The Islanders re-signed forward Chris Simon to a very cap friendly 1 year $475,000 deal. As we all remember, Simon tomahawked Rangers forward Ryan Hollweg during the Isles run to the playoffs and earned himself a hefty suspention. Simon will have to serve the remaining 4 games of that suspention at the beginning of this coming season.
In other news, reliable sources have assured me that the Islanders will in fact sign D-man Danny Markov in the coming days. This is big news as Markov is coming off an outstanding season with the Detroit Red Wings. His +25 would have led the Isles. He in all likelyhood would be our #1 defenseman.
Hopefully my source is right and I'll have more to write about him in the coming days...
Enjoy your Sunday....
Sunday, July 22, 2007
Tuesday, July 17, 2007
Whats Next?
Well, here we are in....in mid July....nothing going on....no signings....no trades....nada.
At least not in the news. So lets take a look at the current state of the Islanders and see what lies ahead.
Forwards
Garth Snow made a nice recovery with the signings of Bill Guerin, Mike Comrie, Jon Sim and Ruslan Fedotenko. Obviously adding Sim, Comrie and Guerin and retaining Ryan Smyth would have been ideal, but it wasn't meant to be. Moving forward here are some possible line combinations....
Guerin - Comrie - Satan
Hunter - Sillinger - Fedotenko
Tambellini - Park - Bergenheim
Simon - Bates/Hillbert - Sim
Guerin and Comrie together is a no brainer....hard shot with a good passer. Satan going into his walk year...playing with Comrie (a superior playmaker) is also a given...even though Fedotenko would slot in here nicely as well.
Hunter and Sillinger play like they have ESP. They are perfect for each other and Fedotenko will also fit in nicely with these 2.
The 3rd line is something me and 2 of my cousins were talking about over the weekend. (Some background...both of my cousins were college hockey players and have a lust for this franchise as much as I do). So as we were discussing this upcoming season one of them suggested that "throw Bergenheim and Tambellini together and just let them play together for a few years...." As we talked about what he meant....it makes a lot of sense. Put 2 young talented players together and let them grow together and learn the NHL game together. Besides the fact that Bergie and Tamby both have excellent wheels, play good defense, and can probably score 40 goals between them....make them a good match. Add Park to the mix (a gritty, defensivly sound forward)....and this could be a real solid 3rd line.
Bates, Simon and Sim obviously would be a solid 4th line as well. Simon and Sim are both capable of scoring 10-15 goals each and adding solid checking along the way. Bates....well is Bates....(I would much rather Hillbert in this spot....but Bates would probably get the nod at this point if he's not traded.)
D
Last Season....Tom Poti and Sean Hill were both major contributers to the Isles blueline. Poti signed in early July by then GM Neil Smith to a 1 year deal. New GM Garth Snow picked up Hill off the scrap heap in mid August as an extra defenseman. Both turned out to be steals....Poti was fantastic leading the Isles in assists and and Hill was the perfect compliment to Brendan Witt. Now both are gone and leave a glaring hole leading into next season. Snow has been busy trying to fill the holes....Missing out on UFA's Sheldon Souray and Mathieu Schneider and failing to trade for Ed Jovanovski and Bryan McCabe to this point. The options are getting thin....(UFA's Danny Markov and Andy Sutton remain on the market and Derek Morris and Jay McKee are available via trade). There is the option of going with the following combos...
Witt - Gervais
Martinek - Bergeron
Campoli - Meyer
Given, there are risks going with 3 young defenseman and one who seems to miss a chunk of each season with an injury. Giving increased minutes to both Gervais and Martinek seem to be a likelyhood at this point. Gervais has improved his game over the last season and Martinek being as spectacular as he was, before he broke his leg, have both earned it. Bergeron showed last season why he is a very important piece of this team...but with his penchant for giving up the puck....he best hang around the 18 min per game mark. Adding a Danny Markov to this group would be a major addition and a steadying force on the blueline. Markov also has the knack for getting hurt every year....(since he plays a very aggressive, hard nosed style game) but would be well worth the gamble.
Goaltending
Rick DiPietro....enough said.
Dubie will be the backup with newly signed Joey McDonald manning the nets for Bridgeport. McDonald, the former top goaltending prospect with Detroit, was an excellent addition for a team that has little goaltending depth throughout the organization.
