Wednesday, July 29, 2009

Tanguay; Phoenix...

Yes, we are still alive. However, with temperatures in the mid 80s and rain escaping us (save for the lightning storms we are currently having), nothing has been going on in the hockey world, and we've been on mini-hiatus.

Two things of note though. With the money saved on Nik Zherdev, who is probably 90% not returning after the Rangers low-balled him (the arbitration process is simply going through the motions, I would think, to sever ties with him), the Rangers got Ales Kotalik. Wouldn't it also be nice to sign Alex Tanguay to a 1- or 2-year deal in the $3M range? Don't you think he'd rather play with Marian Gaborik in Manhattan than with Kyle Turris in the desert?

And about Phoenix: Why is the NHL so intent on making this mistake work? I wrote about it two months ago, and it still stands. This team has lost $60M over the past season. It won't get better, no matter who is running the show. It's hockey. It's a desert. The only desert city I can see with hockey is Las Vegas. Not Phoenix (or Glendale, or Scottsdale, or Sedona). Time to move.

Yet the NHL doesn't accept Jim Balsillie's bid again, even though he offered over $200M, $40M more than the guy whose bid was accepted (Jerry Reinsdorf, who owns the Bulls and White Sox).

Something's going on behind the scenes that we don't know about. Think about it: Let's say you have a broken car 2,000 miles away, and 2 people wanted to buy it. One person was going to keep it in the same crappy lot and pay you $1,600 for it; one person was going to move it to an area where he could fix the car AND he'd pay you $2,100 for it. No-brainer, no?

No.

Odd.

Wednesday, July 22, 2009

Islanders Sign Martin Biron

Those who were worried about the Islanders' goaltending situation can now begin worrying even more about the health of Rick DiPietro. The Islanders signed former Philadelphia Flyer and Buffalo Sabres goaltender Martin Biron to a one-year contract today. Terms of the deal were not disclosed; they also don't really matter. I'll assume it's a one-way contract worth at least the $2.5 million the Islanders are already paying Dwayne Roloson.

So here we are. The Islanders are paying Rick DiPietro $4.5 million this year. They're paying Roloson $2.5 million this year. They're now paying Biron upwards of $2 million a year. NHL teams only carry two goaltenders. In other words, there will be a high-priced goaltender in the Islanders' press box for 82 nights next year. Unless, of course, Rick DiPietro is more injured than the team is letting on.

None of this should be constituted as a knock on Biron. He was considered the heir apparent to Dominik Hasek in Buffalo and played well until Ryan Miller emerged after the lockout. Biron then headed to Philadelphia, where he was the key figure in the Flyers' 2008 run to the conference finals. Because the Flyers organization is apparently required to have a chaotic goaltending situation, Biron wasn't offered a new contract, though he was linked with teams such as Detroit and San Jose as a sort of "super back-up".

When I texted the news to Zach a few moments ago, his response was, "Wow, I guess DP is really done." This will be the sentiment all across Islanders country. Frankly, there's no reason to think anything else, just as there's no reason to sign two #1 goalies if your current starter is healthy and capable. While we all welcome Martin Biron to the New York Islanders organization, we can't help but distractedly wonder what's really going on with Rick DiPietro.

EDIT: As per Darren Dreger, the deal is worth $1.4 million. Not a bad price. Still doesn't make sense. Clearly, the 2009-10 season doesn't end with all three of these guys on the Island.

Tuesday, July 21, 2009

Captaincy...

Last year, in Chris Drury's first as Ranger's Captain, he was flanked by Alternate Captains Scott Gomez and Markus Naslund.

This year, with Gomez jettisoned to Montreal and Naslund deciding to retire, coach John Tortorella has a big decision ahead of him. No, picking two players to wear an "A" on their jersey won't be the difference maker in going to the Stanley Cup Finals or blowing a 3-1 series lead in the 1st round, but it could signal a changing of the guard at Madison Square Garden.

Ever since the lockout, veterans have worn the A. Jaromir Jagr, Steve Rucchin, Darius Kasparaitis were the 3 Alternates in the Captain-less 2005-06 season. Since then, Brendan Shanahan, Marty Straka, Gomez, and Naslund have worn it. All older players, all on Broadway for a short time (although Gomez's wasn't planned that way).

This year, Tortorella can do the easy thing and give Wade Redden (please no) or Marian Gaborik the "A"s to wear, but I hope he doesn't. Logic says your best player should always get to be a Captain or Alternate (or, in Tom Renney's case, your highest paid players), but it doesn't always have to be. For example, can you guess who Washington's Captain is? No, not Alex Ovechkin. Chris Clark is the Captain. Chris Clark, who scored 1 goal and added 5 assists in 32 games last year.

Who makes a good choice? People who've paid their dues, who are probably going to be Rangers for a while, and who give 100% effort every shift.

Scratch Redden off the list. Has less heart than Barry Bonds.
Scratch Gaborik off the list. First season in NY.
Scratch Michal Rozsival off the list. Probably won't be a Ranger for the entire 3 years left on his contract (it is heavily front-loaded so any team that takes him will take a big Cap hit but won't have to actually pay much money).

Blair Betts would've been a great choice. However, since he probably isn't returning, he can't put the "A" on his sweater. (He did last year for a few games, though.)

Brandon Dubinsky, Sean Avery, and Marc Staal would all make good choices. Avery, maybe not so great, but if he gets it, I'll be the first to say it's a good move. He plays hard every game, he loves being a Ranger, and we know he's here to stay this time.

However, the 2 I think should get it are Ryan Callahan and Dan Girardi. You can't argue with Callahan getting it, can you? He defines what a Ranger should be. Plays hard not just every game, but every shift. Scores goals. Happy to be in New York. Loves playing at MSG. Doesn't complain. Hits everyone in sight. Doesn't take bad penalties.

And Girardi? Well, the main reason is because he's one of my 3 in NHL '09. (I'm the Captain, and Girardi and Joe Thornton are my "A"s.) But I love Girardi. I love his poise, his hitting, his passing. I love how he was undrafted and then just came out of nowhere to join the team. I remember how he was picked to the AHL All-Star Game, then got called up in late-January '07 and had to miss the game. He was happy to be called up, but upset his family and friends wouldn't get to watch him in the All-Star Game. Plus, I think his talent, as of right now, is better than Staal's. You can debate me on that, and you might be right, but I think he is a better defender right now, and if every player on the blueline played like him, this team would be a lot better than it was last year.

