NHL

NHL and other hockey related posts.

Kovalchuk deal nixed. Now what?

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So, Ilya Kovalchuk’s ridiculous contract was nixed by the NHL. Some sources (Scott Burnside) say it was nullified before the news conference but, the Devils went ahead and announced it anyway.

It was a bad deal, borderline cheating. But, the Chris Pronger and Marian Hossa deal are just as bad, and the league did nothing about them. So, why is Kovalchuk the example?

Personally, I think it is the right thing to do for the NHL. This ridiculous contract structuring needs to be stopped. Unfortunately Lucky Lou wasn’t so this time around. Hopefully he turns around and gives the guy an actual contract – one that gives him the term he is looking for, plus the right annual earnings. Maybe they can keep it under ten years too.

Better yet, maybe the Kings swoop in at the 11th hour to steal the big fish back.

Deal with the Devils (and a Flyers trade)

Chris Ostrander5 Comments

The goat rodeo is finally over. Ilya Kovalchuk has found his team for 2010-11, and beyond.

The Russian right-winger signed a staggering, 17-year $102 million deal with New Jersey today, ending the courtship for the biggest name in the 2010 free agent pool. After much speculation that Kovalchuk would end up in Los Angeles, he stayed with New Jersey – the team that sold the farm to get him at the trade deadline.

Ilya Kovalchuk signed a monster deal to stay in New Jersey

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Quick hit – full update later

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It’s UFA Day in the NHL – one of the most exciting, yet, over analyzed days of the year.

In the 4 1/2 hours since free agency opened there have been a boatload of deals; 21 to be exact. The deepest position in this year’s free agent pool is defense and the bulk of today’s signings have been on the back-end.

Sergei Gonchar (Ottawa), Zbynek Michalek (Pittsburgh), Paul Martin (Pittsburgh) and Buffalo’s UFA pair of Toni Lydman (Anaheim) and Henrik Tallinder (New Jersey) all went quickly.

Only a handful of forwards are off the “board” but, my favorite for the Sabres to bring in, Colby Armstrong, went to Toronto for more than I think he is worth. Perhaps the second biggest forward name, behind Ilya Kovalchuk, is gone as well – Ray Whitney signed with Phoenix this afternoon.

Now that the biggest names (defensively) have been picked clean, I expect things to slow to a crawl in terms of signings. You won’t see the rat race for the big names that you see in the first few hours. However, there are always good value players that don’t go early who can contribute on a high level for teams. So, fans around the league can’t get too discouraged if their teams don’t make a major splash right off the bat.

More to come later, including a full wrap-up of day one of free agency.

Habs on the right side of the dial this time

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After completely missing on their choice to dump Jaroslav Halak and sign Tomas Plekanec, the Montreal Canadiens have made a smart move.

Dan Ellis, who was forced out of the Nashville crease, is on his way to Montreal.

The dumped problem child, Sergei Kostitsyn to Nashville in exchange for Dustin Boyd and Dan Ellis. Boyd will help Montreal, especially compared to what Kostitsyn brought to the table. In the event the Habs can sign Ellis, they will have absolutely fleeced the Preds – a team that is making moves quicker than Deep Blue.

The Predators have made three moves this offseason, none of which have improved the team. They have inherited a fringe defenseman, a prima donna  winger and a part-time NHLer. They sent out three players who started most nights for them in 2009-10 in Ellis, Dan Hamhuis and Jason Arnott. The only silver lining in it all is that the Predators got something in return for Ellis and Hamhuis, instead of letting them walk for free – even if the return was questionable.

As for the Habs, it seems like Ellis is interested in signing with Montreal.  If that is the case, the Habs have found their 1B to Carey Price. If Price can get his game back in order the bleu, blanc et rouge have found themselves a strong goaltending combo. Continue reading →

Where do they go from here?

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The Flyers, Bruins and Blackhawks have been the biggest movers and shakers so far this offseason.

Don’t expect to see Cristobal Huet in a Blackhawks uniform next year.

The Blackhawks unloaded yet another player when they moved Colin Fraser to Edmonton for a 6th round pick. So the Hawks have now unloaded five contracts, four of which were NHL players. Chicago has now cleared $6 million in salary cap space after having just over $1 million earlier in the week.

Chicago still needs to make a move or two in order to free up the cap space they need.

I expect to see Cristobal Huet shipped out shortly, whether it be by trade or buyout. However, I think a buyout of his $5.625 million cap hit is more likely. A year or two in the KHL would do a lot for Huet’s game and it would likely bring his salary demands down. But, there is no place for him in the NHL making what he is now, that means his cap hit is the next move for the Blackhawks to make. After unloading him the Blackhawks will have $11 million in space and likely have the space to acquire the role players they need for next season.