Coaching
I did a little reading into Ted Nolan and let me share with you what I found.
96 - 97 Buffalo Sabres 40W 32L 12T
06 - 07 New York Islanders 40W 32L 12OTL
a little weird eh??....gets even better....
that team....was a bunch of hustlers....grinders and very few skilled players...like....
Leader in goals....Donald Audette 28
Leader in assists....Garry Galley 34
Points??.....Derek Plante 53.....yes....53 points.
No Pat Lafontaine....no Alexander Mogilny.....the one star player on the team...
Dominik Hasek.
Sound familiar at all....
This team has some holes....but I have to say....if we add a defenseman like Markov or Andy Sutton to the group we have....we could be in store for another special year at the Coliseum.
As always lets hear your thoughts and I'll hopefully have something else to write about in the coming days....
Tony
At least not in the news. So lets take a look at the current state of the Islanders and see what lies ahead.
Forwards
Garth Snow made a nice recovery with the signings of Bill Guerin, Mike Comrie, Jon Sim and Ruslan Fedotenko. Obviously adding Sim, Comrie and Guerin and retaining Ryan Smyth would have been ideal, but it wasn't meant to be. Moving forward here are some possible line combinations....
Guerin - Comrie - Satan
Hunter - Sillinger - Fedotenko
Tambellini - Park - Bergenheim
Simon - Bates/Hillbert - Sim
Guerin and Comrie together is a no brainer....hard shot with a good passer. Satan going into his walk year...playing with Comrie (a superior playmaker) is also a given...even though Fedotenko would slot in here nicely as well.
Hunter and Sillinger play like they have ESP. They are perfect for each other and Fedotenko will also fit in nicely with these 2.
The 3rd line is something me and 2 of my cousins were talking about over the weekend. (Some background...both of my cousins were college hockey players and have a lust for this franchise as much as I do). So as we were discussing this upcoming season one of them suggested that "throw Bergenheim and Tambellini together and just let them play together for a few years...." As we talked about what he meant....it makes a lot of sense. Put 2 young talented players together and let them grow together and learn the NHL game together. Besides the fact that Bergie and Tamby both have excellent wheels, play good defense, and can probably score 40 goals between them....make them a good match. Add Park to the mix (a gritty, defensivly sound forward)....and this could be a real solid 3rd line.
Bates, Simon and Sim obviously would be a solid 4th line as well. Simon and Sim are both capable of scoring 10-15 goals each and adding solid checking along the way. Bates....well is Bates....(I would much rather Hillbert in this spot....but Bates would probably get the nod at this point if he's not traded.)
D
Last Season....Tom Poti and Sean Hill were both major contributers to the Isles blueline. Poti signed in early July by then GM Neil Smith to a 1 year deal. New GM Garth Snow picked up Hill off the scrap heap in mid August as an extra defenseman. Both turned out to be steals....Poti was fantastic leading the Isles in assists and and Hill was the perfect compliment to Brendan Witt. Now both are gone and leave a glaring hole leading into next season. Snow has been busy trying to fill the holes....Missing out on UFA's Sheldon Souray and Mathieu Schneider and failing to trade for Ed Jovanovski and Bryan McCabe to this point. The options are getting thin....(UFA's Danny Markov and Andy Sutton remain on the market and Derek Morris and Jay McKee are available via trade). There is the option of going with the following combos...
Witt - Gervais
Martinek - Bergeron
Campoli - Meyer
Given, there are risks going with 3 young defenseman and one who seems to miss a chunk of each season with an injury. Giving increased minutes to both Gervais and Martinek seem to be a likelyhood at this point. Gervais has improved his game over the last season and Martinek being as spectacular as he was, before he broke his leg, have both earned it. Bergeron showed last season why he is a very important piece of this team...but with his penchant for giving up the puck....he best hang around the 18 min per game mark. Adding a Danny Markov to this group would be a major addition and a steadying force on the blueline. Markov also has the knack for getting hurt every year....(since he plays a very aggressive, hard nosed style game) but would be well worth the gamble.
Goaltending
Rick DiPietro....enough said.
Dubie will be the backup with newly signed Joey McDonald manning the nets for Bridgeport. McDonald, the former top goaltending prospect with Detroit, was an excellent addition for a team that has little goaltending depth throughout the organization.