Just my 2 cents. Would love to hear your choices.

Thursday, July 16, 2009

I Was Right; I Was Wrong...

Of course, no Ranger games will be played at the Coliseum next season. Got to save those for weeknights since they'll close-to-sell-out anyway. No need to waste a Saturday where you'll sell 14,000 tickets anyway, no matter who the opponent. I was right about that.

I was wrong, however, when I predicted that 80% of their last 10 games would be division rivals. In fact, only half are, and we get to see that always exciting "Florida road trip" in April. Whoa, Schedule Makers, I'll make sure I take my heart medicine, because that's one to get the blood pumping!

And of course, what season would be complete without a home & home versus Philadelphia?

When the Penguins won the Cup, an avid and eager reader of this website, Dan, sent a string of angry text messages. One of them predicted that the Rangers would be the opponent when the Penguins raise the Stanley Cup banner to the rafters. Indeed, a short month later, his Nostradamus-like prediction is in fact a reality. I'm not mad. First of all, it's a crappy thing to get mad about. Second of all, maybe watching it will light an illusionary fire under the arses of certain Rangers players and get them going.

When the Rangers were awful in 2002-03, I wanted to send a mail to MSG. Specifically, I wanted to mail it to Gord Dwyer. I figured he never got any fan mail, so he would atleast open it, as opposed to sending it to Mark Messier or Tom Poti (it would have been lost in Poti's hatemail). I wanted to send him the video tape of "Oh Baby!" which was the highlights of the 1993-94 season, from playing in Europe to winning the Cup in Game 7. I figured it would start a fire under him, and he would show it to everyone and they would then be inspired to reach for glory.

Alas, I never sent it, the Rangers missed the playoffs, and I've blamed myself ever since. So maybe the banner-raising ceremony in Steeltown will be the "Oh Baby!" that is still sitting on my desk upstairs in my room.

A few notes...

In 2005-06, the Rangers played a very short February also, due to the Olympics. They played 6 games and won all of them, 5 in regulation and 1 in overtime on a Jaromir Jagr goal (from Martin Rucinsky and Michal Rozsival... ah, to be Czech in America). This year, that's do-able as well. Six games, 4 at home, including the Lightning and Predators.

With 24 games vs. the Atlantic, 40 vs. the rest of the East, and 15 against the West, that leaves them playing 3 Western teams twice this year. If I remember from last year, they played Chicago twice, Dallas twice, and the Ducks twice. This year's repeat offenders are St. Louis, Phoenix, and Los Angeles.

No "California Trip" this year, since their only game out there is against LA. That trip sees them in Phoenix, Colorado, then LA. The "Florida Trip" not only happens near the end of the season, but the Rangers also make the same trip during Thanksgiving week, as they do every year (Panthers on Thanksgiving Eve, Lightning on Black Friday).

They do have a Western Canada trip, though, as they play Calgary, Vancouver, and Edmonton in early November. Mark that down as a loss, as they normally do awful on that road trip. That will also be Tom Renney's first - and only - meeting with his old team. They also stop in Minnesota before hitting Canada.

Don't bank on any romantic Friday evenings at the Garden. The Rangers have 6 road games on a Friday (including the opener in Pittsburgh) but if you want to see them in the City on a Friday, you'll have to wait until the last home game of the year, 4/9/10 (looks weird to write!) against the Flyers.

Three home games that my girlfriend will kill me if I don't sell my tickets: 11/21 vs. Florida, her birthday; 2/14 vs. Tampa Bay, Valentine's Day; and 3/18 vs. St. Louis, our anniversary.

Possible road trips: October 24 & January 23, Montreal; December 9, Chicago; December 17, Philadelphia; January 9 & March 21, Boston; March 6, Washington; March 27, Toronto; December 21 & 31, Carolina. Sadly, no trip to Nashville is in the works, atleast not for a hockey game.

Wednesday, July 15, 2009

Islanders 2009-10 Schedule Analysis

Last year, on the day when the 2008-09 schedule was released, I did a post talking about the schedule and predicting how the Islanders would fare. Honestly, it was one of the most fun blogs I did all year. Now that the 2009-10 schedule is here, let's take a look at how things shake out for the Islanders.

- October is going to be a brutal month. Thanks to the Olympic Games, the schedule is super-compressed and starts earlier than it might. And it just so happens that the Islanders are getting slammed with quality opponents in the first month of the season. Let's check out this stretch starting on October 17 - home against San Jose, home against Carolina, at Montreal, home against Washington, at Montreal, home against the Rangers, at Washington. All of this takes place in a 14-day span. So, to recap, that's seven games against 2009 playoff teams, including two cross-country trips, in two weeks. To say this is a test would be an extreme understatement.

- Unfortunately for the Islanders, the real test comes in November. With the exception of a home game on November 7 against Atlanta, the Islanders will spend 19 straight days on the road. They'll stop in Buffalo, New Jersey, Washington, Carolina, Florida, Boston, Minnesota, St. Louis and Toronto. Five playoff teams in that group and three that just missed out. Oh, and the Islanders' Thanksgiving celebration is bookended with home games against Philadelphia and Pittsburgh. And after that, the Isles head out on the road again to play the Devils, Thrashers, Lightning, Flyers, and Maple Leafs.

- The silver lining is that after the Islanders come home after their December 9 game in Toronto, they'll spend virtually the rest of 2009 at home. The Isles' ten home games between December 12 and December 29 are all played in New York. They play two games at home, face the Rangers on the 16th, play four more at home, head to the Garden again on the 26th, and then play two more at home before traveling to Ottawa for a New Year's Eve game.

- The rest of the schedule pretty much follows the pattern of bizarre, long stretches at home or on the road. After a three-game Western Conference swing in January, they get six out of seven at home - which, of course, is followed by a four-game road trip. Then, in March, they play four out of five at home and follow that by playing four in a row on the road. Thankfully, the Islanders finish out the 2009-10 season by playing five of seven at home.

- That final stretch will be key if the Isles intend to make a playoff push. The Islanders' final ten games include two against the Rangers and two against the Penguins; they also take on the Flyers and Devils once. In other words, if the Islanders will prove if they're a playoff team or if they're still a year away during this stretch.

