Ray Emery is the King of Cool: Everybody Else just Schlumps
8 Comments Published by Sherry on Tuesday, July 31, 2007 at 1:40 PM.
The new Ottawa Senatrs webpage has an update on what Monsieur Emery is doing with his off-season. Apparently it includes hanging out in Hamilton, where Scarlett Ice HQ happens to be located:
RE: “Hamilton’s pretty good that way. People kind of recognize you, but leave you alone, you know? They aren’t too in your face and stuff like that. I was actually going to go to Los Angeles this summer; just because I was there (in the playoffs against Anaheim) and that’s the last thing they’re thinking about, you know what I mean? You can kind of do whatever you want (because) no one cares about the hockey player. But it’s pretty good back home. It’s something that’s different to get used to, but that’s good and bad. Having a long season like we did — it was a bit different towards the end of the year, just being that recognizable in a town like Ottawa.”
Brian McGrattan is also a Hamilton native. I'm sure they should be relatively easy to spot since I'm pretty sure most of the roads here aren't big enough for white Hummers anyways.
Pierre Dorion Added to Scouting Staff
Dorion will be responsible for scouting the amateur ranks in the United States, Canada and Europe. He joins the Senators' organization after spending the previous two seasons as an amateur scout for the New York Rangers.
I Sure Know How to Pick 'Em, Huh?
Redden and Ottawa, the love affair might be over.
He'd like it to be Ottawa, for the 11th consecutive year. He'd like to retain his position as a defenceman with the Senators, where he is the company's highest-paid employee. Why not? It's a good team in a nice city and he has a lot of friends here.
But now he's hearing talk that he's no longer wanted in the capital, and this time it's not coming from an unruly segment of callers to the all-sports radio shows. It's coming from his boss.
"Going into the summer I wasn't contemplating getting traded," Redden said from the west coast yesterday. "I know after this year, it'll be another unrestricted (situation) for me .... I guess we're going to see what they're thinking."
...
Redden probably wouldn't even sign a long-term deal with the Senators even if one was dangled.
After next season, the face of the team could be scarred drastically, as Dany Heatley and Mike Fisher are also eligible to become unrestricted free agents and a guy like Jason Spezza could find himself in possession of an offer sheet as a restricted free agent.
The "it's a great team" reason on the list for wanting to stay is in danger of meeting with an eraser.
"There are a lot of issues going on in Ottawa," said Redden.
Well, that's depressing.
Frankly, there have been trade rumours surfacing around Redden ever since this year's trade deadline considering how much of the payroll he eats up and how he had been underperforming. I wouldn't be surprised if he did get shipped out, but I'm just not yet prepared to see it. I'd imagine with all of the bruised egos that happened as a result of the vetoed trade, Redden would be a lot more flexible with waiving the NTC the next time around.
The thing is, and I've mentioned it before, Redden isn't the type of guy you want to walk away for completely nothing. However, it feels like unless the deal is spectacular, you would rarely get equal return for how well Redden is capable of playing. That's not a good enough reason to base a trade on, but it goes without saying that Murray needs to be cautious about the situation and needs to assess whether or not last season was just a blip on the radar or a telling trend.
Update at 12:38 pm
The Ottawa Senators have avoided arbitration with Chris Kelly and signed him to a new one-year deal. No financial terms yet but this is still incredibly good news that they could get this done before the hearing and Murray reveals that he was effective but a detriment to the team.
Not that Murray would ever say that about Kelly, he has been nothing but useful. Now that the RFAs have been taken care of, how about that forward we so desperately need, Murray?
Labels: chris kelly, front office, hamilton, ray emery, restricted free agents, signings, trade rumours, wade redden
The Ottawa Senators debuted their new website this week. The general layout of the site follows the same format as the other teams around the league. The team sites have also become a lot more integrated with all of those on the NHL network with easy-to-access news from NHL.com and other multimedia features from other teams in the league.
At first glance, I thought it seemed a little messy as there are a lot of boxes and a lot going on, but the tabs at the top actually make everything very easy to find, which wasn't all that different from how the site was before, but it is a lot more visible.
This is part of the press release that accompanied the re-launch:
The previous incarnation of the site featured some more extra multimedia such as behind the scenes video and what not. For fans like me who are located outside of the Ottawa area and has a lot more limited access to Senators media, it was great to be able to access that material from their webpage, although I still found it a bit lacking compared to some other sites. Hopefully, the new market integration will include more material.
The Podcast and Blog Central features probably won't start until the season. Some of the other teams around the league had special blog features written by certain front office personnel or players and I'm looking forward to the Senators joining in on the blogging action.
As for the debut of the new rumoured logo that was leaked a couple of weeks ago, all of the logos on the new website are of the old profile-view of the Senturion and not the main 3/4 view of the logo that were used on the home jerseys, save for the banner at the bottom. It could possible be mean that they are slowly phasing it out to launch the new one, although there hasn't been any word on when or even if there will be a new logo. Guess we'll have to wait in suspense for that!
Seriously, has the season started yet?
At first glance, I thought it seemed a little messy as there are a lot of boxes and a lot going on, but the tabs at the top actually make everything very easy to find, which wasn't all that different from how the site was before, but it is a lot more visible.
This is part of the press release that accompanied the re-launch:
The Senators also announced the introduction of new features this upcoming season using the research from a recent fan survey to gauge interest. The survey polled Senators season ticket holders, ‘Sens Insiders’ members (online newsletter) and the club’s fan base on Facebook.com during the 2007 playoffs and found the following from the more than 7,200 respondents:
* 94% say they are online at least once a day and 58% say they are online for at least 2 hours.
* 75% visit ottawasenators.com at least once a week and 82% subscribe to the weekly newsletter.
* 58% say they are very technically savvy.
* Respondents say their preferred channel of information is still online and email (although wireless channels are a fast-growing platform for the 18 to 34-year-olds).
The club will look to focus on producing unique content and make it available on multiple platforms, as well as increasing fan interaction.
“The majority of fans rely on several sources to obtain information, including places like Facebook,“ said Senators director of website and e-marketing, Isabelle Perreault-Lachapelle. In fact, the survey shows the more technologically savvy the respondent, the more likely he/she is to visit social networking sites. “It was amazing to see a large number of fans come together on Facebook during the playoffs to support the team and create an environment where they could easily share stories, photos, and interact with other fans.
...
New features the club will look to add in consideration of their wired fans this upcoming season include the Sens All Access Podcast, Sens Blog Central, and a text-only version of their news, statistics and standings for access on BlackBerry and cellular phones. The club will also have better integration of video throughout the site and exclusive “Sens TV” programming.
“The key is to think about multiple platforms when creating content to ensure it can be distributed and published in as many channels as possible,” said Perreault-Lachapelle. “For example, when shooting video, make sure it’s available online, in mobile format or as a podcast.”
The previous incarnation of the site featured some more extra multimedia such as behind the scenes video and what not. For fans like me who are located outside of the Ottawa area and has a lot more limited access to Senators media, it was great to be able to access that material from their webpage, although I still found it a bit lacking compared to some other sites. Hopefully, the new market integration will include more material.
The Podcast and Blog Central features probably won't start until the season. Some of the other teams around the league had special blog features written by certain front office personnel or players and I'm looking forward to the Senators joining in on the blogging action.
