Nikita Kucherov breaks his silence on why he wants out of Tampa Bay

Nikita Kucherov finally broke his silence on why he requested a trade out of Tampa Bay, and it sheds a new light on how the Lightning have treated him.

The news of Nikita Kucherov's trade reuqaet took the NHL by storm and suddenly it became a question of why he decided to make that choice, followed up by where he could possibly end up.

We heard reports of a low-balled contract offer, and the fact that Kucherov only has a handful of teams he is willing to go to narrows things down considerably and makes things a lot more difficult for the few teams left - which reportedly include Toronto and Montreal.

Nikita Kucherov breaks his silence on his shocking trade request

But for Kucherov, he's finally spilling the beans about why he wants out of Tampa Bay and to him it was never about the financial commitment, but a lack of transparency, communication and felt flat out disrespected:

I think you know, it was never about the money for me, more about poor communication and respect. Over the last fourth months we only had two conversations and Julien [BriseBois] made it clear that I was free to walk on July 1.

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Wow, for a player who has given so much to the organization including over 1,100 points, two Stanley Cups, and a serious discount already - it's certainly a disrespectful act for BriseBois and the Lightning.

You can't blame Kucherov for trying to get what he's worth, and he's tje ultimate team player by staying honest with himself, and his teammates. He isn't giving up on them, he's trying to help them win - he just doesn't feel like management has a spot for him.

Tampa Bay's bizarre approach leaves them with another star walking

What's the saying? As much as things change, they still remain the same. Only a handful of seasons after letting captain and franchise icon Steven Stamkos walk because they didn't want to pay him, they are doing the same with Kucherov.

Why the Lightning are allergic to paying star players is unknown to the rest of the NHL, and the fact that they couldn't even offer him what he's worth is staggering.

This is a player who has averaged 100 points for you since being drafted, averaged 21 points during their best stretch of play, and was arguably the best non-North American player in the world.

Coming to him and asking for a discount while players with 1/100th of his production are getting more than offered is a disrespectful business decision, and an even stranger personal attack on Kucherov.

He gave you his blood, sweat, and tears for 12 years - if that's not worth breaking the bank for then Tampa frankly doesn't deserve to have him.

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