- Five. That's the number of times the Islanders will be forced to play games on consecutive nights with less than 24 hours between start times. I'm not talking about 30-minute differences, either. Most of these are 7 PM faceoffs followed by 5 PM starts the next day. As if it wasn't bad enough that they're scheduled to be playing two full games within a 24-hour period five times, on four of these occasions, the Islanders are traveling between games. So, for example, the Islanders will play a game at the Garden against the Rangers at 7, have to travel back home, and then host a well-rested Flyers team at 5 the next day. Do other teams have to do this? I sincerely doubt it.

- I know this will come as a surprise, but the Islanders don't look to be a popular candidate for NBC games this year. Not one of their Sunday games starts earlier than 5 PM - and as we all know, NBC has better things to show at 5 PM on Sundays than hockey. The Rangers, of course, have four Sunday games starting at either 1 PM or 3 PM. As for Versus, it's interesting to note that the Islanders don't play a single Monday night game after December 21. Presumably, this is so Versus can burn through the Islanders game(s) they're required to show and save the Mondays later in the season for more TV-friendly, playoff-contending teams. The Isles do have plenty of Tuesday night games, as the schedule largely sticks to the Tuesday-Thursday-Saturday norm we've seen over the years.

- The day when the Islanders don't have to promote the Rangers on their own website is a day I'll be a happy man. As it is, though, the Islanders' main page trumpets Rangers games as the biggest attractions on the schedule after Opening Night. That's sort of depressing. The Islanders, and their fans, will never develop their own identity if they're constantly comparing themselves to the Rangers. They're fun games and it's a fun rivalry, but come on. Let John Tavares and the young talent sell this team, not three visits from the cross-town rivals.

- West Coast teams that will be visiting the Coliseum this year: Los Angeles (sadly, they probably won't be wearing their awesome third jerseys), Sharks (I'd be there if my wife wasn't due to have a baby that week), Oilers (the Islanders of the West, basically), Blue Jackets (I'm there), Red Wings (awesome), Predators (when were they last here, 2002?), Blackhawks (ooh), Blues (good young team), Flames (good test for the Islanders). The Isles will be heading to Minnesota, St. Louis, Colorado, Dallas, Phoenix, Vancouver, Los Angeles, Anaheim, and Columbus. So, for those who care, they're double-dipping against LA, Columbus, Minnesota, and St. Louis. Not bad.

- Looking at this schedule, I still see the Islanders much the same as I did beforehand - a team that should be good for somewhere between 80 and 85 points in 2009-10. I'm leaning towards the lower side of that number now, if only because the final weeks are going to beat the crap out of this team. Having said that, a healthy Rick DiPietro can make a huge difference for the Islanders. He might even get them in position to get them into the playoffs. Who knows?

- My friend Leslie, writer of The Lefty Stick blog, just purchased season tickets and invited me to call some games. Much to my surprise, I picked mostly games against Western opponents. In fact, the only game against an Eastern opponent I picked was a December game against Boston. I used to hate games against the West and actually loved the post-lockout schedule where there were only a handful of inter-conference games a year. Now? Seeing those Western teams is going to be a huge thrill.

- As for the rest of the league... as bad as the Islanders got the shaft, the teams that are worst off are the teams opening the season in Europe. Last year, those teams got a head start and were home before the season began for everyone else. This year? Not so much. Those teams actually play after some of the teams who will be opening the season from the comfort of their own homes. So these teams not only have to deal with flights to and from Europe, they have to do so on the same compressed schedule as the rest of the league. I sure hope these teams are being well-compensated for their sacrifices.

- The Winter Classic... ugh. It's starting to get ridiculous now. As we all know, the Winter Classic is no longer a bone thrown to the fans, a special moment in a very long regular season. Instead, the Winter Classic is like the Super Bowl or interleague play in baseball - it's something for the non-hockey fans who watch one game a year and act as if they follow hockey. If the NHL really cared about what the fans wanted to see, they'd have the Bruins facing the Canadiens, not the Flyers. But this is the NHL and NBC we're dealing with, and NBC is convinced there are only six teams in the entire league - the Flyers, the Rangers, the Penguins, the Capitals, the Red Wings, and the Blackhawks. Did you know that the Bruins and Flyers have a rivalry? I sure as hell didn't. And yet, Gary Bettman hails it as "a great rivalry". Um, NO. Speaking of rivalries, for those of you who are happy that the Rangers weren't a part of this year's game and are holding out hope for an Isles-Rangers Winter Classic, it's never going to happen. Bettman would never take the chance of an ugly incident happening in the league's showcase game, and Isles-Rangers can get a little intense at times - if not on the ice, then definitely in the crowd. Next year's game will obviously be Rangers-Capitals at Yankee Stadium, because God forbid NBC showcases a team outside of their usual favorites.

Checking Up on Last Year's Schedule...

Well, the 2009-10 schedule will be released very shortly (about 3:00, they say) and I figured what better day to talk about last year's schedule.

Last season, I wound up having a half-season package. I thought I would just have an 11-game plan, though, so I gave every game a "score" from 0 points to 3 points. The Rangers gave me a choice of four 11-game plans, and whichever had the most points, I would pick.

Turns out, they offered me a half-season plan after I already signed up for the 11-game plan, so I took the no-brainer: the plan with Adam Graves night and opening night.

Let's look back on what games I thought would be awesome or crappy, and how they actually turned out, shall we? ... ...

The 4 games I was most excited about were Opening Night vs. Chicago, Sean Avery's return game vs. Dallas in October, and the last two home games of the year, vs. Montreal and Philadelphia. These were the only 4 "3-point games." I did wind up going to all four.

The home opener was excellent, as it always it. Excitement, new players, great crowd, the Molly Wee Pub, a pretzel stick in my beer, and 2 points for a win.

Sean Avery's "return game" was horrendous. My friend Tom and I each had 4 beers on the train in and 4 at the bar. I had 2 at the game and he had 4. He passed out in the middle of the 2nd period, and I didn't wake him because it was so boring. Markus Naslund scored under a minute into the game on the power play, then the Rangers did n o t h i n g the rest of the game and lost 2-1. Horrible game, but we got Avery's autograph later (me on an Avery jersey, Tom on a Ryan Callahan jersey which he stained 10 minutes later with curry from his Halal sandwich).