As for the debut of the new rumoured logo that was leaked a couple of weeks ago, all of the logos on the new website are of the old profile-view of the Senturion and not the main 3/4 view of the logo that were used on the home jerseys, save for the banner at the bottom. It could possible be mean that they are slowly phasing it out to launch the new one, although there hasn't been any word on when or even if there will be a new logo. Guess we'll have to wait in suspense for that!
Seriously, has the season started yet?
Labels: general, ottawa senators, website
There's always Knob Hockey:
This is somewhat news I guess, the Montreal Canadiens have re-signed Michael Ryder to a new one year contract.
And K.Lowe, offer sheet, Dustin Penner. Brian Burke uncharacteristically mad to the shock of everyone.
This is somewhat news I guess, the Montreal Canadiens have re-signed Michael Ryder to a new one year contract.
And K.Lowe, offer sheet, Dustin Penner. Brian Burke uncharacteristically mad to the shock of everyone.
Labels: general boredom, knob hockey, sherry needs a life
"Son, when you participate in sporting events, it's not whether you win or lose, it's how drunk you get."
21 Comments Published by Sherry on Friday, July 27, 2007 at 11:25 AM.
Here at the HQ, we love our Simpson's. It's on a million times a day and I happen to know when every single one of those times are and I rarely miss a viewing. Unless I'm passed out somewhere, but I digress.
In honour of the release of The Simpson's movie [which I get the sneaking suspicion will not be very good but it is still a crime to not see it], the slaves at the HQ have been busy Simpsonizing some of the boys on our beloved Ottawa Senators Squad. See if you can tell who's who and more will come as the weekend progresses.
In honour of the release of The Simpson's movie [which I get the sneaking suspicion will not be very good but it is still a crime to not see it], the slaves at the HQ have been busy Simpsonizing some of the boys on our beloved Ottawa Senators Squad. See if you can tell who's who and more will come as the weekend progresses.
Labels: general boredom, ottawa senators, sherry needs a life, the simpsons
Here at Scarlett Ice, we like to keep a sense of decorum. We don't particularly care about the player's personal lives or who they're boinking as long as it doesn't have anything to do with their play on the ice.
This was sort of too tantalizing to pass up though.
Mike Comrie and Hilary Duff after what can only be an academically stimulating evening
I will rarely say this about him because my snap judgment of Comrie tells me he's probably the playboy type with a gal in every city. But Mike, sweetie, you can do better.
We hope this union lasts for at least the whole season though. Ms. Duff does carry the type of caché that would guarantee the NHL a spot on Entertainment Tonight and Access Hollywood.
Hat tip to Lydia for breaking the story
This was sort of too tantalizing to pass up though.
I will rarely say this about him because my snap judgment of Comrie tells me he's probably the playboy type with a gal in every city. But Mike, sweetie, you can do better.
We hope this union lasts for at least the whole season though. Ms. Duff does carry the type of caché that would guarantee the NHL a spot on Entertainment Tonight and Access Hollywood.
Hat tip to Lydia for breaking the story
Labels: hilary duff, mike comrie, scandal, silliness, tabloid fodder, trashiness
NHL to Other Leagues: See? We've Got Hooligans Too!
8 Comments Published by Sherry on Wednesday, July 25, 2007 at 6:18 PM.
Frustrated with the lack of news the NHL has been making lately, the Staal brothers decided to take some initiative:
Carolina Hurricanes' centre Eric Staal and younger brother, Pittsburgh Penguins' Jordan Staal, were among 14 people arrested in Cook County, Minnesota Monday after the elder Staal's bachelor party got out of hand.
Both brothers were charged with disorderly conduct and obstructing the legal process, while Jordan was also charged with consumption of alcohol while under 21 years of age. Eric's agent, Rick Curran, said he expected the misdemeanor charges to be reduced or dismissed.
According to a statement released by the Cook County Sheriff's office, after the Sheriff's office received complaints about "screaming, yelling and playing loud music," the group of about 20 was warned "multiple times" before it was ordered to leave the resort by Sheriff's deputies, a Minnesota State Patrol trooper and a U.S. Border Patrol agent at 3 a.m. Monday.
"After leaving the property, the group gathered on Highway 61 and began harassing passing motorists," the Sheriff's office said, at which point 14 members of the group were arrested at approximately 4 a.m. Eric Staal was one of 10 people to spend the night in jail.
Thanks, Eric and Jordan. It's very thoughtful of you to give us bored bloggers some news to get us through the off-season. Try harder next time, because it isn't really a night of drunken debauchery unless there's nudity and one of you ends up married to somebody you shouldn't be married to.
Thanks to NHL Fanhouse for the mugs
Labels: crimes, eric staal, high hilarity, jordan staal, scandal
Yesterday I had posted a rough spreadsheet on Bleu, Blanc et Rouge after the Christoph Schubert and Ray Emery contracts came out. The figures used were their annual salaries, not their cap hits so the one up there has been ammended with their cap numbers for a more accurate view of how much space the Senators has under the cap space in the 2007 - 2008 season.
The number I have for Chris Kelly of $1.046 million is just a rough estimate and actually the exact figure that John Muckler had offered Oleg Saprykin before the ghastly business of you know, him getting fired. Kelly made about $750,000 this year and I think he'll be due for a raise but I don't think he'll receive anything over $1.25 million.
There is a strong chance that Niko Dimitrakos, Josh Hennessy and Lawrence Nycholat will end up in Binghamton for next season, meaning their salaries won't count against the cap but I've kept them in their until somebody else takes their place. Looking at the chart, the Senators stil have $3 - $4 million to spend on and the most pressing need will probably be a 2nd line winger to take the sport currently occupied by Shean Donovan.
Donovan is actually a right wing, but I just slotted him where Peter Schaefer used to be. If the Senators can sign another left winger to play the second link, Donovan can drop to the fourth line right wing and Dimitrakos will probably end up in Binghamton. Or, the alternative would be to have Dimitrakos stay on and have Schubert drop back to D, which is what Bryan Murray indicated would like to happen anyways.
Come on mysterious, affordable left winger. Reveal yourself already!
Wade Really Loves Us
The Ottawa Sun is reporting thatWade Redden was approached by Murray about a draft day deal but Redden nixed the idea because of his no-trade clause:
"I had a conversation at the draft, there was a deal I could go with, but (Redden) decided he didn't want to be traded.
"That's what a no-trade (clause) is. At this moment, Wade will be in Ottawa."
Awww, well the loyalty is nice. Marleau would have been nice, but the fact that he sort of petered out during the playoffs isn't all that comforting, although I suppose the good part of that is it could have possibly meant signing him for a cheaper price when it comes to renegotiating a contract. He made $4.5 million last season, which would have given the Senators more salary room since Redden is still making $6.5 million next season. Marleau is set to become UFA at the end of next season.
P.S., If you too would like a spreadsheet for your team, just drop me a comment or an e-mail and I'll gladly churn one out for you. This is what happens when one has too much thinking time at work. That's also why there's a new banner up on the blog, if you haven't noticed. I demand you guys look at it!