Coaching
I did a little reading into Ted Nolan and let me share with you what I found.
96 - 97 Buffalo Sabres 40W 32L 12T
06 - 07 New York Islanders 40W 32L 12OTL
a little weird eh??....gets even better....
that team....was a bunch of hustlers....grinders and very few skilled players...like....
Leader in goals....Donald Audette 28
Leader in assists....Garry Galley 34
Points??.....Derek Plante 53.....yes....53 points.
No Pat Lafontaine....no Alexander Mogilny.....the one star player on the team...
Dominik Hasek.
Sound familiar at all....
This team has some holes....but I have to say....if we add a defenseman like Markov or Andy Sutton to the group we have....we could be in store for another special year at the Coliseum.
As always lets hear your thoughts and I'll hopefully have something else to write about in the coming days....
Tony
Thursday, July 5, 2007
A Day of Redemption
Well....it's not like Ryan Smyth pulled a Michael Nylander and came back to Long Island....but it was definitely a day of redemption.
Islanders GM Garth Snow made 2 very important signings today, getting former All Star winger Bill Guerin and younger playmaker Mike Comrie signed, sealed and delivered. Guerin and Comrie essentially replace Jason Blake and Ryan Smyth in this lineup. Fedotneko will replace Viktor Kozlov....and with most likely promotions of youngsters Jeff Tambellini and Sean Bergenheim coming up....the Isles are looking much more solid up front. Lets take a look at the 2 newest Isles.
Guerin, originally drafted by NJ in the first round, had always been goal scorer....this last season was no different. Playing for both St. Louis and San Jose....Guerin rebounded from a sub par season by scoring 36 goals. Want to hear an interesting fact about Billy Guerin? Right before the trading deadline, the Isles offered a package of young players and a draft pick to St. Louis for Guerin. The Blues went with the deal from San Jose instead of Garth Snow's offer. The package consisted of F's Robert Nilsson and Ryan O'Marra...and the Islanders first round pick in 2007. That was the exact package we offered for Ryan Smyth. So in essence....the Islanders really replaced Smyth...with the guy who they inquired about in the first place.
Mike Comrie....is a highly skilled 26 year old. Comrie shows blazing speed, and a combonation or fantastic passing skills and a deft scoring touch. He has twice scored 30 goals in his career and has also reached the 60 point mark before as well. Comrie's whole problem has been his"attitude" issues. Sometimes a player needs the right coach in the right situation to thrive...and as Ted Nolan showed last year with classic under achivers Viktor Kozlov,Tom Poti and even Alexei Yashin to an extent, that he can get players on the right path.
Now....lets talk about the contracts.
Guerin is signed for 2 years for $9 million. This should be no concern.....since the Islanders are so far under the cap...they could bring in 3 Guerin's and still have some room. Good move giving him the extra year .
Comrie is only signed for one year.....but dont let that alarm you. Nolan and Snow intend to use Comrie on the top line with Guerin and possibily Fedotenko. Comrie is taking on much more responsibility centering that top line. If he is able to handle it....like they think he can.....Comrie will no doubt be offered a 4 or 5 year contract extention before season's end.
All 3 of these moves are outstanding moves by the organization....
Now all the Islander fan can step away from the ledge....
Islanders GM Garth Snow made 2 very important signings today, getting former All Star winger Bill Guerin and younger playmaker Mike Comrie signed, sealed and delivered. Guerin and Comrie essentially replace Jason Blake and Ryan Smyth in this lineup. Fedotneko will replace Viktor Kozlov....and with most likely promotions of youngsters Jeff Tambellini and Sean Bergenheim coming up....the Isles are looking much more solid up front. Lets take a look at the 2 newest Isles.
Guerin, originally drafted by NJ in the first round, had always been goal scorer....this last season was no different. Playing for both St. Louis and San Jose....Guerin rebounded from a sub par season by scoring 36 goals. Want to hear an interesting fact about Billy Guerin? Right before the trading deadline, the Isles offered a package of young players and a draft pick to St. Louis for Guerin. The Blues went with the deal from San Jose instead of Garth Snow's offer. The package consisted of F's Robert Nilsson and Ryan O'Marra...and the Islanders first round pick in 2007. That was the exact package we offered for Ryan Smyth. So in essence....the Islanders really replaced Smyth...with the guy who they inquired about in the first place.
