I agree, as ive read leaf message boards where people expect us to somehow offer the max to every legitimate star out there......I think the Toronto media is overlly critical of the leafs, ecspecially Howard Berger, who basically slams everything they do.....the players I mentioned are guys ive either seen say something, or read in the media, that want to play in Toronto, and I believe they are realistic targets. I very easily could be wrong, and we could get none of them, but as a fan, Id like to think its possible...

Fixed.

You can't blame 'em. Being the #1 franchise in the NHL and not winning a Cup for like a gajillion years.

Can you really be the former without having any of the latter?

In their minds, yes.

Cox is an Ass-clown...right up there with Fraser in my books.
Strachan...well....i don't read him....nuff said.
Berger is o.k....but he is real critical.....not Cox critical but close.
McCown knows nothing...i don't think he's been to a live sporting event since UNLV won the NCAA's.

If you listen to sports updates here every update they mention another player "coming" to Toronto....and they always add "and he's from Ontario so maybe he'll take less to come here"

Drives me fuckin nuts.

Free agency has been pushed back








12 hours. Instead of starting at midnight it will start at noon. The agents complained about being put into the position of having to call their clients during the wee morning.

Sabres not qualfying Satan is pissing me off. They should have tendered him an offer then traded him for ANYTHING since that's better than the nothing we'll get for him now.

Yea', but if he turns around and accepts the offer, and nobody wants him for that price, you're stuck with him. I suspect the Sabres had an idea that nobody would have traded for him at his QO level.

My absolute biggest beef with the Bettman regime was removing the traditional conference and divisional names/alignment in favour of geographical alignment to satisfy newcomers to the game who 'didn't understand the funny names'. It was unique to hockey and part of its history.

This article (use http://www.bugmenot.com to by-pass registration):
http://chicagosports.chicagotribune....s-hockey-print

suggests that a change back is being considered as early as next season. It would feature a return to the traditional 1 vs. 4, 2 vs. 3, divisional rivalries of the past.

The 'new' league structure could return as early as next season and would look like this:

CLARENCE CAMPBELL CONFERENCE

NORRIS DIVISION
Chicago Blackhawks
Columbus Blue Jackets
Dallas Stars
Detroit Red Wings
Minnesota Wild
Nashville Predators
St. Louis Blues

SMYTHE DIVISION
Anaheim Mighty Ducks
Calgary Flames
Colorado Avalanche
Edmonton Oilers
Los Angeles Kings
Phoenix Coyotes
San Jose Sharks
Vancouver Canucks

PRINCE OF WALES CONFERENCE

PATRICK DIVISION
Florida Panthers
New York Rangers
New York Islanders
New Jersey Devils
Philadelphia Flyers
Pittsburgh Penguins
Tampa Bay Lightning
Washington Capitals

ADAMS DIVISION
Atlanta Thrashers
Boston Bruins
Buffalo Sabres
Carolina Hurricanes
Montreal Canadiens
Ottawa Senators
Toronto Maple Leafs

This would be f***ing awesome!!! What a way to repay long-time loyal fans!

Leafs need to be back in the (Chuck) Norris division for things to be proper.

Interesting comment on Eklund's blog


If Eklund is not bs'ing I wonder who could that be. First thought was Modano because I also follow the Stars and the only thing I've heard on the Modano front was him saying his agent will meet with Doug Armstrong during the week but apparently that did not happen because Modano then said his agent will meet with Armstrong at the draft. The problem with Modano is that I don't think people would currently consider him as one of the best at his position.

Who else? Iginla? I haven't heard anything concerning him and the Flames. Lecavalier? St. Louis? Kovalchuk?

Can I get a HELL YEAH!!

Sutter met with Meehan in Ottawa. 'Initial talks' are underway but I think the deal could take too long and hamper Sutter's ability to sign any free agents. The RFAs really need to be in place BEFORE you go shopping.

Damn right. And we also need to battle with Minnesota for the last playoff spot every year, with it coming down to the last night of the season with both teams tied with 52 points.

Interesting snippet from a TSN article.

http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/news_story.asp...66&hubName=nhl

Can't wait to see how FA shapes up.

I would say Thornton too will be up there, possibly more than Niedermeyer.

just saw that the Avs drafted Paul Stastny (Peter's son). very cool.

I don't know if he would get that this year. The Bruins don't seem to want to pay him that much and because he is an RFA, I don't see another team paying the max and giving up multiple first rounders.

He's a good hockey player, saw him a few times on TV for DU.

Trade Toronto and Nashville and it'd work. Also, you can up the bloodsport quotient by moving Colorado into the Norris, especially if the new NHL is going to place emphasis on division rivalries.

So, it'd be a Norris Division of Detroit, Toronto, Chicago, Columbus, Dallas, Colorado, Minnesota and St. Louis. Feel the love.

*salivates*

Stars re-sign Sergei Zubov to a 3 year deal worth $12 million.

Interesting... helps set the benchmark in the "new" NHL. That seems higher than what I thought he'd be worth.