Labels: christoph schubert, josh hennessy, ottawa senators, patrick marleau, salary cap, spreadsheet fun, trade rumours, wade redden
I may have jumped the gun a little bit with my doom-and-gloom post from last night. Thanks to some obsessive checking of TSN.ca, it turns out the the Senators have avoided abitration with Ray Emery at the 11th hour:
TSN has learned that the Ottawa Senators and goaltender Ray Emery have avoided salary arbitration by reaching a last minute, three-year contract agreement worth $9.5 million. It is a substantial raise from the $925,000 he earned last season.
Emery is coming off a career season as he replaced Martin Gerber as the number one man between the pipes for the Senators. He helped lead the team to their first Stanley Cup finals appearance in modern history. Emery was 33-16-6 in 58 regular season games with a goals-against-average of 2.47. During the playoffs he was 13-7 with a 2.25 goals-against average.
That works out to be around $3.166666666666 million per season, which is comparable to Cam Ward's contract. Emery was a hard guy to position on the market since technically a) you don't get to the cup final by being a schlump and b) even so, not many people would say he's a top 10 goalie yet.
I hoped the deal could get done and arbitration could have been avoided so as to not have any hurt feelings and cries of: "You said you were my best friend!". The Senators also have RFAs Chris Kelly and Christoph Schubert to worry about but I suspect the attention should shift to retaining Dany Heatley to a new contract as he is set to become UFA next season.
Which means the future cap situation for the Senators looks a little bleak and I know Uncle Eugene is a gajabillionaire but he's also a businessman and I'd rather not the Senators turn into a Frankenteam with all these expensive players like the Rangers [because frankly, who wants to be like the Rangers?]. But keeping the core group would mean a lot of the players taking discounts. And they would do that right? I mean people like playing in Ottawa, right? What's not to love? Right? ...Right?
Update...
The Canadian Press is now reporting it and it's been made official:
'It was a difficult negotiation,'' Emery's agent J.P. Barry told The Canadian Press. ''Bryan and I started pretty far apart but we worked hard to close the gap and were able to do so this morning after Bryan was able to speak with Mr. Melnyk.''
The 24-year-old Emery was a restricted free agent. He will earn $2.75 million next season, $3.25 million in 2008-09 and $3.5 million in 2009-10, for an average of $3.16 million a season, a big raise over the $925,000 he made last season.
He will be an unrestricted free agent at the end of the contract.
Emery emerged as Ottawa's starting goalie last season and led the team to a Stanley Cup final appearance. He went 33-16-6 in the regular season with a 2.47 goals-against average and .918 save percentage. He was 13-7 with a 2.26 GAA and .907 save percentage. Emery has started all 30 of Ottawa's playoff games post-lockout.
The $3.16-million average for Emery eclipses the $2.66-million average salaries from Buffalo's Ryan Miller (signed last summer) and Carolina's Cam Ward and is less than the $4.25-million, one-year deal signed by New York Rangers starter Henrik Lundqvist.
Reports are that Emery turned down a contract that averaged $4 million per season so maybe the contentious issue was that of legnth and bonuses.
According to the math, it puts the Senators at just over $44 million. Kelly and Schubert shouldn't cost more than $2 million - $2.5 million which means the Senators could be looking at adding one or two more players. The Senators ought to look at adding another forward to the mix, assuming that re-signing Lawrence Nycholat was meant to replace Tom Preissing, the Senators should be set on the blue-line although understandably, another bigger, more physical d-man would also help. If the Senators can get another forward signed, Schubert could drop back to D.
Update - 2:19 pm
Progress! Christoph Schubert has just been re-signed to a 3-year deal. Financial terms were not disclosed but I'm sure they'll leak out sooner or later. Now all that's left is Chris Kelly.
Update - 4:45pm
Schubert's contract is for 3 years for $2.65 million which is about $833,333 average per year.
Cross-posted to HLOG. For a spreadsheet view of the Senators' salary situation, go to Bleu, Blanc et Rouge.
Labels: arbitration, ottawa senators, ray emery
By this time tomorrow, the hearing will be done and hopefully we'll know whether or not a "third-party" arbitrator thinks Ray Emery is within the Senators' salary budget.
All indications, including the deal signed by Henrik Lundqvist point to Emery getting something within the $3 - $4 million mark, with many agreeing that Lundqvist and his 2 Vezina nominations are better than Emery. Although, getting to the Cup finals doesn't happen to just any ordinary joe.
I was really hoping arbitration could be avoided, what with talk of all sorts of bitter feelings coming out during the process.
TSN had a video catching up with Emery for a photoshoot he's doing and he says that he's looking forward to staying in Ottawa for a long time, although there are some signs, including ominous pictorial essays that the Senators are ready to walk away from a deal if it proves to be too costly. That seems to be a little troublesome since despite rumblings to the contrary, Murray has expressed no interested in sending Gerber to the minors for the cap-space, and so far there hasn't been any takers on him, which means there is a possibility that Gerber could be the starter again. He's not a bad guy to have on the bench, but I'm certainly not yet convinced he could be a legitimate number one yet.
But all that is speculation. We'll know for sure by the end of tomorrow and the optimism in me is saying that it's possible that he'll come out with something fair, and it would probably be in the team's best interest to extend the deal. Especially since Emery is still fairly young and there's room to grow. Most likely the Senators are next going to concentrate on re-signing Heatley to a long-term extension.
Posting Notice
Traffic has been noticeably, and obviously down lately due to both my lack of posting and the lack of new stuff that's happening around the Senators team lately. My internet has also been a bit batty lately so you'll have to excuse me if posting is rather sporadic. I just finished reading 'Money Players' today and am working on a review for those people who might be interested in reading it. I'll be trying my best to update with whatever I can in the following days so please keep visiting!
Labels: arbitration, dany heatley, martin gerber, ottawa senators, ray emery
I tell myself I have no fond memories of Alexei Yashin. In fact, when most people talk about him I'm tempted everytime to take the "My team had no underachieving Russian Captain" approach. But undoubtedly, the Ottawa Senators and Alexei Yashin will forever be linked. The marriage started off so promising and admittedly the team was in the wrong for always making him play second fiddle to some other guy named Alex[andre] Daigle. They were going to be the team's meal tickets for a new sold-out arena.