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NHL Awards have a distinct Buffalo flavor

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First, let me give props to the NHL for doing such a good job with this year’s annual award show.

Ryan Miller poses with the Vezina Trophy.

Jay Mohr was hysterical as the host, the presenters were all pretty good, except Jamie Kennedy mispronounced the Vezina Trophy, and the performances were solid as well. All-in-all, I thought it was a huge success, especially compared to years past when the show was dryer than my mother’s cooking. It was particularly funny when Duncan Keith complained that they were trying to send him off by cuing the music, while Alex Ovechkin just waited until they turned his mic back on.

My only real disappointment was that Ryan Miller didn’t win the Messier Leadership Award. I wasn’t too torn up because it is a fake award so it didn’t really matter. But, I feel that Miller truly shows the meaning of a true leader and deserved the victory. Although, Sidney Crosby does have so many of those attributes as well. Continue reading →

The first domino(es) falls in Chicago

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Chicago has taken the first step in alleviating their salary cap nightmare.

Dustin Byfuglien will bring his net-front presence to the Atlanta Thrashers next season.

This afternoon, the team sent playoff hero Dustin Byfuglien to Atlanta along with Brent Sopel, Ben Eager and Akim Aliu in exchange for the Marty Reasoner, Jeremy Morin, the 24th and 54th overall selections in the 2010 draft.

The trade sheds about $4-5 million from the Blackhawks cap. That is assuming Morin plays in the AHL next season.

While the trade hasn’t officially gone through, this will end up better for the Blackhawks than for the Thrashers. Even though Atlanta gets the top player in the deal, they also inherit two sub-par players in Sopel and Eager. Meanwhile, Chicago now owns five picks in the first 60 of the draft, that gives them the ability to restock their prospect cupboard for the next 3-5 years.

In addition, Atlanta loses a quality role player in Reasoner and the first round selection they acquired from trading Ilya Kovalchuk.

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It’s the most wonderful time of the year

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Not Christmas. The lead up to the NHL Draft and the beginning of free agency. It started, in earnest, today. Now the following nine days leading up to July 1st will be full of trade fodder and moves to improve teams for the 2010-11 season.

Today saw, perhaps, the most deals since the end of the Cup finals. But, the wheeling and dealing really took off on June 17th when the Canadiens made a major splash by sending playoff hero Jaroslav Halak to the St. Louis Blues. I wish that I had put my thinking into words on this space because, the move cleared cap room for the team to sign Tomas Plekanec to an extension. In addition, the trade that saw Nathan Horton sent to Boston for Denis Wideman and a pick this afternoon.

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Nathan Horton shipped to Boston

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The Boston Bruins, this afternoon, acquired Gregory Campbell and Nathan Horton from the Florida Panthers in exchange for Denis Wideman and the 15th overall pick in the 2010 NHL Draft (per Bob McKenzie’s Twitter).

Nathan Horton is on his way to Boston with Gregory Campbell.

This is quite possibly one of the most even trades I have ever seen. The immediate benefits will be seen by Boston more so than Florida. But, the Panthers can do quite a bit with the pick they received in the deal. Plus, Wideman covers up for the trade that sent Dennis Sidenberg at the deadline.

Wideman is coming off a poor year with the Bruins and will have a chance to bounce back with more minutes in Florida. Currently, monster defenseman Dylan McIlrath is rated 15th. Although, there is a good chance that the Panthers go with a forward in this spot, a guy like Nick Bjugstad or Emerson Etem could be a good fit for Florida.

Boston receives a solid power forward in Horton, plus a serviceable center in Gregory Campbell. Horton has been rumored to want out of Florida for some time, he will be put in a great situation in Boston. He, combined with Taylor Hall or Tyler Seguin (depending who Edmonton goes with at #1) will more than make up for the loss of Phil Kessel last season. Boston has definitely set themselves up for a very strong run next season. Continue reading →

Blackhawks up against the cap

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A few quick hits regarding the Blackhawks salary cap situation:

  • Chicago has 10 upcoming free agents, four UFAs and six RFAs.
  • They have $1.234 million available to sign these players.
  • There is at least $3.5 million invested in each of the following players: Brent Seabrook, Duncan Keith, Brian Campbell, Patrick Kane, Jonathon Toews, Marian Hossa, Patrick Sharp and Cristobal Huet. Plus, Kris Versteeg, Dustin Byfuglien and Dave Bolland are each on for $3 million.

The Hawks are in a very precarious situation moving into Friday’s draft. Of their upcoming free agents, Nick Boynton and Kim Johnsson aren’t likely to be brought back. As UFAs and veteran defensemen the pair don’t have a big impact in the future of the organization.

Andrew Ladd (rear) and Jordan Hendry (#42) are likely to be playing in a different city next year.

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