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Here’s the NHL Trade Deadline Skinny

Posted on March 2, 2009 by Scott Taylor| 1 Comment

The NHL trade deadline is Wednesday, so let’s take a look at the big day on a team-by-team basis. 

Oh yeah, and please remember, our theory on trade deadline day – for the past two decades – has always been the same: Believe whatever rumour you want to believe.

 

ANAHEIM DUCKS: It would appear the Ducks are ready to move veterans Chris Pronger, Scott Niedermayer, Brendan Morrison and Todd Marchant. Don’t be surprised if the Canadiens sniff around at Pronger and Niedermayer.

 

ATLANTA THRASHERS: It’s next year time for the Thrashers. They’re 17 points out of the playoff hunt. And will deal anybody in a uniform for draft picks or young players who will contribute next year. Evidently, Hockey Night in Canada claimed the Flyers have some interest in Kari Lehtonen and we’re told the Thrashers are prepared to give up top prospect James van Riemsdyk. If that’s true (although I’m not sure it is), I’m surprised GM Don Waddell hasn’t already made the deal.

 

BOSTON BRUINS: If the Boston Bruins go after a rental player for the stretch run, don’t be surprised if that rental player is former Winnipeg Jets captain Keith Tkachuk, a native Bostonian now living and playing in St. Louis. The Bruins also have some interest in Chris Pronger, but probably not enough cap room.

 

BUFFALO SABRES: The Sabres are in the hunt for that final playoff spot in the East and they have a player to trade. If they could get a roll of tape for Maxim Afinogenov, they’d move him yesterday. 

 

CALGARY FLAMES: After losing 8-6 to Tampa on Sunday you can bet Mike Keenan is looking for a little inexpensive veteran help — and there is a lot out there. Gary Roberts, Mark Recchi or Jeff Halpern could wind up in Calgary without a lot going the other way.  

 

CAROLINA HURRICANES: Tied with Buffalo for the final playoff spot in the East, the Hurricanes need more scoring. The power-play is weak and the team has only 169 goals on the season, second lowest of all playoff teams. Paul Maurice has this team back in the race, but if they want to take the next step, they need to get younger, better, quicker.

 

CHICAGO BLACKHAWKS: This is a great young team and GM Dale Tallon has no desire to move anybody. Some say Tallon is looking for a veteran centre, but isn’t everyone?

 

COLORADO AVALANCHE: The Colorado Avalanche will make some moves in an effort to get rid of a collection of veterans who just aren’t worth the aggravation anymore. Jordan Leopold and Ian Laperriere both become free agents on July 1, so they’re on the block. So too are veterans Ryan Smyth, Milan Hejduk, Marek Svatos, Brett Clark, Ruslan Salei and John-Michael Liles. Of course, Smyth (the Habs are interested), Hejduk and Liles all have no-trade clauses so they aren’t likely going anywhere.

 

COLUMBUS BLUE JACKETS: Jackets GM Scott Howson would like to do something but Howson believes his goaltending can carry the team to a playoff berth and he won’t do anything drastic. 

 

DALLAS STARS: With Brad Richards injured, it’s likely the Stars will go looking for a Top 6 forward. However, Stars co-GM Les Jackson told the Dallas Morning News the team has a tight internal payroll budget and will only make a move if it helps the team right now.

 

DETROIT RED WINGS: GM Kenny Holland has been known to make big moves at the deadline and if something special comes up, he’ll jump at the chance to cut a deal. But he’s not actively trying to do anything significant.  

 

EDMONTON OILERS: The Oil want a Top 6 forward and were seriously involved in the Chris Kunitz talks with Anaheim, but wouldn’t part with defenceman Tom Gilbert. Robert Nilsson and Dustin Penner are said to be available, but if the Oilers don’t get something special in return, GM Kevin Lowe will likely stand pat.

 

FLORIDA PANTHERS: The one guy who looks like the top rental player this spring is Panthers defenceman Jay Bouwmeester. Now, Bouwmeester is only 25, but he becomes a free-agent on July 1 and while Florida GM Jacques Martin says he’s prepared to trade his young defensive star, Martin wants a number of players in a package who will help get him into the playoffs right now.

 

LOS ANGELES KINGS: Although they’re 13th in the West, the young Kings are only six points out of the final playoff spot. L.A. would deal a veteran or two, but don’t expect much to happen here. 

