff was hoping for.
"If it were the Jets writing the perfect script, it would have ended with Dustin holding a great big silver trophy over his head at centre ice and flashing that great big smile of his," Cheveldayoff said in a conference call.
"He really bought in. He liked it here. He bought a house here. His family was growing up here. He believed in ownership, believed in management, believed in players, coaches, trainers, and most of all believed in this city."
Combining regular season and playoffs, Byfuglien played 636 games in a Jets jersey and recorded 441 points.

His physical presence became apparent to Jets fans in the first preseason game in 2011, when he threw a massive hit against a Columbus Blue Jackets forward on his first shift. Over his eight seasons in Winnipeg, names like Mark Stone, Mikko Koivu, Joel Eriksson-Ek, Drew Doughty, and Anze Kopitar were among many on the receiving end of checks from Byfuglien.
But the big product from Roseau, MN also had skill to go with the braun.
"You'd get him on the ice, to see him move around as he did and freely as he would, with the skills that he had. It's an interesting one. It shows his hockey sense and his skills to adapt," Cheveldayoff said. "He likes to play having an impact on a game and sometimes there was high risk, and sometimes there was high reward."

That's why it was so difficult for Cheveldayoff - and Byfuglien - to have the conversation they did on September 11, 2019, the night before training camp.
"At that time he informed me that he didn't know if he had it in him to continue playing in the NHL. It was a very emotional time," Cheveldayoff said. "It's something that is still a private matter and it will stay private. It was emotional. It was tough on him to even come and talk to me."
The two touched base the next day and decided it was best for Byfuglien to take some time to himself to think it all through. Cheveldayoff asked if Byfuglien wanted a trade to see if that was the root of things, but Byfuglien said that wasn't the case at all.
On September 21, with Byfuglien's knowledge, the Jets suspended him as part of the decisions the team had to make in regards to the roster.
A glimmer of hope emerged on October 3.
Byfuglien's agent, Ben Hankinson, informed Cheveldayoff that Byfuglien was considering a return, but wanted surgery on his ankle first.
"It was done by a doctor that Dustin had seen the year prior as part of the medical evaluation process when he was injured in the prior season and deemed healthy to play," said Cheveldayoff. "Obviously he had the surgery and it was something he felt he needed to take the next step."
The surgery was performed on October 23 and over the next six weeks, Byfuglien rehabilitated as prescribed by the surgeon.
However, in January, when it came time to begin the skating portion of the rehab, Byfuglien informed Cheveldayoff he didn't want to play.
"At the end of the day, everybody has a choice," Cheveldayoff said. "Dustin's choice was to be true to himself and not put himself, and maybe the team and everybody, in a difficult situation. He didn't have it in him to continue to play. That's the most honest thing he could say."

All of which leads to Friday's announcement, that both sides agreed to mutually terminate Byfuglien's contract, leaving $14 million on the table.
It was a storyline that went on through the 2019-20 campaign. With all the uncertainty, Cheveldayoff said the conversations between Byfuglien's representatives and the team were amicable and both sides don't have any animosity to one another.
The relationship between Byfuglien and Cheveldayoff goes back to their time with the Chicago Blackhawks, where they won a Stanley Cup together in 2010.
Cheveldayoff had to find a way throughout the process to respect both the personal and the business side of things.
"When Dustin first came and talked to me, my first initial reaction to the emotion was genuine concern. I care a lot about all my players. They have families. They have feelings," he said. "I wanted to make sure he was in a good spot. From the team standpoint, you have to adjust. From that point on, we were finding ways to adjust. You don't put emotion into that."
The Jets GM is proud of the team's players and coaches, who stayed in the fight throughout the season, working themselves into a wildcard spot just before the NHL season went on pause.
"The pride that I do have in our leadership group, the players, the coaches, they had some things to deal with at training camp," Cheveldayoff said. "They found a way to get stronger through this."
There hasn't been a lot of direct conversation between Byfuglien and Cheveldayoff since January, but Cheveldayoff hopes to run into him at some point - when health regulations surrounding Covid-19 eventually start to relax.
He holds no ill will toward Byfuglien and looks forward to the day he sees him again.
"To me, the legacy is always going to be him grabbing two people out of a pile and throwing them around," Cheveldayoff said. "To me, the legacy is always going to be the hit at centre ice on (Mark) Stone from Ottawa. To me, the legacy is going to be the slap shot from the point to blast it by a goaltender.
"If we choose to focus on other things - that's everyone's choice. We live in a time right now that we all understand that things do happen that are unexpected. It's how we choose to move on. Dustin still remains, in my estimation, a tremendous person.
"We wish him, Emily, and their family nothing but the best going forward."