The last 2 games of the year were great, also. The Canadiens game was good because a regulation win nearly clinched the playoffs for the Rangers. They were neck-and-neck with the Habs, and a big 3-1 win put them in position to clinch in the next game.

The game against Philly saw them clinch, keeping my friend Tom's streak of seeing them clinch in person alive.

So, 3 out of 4 games that I thought would be awesome, were indeed awesome.

(The reason I didn't give Adam Graves Night 3 points is because it wasn't announced when it was at the time of the post. Turns out, the game was horrible but the ceremony was great.)

Of the 3 games I gave no points to, one was a Sunday afternoon game against Philly. I was actually offered a very nice ticket to the game (but very expensive, purple seats, center ice, like $240) which I declined because I couldn't get off work. That game? A 5-2 stinker where Henrik Lundqvist was yanked early and the Rangers went down 5-0. I remember I was watching before I left for work and they were down 2-0. I switched channels, went back a moment later and it was 3-0. I switched channels for 3 more minutes and it was 5-0.

The best game I went to last year, off the top of my head, was a 4-1 win over the same Flyers. About 5,000 Philadelphia fans were in the building but Sean Avery scored 2 goals and those Flyers fans were hushed quickly.

One of my favorite parts of the schedule is seeing the road games and planning trips to see them. Two years ago, I did Boston, Montreal, Jersey, Philly, and of course the Coliseum.

Last year, I only did the Coliseum and Nashville, a game I had planned on going to. This year, they probably won't be there again (should be a home game versus the Predators, unless they play 2 games against them) but if they are, I'll be there. Great city, decent hockey atmosphere, clean building, and good memories since the Rangers won 4-2 after John Tortorella ripped everyone a new defecator after the 1st period. Plus, I was 3rd row from the ice.

Anyway, today should be the last exciting day of the summer for hockey fans until mid-September, when training camp kicks off.

I'll be working later but will probably write a little bit about what road games look interesting around midnight tonight.

Two things to expect? Lots of games against division rivals in the last 10 games (probably 8 of the last 10 will be against the Atlantic division); and no Islander-Ranger games on weekends (atleast not at the Coliseum).

Tuesday, July 14, 2009

On Ryan Callahan & Lauri Korpikoski...

I am happy with both news items that came out of Madison Square Garden yesterday.

First, Ryan Callahan re-ups for 2 years at an average of $2.3M per year. Considering Callahan had 40 points last year (22 G, 18 A) and earned his raise. Yet, if he was a veteran, he would be making a boatload of more money. For comparison, Ales Kotalik had 43 points in each of the past 2 seasons, and he got paid $3M. Chris Drury had the same number of goals (but 18 assists more) and is making over $7M. Scott Gomez had 58 points total and was making $7.357M. So would you rather have 3 Callahan's scoring 40 points each and playing hard every shift, or 1 Gomez scoring under 60 points while coasting through life?

As for Lauri Korpikoski being traded for Enver Lisin: Good riddance! I had nothing in particular against Korpikoski, except for the fact that he wasn't that good. You would think that 5 years after being drafted 19th overall in 2004 (1 spot before Travis Zajac and 10 before Mike Green), he'd start to fill in already. Some might call him a "late bloomer" and some might say he was "mis-used by Tom Renney and John Tortorella." But if you want the truth, he never was primed to be a top-line player.

Is Lisin going to be? Probably not. But he had 21 points in only 48 games last year, and he is blazing fast. He is so quick with the puck that he fits in perfectly with Tortorella, as opposed to the slower Korpikoski.

Korpikoski averaged less than a shot per game (63 shots, 68 games) while Lisin averages over two. For those who love Phil Esposito, you might remember that he always said that you can't score if you can't shoot.

Plus, he will be cheaper than Korpikoski to re-sign, if only by $100-200K. Still, every little bit of Cap room helps the Rangers.

Was Korpikoski mis-used? Not really, atleast not to the extent that Petr Prucha was while he was here. Korpikoski is an adequate checking-forward and penalty-killer, but he didn't have much more in his bag o' tricks.

While I'm not saying Lisin will be the Restricted Free Agent Who Saved the Franchise, atleast he's an upgrade over Korpikoski. Lisin has Nik Zherdev's potential, even though he might never use it. Korpikoski had Nigel Dawes's potential, even though he might never achieve such grand heights.

Plus, it's nice to see Glen Sather using the same game plan he had in the Summer of '08 - get as many 3rd and 4th line players under contract if necessary.

Friday, July 10, 2009

Danis Heads To New Jersey

Yann Danis officially became an ex-Islander today, signing a contract with the New Jersey Devils. It was clear he wasn't coming back, and if there was any chance of him re-signing, it went out the window when the Isles signed Dwayne Roloson. Danis now takes his trade to the Devils, where he'll likely back up Martin Brodeur.

Danis didn't have much help last season with the Islanders, but still put up fairly respectable numbers. Now, he heads to the Prudential Center, where he'll make a handsome salary to operate the door of the bench. He actually might see more playing time than is customary for a Devils backup if their next coach wisely gives Brodeur a rest every now and again. And no team will make Danis look as good as the Devils will.

There's one absolute certainty in all of this. The Devils will sit Brodeur for at least one Islanders-Devils game this year, and Danis will come in and absolutely stonewall his former team. How could Islanders fans expect anything else?

Thursday, July 9, 2009

Ales Kotalik...

Well, he's no Alex Tanguay, but Ales Kotalik is now a New York Ranger. He comes fresh off a 43-point season (in 75 games), but he scored 11 in 19 after being sent to Edmonton from Buffalo. In fact, he's had 2 43-point seasons in a row and has only cracked 60 once, in 2005-06, where he had 25 goals. That was the only season of his career where he's had a full docket of 82 games also.

So another injured player for the Rangers, another 3rd liner for John Tortorella's "system," but I do like him. It's an upgrade over Aaron Voros, Donald Brashear, and Mark Bell.

The term is suspect though - 3 years, $9M. Are 43 points really worth $3M per year? (His Cap hit was $2.333M last season.) I hope this doesn't screw the team at the trade deadine, when they'll need to get a scorer on the market to make a push for the playoffs. I'm afraid they won't have any cap room to get a player they need, because they also need to make atleast one more medium-sized signing this offseason (a center or a defenseman, I would guess). To be honest, I was hoping for a 2 year, $4M contract (or maybe $5M for a Cap hit of $2.5M per).