Mike Comrie....is a highly skilled 26 year old. Comrie shows blazing speed, and a combonation or fantastic passing skills and a deft scoring touch. He has twice scored 30 goals in his career and has also reached the 60 point mark before as well. Comrie's whole problem has been his"attitude" issues. Sometimes a player needs the right coach in the right situation to thrive...and as Ted Nolan showed last year with classic under achivers Viktor Kozlov,Tom Poti and even Alexei Yashin to an extent, that he can get players on the right path.
Now....lets talk about the contracts.
Guerin is signed for 2 years for $9 million. This should be no concern.....since the Islanders are so far under the cap...they could bring in 3 Guerin's and still have some room. Good move giving him the extra year .
Comrie is only signed for one year.....but dont let that alarm you. Nolan and Snow intend to use Comrie on the top line with Guerin and possibily Fedotenko. Comrie is taking on much more responsibility centering that top line. If he is able to handle it....like they think he can.....Comrie will no doubt be offered a 4 or 5 year contract extention before season's end.
All 3 of these moves are outstanding moves by the organization....
Now all the Islander fan can step away from the ledge....
Tuesday, July 3, 2007
Good Bye Jason Blake, Ryan Smyth, Viktor Kozlov, Tom Poti, Richard Zednik, Mike Dunham and Alexei Yashin...Hello Jon Sim!
In what is turning out to be a disastrous few days....the Islanders are now in serious trouble. Let me explain....They right now have several holes to fill....and they also are under the minimum cap for this coming season.....way under......about $15 million under and the current cropo of free agents are dwindling fast. There have been rumors that the Islanders are very interested in F's Bill Guerin and Dainius Zubrus and D-man Sheldon Souray....though as of this morning....none have been signed.
In a very interesting article....Greg Logan wrote in this morning's Newsday that it seems that players are turned off but the incredibally old Nassau Veterns Memorial Coliseum.....personally I think that is a bunch of crap....there are arena's that are just as old and beat up as the NVMC....Pittsburgh for example.....think anyone would turn down an opportunity to play in Pitt?....Having Sidney Crosby and playing for Mario Lemiuex definitely makes it more palatable.
At this point the Islanders need to stop making a political issue about the arena (which needs to be replaced without a doubt)...and concentrate and bringing in a player. Start with one player and move on from there....since they need a top forward and a top defneseman.....they probably sign the best one available at this point....Sheldon Souray and Brad Stuart are the top available defenseman. Bill Guerin, Dainius Zubrus, Mike Comrie, Michael Peca, Ruslan Fedotenko, Wes Walz and Brendan Shanahan are the top forwards available. I am concerned by the fact that as players come off the board....for the prices that even I anticipated....(and last time I checked...I'm not a NHL GM)....why is Garth Snow so suprised by the money these players have been awarded so far. Rafalski went for more probably $1 million more than I anticipated....Gomez got a ridiculous deal for a guy who doesn't score.....but in retrospect....Adam Oates was an extremely good player and was only a 20 goal scorer, so the Gomez deal is not that bad. Briere, Drury, Smyth....etc all went for around what was expected. Sheldon Souray has been taking a beating in the Canadian media for his -28 he had this season.....but still scored 26 goals (btw that was more goals than all but 2 Islanders last year...Sillinger had 26 and Blake had 40). A power play with Souray and Marc-Andre Bergeron would be leathal.....throw in forwards like Satan, Tambellini, Hunter and Sillinger....and the Islander Power Play would be among the league's best. The team already has solid stay at home d-men in Radek Martinek and Brendan Witt....so adding Souray would be a good acquisition. Brad Stuart would also be a great move....as he is a better defender than Souray....but is less talented offensively as well.
As for the fowards.....Comrie is a player who has moved around alot....(Edmonton, Philadelphia, Phoenix and Ottawa) in the last 4 years....but is extremely talented and I think would prosper under Ted Nolan. Dainius Zubrus is a big bruising forward how can score and had a very good playoff....his health has always been a question....but he seems to have done a better job of staying healthy recently, the last 2 seasons he has played more than 20 games and scored more than 20 goals both years as well.