If you look at his career stats, he's actually been a pretty consistent player, managing at least 65 points in all but 4 seasons in his 12 years in the League. Although that garish -83 has got to be a record of some sort.
| Stats | |||||||||
| Year | Team | GP | G | A | Pts | +/- | PIM | PPG | PPA |
| 1993-94 | OTT | 83 | 30 | 49 | 79 | -49 | 22 | 11 | 16 |
| 1994-95 | OTT | 47 | 21 | 23 | 44 | -20 | 20 | 11 | 10 |
| 1995-96 | OTT | 46 | 15 | 24 | 39 | -15 | 28 | 8 | 7 |
| 1996-97 | OTT | 82 | 35 | 40 | 75 | -7 | 44 | 10 | 17 |
| 1997-98 | OTT | 82 | 33 | 39 | 72 | 6 | 24 | 5 | 13 |
| 1998-99 | OTT | 82 | 44 | 50 | 94 | 16 | 54 | 19 | 23 |
| 2000-01 | OTT | 82 | 40 | 48 | 88 | 10 | 30 | 13 | 17 |
| 2001-02 | NYI | 78 | 32 | 43 | 75 | -3 | 25 | 15 | 15 |
| 2002-03 | NYI | 81 | 26 | 39 | 65 | -12 | 32 | 14 | 15 |
| 2003-04 | NYI | 47 | 15 | 19 | 34 | -1 | 10 | 3 | 9 |
| 2005-06 | NYI | 82 | 28 | 38 | 66 | -14 | 68 | 10 | 22 |
| 2006-07 | NYI | 58 | 18 | 32 | 50 | 6 | 44 | 5 | 16 |
| Career | 850 | 337 | 444 | 781 | -83 | 401 | 124 | 180 | |
He did a lot for a team that struggled in its early years but unfortunately the most he'll be remembered for by both the Senators and the Islanders' faithful is his reputation for underachieving and money-grubbing. There was the donation to the National Arts Centre that never emerged and the endless contract disputes. He had good reason to want to sit out of his contract when a bust like Daigle was getting more cash than he was but it was a dishonourable move for a team that was already in financial turmoil.
His agent said that he saw less productive players get more money and he didn't want Yashin to be a whipping boy. Fair enough, but it's entirely different when you have the reputation that he has and a buyout on your track record. Despite all of this, I do wish him good luck and hope that he has success with Locomotiv. Despite evidence to the contrary I have heard that off-ice he's a completely decent guy and perfectly nice to fans. Perhaps a year there will help him get his head back in the right place. Maybe.
Labels: alexei yashin, New York Islanders, ottawa senators, russian league
From TSN.ca, Petr Nedved has left the NHL and signed on with a Czech Club for next season:
Veteran centre Petr Nedved has joined Czech champion HC Sparta Prague on a one-year contract, leaving the NHL.
The 35-year-old Czech forward had only 12 points (2-10) in 42 games with the Philadelphia Flyers and Edmonton Oilers. He became an unrestricted free agent July 1.
Nedved has 717 points (310-407) in 982 career NHL games. Nedved had played for Sparta during the NHL's 2004-05 lockout season with 22 goals and 13 assists in 44 games. He also played five games for Sparta during the 1997-98 season when he failed to agree terms on a new contract with the Pittsburgh Penguins.
At one point, the Senators were interested in claiming him off of waivers from Philly, but he eventally got picked up by the Edmonton Oilers.
And breaking news, Eric Lindros is undecided about his playing future because he's 'really wrapped up in the PA situation':
"Right now my focus is the 'PA work," Lindros told The Canadian Press on Wednesday. "I'm not really concerned about the rest of it. But the last couple of years have been pretty frustrating in terms of not getting through without being injury-free. . It's just frustrating."
"I've got an idea of what I'm going to do and I've had that idea ever since the last game of the playoffs," Lindros said. "But right now is about focusing on the 'PA."
Lindros has devoted his entire off-season to helping the union cause. He is on the NHLPA's constitutional review committee - the union is reshaping itself from top to bottom - and he was also among the five players selected to head the search committee for a new executive director along with Chris Chelios of the Detroit Red Wings, Mike Cammalleri of the Los Angeles Kings, Shawn Horcoff of the Edmonton Oilers and Robyn Regehr of the Calgary Flames.
I'm not one to start talking about Lindros' playing ability, after all he was at one point my favourite player when I was a young, misguided child. I've recently read in "Money Players" by Bruce Dowbiggin the full details of the Quebec Nordique fiasco that occurred when he was first drafted thinking that it would make me more sympathetic hearing his side of the story, but nope not really.
The PA situation had been messy for awhile, and while I'd imagine the ideal executive will be the type that caters to the players' every whim and demands, the bigger issue is getting your members to actually care about the state of your membership and the strength of the union. It moves beyond finding somebody who is able to ensure all of the players' demands, but somebody who is also fully aware of the state of the league and is able to effectively communicate that with the members.Again, I may be a litle biased in thinking that what happened in the PA this past year was greatly unfair to certain parties, but it's safe to say that the whole situation could have been avoided had the players paid more attention and actually willingly included themselves in the process. I'm not saying that all of them weren't, but having only a small percentage of your membership that is actually aware of what's going on is not enough.
I am about halfway through "Money Players" by Dowbiggin, a book that chronicles the rise and fall of Bob Goodenow and the state of the NHLPA. It is an extremely well-written and insightful book for those who are interested in the economics of hokey, although it is clear, at least in what I've read so far that Dowbiggin is definitely a huge fan of Goodenow. I'll have a full review of the book once I finish reading it.
In Happier News...
I got a message in my e-mail the other day about the potential re-design of the Ottawa Senators official website. My guess is that it'll be the same format as all of the other team sites that we've seen lately. The new NHL Network is supposed to also give you access to all of the other team's media. It is set to debut this week, maybe we'll even get a chance to see the Senators' potential new logo, which can be previewed over at Bleu Blanc et Rouge. Seeing a non-blurry version of it made me realize that it looks worse than I had first imagined, but not terrible I guess. At least the Senturion no longer looks like his mascara is running or something.
Labels: Eric Lindros, money players, new jerseys, ottawa senators, Petr Nedved
Not Exactly What I Had in Mind: Schaefer for Donovan
12 Comments Published by Sherry on Tuesday, July 17, 2007 at 11:12 AM.
The Senators have pulled the trigger on a trade, sending Peter Schaefer to the Bruins for Shean Donovan
Donovan, 32, netted six goals, added 11 assists and was a minus-13 over 76 games in 2006/07.
The 30-year-old Schaefer had 12 goals with 34 assists and a plus-7 rating over 77 games with the Senators last season. Schaefer had one goal and five assists in his 20 games over the Senators run to the Stanley Cup Final.
Donovan was a second-round pick for the Sharks (28th overall) in the 1993 NHL entry draft.
Yes, Schaefer probably should have been traded for more cap room and for a more productive role player but Shean Donovan? Her? Maybe I'm naive to believe that we could have gotten for Schaefer, but Bryan Murray could have at least tried to get somebody who wasn't -13 and actually got less goals than Schaefer.
I'm actually really going to miss Schaefer. He didn't have the best year or post-season but he did some great things for the team. No matter who we got for him I would have missed him but we all knew the trade had to happen. I just wish we could have gotten somebody better, but perhaps I'm underestimating Donovan. He's certainly a bigger guy, the type that Murray likes but he's never gotten more than 18 goals in the NHL, which doesn't help with the Senators' apparently lack of secondary scoring.
Happy Trails, Schaefer! I'm sure by the 4th time we play the Bruins I'll feel about you the way I feel about Zdeno Chara.
Seriously, Donovan? Her?
Labels: a little bit sad, boston bruins, bryan murray, peter schaefer, shean donovan, trades
Stop the Presses! The Senators Sign Someone!
3 Comments Published by Sherry on Saturday, July 14, 2007 at 12:13 PM.
Two players that were both minor-leaguers for the Washington Capitals and Philadelphia Phantoms. So in other words, extremely insignificant, but heck, beggars can be choosers right now.