 

MINNESOTA WILD: Rumours, rumours, rumours. Marian Gaborik, Stephen Veilleux, Owen Nolan, Marek Zidlicky… yeah, whatever. The 30-26-5 Wild will do something if it helps the team make a playoff run  right now.

 

MONTREAL CANADIENS: Montreal is still looking around for a Top 4 defenceman so here was the first rumour this year that actually sounded legit: “The Canadiens and the slumping Phoenix Coyotes are talking about a deal that would send 30-year-old defenceman Derek Morris from Phoenix to Montreal in exchange for a couple of young forwards.”

 

NASHVILLE PREDATORS: The Predators are just one point out of the final playoff spot in the West so don’t expect David Poile to do anything significant. 

 

NEW JERSEY DEVILS: Marty Brodeur is back so all is well in Newark. Although the Devils are 41-19-3, Lou Lamoriello could always fire a coach just for fun, but it’s unlikely he’ll make a significant trade – unless, of course, something unexpected and downright miraculous pops up.

 

NEW YORK ISLANDERS: These guys are sellers and it looks like veteran forward Bill Guerin will be the first to go. Clearly, after Guerin sat out Saturday night’s game with Buffalo, it would appear the Islanders have a deal in place to send Guerin to a playoff contender.

 

NEW YORK RANGERS: The Rangers have about a million dollars in cap space available so they’ll be looking to upgrade. Coyotes 30-year-old defenceman Derek Morris is of some interest to Glen Sather and John Tortorella. Although with only 159 goals scored (the lowest among playoff teams in the East), this is a team that desperately needs a sniper or two.

 

OTTAWA SENATORS: After firing Craig Hartsburg and then making the deal for Mike Comrie and Chris Campoli, Senators GM Bryan Murray has made a commitment to getting his team into the playoffs – next year. No player on this team – not even Heatley or Spezza – are untouchable.

 

PHILADELPHIA FLYERS: Philly would like to add a big defenceman at the deadline and they have their sights on Jay Bouwmeester. Atlanta goalie Kari Lehtonen is also, apparently, on Philly’s radar.

 

PHOENIX COYOTES: These guys will be sellers. Hell, if anyone offers, Jerry Moyes will sell the entire franchise. Hell, if a team made an offer for the Zamboni driver, the Coyotes would deal. 

 

PITTSBURGH PENGUINS: The Penguins are in the playoff hunt, just one point out of eighth in the East. They dealt Ryan Whitney to Anaheim for Chris Kunitz last week and they’ll no doubt make more moves this week.

 

SAN JOSE SHARKS: The Sharks are 42-10-9, first in the West and three points ahead of defending Stanley Cup champion Detroit with two games in hand. They have the best team in the NHL. GM Doug Wilson won’t do anything that might mess with his team’s chemistry. 

 

ST. LOUIS BLUES: The Blues now have a legitimate shot at a playoff berth and one senses head coach Andy Murray and big boss John Davidson don’t want to do anything that might disturb a team that is now only three points out of eighth place in the West. Pundits say Keith Tkachuk and Jay McKee are on the block, but they’ll only go if Davidson thinks he’s making this year’s team better.

 

TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING: Vinny Lecavalier is going nowhere but GM Brian Lawton would love to move some veterans. If your name is Recchi, Roberts, Malik, Halpern, Prospal and Krajicek, you’re on the block.

 

TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS: Seems everyone around the NHL believes the Toronto Maple Leafs will be sellers. In fact, insiders say every player on the team with the exception of young defenceman Luke Schenn is on the block. But has anyone noticed that the Leafs have won four straight games and are now only seven points out of the final playoff spot in the East?

 

VANCOUVER CANUCKS: GM Mike Gillis is always ready to wheel and deal but right now, he’s more concerned about getting the twins, Henrik and Daniel Sedin, under contract long term than he is in pulling off a blockbuster trade. 

 

WASHINGTON CAPITALS: The Caps want a veteran defenceman. Doesn’t everyone? However, unlike a lot of other teams, the Caps have plenty of cap room and have expressed interest in Phoenix’s Derek Morris, Anaheim’s Chris Pronger and Colorado’s Jordan Leopold.

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Is this the end result of the lockout? There could be more than 200 unrestricted free agents by next Tuesday.

Posted on June 25, 2008 by Scott Taylor| 1 Comment

By next Tuesday, July 1, the National Hockey League could very well have more than 200 unrestricted free agents. 