He is 30, will be 31 in December, but he's a fast player and he's big. He's 6'1", 230 pounds. He also plays the power play - of his 43 points last year, 23 were on the power play. (For comparison, Scott Gomez had 17 of his 58 on the power play, and he played nearly every power play.)

I'm not upset about this at all. Nik Zherdev will be gone, a right winger who can pot 20-25 can be a positive move. Hey, there were worse options out there, right? And while he had a -5 on the 2006-07 Sabres, his +/- was better in 05-06 than Chris Drury's on the same team.

But now, the real rivalry begins. Who will wear #21, Kotalik or Chris Higgins?

Wednesday, July 8, 2009

So Long, Claude Lemieux

Today, Claude Lemieux announced his retirement. Again.

Those of you who have read this blog for a while know that we're both big fans of the man known as "Pepe". He was the typical pest - great if he's on your team, a nightmare if he isn't. Modern-day agitators such as Sean Avery only wish they could have been as effective as Claude Lemieux.

Quite frankly, if the Hockey Hall of Fame Class of 2012 does not include Claude Lemieux, something is seriously wrong. And how fitting would it be if Lemieux were to be inducted alongside his former Avalanche teammate Joe Sakic? Of course, there will be plenty of detractors who will call Lemieux a dirty player. These are the same people who gushed over players like Bobby Clarke and Scott Stevens, so there you go. Anyway, let's take this moment to go over some of Lemieux's Hall credentials.

- Four Stanley Cups (1986, 1995, 1996, 2000). It should also be pointed out that each of these Cups came on different tours of duty. As in, he helped make four different teams into winners. Also, he never lost in a Stanley Cup Final.
- 80 playoff goals, good for 9th best in NHL history.
- 1995 Conn Smythe winner.
- Nine seasons with 20+ goals and 100+ penalty minutes. To put that into proper context, only five players accomplished this feat in 2008-09.
- Nine trips to the conference finals or beyond.
- 379 regular season goals. Not bad for a guy primarily known for his playoff scoring.
- Came back to the NHL at age 43 and played a regular shift on a team that won the President's Trophy.

That last one might be the most significant one of all. Even though his skills had largely eroded, Lemieux was still able to show something to a group of players who weren't even alive when he was drafted. It's a shame the Sharks choked in the playoffs, as is customary for them, because Lemieux winning a fifth Cup would have been such a great story.

As it is, Lemieux retires with his head held high, knowing he could still do it. Truth is, he always could do it. He just had the misfortune to have high goal totals in an era where goal totals were extremely high, then nearly killed Kris Draper. There wasn't a period in Claude Lemieux's career where he wasn't an underrated player. I hope his retirement will educate some of the nay-sayers - as well as the aforementioned haters who claim Lemieux was a dirty player - on what was a spectacular career.

As one of my favorite non-Islanders of all-time, I always wonder what might have happened if things were different. It's a little-known fact that Claude Lemieux was an Islander for a very brief time. The Islanders acquired Lemieux from New Jersey after the 1995 season, then immediately shipped him off to Colorado for Wendel Clark. (Trivia question: Who went to New Jersey in exchange for Lemieux?) Surely, Lemieux wouldn't have won a Stanley Cup with an awful Islanders team in 1995-96, but I would have cherished the chance to watch a true great, a legitimate Hall of Famer, for 82 games. Lemieux always shined in the playoffs, but he was never anything but a tremendous talent who could do it all.


Monday, July 6, 2009

Free Agents Still Available...

Hope everyone had a good weekend celebrating America's birthday. And what's more American than hockey?! Okay, a lot, but what's more American than getting paid a ton of money to play a game?!

Don't forget that I made a list of still-available free agents the other day (before Day 2 of Free Agency). Keep it on hand - it comes completely with my impressive HTML knowledge, which consists mainly of only strike-throughs).

Names still available that could help the Islanders or Rangers...
... Alex Tanguay; Saku Koivu; Paul Mara; Derek Morris; Ales Kotalik; Blair Betts; Brendan Shanahan; Chris Chelios; Corey Murphy; Mike Comrie; Brendan Morrison; and if Glen Sather wants another 4th line player, Travis Moen is indeed still out there, unsigned and waiting.

Saturday, July 4, 2009

Ryan Smyth

If this blog existed on July 1, 2007, I'd have written a post about the mass exodus from Long Island. On that day, all of the one-year contracts Garth Snow signed prior to the season expired, and just about every free agent bolted from the Island. Viktor Kozlov and Tom Poti went to Washington. Jason Blake went to Toronto. Richard Zednik went to Florida. Arron Asham went to New Jersey. In essence, the Islanders were gutted, and the only player they acquired that day was Jon Sim - the same Jon Sim who would suffer a season-ending injury in the Islanders' home opener.

As all of the other players left, the Islanders sort of shrugged and looked at the real task at hand. That, of course, was signing Ryan Smyth to a long-term contract, giving him the "C", and making him the focal point of the Islanders. In the weeks leading up to free agency, the Isles attempted to sell Smyth on Long Island and the future of the franchise. It was a future that wasn't overly compromised by the trade to acquire Smyth, as history shows that both Robert Nilsson and Ryan O'Marra have been busts. The Islanders ended up offering Smyth more years and more money than anybody else... but Smyth decided to go back out West and sign with Colorado.

Though Smyth handled the situation really well, praising the Islanders organization on his way out, Islanders fans were devastated. This was their one serious chance to land a marquee free agent, and yet this player took less money to go elsewhere. To put it mildly, that Snow lost maybe his five best players on July 1, 2007 and only walked out with Jon Sim did not make Islanders fans very happy.

Fast-forward to present day. Garth Snow is no longer in the position of handing out one-year contracts to veterans with something to prove just to make a run at the eighth seed. Snow has a team full of young players and quality veterans, all of whom are on manageable contracts. Now, imagine if Ryan Smyth were among those players.

If Smyth were an Islander, the Islanders would be committing upwards of $6 million annually to an injury-prone player who hasn't exactly lit the lamp on a regular basis. Smyth's 40 goals over the past two years would have cost the Islanders around $12 million. For a team that loses money even with a payroll at the salary floor, Smyth's deal would have been crippling. Not to mention that he couldn't have gotten the Islanders teams of the past two years by himself. The Islanders would essentially be replacing Alexei Yashin's inflated contract with another huge deal that couldn't possibly come close to paying dividends. And perhaps, like the Colorado Avalanche have just done, the Islanders would have been forced to trade Smyth for pennies on the dollar in order to start rebuilding.