Yes, coming down the wire last night, the Senators re-signed defenseman Lawrence Nycholat whom they acquired near the trade deadline for Andy Hedlund and a draft pick from Washington. They also signed free-agent winger Niko Dimitrakos who spent time between San Jose and Philadelphia last season:
Dimitrakos, 28, has played parts of four NHL seasons with the San Jose Sharks and Philadelphia Flyers, most recently with the Flyers where he recorded no points and six penalty minutes in five games during the 2006-07 season. He spent the reason of the season in the AHL.
I'll reserve judgment on Dimitrakos until I've actually seen him play, although the fact that he wasn't good enough to play with the Flyers last season is a little disheartening. He is oft mentioned but rarely seen on the Shark Bytes clips with Drew Remenda when he was with the Sharks.
As for Nycholat, the one game that he did play for the Senators he certainly wasn't terrible but not really anything to write home about. He will most likely be the 6th - 7th defenseman and while I would say he's no replacement for Tom Preissing, having him back in the fold will allow Christoph Schubert more flexibility to swing between forward and defense.
Assuming Schubert will be back with us of course. While I appreciate the few bones Bryan Murray is throwing to us, I think the more pressing concern is to get Ray Emery, Schubert and Chris Kelly re-signed. Schubert and Kelly are key roleplayers on the team and have great chemistry with the rest of the team.
They do deserve big raises. Of course the cheaper they sign for, the better it'll be for the Senators as Jason Spezza, Dany Heatley and Wade Redden will all become UFAs next season. I really hope Murray doesn't hesitate to lock these guys up to long-term contracts before the market inflates once more. Given how things are moving at a snail's pace in the front office these days, I wouldn't be surprised if that doesn't happen until zero hour and after we all collectively have heartattacks at the prospect of these guys walking away.
Posting Notice
Things will be slow here in the next couple of days as Scarlett Ice's Favourite Cousin by Default is getting married tomorrow [Sunday]. Posting should resume around Tuesday of next week. Given how things have been working out lately though, the Senatos will probably make a trade or signing that will SHAKE THE ORGANIZATION TO ITS CORE while I'm gone.
Labels: bryan muray, free agents, lawrence nycholat, niko dimitrakos, ottawa senators, signings
So for those of you who may or may not know, I currently have a gig with a community radio station in Hamilton and on Friday afternoons, I have my own show from 1:00 pm - 3:00 pm [EST] wherein I play all sorts of indie rock. Occassionally, however, I like to interject with some hockey talk. Most of the time I just relay some news that's been going on, it becomes a little harder to have an actual discussion with no co-host.
If you are interested in tuning in and listening, you can livestream the show at our website here. Or, if you're in the Hamilton area, we can be found on 93.3
Keep in mind, I'm certainly not a trained professional or a journalist of any kind. I've just been kindly donated 2 hours of afternoon time on Friday to play what I want and talk about what I want. Hopefully I do a job you guys deem worthy!
Labels: general, miscellaneous, off-topic, radio
Some miscellaney to take you through the morning:
- Henrik Lundqvist doesn't listen to our impassioned plea to screw over the Rangers and has signed an extension with the Blueshirts:
- As per NHL.com, the 2007 - 2007 season schedule will be released this afternoon at 2:00 pm ET
- A good find by Bleu, Blanc et Rouge, the new Senators logo may have been leaked on their official website. It's not that much of a change, it's just a slight retooling of their formerly-alternate-then-official Centurion logo. I have to say, it looks much better but I'm still a fan of the classic, profile view logo.
- Everybody say Happy Birthday to Earl Sleek today!
Labels: 2007-2008, henrik lundqvist, miscellaneous, new york rangers, ottawa senators
For a slow news day, I'm sure going a bit nuts with the posting. Anyways, it turns out our very own Jason Spezza will be the cover boy for the NHL 2K8 game:
“It’s a great honor to be the NHL 2K8 cover athlete,” said Jason Spezza. “The NHL 2K series has always selected some of the best players in the NHL and I’m really excited to follow in their footsteps of representing the finest hockey video game title this year.”
The Canadian-born Spezza was only the third player to represent Canada at the World Junior Hockey Championships as a 16-year old. The first round choice of the Ottawa Senators and second overall pick in the 2001 NHL Draft, his great skills were apparent very early in his career. Reinvigorating the sport with his raw talent and enthusiasm, his magnificent performance in the 2007 Eastern Conference finals against the Buffalo Sabres made him one of the most exciting players in the next generation of NHL stars.
“We are thrilled to have Jason Spezza as our cover athlete for NHL 2K8. Spezza is a player that truly embodies the spirit of hockey which is something that we pride ourselves in with the NHL 2K series,” said Graeme Bayless, President of Kush Games. “We are very pleased to be working with a cover athlete that is such an avid gamer and who is committed to contributing valuable insight to the authenticity and development of the NHL 2K series.”
Hat tip to Kukla!
Labels: jason spezza, NHL 2K8, video games
With all the trade and free agency rumours coming out of Ottawa and the apparent lack of actual stuff happening, I can't help but think this is like the time back in high school where you heard rumours for weeks that Johnny was totally going to ask you to the prom. You know it's going to happen, you just don't know when. But it's already 3 weeks until prom and nothing's happened yet and you wonder if everytime he gets up and walks over to your desk if that'll be the beautiful, magical moment but it turns out he's just asking if he can borrow a pen/eraser/book/stapler.
Not that I would know what that's like...or anything.
The lack of news coming out of Ottawa can't be anything but a little bit disheartening. I'm willing to concede that before Bryan Murray dips into the free agent pool, he ought to try to get Ray Emery signed before the arbitration hearing begins because those handouts can be quite unpredictable. Darren Dreger says that negotiations are set to start mid-week so that's at least progress.
In the interim, Mirtle has been keeping an up-to-date list of available free agents left. Taking a gander at the list, there are certainly some names that the Senators could consider adding although the pickings are quite slim. Taking into account that the current RFAs get re-signed without that much of a salary boost, the Senators could be looking to add one more forward or defenseman.
Meet Alex Rios
I know I promised Jordi I wouldn't talk about baseball here, but I feel like I have to at least throw in a tip of the hat to Alex Rios, who is currently making a strong case for himself to take over the 'Sherry's Baseball Crush' title from Roy Halladay
Rios was the only Jays representative at the MLB All-Star game this year and he put in quite the showing at last night's home-run derby. He had the most homers out of all the batters, 19 in total including 12 in the second round but was defeated by Vladimir Guerrero in the final round. He would have been the first Toronto Jay to win the derby title, but just ran out of steam in the last round.
It's okay, Rios! You've managed to get me temporarily interested in baseball for more than just the 3 minutes it's on Sportscentre before the hockey news, and I'd say that's quite the accomplishment!
Crosby is a Penguin For Life! [Or at least the next 5 years]
Coming just down the wire this morning the Pittsburgh Penguins are set to announce the extension Sidney Crosby's contract:
The contract, which will go into effect after this season, will pay Crosby $45 million over five years. He will be an unrestricted free agent after the 2012-13 season.
Sid's definitely worh the $9 million, considering the market [well maybe in that case you could argue he's under-paid]. I'm surprised the Penguins could only get him for 5-years though. I would have expected something along the lines "until the day you die".
Hat-tip to Meg for the story.