Included on the list are Buffalo defenceman Teppo Numminen, Anaheim forward Teemu Selanne, Calgary forwards Kristian Huselius, Craig Conroy, Owen Nolan, Daymond Langkow and Stephane Yelle, Calgary goalie Curtis Joseph, Colorado veterans Peter Forsberg, John-Michael Liles, Jose Theodore, Andrew Brunette, Adam Foote and Joe Sakic, Detroit defencemen Andreas Lilja and Brad Stuart, L.A. Kings defenceman Rob Blake, Rangers veterans Sean Avery and Jaromir Jagr, Ottawa defenceman Wade Redden, Pittbsurgh’s Marian Hossa and Gary Roberts and two Manitobans from the New Jersey Devils, Arron Asham and Bryce Salvador.

Roberts and Hossa have already made it clear they won’t be re-signing with the Penguins, a team that must get long-term deals done in the next couple of years with Sidney Crosby, Marc-Andre Fleury, Jordan Staal and Evgeni Malkin.

Sakic won’t make a decision — and neither will the Avs — until Sakic becomes a free agent.

Jagr will probably sign with the Rangers, but Avery is headed to free-agency.

Calgary could be a completely different team season. 

This coming season, the salary cap will rise to $57 million. That’s quite a significant number and proves that having salaries tied to league revenue is a concept that makes incredible sense (too bad that dummy Bob Goodenow didn’t understand it and we lost an entire NHL season). In fact, when the NHL gassed a season to get a collective bargaining agreement, the league paid out $1.2 billion in player salaries. In 2008-09, it will, potentially, pay out $1.71 billion in salaries. And Goodenow didn’t like this idea? One gets the sense that if Goodenow wasn’t a lawyer, he’d qualify for Special Olympics.

Still, with $57 million to work with (and, granted, not all teams will use all $57 million in available salary cap money), many teams are watching closely how they spend their cash. Some teams want to get younger. They’ll let high-priced veterans go elsewhere. Some teams feel they are on the verge of a Cup run, they might chase a Selanne, Sakic or Hossa.

Regardless, there are more than 200 free agents because teams are counting their dollars before they make offers and those 29 teams that didn’t win the Cup are figuring that the players they had weren’t good enough so it might be time to look at somebody else.

This week, the Toronto Maple Leafs allowed Mats Sundin to negotiate with Montreal, released goalie Andrew Raycroft and forward Kyle Wellwood and bought out veteran winger Darcy Tucker. The Leafs are breaking down before they re-build and the one thing Cliff Fletcher said he would do, is find the money necessary to take a serious look at what’s available on hockey’s version of e-Bay.

This year, there will be plenty of free-agent action. In fact, it will be more fun than the draft. But the reason so many players have come free is that so many teams want to make sure they have the cap money available to get better.

On Tuesday, we start the NHL’s second season and it might be more interesting the the first. We’ve come to this point because the league now has a salary cap and the salary cap, at least one tied to revenues, is good, not only for competitive hockey, but for the players wallets.

Now all the league needs to do is get some of those financially weak U.S. teams to re-locate to Canada and then everybody will be better off. 

 

 

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CBC to drop Canada’s “second national anthem” along with Bob Cole. Sad.

Posted on June 6, 2008 by Scott Taylor| Comments Off

It seems that nobody likes old stuff anymore and I can certainly understand that, especially when it comes to my kids. They’re 24 and 26 and they still roll their eyes when I talk about the good ol’ days of the 1960s when we got our hockey from Ward Cornell, Brian McFarlane, Danny Gallivan, Keith Dancey and the father and son Hewitts.

 

So yeah, I have to admit, I’m an old school kind of guy.

 

I love two things about CBC’s hockey coverage and only two things: The theme music and Bob Cole. Sadly, the rest of it just isn’t as good as it used to be and, frankly, these days I’ll take TSN’s or NBC’s hockey coverage over CBC every single time.

 

Five years ago, I never would have said that. Never would have thought it.

 

But now, the CBC’s claim to the top is under siege — from within as well as from without.

 

While I’d still rather listen to Bob Cole than Mike Emrick (and I don’t mind Mike Emrick), Greg Millen makes me yell at the television (so does TSN’s Glenn Healy so it must be a goalie thing). He talks just to talk. I’m sure he knows he’s not saying anything of any value, but I guess he figures he gets paid to talk so he’s going to talk. He’s the mute button waiting to be clicked. 

 

CBC hasn’t admitted it publicly yet, but all indications are, they’re about to limit Cole’s participation in the telecasts. They’re cutting the wrong guy. 