This isn't intended to trash Ryan Smyth. This is just the reality of the situation. Garth Snow, the Islanders organization, and Islanders fans everywhere should be very thankful that Ryan Smyth spurned the Islanders two years ago. Smyth's decision was a big part of the Islanders' realization that they had to rebuild, and perhaps if Smyth stayed with the Islanders, they'd keep signing crappy veterans in an attempt to win now. By moving on, Smyth saved the Islanders a lot of money and a lot of heartache.

Thursday, July 2, 2009

A Guide to Day 2...

Sorry for the influx of posts, but here is a list of the free agents still available who can help a team. Or, in the case of Ryan Hollweg, Marek Malik, Yann Denis, and Thomas Pock, a list of ex-Islanders and Rangers of whom it will be interesting to see if they sign anywhere.

Ales Kotalik, Alex Tanguay, Alexandre Giroux (AHL MVP), Andy Hilbert, Antero Niittymaki
Blair Betts, Brendan Morrison, Brendan Shanahan
Chris Chelios, Cory Murphy
Dan Fritsche, Dean McAmmond, Dennis Seidenberg, Derek Armstrong, Derek Morris, Dmitri Kalinin, Dominic Moore
Eric Perrin, Eric Reitz
Jed Ortmeyer
Ken Klee, Kevin Weekes, Kurtis Forster, Kyle Calder
Manny Legace, Manny Malhotra, Marc-Andre Bergeron, Martin Biron, Mats Sundin, Maxin Afinogenov, Mike Peca, Michel Ouellet, Mike Comrie, Mike Grier, Mike Sillinger, Mike York, Miro Satan
Olaf Kolzig
Paul Mara, Petr Sykora, Philippe Boucher
Richard Zednik, Robert Lang, Ryan Hollweg
Thomas Pock, Todd Bertuzzi, Travis Moen
Yann Denis

Wednesday, July 1, 2009

Quick Thoughts on Free Agency...

Well, I'm a lot happier today than on July 1, 2008, when the Rangers signed Wade Redden and I started ripping apart my girlfriend's house in anger. By the way, she was mad.

Let's put it this way. If I had told you 3 days ago that the Rangers were going to trade Scott Gomez and his $7.357M Cap hit over the next 5 years for Marian Gaborik and his $7.5M Cap hit over 5 years, would you? And as an added bonus, Long Island-native Chris Higgins would be on board, adding grit, passion, energy, and a few goals. Sounds like a good deal, right?

Indeed it is. Glen Sather got it right - get Gaborik and his frail body for just money, and ignore Dany Heatley and his mind games when it would have cost money AND a few players.

Donald Brashear... whatever. It's going to be very hard to root for him, but he'll protect Gaborik, Ryan Callahan, Chris Drury, and whatever Russian named Nik ends up on the team.

I would like to wish a fond farewell to Freddy Sjostrom, though, who is off to Calgary, where he will no doubt be beneficial to their defense-first movement and can also play first-line winger with Jarome Iginla, if need be. Better him than Jamie Lundmark with Iginla, no?

And while I'm upset that Mike Cammellari signed in Montreal, he did get a very high deal from them. $6M for him is too much I think. If he signed in New York for $5M, okay, but not that much.

I also think Gomez and Cammellari, if teamed up, should do very well. If nothing else, a power play with Gomez dishing to Cammellari and his old buddy Brian Gionta will be spectacular. With Andrei Markov and possibly Alexei Kovalev on the ice then also, that could be killer.

Oh, and about the Hossa deal. It's not 12 years. It's 8 years. Well, it's 12 years, but it's a fake 4 years at the end. He'll be making the league-minimum for a player over 35 then, and he might not even play. Either him or Chicago probably said, "Ok, 8 years for 7 million each year." "No, better idea, higher amount, 4 longer years, $5.2 million Cap hit. Detroit did it, why can't we!"

* * *

So this is how the Rangers roster shapes up, as of now. Don't pay any attention to lines or positions, and keep in mind trades can still happen. Last year, if you remember, Ryan Hollweg was traded to Toronto on like July 14th.

Avery - Dubinsky - Gaborik
Higgins - Drury - Callahan
Voros - Anisimov - Boyle
Korpikoski - Brashear - Zherdev

That's 12 forwards, but we don't know about Zherdev. Brashear and Voros won't be everyday players, and who knows about Boyle. We also don't know about Hartford and who might make the team (P.A. Parenteau? Mark Bell? Jordan Owens? Dale Weise?) So we have 8 forwards to play everyday, possibly 10, but there still is a need.

Expect atleast one or two more forwards, hopefully a puck-carrying, first-line center, if there are any available. Not everything happens on July 1, remember. Markus Naslund was signed July 3 last year. Uh, so was Dmitri Kalinin.

On D...

Redden - Rozsival
Staal - Girardi
Potter - Gilroy - Sanguenetti - Del Zotto

No room for a big D really, especially since the money should be spent on offense instead. Mike Komisarek would've been excellent, but maybe Rob Scuderi can be signed on the cheap.

* * *

Should make for an interesting Day 2. I would definitely expect 2 forwards to be signed, and maybe a veteran 7th D so that there aren't too many rookies on the backline. Hey, maybe Paul Mara will take another discount to play here.

The Latest Signings

Earlier in the day, we had a thread that we'd update anytime something big happened. Well, since then, we've seen quite a bit of activity. So let's pick up where we left off...

- Marian Gaborik to NY Rangers, 5 years, $37.5m ($7.5m/year)
This is the big one for Rangers fans. This is the reason they traded Scott Gomez. Was it worth it? Only time will tell. On one hand, Gaborik is the scorer the Rangers need desperately. On the other, Gaborik is extremely injury-prone and might not be able to handle the New York pressure cooker. I can easily see Gaborik being the latest target for the Garden faithful's boos. Many will point to his track record of injuries and his 17 games played last year. Optimists will note that Gaborik scored 13 goals in those 17 games. Either way, Gaborik fits a hole on this team that Scott Gomez never came close to filling - that role, of course, being a pure goal scorer.