Labels: alex rios, arbitration, baseball, bryan murray, free agency, ray emery, slow news day
On the day where the Senators are actually making significant news, I end up not posting. Oops. My apologies, yesterday I was busy doing my G driver's exam. Which, I failed so the less talk of that the better.
As expected, the Senators named former assistant coach John Paddock as the team's new head coach for next season.
The Ottawa Sun describes the hiring as a safe choice for the Senators:
Paddock and Murray saw eye-to-eye on a lot of issues and Murray has made a point of saying on more than one occasion dialogue between the GM and his coaches is important.
There's a good relationship there, so that should make for a smooth transition for the team.
With the Senators coming off their most successful playoff run in modern history, causing the least amount of disruption is probably the way you want to go.
The team has a very good chance of being contenders once again next season and
hiring Paddock was a smart move as he's already developed relationships with a lot of the guys in the room. He's a key cog in the Senator's coaching staff and knows how to speak with the players. I'll never forget the image of Paddock lecturing Spezza while he was coming off the ice during a penalty-kill where Spezza refused to clear the zone.
Paddock has had head coaching experience before, previously with the Winnipeg Jets. He was also more recently the head coach of the Binghamton Senators in the AHL, so he's coached a lot of the guys on the current squad before.
Paddock joined the Senators as coach in Binghamton in 2002 and coached there for two years. He was named an assistant to Murray three years ago and was co-coach with Dave Cameron in Binghamton during the lockout year.
A native of Brandon, Man., Paddock was coach of the Winnipeg Jets from 1991-95 and GM from 1994-96.
Playing in the tough Smythe Division, the Jets had a 106-138-37 record with Paddock behind the bench.
I don't know if the losing record should be an area of concern, but I suppose it largely depends on the squad you have on the bench. The one area I may be a little concerned with is how the transition will be going from assistant to head coach and whether or not it disrupts the dynamics in the room. But the fact that he was the bench boss in Binghamton helps and it won't be that much of a change.
There was talk of Randy Cunneyworth being a finalist and with Greg Carvel returning as an assistant, Cunneyworth may still be in the running to take over for Paddock's now vacated assistant's position:
Cunneyworth might still be part of the Senators' staff before all is said and done and that would be a solid move.
With Greg Carvel already set to return as one of the assistants, it would make sense for Murray to leave the open assistant's job to be filled with a man of Paddock's choice.
Cunneyworth would be a good pick, but the Senators are going to have competition. It's believed the Coyotes and the Panthers both have a strong interest in bringing Cunnyworth on board as an assistant.
Panthers coach Jacques Martin coached Cunneyworth when they were both with the Senators.
The Coyotes offer Cunneyworth the chance to work with Wayne Gretzky.
True. But nothing against Phoenix but it's Phoenix. From what I've heard about Cunneyworth though, he's a very good developmental coach and not that great at managing the bench so perhaps giving him some experience as an assistant would be a good way to go. He did an amazing job with the Rochester Americans this season, especially in preparing them to make the transition to the NHL whenever they were called up.
Either way, it's good to know at least that Murray can now focus on somehow finding cap space to add some more parts to this Senators squad. The core will most likely stay the same, but it goes without saying that the Senators still have some holes it needs to fill. My hope is that Murray can get the RFAs signed before the arbitration hearings start July 20th. The whole arbitration process isn't exactly friendly and credit to John Muckler for managing to avoid arbitration with all of our RFAs last year. And boy, was there a lot.
Speaking of Muckler, he had interviewed for a position with the Toronto Maple Leafs to serve as a senior hockey advisor to JFJ. Interestingly enough, he was offered another position within the Senators organization but he declined, which I assumed was because he wanted a GM position elsewhere, or the position just wasn't flashy enough. Or, maybe money really does talk.
Suicide Watch: Oilers Nation
So in a move which I can only describe as "extreme desperation", Oilers GM Kevin Lowe upped an offered Sabres RFA Tomas Vanek an offer sheet which works out to be for 7-years and $50 million. No, that is not a typo.
My first reaction was "Really? Vanek" Her?". Nothing against Vanek, he's got tremendous talent and skill but for that kind of contract? Asides from that, I don't have much to add on it so I suggest you going here, here, here and here for reactions from both sides of the ledger.
Labels: bryan murray, edmonton oilers, john muckler, john paddock, what the heck?
Which is why, asides from maybe one report out of the Ottawa Sun today, the only Senators news as of late is talking about how generally, extremely screwed the team is with trying to fit everything under the salary cap. It's expected that all 3 of the Senators RFAs, Ray Emery, Christoph Schubert and Chris Kelly are all planning on filing for arbitration today.
Goaltender Ray Emery, forward Chris Kelly and forward/defenceman Christoph Schubert -- all restricted free agents -- will eat up more than half the available cap space, leaving Murray with probably about $3 million to play with, some of which has to be saved as an injury float.
I've only done the preliminary math on this, but the Senators have $41 million committed to just 16 players for next season. It's expected that Emery is asking for a deal similar to the one Cam Ward received last year, somewhere along the lines of 3-years for $8 million. However, looking at the deal recently signed by Vesa Toskala with the Leafs, if Emery does make it to arbitration, he could be looking at a pay-cheque upwards of $4 million.
It doesn't leave the Senators with a lot of options, since Murray hasn't had much success with trading Martin Gerber, Joe Corvo or Peter Schaefer. The tricky part is even if he is successful in unloading them, whether or not he'll get what he wants in return. Given the market for defenseman, Corvo despite his faults still has a lot of upside and his $2.5 million might seem like a bargain for some teams.
The Ottawa Sun is suggesting an idea that I've toyed with in terms Gerber, if the Senators are unsuccessful in trading him. It is a possibility to send Gerber down to Binghamton and bury his salary in the AHL:
While it's still two months to training camp, Senators GM Bryan Murray could be toying with the idea of sucking up Martin Gerber's $3.7 million (all terms US) salary and sending him to the club's AHL affiliate if Murray is unable to trade him.
While the Senators would still be on the hook for Gerber's salary if they sent him to Binghamton, it wouldn't count against the $50.3-million salary cap.
If Gerber's contract is off the books, it would allow the Senators to make moves in the NHL's free-agent market.
It's not a bad idea and makes sense from a business perspective. I feel sorry for Gerber and I genuinely like the guy and feel like he's been a great team player so demoting him to the AHL might not be a great morale move, but as a goaltender you want to go where you actually get playing time.
From the business perspective, I would have to do more digging through the CBA to figure out what the cap implications would be if Gerber were to start out the season in the AHL and what would happen if he does eventually get called up. I can understand Murray wanting to play it safe with Gerber while the Emery contract situation is still being sorted out. However, the Senators would be taking a huge risk by deciding to go with Gerber as their number 1 should the Emery situation not work out. If the decision is to bring back both, the Senators would most likely be committing over $8 million to their goaltenders.
The Sun also reported on the situation with UFA Mike Comrie:
Comrie has expressed an interest in returning to Ottawa, but the Senators have told his agent, Ritch Winter, they need to move salary out before that can happen.
The Islanders, Sabres and Kings have all expressed an interest in Comrie, who would be willing to take less money to stay in Ottawa. The Isles are pressing Comrie to take their deal.
