Wise choices in a not-so-desired ending

Although I am very disappointed that Theoren Fleury was "released" by the Calgary Flames today, I think there are a number of wise choices being demonstrated by both Fleury and the Flames organization in this saga. For the details of today's "release" see the TSN story.

Wise Choices by the Calgary Flames

• giving Fleury a legitimate second chance - though it ended up drawing incredible fan and media interest, this was not just a "throw a dog a bone" offer. He had a legitimate shot to make the Flames and one has to believe Fleury's performance in the pre-season made this even more difficult that the Flames management may have initially thought. He was legitimately close to making the team.
• having a clear understanding of expectations from the beginning - With Fleury's release, it has become apparent that he and the Flames had an agreement that they would not send him to Abbotsford (their AHL farm team) and they would only sign him if he was going to be a top six forward. While most of us as fans would now love to see him stay on even as a fourth-line center, a powerplay or shootout specialist, or something, the Flames (and probably Fleury) know that this would become frustrating for the fiery forward and he would not "go out" with a bang but with a whimper... something that could never be said for Theoren Fleury, whether good (bang!) or bad (crash!).

Wise-choices by Theoren Fleury

• clear understanding of expectations from the beginning - as important as this was for the Flames organization, it is great for Theo that the expectations were clear from both sides.
• taking a few days to decide what to do next - there seems to be a widespread recognition in the hockey world that Fleury has proved enough in the pre-season to get some decent offers from other NHL teams to play this season. However, while he may entertain those over the weekend, one gets the impression that the much older and wiser Fleury will have to be convinced its a good fit for him and his family to move from Calgary to play hockey. Fleury is wise to not just jump at the first nibble of a contract but to take some time to weigh options both for hockey and for other parts of his life.

Personally, I hope Fleury comes back to the Flames after the weekend and says he is willing to accept an assignment to Abbotsford (AHL) in order to keep playing hockey and in order to be loyal to the Flames organization. I don't really think this will happen, and I imagine he will be off on a plane to Los Angeles, New York Islanders, Phoenix, or some other nice city that needs a veteran leader who has a 20-30 goal season left in him and who can help a franchise with young players grow up - both in the NHL and in life - as men.