 

Then there is Don Cherry and Ron MacLean. What’s with that? MacLean is still an outstanding broadcaster, but his sidekick has come unhinged. The Gary-Roberts-is-all-that thing during the playoffs just made you want to call the Canadian Board of Television Relevance (if there is a CRTC out there as it’s rumoured there is, there might as well be a CBTR). The guy played nine minutes a game and hit nothing but the boards. He doesn’t score anymore, can’t handle the puck and was virtually invisible if you watched the NBC telecasts (maybe NBC telecasts a different game from a parallel universe???). But to Cherry and the CBC, Roberts was Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Jordan Staal all rolled into one. 

 

Meanwhile, ol’ Don ignored Crosby and most of the Red Wings for reasons known only to him. It’s kind of sad to watch a once-intriguing ex-hockey-coach-turned-broadcaster collapse into his own personal grievances. And the “I-was-only-doing-it-to-help-the-kid,” take on his own criticisms of Crosby sounded a tad disingenuous.

 

Remember when Cherry hit MacLean with an elbow pad a couple of years ago. MacLean needs to return the favour.  

 

Perhaps my kids are right. Perhaps things just get old and Hockey Night in Canada is old. Maybe, what they’re doing here is just trying to get younger. 

 

And if you need more proof, consider this little nugget: The CBC has decided that it’s probably going to drop it’s Hockey Night in Canada theme music because it, evidently, doesn’t like paying a $500 per game fee to the still-living composer in order to claim the rights. This is the same network that pays Cherry and MacLean about a million dollars a year between them to make us crave NBC and TSN, but don’t like the idea of giving $30,000 a year to the woman who created their identity. But hey, it’s taxpayers money, CBC obviously has a mandate to do what it pleases.

 

At first, I lamented CBC’s decision to dump the theme and then I thought, “Well if TSN has a collective brain bigger than a walnut, those folks will start sending cheques to the composer, Dolores Claman, and start using the theme themselves.” TSN’s broadcast crew is already better than CBC’s, they might just as well take the theme music — the best there is and, without argument, Canada’s second national anthem. 

 

Listen, I still love Coley and I don’t hit the mute button when Scott Oake comes on, but the rest of Hockey Night in Canada (don’t get me started on the Toronto Hot Stove) is a waste of good broadcast time. 

 

TSN has long been the superior telecast and now, with an expanded schedule of game coverage, Rogers SportsNet’s pretty extensive coverage of the two Alberta teams and Shaw’s NHL Centre Ice, there is a good chance we all just might forget CBC’s Hockey Night in Canada ever existed.

 

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Despite the officials’ odd calls and the media’s cheers, Wings on the verge of Stanley Cup. Game 4: Detroit 2, Pittsburgh 1.

Posted on June 1, 2008 by Scott Taylor| Comments Off

Congratulations to referees Mark Joannette and Brad Watson. It was apparent from the opening faceoff that if Joannette and Watson could get the Pittsburgh Penguins enough power play opportunities, the Pens could win Game 4 of the Stanley Cup final and send the series back to Detroit all even at 2-2.

 

So Joannette and Watson did their jobs. Dallas Drake, Brian Rafalski, Kris Draper, Brett Lebda and Johan Franzen were all sent to the penalty box in the first period. Sure, their infractions were penalties — well, sort of — but the fact that most of the stuff was going both ways didn’t have any effect on the officials’ inexorable march toward complete homerism.

 

Sadly — what happens in these situations as often as as not — the Pens didn’t co-operate. Even though only three Penguins were penalized (gotta make it look good, right?), the game was still tied 1-1 after 20 minutes. Sure, Pittsburgh got that big power-play goal to open the scoring, but somehow, at even strength, Nicklas Lidstrom tied it. Damn that even strength.

 

Now, let’s be fair, the officials certainly couldn’t be criticized. After all, they bought into the media hype. They bought into the league’s apparent delight in having Pittsburgh tie up the series (a delight created by the mainstream media). They even bought into hockey’s latest myth — which is Gary Roberts according to Don Cherry. Heck, Joannette and Watson even gave the Penguins a two-man advantage for a minute and 26 seconds in the third period!. That’s unheard of in a Stanley Cup playoff game. 

 

Didn’t matter. The Red Wings were just too good. Detroit won Game 4, 2-1 on Saturday night. Despite fewer power-plays and NO two-man advantages, the Wings outshot Pittsburgh 30-23 and even outhit the bigger, younger Pens 35-33.