- Mike Komisarek to Toronto, 5 years, $22m ($4.5m/year)
A lot of Islanders fans were hopeful their hometown boy would come home, but it was never going to happen. That's life. I guess it's appropriate that Komisarek ended up in Toronto, though. He gets his big pay day, but with that salary comes a ton of pressure. When the Leafs struggle, fans are going to point to Komisarek's meager point totals and criticize his play, fair or not. Honestly, I don't see him playing the full five years in Toronto. But the truth is, someone was going to overpay for Komisarek's services today, and I'm glad it's someone outside of the Atlantic Division.

- Mike Cammalleri to Montreal, 5 years, $30m ($6m/year)
After a 39-goal season in Calgary, Cammalleri cashes in and heads to the greener pastures of Montreal. The Habs essentially fell apart last year, but they hope Cammalleri can provide the offensive ability to return them to their 2007-08 levels. The money is about right, but the years are a bit much. Then again, the same can be said about pretty much everyone. I can't even remember how many times I've said/typed/texted "(x) years is a lot for a player who (some sort of comment about a player's one-dimensional style)" Earlier today, Botta called to mind the putrid 2007 free agent class. Hopefully, this one isn't as bad. But there have been a lot of lengthy deals today, and more than a few are destined to backfire.

- Scott Clemmensen to Florida, Mike Rupp to Pittsburgh, Brian Gionta to Montreal, John Madden to Chicago.
These deals are all wonderful for the teams who are receiving these players. Each one of them fills a need. But the Devils are letting a ton of "their" guys go. Rupp and Madden are the defense-first forwards the Devils have built the last fifteen year of success upon. Gionta was one of their only dependable scorers before an off-year in 2008-09. And Clemmensen kept the Devils in the playoff race last year while Martin Brodeur was injured. What's going on with the Devils? They suddenly have a ton of cap room and can make a serious splash in any number of ways. My gut tells me they have a trade in the works. Lou Lamoriello does not let loyal players go for just any reason. There's got to be more to this story.

- Nikolai Khabibulin to Edmonton, 4 years, $15m ($3.75m/year)
So let me get this straight. The Oilers wouldn't give Dwayne Roloson a second year, but they're willing to give four years to Khabibulin? Let's count the ways in which this is a horrible move. First, Khabibulin will be forty years old when this deal is over. He was drafted by Winnipeg, for Christ's sake. Second, he has a history of not playing very well when his financial security is guaranteed. Look at his numbers. His three best years were the three years he was playing for a new contract (1998-99, 2003-04, 2008-09). Third, he hasn't exactly been stellar since the lockout. His number of games played has dwindled over the past three years, going from 60 in 2006-07 to 50 in 2007-08 all the way down to 42 in 2008-09. Yes his GAA and save percentage have gotten better in those years, but so have the Blackhawks. How will he do on a team with far less talent and where he has to be the number one guy? This deal isn't one I would have made, let's put it that way.

- Brian Boucher to Philadelphia, 2 years, $1.85m ($925k/year)
This is the move that will solve all of Philadelphia's goaltending problems. Oh wait, this is 2009, not 1999. Never mind.

- Dany Heatley to... Edmonton?
Dany Heatley deserves a special spot on in the Primadonna Hall of Fame, along with the likes of Eric Lindros, Terrell Owens, and Chad Johnson. For those of you who don't recall the whole Heatley saga, here's a refresher. After Heatley's car accident in Atlanta which killed teammate Dan Snyder, Heatley requested a trade. He was sent to Ottawa for Marian Hossa. After two straight 50-goal seasons, Heatley signed a six-year, $45 million extension to his then-current contract, which had one year left. The deal had a no-trade clause. After the 2008-09 season ended - the first season under his lucrative extension - Heatley requested a trade. Ottawa moved to make a deal before July 1 in order to avoid paying him a $4 million roster bonus.

That takes us up to last night, when Ottawa made a deal with Edmonton for Heatley. So what happened? Heatley invoked his no-trade clause and killed the deal. Rumors state that Heatley is just trying to screw the Senators out of $4 million and will approve the trade after Ottawa is officially on the hook for this money. If you believe what you hear, the Rangers were so turned off by this display that they removed themselves from the Heatley sweepstakes.

To me, it doesn't work both ways. You can't request a trade, then conveniently cite your no-trade clause as a reason for nixing a potential deal. If Heatley refuses to go to Edmonton, if I were Bryan Murray, I'd take Heatley off the block and force him to play for Ottawa. After all, Heatley did sign a no-trade clause.

Free Agent Frenzy

We're past 12 PM on July 1, which can only mean one thing - deals are being made by the second. We'll try to give our thoughts on some of the big moves of the day as they pop up.

1:10 PM: Mattias Ohlund to Tampa Bay, 7 years, $24.5m ($3.5m/year)
- Bryan: Um... interesting? On one hand, Ohlund is the first casualty of the long-term deals given to the Sedin twins and the rumored long-term deal the Canucks are working on with Roberto Luongo. On the other, seven years is a lot of years, particularly for a 32-year-old defenseman. Hey, you know who would have been a great fit for Tampa Bay? Dan Boyle! Oh, wait, nevermind...

1:18 PM: Colton Orr to Toronto, 4 years, $4M ($1M/year)
- Bryan: This one comes from Darren Dreger's Twitter and a text from Zach. Leafs fans will expect the world from Orr with a 4-year contract, then will promptly turn on him when they realize he isn't a superstar. Four years is a ton for an enforcer. But God forbid Brian Burke doesn't make a splash on July 1.
- Zach: Wouldn't call him a "splash" but he is a big loss to the Rangers. Not points wise (1G, 4A, and an awful -15 last year), but they should try to pick up a big-name medical staff for their players with all the cheap shots Chris Pronger is going to take on them next year. Who's going to protect them? Aaron Voros? Wade Redden? Get real.

1:58 PM: Craig Anderson to Colorado, 2 years, $3.6M ($1.8M/year)
- Zach: Not huge news, but I think the Islanders probably wanted him, and he would've been good there if Rick DiPietro can't play this year.
- Bryan: Anderson would have been great for the Islanders to nab, but this is actually a good signing. It sets a fairly low price for whoever they end up signing. Besides, if Anderson actually plays well for a depleted Colorado team, he'll be in line for a big payday in two years.