I liked what Comrie added to the Senators squad last season and despite his reputation, I feel like he did find a place with the team. However, I'm not overly committed signing him if it means we could use his salary to sign somebody like Bill Guerin, who brings something the Senators might have a more pressing need for. As far as I know, Guerin is looking for a salary of around $4 million and there are quite a number of teams interested.
Despite the doom and gloom of things, I'm holding onto the hope that Murray will be able to pull some sort of rabbit out of the hat and get something done. I'm completely comfortable if this team doesn't see too many changes, but the goaltending situation has to be sorted out. The Gerbatross contract eats up space, but he's a reliable enough back-up to have since none of the prospects in Binghamton are actually NHL ready.
Speaking of Prospects...
The Development Camp wrapped up yesterday with a 3-on-3 tournament won by Team Black which comprised of: Danny Bois, Eric Condra, Eric Gryba and Matt McIlvane. The Senators' first round draft pick in 2006, Nick Foligno was the stand-out among the prospects:
"You can see he's got quicker hands, he's more confident. He's stronger," said Murray. "The (Wolves) at the end of the year had good success and those are the things that help guys mature and develop."
"This year, I want to make a name for myself and try to crack the roster," said Foligno. "I'm going to give myself every chance this summer by working hard."
[snip]
Goaltender Brian Elliott, who led Wisconsin to the NCAA championship a couple of years ago, was sharp yesterday and won the goaltending competition.
The Sun also gave an update on highly touted defensive prospect Brian Lee:
Lee, who left the University of North Dakota after two years, signed a contract Tuesday and will be at camp this fall.
"He's put on some weight. He's not quite the baby face he was," said Murray. "He's coming out early. He's a big, rangy kid, he skates really well, he's got hands. Is he strong enough? Has he developed enough? That's the thing."
With Wade Redden slated to become UFA next summer, I'm hoping if the Senators can't get him back under contract for a reasonable price that Lee will be ready in time. Lee recently signed a two-year entry-level with the Senators and is expected to challenge for a spot on the roster next season although it's expected he'll start out in Binghamton.
The Coaching Situation
The sun also has an update on the Head Coach position and it's expected there will be a decision in the next couple of days. Which is what they said last week, but these things take time. I'd imagine Murray has a lot on his plate to deal with right now
Murray said yesterday he has a meeting today with a candidate -- believed to be former Senators captain Randy Cunneyworth -- and is nearing the end of the interviewing process.
Murray, who was on hand yesterday for the final day of the Senators' prospects development camp at the Bell Sensplex, said he hopes to have his coaching staff finalized in the next few days.
Also looking on at the Sensplex yesterday was John Paddock, an assistant to Murray last season and believed to be the leading contender for the head-coaching position.
Assistant coach Greg Carvel will return next season as well.
Cunneyworth is highly regarded -- it's rumoured the Coyotes are also interested in him -- after pumping out well-prepared prospects with the Sabres' AHL farm team in Rochester.
Also taking in yesterday's 3-on-3 wrapup tournament was new Senators assistant GM Tim Murray and new director of player personnel Brent Flahr.
Tim Murray -- Bryan's nephew -- will also be the GM of the Senators' AHL team in Binghamton, an important consideration because morale and depth on the farm have both suffered lately.
Flahr was a scout with the Ducks last season.
To end on a happier note, the prospects also attended a cooking class. See what good care the Senators take with their kids?
Labels: brian lee, free agency, general, martin gerber, nick foglino, off-season, prospects, ray emery
What? It's Free Agency Time?
9 Comments Published by Sherry on Wednesday, July 04, 2007 at 10:48 AM.
Day 3 of NHL Free Agency wasn't as exciting as Day 1, and I was privy to all of the action as I help live-blogged the goings-ons over at Bleu, Blanc et Rouge. It was quite fun and I got some great e-mails from people just wanting to talk hockey.
Free agency time really is a strange time. We're all hungry for information that we take the rumour-mongering to an extreme. We have 10 different pages open that we furious refresh one after the other and we begin to look for information in the most unlikely places. Like when a player is added to the team's roster page before a signing is even announced, as was the case with Dainius Zubrus going to the Devils.
As expected, the Ottawa Senators haven't yet made a big splash. There just isn't enough money in the pot right now to sign a top tier free agent, with Ray Emery still needing to get under contract. Emery has already filed for arbitration and he's expected to make around $4 million, which is a considerable pay-raise from the $975,000 he made last season.
As far as rumours are concerned, the Senators are still trying to shop Martin Gerber, Peter Schaefer and Joe Corvo, although with Tom Preissing signing with L.A., Murray might be more inclined to keep Corvo around and look for a cheaper defenseman to replace Preissing. The Senators are still keen to re-sign Mike Comrie, although around 8 other teams have shown interest in Comrie and if Murray can't clear cap room for him soon, it's most likely that he'll walk.
The Senators are also reportedly interested in Slava Kozlov although it looks like the Dallas Stars are closer to signing him and he's looking for something in the $5 - $6 million range. There has been rumours of the Senators also being interested in Peter Forsberg and Bill Guerin. As far as I know, the Senators are more serious about acquiring Guerin than Forsberg, which I think is the safer choice. Forsberg had minor surgery last week and it's not sure when he will be ready to return. Guerin's style would be a good fit for the Senators, plus he doesn't come with the added "I-have-to-hold-my-breathe-that-you-don't-break-everytime-you're-on-the-ice" factor.
So while we patiently await the big signing that'll actually convince me that Murray won't take the Muckler "I'll nap through most of it" approach to personnel, Murray has decided to sign some younger talent to bolster the farm club, signing forwards Danny Bois, Jim McKenzie and Matt Carkner to new two-year deals. He also signed golden boy Brian Lee to an entry-level contract. Terms were not disclosed:
Bois, 24, spent the 2006-07 season with the Binghamton Senators, scoring 14 goals and adding 13 assists while leading the team with 153 penalty minutes. The Thunder Bay, Ont., native made his National Hockey League debut during the 2006-07 season with Ottawa, playing in one game and recording seven penalty minutes.
McKenzie, 23, was Ottawa's first fifth-round draft pick (141st overall) in the 2004 entry draft. The St. Paul, Minn., native spent last season with the Michigan State Spartans of the Central Collegiate Hockey Association. McKenzie set career highs in goals (12), assists (18), points (30), while adding 56 penalty minutes.
Carkner, 26, signs with the Senators after spending last season with the Pittsburgh Penguins' American Hockey League affiliate, the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. In 75 games with the Penguins, he scored six goals and added 24 assist for 30 points while recording 167 penalty minutes.
Lee was a highly touted prospect when the Senators first drafted him but his stock has fell a bit since then. He was on the American World Junior's squad this year but wasn't that much of a factor. I suppose the biggest question on everybody's mind is...is that his natural hair colour? Because man, he really is a golden boy if it is.
On the head coaching front, the Ottawa Sun is reporting that current assistant coach John Paddock is the front runner for the job although Randy Cunneyworth is also a candidate for the job:
Current assistant coach John Paddock is still believed to be the leading candidate for the head coaching position and assistant Greg Carvel will return.
Former 67's captain Randy Cunneyworth is ready to leave the Sabres organization and is a candidate to join the Senators' staff.
Dale Hunter, head coach of the London Knights, is not in the Senators' picture.