 

Even though Detroit had eight minor penalties to Pittsburgh’s five in the first, even though the Pens had a long two-man advantage in the third, it didn’t matter. Even on the other guy’s ice, the Red Wings were just too good.

 

The Pens had everything going for them on Saturday: Home ice advantage, a place where they’d won nine straight in the playoffs; an international mainstream media that was virtually leading their cheers; a coach who had been given hours of meeting time with the NHL’s brass so he could whine about obstruction calls; more power play opportunities (6-3); and even Sidney Crosby (the NHL’s real “latest myth”).

 

And still they couldn’t outplay a President’s Trophy-winning Red Wings team that is destined to win the Cup. 

 

Again, I couldn’t care less who wins this thing (Detroit? Pittsburgh? Doesn’t affect my life), but after awhile, this media cheerleading for the Penguins has become annoying. C’mon guys. 

 

In Game 3, Marc-Andre Fleury was spectacular and Crosby was out there almost by himself. No question, those were brilliant performances. 

 

But in every other aspect of Game 3, Detroit was clearly the better team. There was really no reason to believe that Pittsburgh was suddenly going to get back in the series. Crosby got away from Draper et al and scored twice and Fleury stood on his head, but that was it. Evgeni Malkin was invisible (again). The Pittsburgh defence was confused. This “awesome” forecheck and “fearsome” hitting (the media’s words) got them a meagre 24 shots and they were barely in the game in the third period.

 

Saturday night, despite every reason to believe the Penguins had been handed a playoff game on a platter by two officials who really got caught up in the hype, Pittsburgh fell at home. Now, in four playoff games, Detroit has outshot the Penguins 134-88 (36-19, 34-22, 34-24, 30-23).

 

Everybody likes a good story and the Pittsburgh Penguins are a good story. But if you like a good (great?) hockey team, the Detroit Red Wings proved how good they were despite all odds on Saturday night. 

 

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Penguins alive. Game 3: Pittsburgh 3 Detroit 2.

Posted on May 28, 2008 by Scott Taylor| 1 Comment

That’s why we watch hockey. That’s what those folks who don’t love the game miss when they choose to watch the Pistons and Celtics play the American version of European Team Handball. (How many steps is Kevin Garnett allowed going to the basket? Eight?)

 

But who really cares about basketball? Nothing on earth is better than great hockey. Up and down. Big hits. Tape-to-tape passes. Outstanding chances. Terrific goaltending (at least, at one end).

 

Oh yeah, and how about the superstar factor? Sidney Crosby scores the first two goals of the game. Nice. 

 

When the final score in a game in the Stanley Cup final is 3-2, it’s hard to find fault. Although if Detroit fans want to blame somebody, they could probably get away with blaming Chris Osgood.

 

The winning goal was a deflection from behind the net off Osgood’s back by Adam Hall, a guy who wouldn’t be considered a big goal scorer. At the other end, Marc-Andre Fleury showed us why he’s now 9-0 in the playoffs at Mellon Arena.

 

The only criticism I had of the entire evening was the chicken-livered penalty calls early in the game. It’s silly, you know. In the first two periods, players can hardly breathe on each other. There were seven penalty calls in the first two periods and one in the third. The early penalties were all cheap. In the third period, everything — including hitting from behind — became legal. No wonder Americans don’t understand the rules and no wonder it’s difficult to grow new fans. If you actually try to understand the rules of this game you’ll never get it. Canadians who have lived with it all their lives know the entire sport is completely different in the third period of a playoff game.

 

Thank the lord for that.

 

The final period last night was spectacular and while Don Cherry really wanted to make Gary Roberts the hero, ol’ Don wasn’t even close. The hero was Fleury.

 

Detroit outshot Pittsburgh 34-24 and, by my count, outchanced the Pens 26-6. The Wings also outhit Pittsburgh 34-31 — only two Wings didn’t register a hit. 

 

Let’s not lie, here. The Red Wings dominated this game in every aspect but one. That’s right. Fleury was much better than Osgood. 

 

But hey, the goalie is part of the team and in hockey, a goalie can win you a championship. Detroit’s skaters might have been better, but Marc-Andre Fleury was spectacular and while it’s unlikely Pittsburgh will win three of the next four games, it’s not impossible.

 

A great goalie can pull it off and this Saturday night, Marc-Andre Fleury gets another chance. 

 

One can only hope Saturday’s Game4 will be as good as Wednesday’s Game 3. 

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