Habs' defenceman Andrei Markov, 34, has helped elevate the Canadiens from the pavement to the penthouse this season upon his return from various knee injuries.
But one little-known fact is that the Russian-born Canadian citizen is, in the great tradition of fellow-Hab miracle worker Guy Lafleur, an avid cigarette smoker.
This fact came out in a Superior Court court decision issued Tuesday dealing with a conflict over Markov's cash money.
Markov has made approximately $46-million since signing with the Habs in 1989, most of which rolled in after 2007. He'll make another $5.75 million after his contract ends next year.
In a deal struck with a financial guy named Rand Simon, Markov hands his salary over to Newport Sports Management to handle.
In 2007 Markov signed an insurance policy with Eric Niskanen of Great West Life but in 2010 William Johnston took over the handling of Markov's funds and decided that the insurance policy was not a good deal and has sued Great West Life to get the $1.2 million insurance money back.
The litigation briefly points out that there are some inaccuracies on the life insurance documents, for example, it incorrectly reports that Markov is a non-smoker.
It appears that Markov was under the impression that his survivors would get a big payout after his death but that would only happen if he died soon, as the death compensation diminishes with age.
They incorrectly listed his address as being in Maple, Ontario, (indeed the newer document incorrectly lists him as living in Westmount) but it's well-known that the chrome-domed rearguard resides in Quebec, specifically South Shore Candiac.
So Markov, whose advancing age and history of injury have contributed to some skepticism about his ability to last much longer as power play passing genius, now has an additional pecuniary predicament distracting him just as the Habs head into the playoffs.
But one little-known fact is that the Russian-born Canadian citizen is, in the great tradition of fellow-Hab miracle worker Guy Lafleur, an avid cigarette smoker.
This fact came out in a Superior Court court decision issued Tuesday dealing with a conflict over Markov's cash money.
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| Photoshop re-enactment of Markov lightin' up in Candiac |
In a deal struck with a financial guy named Rand Simon, Markov hands his salary over to Newport Sports Management to handle.
In 2007 Markov signed an insurance policy with Eric Niskanen of Great West Life but in 2010 William Johnston took over the handling of Markov's funds and decided that the insurance policy was not a good deal and has sued Great West Life to get the $1.2 million insurance money back.
The litigation briefly points out that there are some inaccuracies on the life insurance documents, for example, it incorrectly reports that Markov is a non-smoker.
It appears that Markov was under the impression that his survivors would get a big payout after his death but that would only happen if he died soon, as the death compensation diminishes with age.
They incorrectly listed his address as being in Maple, Ontario, (indeed the newer document incorrectly lists him as living in Westmount) but it's well-known that the chrome-domed rearguard resides in Quebec, specifically South Shore Candiac.
So Markov, whose advancing age and history of injury have contributed to some skepticism about his ability to last much longer as power play passing genius, now has an additional pecuniary predicament distracting him just as the Habs head into the playoffs.