2:07 PM: Marian Hossa to Chicago, 12 years, $62M ($5.2M/year)
- Bryan: Chicago is aware that they have to sign Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews to long-term deals, right? The Hawks are starting to make the Rangers look like a fiscally responsible team. That said, Hossa should fit in great with the high-flying Blackhawks. And the price isn't bad at all.
- Zach: Contract is probably front-loaded like Zetterberg's so that in 8 years if they have to buy him out or trade him, it's a lot easier. Still, 12 years for someone who hasn't been a point-per-game player in 2 years is crazy. Some might also argue he is a loser, being on the losing end of the Finals twice.

- Bryan: As per Darren Dreger's Twitter (ugh), the first eight years of the deal will pay $59.3 million, while the final four will pay $3.5. Smart move by the Hawks.

2:18 PM: Ty Conklin to St. Louis, 2 years, $2.6M ($1.3M/year)
- Bryan: Obviously, this is a temporary move, as Conklin will be moved to one of the Winter Classic participants before long. Conklin might have found himself a home in St. Louis as the team grows, but he probably deserves more money after having a fine season in Detroit.

2:21 PM: Dwayne Roloson to NY Islanders, 2 years, $5M ($2.5M/year)
- Bryan: I can get on board with this. The money is a bit steep, but you're getting a guy who will play at least 25 games each of the next two years. Roloson can also provide some veteran leadership, as he was part of the 2006 Oilers as well as some Minnesota teams who have made deep playoff runs. As per Darren Dreger, Roloson wanted a second year, which the Islanders were willing to do and the Oilers were not.

2:58 PM: Donald Brashear to NY Rangers, 2 years, $2.8M ($1.4M/year)
- Bryan: Great recovery from losing Orr. Brashear wore an A in Washington and could provide the Rangers with some good leadership as well as some toughness. Not exactly the big splash Rangers fans were looking for (or dreading, as the case may be), but there's still time.
- Zach: In the past 3 years, Brashear has been suspended twice for actions he has done AGAINST the Rangers! He sucker-punched Aaron Ward (something we all wanted to do) and then tried to decapitate Blair Betts. One, I assume Betts won't be back. Two, it's a decent move from a hockey sense (he is more talented of a player than Orr) but I'm not sure I'll be able to root for Brashear, especially when he fights Orr in Toronto. Of course, I'll always root for the Rangers, but rooting for him will be very hard.

3:48 PM: NHL Network needs new commercials
- Zach: If I see the "new" NHL.com commercial with Eddie O or a 2-minute commercial for debt reduction starring a Barack Obama speech, I might give Donald Brashear $1.4M to attack Bob McKenzie.

And I love that commercial of everyone lifting the Stanley Cup, but I've seen in 9 times today alone.

By the way, it's so awkward watching McKenzie, Pierre McGuire, and Darren Pang banted while no news trickles down.

Jaroslav Spacek just signed in Montreal and they said, "Finally, we have news to report."

Islanders Free Agent Predictions

Zach has already made his predictions for what we might see on July 1. The trade of Scott Gomez for Chris Higgins gives the Rangers plenty of room to make yet another July 1 blunder. That much we can all agree on. But the Islanders? It's a little tougher.

For the Islanders, money isn't going to be an issue insofar as the salary cap. By the time the Islanders sign John Tavares and sign their restricted free agents (Blake Comeau, Jack Hillen, etc.) to qualifying offers, the Isles will be at the salary floor. I can't see them having a payroll higher than $45 million for the upcoming year.

The Islanders will have two pressing needs this year - a backup goalie and an enforcer.

Backup Goalie
Joey MacDonald and Yann Danis are both unrestricted free agents; both will test the market. Their respective stocks will likely never be higher, as both hit career highs in games played last season. You've got to figure both of them are out of the picture.

The Islanders need a goalie who can carry the load if Rick DiPietro can't play, but won't mind being second fiddle to DP and his enormous contract. A one-year deal to a guy like Olaf Kolzig wouldn't be the worst thing in the world. Kolzig will want to prove he's still got it after losing his starting job in Tampa Bay, he's got a two-syllable name the fans can chant ("D-P", "Jo-ey", "Da-nis", "Du-bie"), and he's more than capable of playing for a stretch when/if DiPietro is on the shelf. There's also the possibility of a Wade Dubielewicz return to Long Island. Other options, who will probably want more money or a better chance to win, include Dwayne Roloson and Ty Conklin. In Conklin's case, though, look for him to sign with whoever gets the Winter Classic this year.

Enforcer
Last year, just about every Islanders regular saw at least ten minutes of ice time per game. That's all four lines and all three pairs of defensemen. The only two players who didn't make the ten-minute mark were Mitch Fritz and Joel Rechlicz. While every single other Islander saw valuable minutes in the third period, but Fritz and Rechlicz were chained to the bench in important situations. If the Isles are to carry an enforcer - and with guys like John Tavares and Josh Bailey, they're pretty much going to have to - they need someone who can actually play hockey as well.

The two players that come to mind for the Islanders are Chris Neil and Colton Orr. Neil is a guy who can play as well as fight; he scored 16 goals for Ottawa in 2005-06, when he saw regular power play time. He's been injury-prone, but saw plenty of ice time even when Ottawa was stacked. Orr didn't score a whole lot on the Rangers, which only makes him like every one of his teammates, but he's got more talent than your average enforcer and would come cheaper than Neil. I honestly can't see Neil coming to Long Island when he'll get plenty of offers from top teams, but Orr could be had. He knows the Atlantic Division opponents well and could stand up to the heavyweights on rival teams.

The Unknown
There are a ton of guys that are going to be looking for new teams. The Sedin twins, Marian Gaborik, Martin Havlat, Mike Cammalleri should be on the move. In the comments section of his July 1 post, Zach suggested that landing the Sedins could put the Islanders on the map immediately. That said, I wouldn't count on any of these guys. The Islanders have to build toward the future, and part of the future in the "new NHL" is being able to sign the players you've drafted to long-term contracts. The Islanders would do well to avoid any long-term commitments unless they're sure these players are part of the future. They already made one mistake with Rick DiPietro. Let's not see another one.

In the end, I'd look for them to pick up a goalie, but maybe not right away. Same with some offensive muscle. I could see them re-signing Andy Hilbert, but Hilbert might want to test the UFA waters. I see the Islanders being quiet, but making solid moves that will pay off over the course of 2009-10.