Things are looking bleak right now....I wonder what the rule is if the team doesn't spend the money necessary to hit the cap floor....at this point they need to find someone who will TAKE their money....rather than finding someone who they want to give it to.
I dont envy your job right now Garth....
More later.....I hope!
Tony
In a very interesting article....Greg Logan wrote in this morning's Newsday that it seems that players are turned off but the incredibally old Nassau Veterns Memorial Coliseum.....personally I think that is a bunch of crap....there are arena's that are just as old and beat up as the NVMC....Pittsburgh for example.....think anyone would turn down an opportunity to play in Pitt?....Having Sidney Crosby and playing for Mario Lemiuex definitely makes it more palatable.
At this point the Islanders need to stop making a political issue about the arena (which needs to be replaced without a doubt)...and concentrate and bringing in a player. Start with one player and move on from there....since they need a top forward and a top defneseman.....they probably sign the best one available at this point....Sheldon Souray and Brad Stuart are the top available defenseman. Bill Guerin, Dainius Zubrus, Mike Comrie, Michael Peca, Ruslan Fedotenko, Wes Walz and Brendan Shanahan are the top forwards available. I am concerned by the fact that as players come off the board....for the prices that even I anticipated....(and last time I checked...I'm not a NHL GM)....why is Garth Snow so suprised by the money these players have been awarded so far. Rafalski went for more probably $1 million more than I anticipated....Gomez got a ridiculous deal for a guy who doesn't score.....but in retrospect....Adam Oates was an extremely good player and was only a 20 goal scorer, so the Gomez deal is not that bad. Briere, Drury, Smyth....etc all went for around what was expected. Sheldon Souray has been taking a beating in the Canadian media for his -28 he had this season.....but still scored 26 goals (btw that was more goals than all but 2 Islanders last year...Sillinger had 26 and Blake had 40). A power play with Souray and Marc-Andre Bergeron would be leathal.....throw in forwards like Satan, Tambellini, Hunter and Sillinger....and the Islander Power Play would be among the league's best. The team already has solid stay at home d-men in Radek Martinek and Brendan Witt....so adding Souray would be a good acquisition. Brad Stuart would also be a great move....as he is a better defender than Souray....but is less talented offensively as well.
As for the fowards.....Comrie is a player who has moved around alot....(Edmonton, Philadelphia, Phoenix and Ottawa) in the last 4 years....but is extremely talented and I think would prosper under Ted Nolan. Dainius Zubrus is a big bruising forward how can score and had a very good playoff....his health has always been a question....but he seems to have done a better job of staying healthy recently, the last 2 seasons he has played more than 20 games and scored more than 20 goals both years as well.
Things are looking bleak right now....I wonder what the rule is if the team doesn't spend the money necessary to hit the cap floor....at this point they need to find someone who will TAKE their money....rather than finding someone who they want to give it to.
I dont envy your job right now Garth....
More later.....I hope!
Tony
Sunday, July 1, 2007
Black Sunday
July 1st 2007 will go down in NHL history. Thats the day fans realized that the season long NHL lockout was all a joke. Yup....you read it here first....a joke.
Management locked out the players or an entire season, for what....the reasons they gave us schmuck fans was to create parody....make sure the smaller market teams could keep up with the big market ones.....
Lets recap today's events....
Big Winners....
NYR siging Chris Drury and Scott Gomez for a combined $87 million.
Detroit signs Brian Rafalski for 5 years and $30 million dollars.
Philly signs Daniel Briere for 8 years and $52 million dollars.....(thats after they blew away the defenseman market with that ridicilous Kimmo Timonen contract)
Toronto signs Jason Blake for 5 years and $20 million dollars.
Matheiu Schneider to Anaheim for 2 years and nearly $12 million.
Big Losers....
Buffalo....lost their top 2 players with nothing to show for it.
Islanders....the team has lost 6 of their top 18 players in the last 2 weeks....including their future Captain and the former Captain, their leading goal scorer, leader in ice time and additionally a 25 goal scorer.
Devils.....losing probably their top 2 players the summer before they move into a new building.
Teams like Columbus, Nashville, Phoenix, Chicago, the Islanders, Buffalo.....we're just unable to attract any of the top free agent talent....why you ask?....well it's simple.....money
Not that the above teams dont have any.....they just havent been stupid with it.
