The Official NHL Offseason Thread

[Guest Olympic Slam]

I just remembered something. Didn't Khabby have a bit of a spat with Tortetella at the end of the 2003 playoffs? This sort of resulted in Khabby getting benched in favor of Grahame. I think Tort even came out and said something along the lines of "Grahame is just as good, we can win with him." I know a cup win erases a lot of ill feelings, but you gotta believe that this came into play when Khabby left for Chicago. I think the job is Grahame's to lose. Also, with the new pad restrictions, I wouldn't get all excited or down on any particular goalie. Its a whole new ball (puck) game now.

[smh810 0]

I just remembered something. Didn't Khabby have a bit of a spat with Tortetella at the end of the 2003 playoffs? This sort of resulted in Khabby getting benched in favor of Grahame. I think Tort even came out and said something along the lines of "Grahame is just as good, we can win with him." I know a cup win erases a lot of ill feelings, but you gotta believe that this came into play when Khabby left for Chicago. I think the job is Grahame's to lose. Also, with the new pad restrictions, I wouldn't get all excited or down on any particular goalie. Its a whole new ball (puck) game now.

 

 

Youre close Olympic Slam, he didnt get benched because of a spat with Torts but because of poor play particularly in the NJ series. His benching however did cause a summer-long feud between Khabibulin and Torts. It also caused rampant speculation that the No.1 goalie job was open for the 03-04 season since Grahame played very well in a 3OT loss against the Devils. Grahame also almost won the starting job in the middle of the following season because of Khabibulin's inconsistency. Obviously, Bulin won when it counted so it didnt matter in the end. I dont think he left though because of a feud with Torts. Nikolai has always been a money-grabber first and I think that was the case here.

 

With respect to your comment about the pad restrictions, I dont Grahame would be affected by that caue he wasn't a cheater when it comes to that stuff and has good movement and positioning.

[Guest Olympic Slam]

With respect to your comment about the pad restrictions, I dont Grahame would be affected by that caue he wasn't a cheater when it comes to that stuff and has good movement and positioning.

 

 

Exactly. I wouldn't get too up or down about Khabibulin leaving. If I were a GM (like in Carolina or any goalie depleted city) I would invite four backup or young minor league goalies to camp. Someone in there might be perfectly suited for the new NHL at a bargain price.

[TheOriginalOrangeGoblin 0]

Ziggy Palffy has signed in Pittsburgh.

 

Lemieux, Crosby, Gonchar, Malkin, Palffy, Recchi etc., now that's an offensive juggernaut.

[The Czech Republic 0]

Yeah, in 1996

[CanadianChris 0]

Hejduk resigned with Colorado, Rick Nash resigned with Columbus. Both 5-year deals.

[TheOriginalOrangeGoblin 0]

1996? Out of those only Recchi is severely past his prime. Well Mario too but even past his prime he's awesome.

[Guest Olympic Slam]

Ziggy Palffy has signed in Pittsburgh.

 

Lemieux, Crosby, Gonchar, Malkin, Palffy, Recchi etc., now that's an offensive juggernaut.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

 

There's something fishy going on. How come teams like the Penguins, Oilers, Blue Jackets, Islanders and Blackhawks are all of the sudden acquiring big name talent? Weren't these the teams who were crying foul for a new CBA so that they could compete with the big spending big market teams? Shouldn't these teams be just as poor as ever? All teams should now be equally "poor" rather than equally rich. Where did these teams magically get more money? Pronger in Edmonton? Kariya in Nashville? The poor Penguins even made a legit pitch for Forsberg. Something isn't quite right here.

[CanadianChris 0]

All those teams were keeping budgets low and banking extra money in the seasons leading up to the lockout, so they could do exactly what they're doing now.

 

The big market teams, for the most part, don't have nearly as much flexibility under the cap, either, so they're limited in their ability to go after the big names. They have to go somewhere, so the smaller teams are able to grab them.

 

The Blackhawks shouldn't really be thrown in there, either, because they make OK money, but their owner is the biggest tightass in the league (even more than Jeremy Jacobs).

[the max 0]

Of the Pens, Oil, Jackets, Isles and Blackhawks:

 

Pens were the worst team in the NHL for most of the last five seasons or so. So, they had most of their players playing for peanuts for 2-3 year contracts that made them UFAs this offseason, thus clearing their minimal salaries off the books. Since they only really had M-A Fleury and Mario under contracts that paid any money, it's no wonder that they're able to offer good contracts.

