Van Sicklen Contract Details - Madison.com Article

[Knave]

It's not often you find information like this:
Nick Van Sicklen will sign a one-year, $30,000 contract with Major League Soccer's D.C. United today, the former Madison West and University of Wisconsin standout said Wednesday.

The contract is for the team's 18-man, first-team roster, and includes a potential $15,000 in performance bonuses and an optional three-year extension, Van Sicklen said.
http://www.madison.com/wsj/home/sports/index.php?ntid=30627&ntpid=7

[TEConnor]

It is an odd thing to see.

Of course he's making more than I did in my first job out of college. Adjusting for inflation, maybe we were about equal.

Cheers,
Tim

[Zman Gunner]

Van Sicklen making the senior squad means a few things:
1) It frees up a developmental roster slot – assuming that the veteran developmental players (Adu, Thompson, Stokes, Arena, Kuffour) and 2005 draft picks (Merritt, Nickell, Terris, Kuykendall) already have spots. Those players have 9 of the 10 spots. With DeRoux being injured, it looks like Boswell is the current favorite to win it.

2) It crowds the senior roster to the point where an existing player may need to get cut to accommodate the foreign players for which DCU is scouting (they are supposedly looking overseas at a center-back [the Argie Kobistyj is the first one to be tried there] and midfield help). Based on Van Sicklen’s senior contract, there is only 1 of 18 senior spots available (Rimando, Perkins, Petke, Namoff, Prideaux, Olsen, Carroll, Simms, Lawson, Gros, Kovalenko, Gomez, Van Sicklen, Quintanilla, Quaranta, Moreno, Eskandarian). If DCU is going to sign 2 more senior players, the current players on the bubble would seem to be Lawson or Quintanilla.

[fatbastard]

It is funny, and appropriate, that the local Wisconsin ABC affiliate is: W-KOW, I've seen their cheerleaders :)

[chayes]

2) It crowds the senior roster to the point where an existing player may need to get cut to accommodate the foreign players for which DCU is scouting (they are supposedly looking overseas at a center-back [the Argie Kobistyj is the first one to be tried there] and midfield help). Based on Van Sicklen’s senior contract, there is only 1 of 18 senior spots available (Rimando, Perkins, Petke, Namoff, Prideaux, Olsen, Carroll, Simms, Lawson, Gros, Kovalenko, Gomez, Van Sicklen, Quintanilla, Quaranta, Moreno, Eskandarian). If DCU is going to sign 2 more senior players, the current players on the bubble would seem to be Lawson or Quintanilla.

And with the new rules regarding a $5,000 cap penalty for cutting a player on your senior roster after March 1, it makes it seem less likely that DC will sign 2 players.

Is it me or are we seriously overloaded in the midfield?

[griffin1108]

And with the new rules regarding a $5,000 cap penalty for cutting a player on your senior roster after March 1, it makes it seem less likely that DC will sign 2 players.

Is it me or are we seriously overloaded in the midfield?

Kovalenko to Chicago or wherever for draft choices. I don't see where cutting either Lawson or Quintanilla works. You might get a roster spot, but not much in the way of cap space. A trade of Kovalenko gives both cap space and roster space.

[mkpage]

A trade of Kovalenko gives both cap space and roster space.

Not to mention a player that can at least start the first game of the seaosn. :D

[onefineesq]

Kovalenko to Chicago or wherever for draft choices. I don't see where cutting either Lawson or Quintanilla works. You might get a roster spot, but not much in the way of cap space. A trade of Kovalenko gives both cap space and roster space. i've been saying this since MLS Cup. We need to move him.

[jason1551]

Welll, look at it this way: There's still a month before the regular season starts. We could either cut, waive, or trade players to free up space. I think trades would be likely only if we're looking at picking up either a defender or an allocation, as draft picks won't solve any immediate problems. Cuts or waives would be if you wanted the roster spot or were looking to re-sign a player at a lower salary. I really see trades as the most immediate option with a waive or cut being the last resort.

[chayes]

i've been saying this since MLS Cup. We need to move him.

How about for either the Beasley or pending Ralph allocation and we use it to sign Vanney?

[Knave]

How about for either the Beasley or pending Ralph allocation and we use it to sign Vanney?
We STILL wouldn't be first in line.

[ursula]

Kovalenko to Chicago or wherever for draft choices.

Chicago can't take the cap hit. We'd have to take player(s). Dallas on the other hand....

[Sanguine]

Chicago can't take the cap hit. We'd have to take player(s). Dallas on the other hand....

I'd pay good money to get a live feed of the Dallas FO telling their supporters that they'd just traded for Kovalenko.

[Th4119]

I don't see the advantage of keeping Lawson if it came down to adding someone better.

While a trade might have it's advantages, it also has it's disadvantages in that you're losing a solid player in Dema. If you cut Lawson outright you really aren't losing much, because as of now, he hasn't done much. In fact, he's done pretty much nothing.

I would think that he's definitely on the bubble.

[beltwayrob]

I'd pay good money to get a live feed of the Dallas FO telling their supporters that they'd just traded for Kovalenko.

Could you imagine their reaction... HOLY COW! They'd probably try some futal protest thing like their doing in Columbus to get rid of Coach "Lost the best change you had at winning MLS Cup".

[gnat]

I'd pay good money to get a live feed of the Dallas FO telling their supporters that they'd just traded for Kovalenko.
It might be a good move for them. They may get more fans coming to games just to give him grief :D

I think just watching the BS board board would be good enough if that ever came to pass. I can just picture Dustin's head exploding :)

-dave