Lets look at some of the big signings today....
Detroit and Rafalski.....Brian Rafalski is a very good NHL defenseman....he's durable and is a former Stanley Cup winner. Down side is he is 5'10....190lbs....and has never scored more than 9 goals in a season. Yet Detroit gave him an unbelievable 5 year $30 million deal. An average of $6 million per for a a 34 year old.....
Philly and Briere....this deal irks me to no end....why you ask???....well first of all....they are paying him $10 million the first year of his contract. Secondly....the contract has a no movement clause.....(this is something new)....that apparently means that the Flyers can not do ANYTHING to Briere for the next 8 seasons. They can't release him, demote him, trade him, buy him out......NOTHING!
The Rangers coming away with both Chris Drury and Scott Gomez.....the fact that the Rangers can afford to have Jaromir Jagr, Chris Drury, Scott Gomez and Henrik Lundquist is just sheer lunacy.....you have a team like the Penguins that are playing in a building that resembles the Newbridge Road rink....let alone an NHL arena....and the "Salary Cap" allows the Rangers to spend $87 million dollars in the same day.
I honestly believe that someone day in the future the NHL will be again in major financial trouble....and Gary Bettman will be replaced as Commissioner....and then.....and only then will the NHL be able to restore some of the glory it once had.
Now on to the train wreck that is the New York Islanders hockey Club.
This is what the Islanders have at this point.
They have a 2nd line center in Mike Sillinger....a man who has been traded and switched teams more than anyone in league history.
They have some young wingers in Trent Hunter, Jeff Tambellini, and Sean Bergenheim.
They have some young defenseman in Chris Campoli, Bruno Gervais, Freddy Meyer and Radek Martinek.
They have a franchise goalie in Rick DiPietro.
and very little else.....
in one day the Isles lost their potential Captain, Their most steady defenseman, their leading goal scorer, their reclamation project from the scrap heap, and any chance of saving their reputation.
Ryan Smyth, Tom Poti, Jason Blake and Viktor Kozlov are all gone....and pretty much any chance to better last years team also signed with other franchises today.....as formentioned Scott Gomez, Chris Drury, Daniel Briere, Matt Schneider, Paul Kariya....and the list goes on....
The deal that bothers me the most is Kariya.....reason being is....he signed the same contract that we offered to Jason Blake 3 months ago. Paul Kariya would be a better player that Jason Blake if he only had one hand!.....Where was that offer to Kariya?....at 12:01???....once again the Islanders had the opportunity to take a step foward....build on the momentum from last season....(and anyone who watched this team will tell you it was a special year)....and they have totally shot themselves in the foot.
The names that are left on the market...(Todd Bertuzzi, Danius Zubrus, Brad Stuart, Roman Hamrlik, Peter Forsberg, Ladislav Nagy, Robert Lang, Sheldon Souray, Mike Comrie, Bill Guerin, Michael Peca, Bryan Smolinski...etc all have question marks....or one kind or another...either health questions or age questions....
In order to make today be not a total disaster....Snow would need to sign at least 5 of the above players....Guerin, Bertuzzi, Comrie Stuart and Souray for starters....and for good measure....bring Peter Forsberg in and see what he has left. This team has some major holes to fill and Garth needs to fill them ASAP.
I dont blame Garth Snow for the problems they have had today. Snow is obviously a very good judge of talent and a shrewd trader as we saw last season....but the team needs to bring in someone who has an understanding of the financial part of the game to work with him. Cliff Fletcher, Bill Torrey....etc....someone of that stature would be a tremendous help.
I am probably rambling at this point....we'll see what tomorrow brings I guess....
As always your thought are always appreciated...
Tony
Management locked out the players or an entire season, for what....the reasons they gave us schmuck fans was to create parody....make sure the smaller market teams could keep up with the big market ones.....
Lets recap today's events....
Big Winners....
NYR siging Chris Drury and Scott Gomez for a combined $87 million.
Detroit signs Brian Rafalski for 5 years and $30 million dollars.
Philly signs Daniel Briere for 8 years and $52 million dollars.....(thats after they blew away the defenseman market with that ridicilous Kimmo Timonen contract)
Toronto signs Jason Blake for 5 years and $20 million dollars.
Matheiu Schneider to Anaheim for 2 years and nearly $12 million.