 

The Oil were in the same boat; Small market team with little to woo free agents other than a rich history in hockey. Had to rely on their farm system to produce stars that priced themselves out of town. They held on to a few good players and saved by getting excellent players for practically nothing.

 

The Jackets were an expansion team a few years ago. They had maybe four above-average players on their team in the last season (Nash, Zherdev, Denis, and if you want to stretch Cassels). But now, they find themselves in the same boat as the other smaller market teams; Big market clubs have to cut players to get under the cap. Therefore, Adam Foote can sign in Columbus.

 

The Isles are a poor example, as they're still under Yashin's atrocious contract. They lost Aucoin, they could lose Hamrlik to UFA, Jonsson has indicated that he won't be coming back to play in the NHL, and all they've really done is trade away Mike Peca and sign Miro Satan.

 

The Blackhawks are a perfect example of the CBA coming into effect. Their owner sucks, refused to spend money on his team because he didn't see anyone coming out to support players with inflated salaries. Now, he's signed two above-average defensemen (Aucoin and Jaro Spacek) one average veteran player (Lapointe) and a Stanley Cup winning goaltender (Khabibulin). All because now, salaries are down and he actually has a chance to build a winner.

[Guest Olympic Slam]

With the exception of the Penguins getting ticket sales boosts from Crosby, I can't see where all this money is coming from for teams like Edmonton and the Islanders to suddenly afford these players. Shouldn't Pronger still cost too much for the Oilers? Even with a cap, some cities like Detroit and Toronto are always going to have a bigger pool of money than Nashville or the Alberta teams.

Its like going to an auction where there's a $1,000 bidding limit per item. Even if everyone follows that rule, you'll still get left in the dust if you only bring $400 with you.

[CanadianGuitarist 0]

Mark my words.

 

Florida will be making the playoffs this year.

 

You heard it here first.

[Vigo 0]

The Oilers' budget is in the $33-35 million range this season. Many of the other teams including Detroit, Colorado etc. will be in this range as well as no one's sure what the cap is going to be next offseason. The NHL is going to take a hit this season so many people expect the cap to drop down from the $39 million its currently sitting at. Rather then risk losing players next year due to a lower cap, a lot of teams are going to be operating a couple million under it this season.

 

The past couple seasons I'd say the Oilers player budget was in the low $30 million range. The reason that they can now afford players like Pronger is the simple fact that there is a cap. Teams like the Red Wings or Rangers can no longer stock up on the big name players like in years past. The big name talent will now be spread out so every team should at least have one marquee name.

 

As some of the previous posters mentioned many teams have been preparing for this and it's clear who was prepared (Oilers, Bruins, etc.) and who wasn't (Maple Leafs). This offseason many of the big spending clubs have their hands tied. I expect them to come back strong next offseason when they get their budgets under better control but this offseason clearly belongs to the small market teams.

[nl5xsk1 0]

I have to make one admission, which is difficult for me because I've been hyper-critical of MOC and the Bruins for signing (& overpaying for) players like Leetch & Zhamnov.

 

I'm personally very psyched that Murray was re-signed. He was (I think) the highest scoring FA out there ... if he hadn't been a Bruin last year, and was signed as a new addition to the team, I'd be jumping for joy.

 

So, for all the negativity I've been aiming at MOC, I do have to give him credit for bringing Muzz back.

 

Having said that, expect nothing but negativity from me until Joe and Sammy are signed (or traded for equal value!)

[TheOriginalOrangeGoblin 0]

Florida will be making the playoffs this year.

 

You heard it here first.

Not really, I called that the second Martin became their coach.

[smh810 0]

Its official Wayne Gretzky will coach the Coyotes.

[Guest Ether]

Ziggy Palffy has signed in Pittsburgh.

 

Lemieux, Crosby, Gonchar, Malkin, Palffy, Recchi etc., now that's an offensive juggernaut.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

 

There's something fishy going on. How come teams like the Penguins, Oilers, Blue Jackets, Islanders and Blackhawks are all of the sudden acquiring big name talent? Weren't these the teams who were crying foul for a new CBA so that they could compete with the big spending big market teams? Shouldn't these teams be just as poor as ever? All teams should now be equally "poor" rather than equally rich. Where did these teams magically get more money? Pronger in Edmonton? Kariya in Nashville? The poor Penguins even made a legit pitch for Forsberg. Something isn't quite right here.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

The answers are easy. First, as CanadianChris said, those teams (at least the Penguins) were preapring for this day. Second, and more importantly, the cap is driving salaries down. I'm sure many of the players signing contracts in the $3-4 million per year range would have been making $7-9 million range if the old system was still in place. Couple that right now with the fact that some teams can't bid because of cap restraits, you can see why the "poor" teams can afford these players, which is what the new system is supposed to do.