In other news Our dear Vesa gets a two-year sentence.
Just for Fun
If you guys are getting tired with all the furious refreshing and need something to entertain yourself for a couple of minutes, try this "Which NHL Team Are you Quiz" my friend sent me.
I've taken this quiz twice and I still got the same answer. I don't think the Senators are even one of the results. Way to stick the knife in further, universe.
Which NHL Hockey team are You?
The Anaheim Ducks. You're the best team in the NHL but no one takes time to notice becuase you're in Southern California and you were founded by Disney. Keep playing your gritty defensive game, fighting when you have to and adding a dazzling display of speed and ability and you'll make people notice you.
Take this quiz!
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Labels: brian lee, bryan murray, general boredom, off-season, prospects, rumours, signings, silliness, vesa toskala
So while it was totally realistic for me to live blog the Free Agent Frenzy that was yesterday, given I spent most of my Canada Day in front of the computer clicking 'refresh', it did start off a bit slow. In any case, it did eventually pick-up, and there's no shortage of heartbreak and heartache around the hockey blog-o-sphere. Be sure to send flowers and chocolate and offer a shoulder to cry on. Here's the wrap-up of the first day of festivities:
1:47pm et
Atlanta Thrashers sign C Todd White to four-year, $9.5 million contract.
2:17pm et
Washington Capitals sign D Tom Poti to four-year, $14 million contract.
2:49pm et
Anaheim signs defenceman Mathieu Schneider to a two-year deal paying him $5.5 million and $5.75 million.
3:48pm et
Daniel Briere has signed with the Philadelphia Flyers for eight years and $52 million. The deal includes a no movement clause.
3:57pm et
Calgary signs defenceman Cory Sarich to a five year, $18 million deal worth an average of $3.6 million per year.
4:01pm et
Defenceman Brian Rafalski agrees to a five year, $30 million contract with the Detroit Red Wings.
6:03pm et
The Tampa Bay Lightning have signed unrestricted free agent right winger Michel Ouellet to a two-year deal worth $1.2 million and $1.3 million.
7:32pm et
The Toronto Maple Leafs have signed winger Jason Blake to a five-year deal worth $20 million.
7:34pm et
The New York Rangers have signed forward Scott Gomez to a seven-year deal worth $51.5 million.
7:47pm et
The New York Rangers have signed forward Chris Drury to a five-year deal worth $35.25 million.
8:21pm et
The Pittsburgh Penguins have signed G Dany Sabourin to a two-year deal worth $1.025 million.
8:22pm et
The Colorado Avalanche have signed D Scott Hannan to a four-year deal worth $18 million.
11:05pm et
The Colorado Avalanche have signed winger Ryan Smyth to a five-year deal worth $31.25 million.
11:48pm et
The St. Louis Blues sign winger Paul Kariya to a three-year, $18 million contract.
News and Notes...
- The Montreal Canadiens were very active in the Ryan Smyth sweepstakes as were the Toronto Maple Leafs, but Smyth opted to head back out-west.
- Most of the Canadian teams were fairly quiet. As expected, the Senators didn't have all that much room to make a splash. Oleg Saprykin has been allowed to test the market as he did not sign the qualifying offer sent by John Muckler before he was fired. They are still trying to shop Martin Gerber, Joe Corvo and Peter Schaefer. In between that and finding a new head-coach and resigning, Ray Emery, Christoph Schubert and Chris Kelly, I'm wondering when Bryan Murray has any time to sleep.
- Apparently, Kevin Lowe sent out DVDs to potential free agents, telling them why they should come to Edmonton. James Duthie pointed out that hopefully none of the players watched them until noon yesterday as that could be seen as tampering.
- The day yesterday ended on a sour note for me to see that Kariya is heading to the Blues. I was expecting him to stay out west, but going to the Blues probably means he did it mostly for the money. The Blues are in a good spot to be a contender maybe in a couple of years, but as of now they are still in a rebuilding phase and I don't see them making the playoffs for at least another season or two.
- Signing wise, the Oilers didn't make that much of a splash but they did make a big trade, shipping Jason Smith and Joffrey Lupul to the Flyers for Geoff Sanderson, Joni Pitkanen and a '09 Draft Pick.
Joffrey Lupul
Season Totals: 2006-07 81GP 16G 12A 28PTs -29 45PIM
Jason Smith
Season Totals: 2006-07 82GP 2G 9A 11PTs -13 103PIM
Geoff Sanderson
Season Totals: 2006-07 58GP 11G 18A 29PTs -16 44PIM
Joni Pitkanen
Season Totals: 2006-07 77GP 4G 39A 43PTs -25 88PIM
While I'm not surprised to see Lupul shipped out, the reception to their Captain being traded as well is definitely not sitting well with Oilers nation. Not to mention they also lost Petr Sykora and his chinchilla to the Pittsburgh Penguins. Lupul needed to leave, he had a horrendous year on a team that also didn't have a terrific season and not everybody is capable of playing with the added hometown pressure. Whether or not he'll be able to resurrect his career in a Philly team that is also trying to rebuild remains to be seen. He has the offensive talent to do it, what it might come down to is his willingness and his work ethic.
The Oilers are also reportedly in the Michael Nylander hunt and could be close to a deal. It's expected that the Rangers would let Nylander walk after they got a little trigger happy in reeling in Gomez and Drury. Which puzzles me since Nylander has proven he's able to accomplish the difficult task that is playing with Jaromir Jagr.
Given the length of these contracts, I can't imagine them doing anything but handycapping the team in the future. The Salary cap has been rising over the past 3 seasons, but I can't imagine it being able to go up any further in the future. The revenues were reportedly somewhere in the $2 billion range, but that was based on the fact that the teams had to raise ticket prices overall in order to compensate for declining attendance.
Some News to Start off Day 2...
1:02am et
The Pittsburgh Penguins signed defenceman Darryl Sydor to a two-year, $5 million contract.
1:18am et
The Pittsburgh Penguins signed winger Petr Sykora to a two-year contract.
11:57am et
Forward Bates Battaglia has signed a two-year deal with Toronto worth $650,000 per season.
The Nashville Predators have signed free-agent forward Jed Ortmeyer to a two-year contract worth $1.5-million.
If you haven't already, please vote for us over at the Blogger's Choice Awards!. Hope everybody is enjoying their holiday Monday. This space will be updated with the Senators' salary situation later on.
Labels: edmonton oilers, free agency, free agents, general, new york rangers, ottawa senators, philadelphia flyers
To my fellow country men and women...
I hope you guys have a wonderful day celebrating our Nation's birthday. Whether it be with family, friends, by the lake at the cottage or just inside taking in the free agent 'frenzy', which has ended up being more or less a dull roar, I hope you guys have a wonderful weekend. What better way to celebrate all things Canadian than obsessing over hockey in July?
I hope you guys have a wonderful day celebrating our Nation's birthday. Whether it be with family, friends, by the lake at the cottage or just inside taking in the free agent 'frenzy', which has ended up being more or less a dull roar, I hope you guys have a wonderful weekend. What better way to celebrate all things Canadian than obsessing over hockey in July?
HAPPY CANADA DAY!
Labels: free agency, general, holiday, off-topic