Big Losers....
Buffalo....lost their top 2 players with nothing to show for it.
Islanders....the team has lost 6 of their top 18 players in the last 2 weeks....including their future Captain and the former Captain, their leading goal scorer, leader in ice time and additionally a 25 goal scorer.
Devils.....losing probably their top 2 players the summer before they move into a new building.
Teams like Columbus, Nashville, Phoenix, Chicago, the Islanders, Buffalo.....we're just unable to attract any of the top free agent talent....why you ask?....well it's simple.....money
Not that the above teams dont have any.....they just havent been stupid with it.
Lets look at some of the big signings today....
Detroit and Rafalski.....Brian Rafalski is a very good NHL defenseman....he's durable and is a former Stanley Cup winner. Down side is he is 5'10....190lbs....and has never scored more than 9 goals in a season. Yet Detroit gave him an unbelievable 5 year $30 million deal. An average of $6 million per for a a 34 year old.....
Philly and Briere....this deal irks me to no end....why you ask???....well first of all....they are paying him $10 million the first year of his contract. Secondly....the contract has a no movement clause.....(this is something new)....that apparently means that the Flyers can not do ANYTHING to Briere for the next 8 seasons. They can't release him, demote him, trade him, buy him out......NOTHING!
The Rangers coming away with both Chris Drury and Scott Gomez.....the fact that the Rangers can afford to have Jaromir Jagr, Chris Drury, Scott Gomez and Henrik Lundquist is just sheer lunacy.....you have a team like the Penguins that are playing in a building that resembles the Newbridge Road rink....let alone an NHL arena....and the "Salary Cap" allows the Rangers to spend $87 million dollars in the same day.
I honestly believe that someone day in the future the NHL will be again in major financial trouble....and Gary Bettman will be replaced as Commissioner....and then.....and only then will the NHL be able to restore some of the glory it once had.
Now on to the train wreck that is the New York Islanders hockey Club.
This is what the Islanders have at this point.
They have a 2nd line center in Mike Sillinger....a man who has been traded and switched teams more than anyone in league history.
They have some young wingers in Trent Hunter, Jeff Tambellini, and Sean Bergenheim.
They have some young defenseman in Chris Campoli, Bruno Gervais, Freddy Meyer and Radek Martinek.
They have a franchise goalie in Rick DiPietro.
and very little else.....
in one day the Isles lost their potential Captain, Their most steady defenseman, their leading goal scorer, their reclamation project from the scrap heap, and any chance of saving their reputation.
Ryan Smyth, Tom Poti, Jason Blake and Viktor Kozlov are all gone....and pretty much any chance to better last years team also signed with other franchises today.....as formentioned Scott Gomez, Chris Drury, Daniel Briere, Matt Schneider, Paul Kariya....and the list goes on....
The deal that bothers me the most is Kariya.....reason being is....he signed the same contract that we offered to Jason Blake 3 months ago. Paul Kariya would be a better player that Jason Blake if he only had one hand!.....Where was that offer to Kariya?....at 12:01???....once again the Islanders had the opportunity to take a step foward....build on the momentum from last season....(and anyone who watched this team will tell you it was a special year)....and they have totally shot themselves in the foot.
The names that are left on the market...(Todd Bertuzzi, Danius Zubrus, Brad Stuart, Roman Hamrlik, Peter Forsberg, Ladislav Nagy, Robert Lang, Sheldon Souray, Mike Comrie, Bill Guerin, Michael Peca, Bryan Smolinski...etc all have question marks....or one kind or another...either health questions or age questions....
In order to make today be not a total disaster....Snow would need to sign at least 5 of the above players....Guerin, Bertuzzi, Comrie Stuart and Souray for starters....and for good measure....bring Peter Forsberg in and see what he has left. This team has some major holes to fill and Garth needs to fill them ASAP.
I dont blame Garth Snow for the problems they have had today. Snow is obviously a very good judge of talent and a shrewd trader as we saw last season....but the team needs to bring in someone who has an understanding of the financial part of the game to work with him. Cliff Fletcher, Bill Torrey....etc....someone of that stature would be a tremendous help.
I am probably rambling at this point....we'll see what tomorrow brings I guess....
As always your thought are always appreciated...
Tony
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