[CanadianChris 0]

Its official Wayne Gretzky will coach the Coyotes.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Well, it's certainly an improvement over Rick Bowness. Then again, I think I would be an improvement over Rick Bowness.

[CanadianGuitarist 0]

Florida will be making the playoffs this year.

 

You heard it here first.

Not really, I called that the second Martin became their coach.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

My apologies then.

 

I did have a reason for

You heard it here first.

 

My first year of college, I did a column why I thought the Leafs would win the Cup(and mind you, this was before Nolan, Wesley, Gilmour, Francis and Leetch came to town).

 

My professor decided to add "you heard it here first" as a final line. Now, you'll recall the Leafs lost 6-1 to get knocked from the playoffs the very fucking day after my column saw print.

 

For about a month, when anyone did anything, I would be told "I'm going to the bathroom, you heard it here first".

 

But it was two years ago, so it's not annoying anymore.

[CanadianGuitarist 0]

On topic, Red Baron said something to me this morning about Leclair signing somewhere. Can anyone confirm/deny this?

[Kapoutman 0]

I just put on the 24/7 sports channel and there is no scroll or news of Leclair siging anywhere.

[CanadianChris 0]

Checked TSN, Sportsnet, Team 1200, and TheScore. No news whatsoever on Leclair.

[CanadianChris 0]

Chris Osgood is back in Detroit. The Red Wings signed him for one year, $900K.

 

I'm guessing they signed him to back up Legace, because that sure isn't starting goaltender money.

[LaParkaMarka 0]

Apparently Richard Park has been signed by Vancouver. Pretty weird signing for a team that needs 5th and 6th defensemen and has very little cap room. Expect some kind of trade involving Vancouver.

[CanadianChris 0]

Also in Canucks news, Todd Bertuzzi's suspension has been lifted effective immediately.

[Fartsauce 0]

Does this board end up having an NHL Fantasy season? I'd offer to run it but I probably wouldn't be the best commish. If so, count me in.

[Guest nWoCHRISnWo]

Yeah, in 1996

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

 

Palffy has had pretty much the same PPG in the last couple years as he had in 96. And Crosby and Malkin would have been like 8 and 9 years old... Not to mention Recchi was productive (most productive in fact, wasn't he?) for the Flyer's last year, and Lemieux is still among the best players in the league if not the best when playing. With Gonchar (and Tarnstrom) QBing the PP, they will be pretty spectacular *offensively* you'd have to think.

[CanadianGuitarist 0]

Does this board end up having an NHL Fantasy season? I'd offer to run it but I probably wouldn't be the best commish. If so, count me in.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

I'll probbaly set one up, but there wasn't one set to go on Yahoo yet, so sooner or later.

[nl5xsk1 0]

First, it seems likely that the NHL will end up on Comcast/Outdoor Life Network (source: http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/news_story.asp?id=132876) ... two games a week, not the best coverage in the world but better than the sporadic games ESPN showed. What are the odds that OLN will do a better job of spreading the games around, rather than just the NYR/Philly/Detroit/Colorado love-fest that ESPN seemed to focus on?

 

Also in Canucks news, Todd Bertuzzi's suspension has been lifted effective immediately.

The local sports talk radio idiots took a break from their 24/7 Red Sox circle jerk to complain about this, methinks because Moore was a local collegian. It's beyond annoying to hear people that don't know jack-shit about hockey give their $0.02 about the sport.

 

And if people do decide to do a fantasy league, count me in. It'll be interesting to do some picking this year, what with so much turnover amongst the real NHL (e.g. when is Kariya a good pick-up? This is the first year that he won't have a superstar skating on his wing in a long time ... how will he do in Nashville??)

[CanadianChris 0]

Flyers resigned Simon Gagne.

 

Ona related note, Steve Simmons had an interesting thought in Sunday's Ottawa Sun...wouldn't it be cool if another team took a run at Robert Esche, who's a restricted free agent? Since the Flyers are already close to the cap number, they'd have to do a bunch more trades if they wanted to sign him, which they almost certainly would, because there's no one else ready to play goal at the NHL level in the Flyers organization.

 

Salary caps are fun.