I was thinking the exact same thing. So a 35 year old mobile, puck moving defenseman is worth $4 million a year? So when he's a 38 year old mobile, puck moving defenseman he will be counting $4 million against the cap? Huh.

Wait, Zubov is 35?

Jesus, I must be 100 years old now...

That must make Muckler 175 years old then.:)

This is the guy who paid Pierre Turgeon $7 million per year.

I have been checking out this Eklund guy's site. Since I have been following it he's batting .000. That said, it's still a fund place to check out rumors even if they're as about as accurate as me taking a dart with a free agent's name on it and throwing it at board with all 30 teams. It's about that random.

Still, I love the idea of Thornton being traded to Detroit even if it did cost us Datsyuk.

Leafs qualify Belak and Perrot, which would seem to be a bad sign for Domi sticking around.

They also wisely held onto Pilar... I really think this kid is going to be a good defenceman.

And the free agency period begins!

Since I've recently gotten into EHM, it was fun to look at the Thrashers tendered/non-tendered group and feel like I knew who they were. :)

No announcements yet.

Maybe Naslund, Forsberg and Neidermayer's chartered plane was delayed on the way into Toronto?

The only likely explanation.

So, the Bruins get Isbister from the Oil for a 4th rounder. I hope that wasn't the "HUGE" deal O'Connell was refering to.

It's odd. The Leafs get O'Neill for a conditional 4th rounder. Isbister goes to Boston for a 4th rounder. But Philly gets a 2nd round pick from the Ducks for Todd Fedoruk? Huh?

Roberts and Niewy to FLorida

Roberts and Nieuwendyk look like they signed with the Panthers. Both 2 year deals for 2.25 million a season.....thats a little rich, and a longer contract then i would have given them....Both still good players, but in this system, i say both are overpaid

Wow. I agree. Jeff O'Neill gets $1.5 and Nieuwendyk and Roberts $2.25 each? Sacre bleu! I don't know what's going on. It's all so confusing.

Well, the Panthers get a lot older and the Leafs get younger. Keenan is a mad man.

I see this as a couple of old buddies deciding to kick it Florida-style in the twlight of their careers. Some sun. Some beach. Some fishing. It's all good...

I guess JFJ and Quinn had made up their minds that they weren't interested in keeping Roberts and Niewendyk. Good signing by FLA... can't believe the Sens didn't make a run at those two.

Eklund says Iginla signs a 3x$6.5M deal, effectively setting the bar.

Oilers trade Brad Ibister to the Bruins for a 2006 4th rounder.

Yup.

If that's true and it is the bar. The Stars better bring back Modano, the cheap bastards.


Eklund added that Iginla said he would sign for less if they went hard for Niedermeyer.

It'll be an interesting time. I think the GMs are going to be struggling a little bit with their spending, particularly the ones that used to have a blank check. It took NFL GMs a while to get used to the cap there, but it's become such a science now. Wonder how long it'll take the NHL GMs to get used to the system and thinking in terms of both present and future cap numbers?

I've heard that some of the teams hired ex-NFL and/or ex-NBA guys to help navigate the cap.

Ville Niemenen was the only 'name' player not qualified by Sutter.

No doubt Sutter is working on the Iginla deal as I type because he stated unequivocally several times that no one else can be signed until Iggy is inked. It shapes the entire payroll/roster.

TSN is reporting that the Wild have signed Andrei Nazarov (no terms available) and the Blues signed Aaron Downey (no terms available).

I guess it starts not with a bang, but with a whimper...

What's with all these teams gathering tough guys? Fedoruk getting trader. Perrot/Belak signed. And now Nazarov and Downey... I love the tough guys, but I thought this was supposed to be the "kinder/gentler" NHL where speed, grace, and skill were valued over this type of brutishness.

And who better to make sure the speedy, graceful skilled guys are allowed to do their thing?

(Yes, I'm a caveman.)

what are the Devils doing?

well, the ex-NBA guy thing hasn't worked out for them so far... :rolleyes:

Downey one punched that guy from Carolina a few years ago...thing of beauty.

Hrm.....Newy and Roberts are gone.

Who fills the holes?

Fans love hockey fights?



Also I think they want to draw in more fans by getting them nostagic for their first glimpse of hockey.






Go fat guys!

One fat, one medium, two little!!!!!!!!!!!!

~rpi-fan

Exactly!!!

Sportsnet says Foote to the Blue Jackets.

As does TSN: http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/news_story.asp?id=132173

3 years at 4.5 per.
yowsers

EDIT: I believe that is actually a raise from his last contract...no 24% rollback for him.

a nice fit for the BJs, but man that's a lot of dough.

Great. Now we get to see Ugly Head 8 times a year. Just great...

and I won't have to see those terrible jewelry store commercials on Avs Center Ice broadcasts anymore!

I'm already liking this CBA.

btw, coincidentally, my NHL calendar for August features, or course, Adam Foote.

Wa-wa-wa---wow.....Go JACKETS....Maclean is making noise in Columbus...i like it.I think he could become one of the best GM's in the "new" NHL.

they overpaid, I'm not sold on Foote in the new NHL

I agree.
half a million more than Zubov got, and I think most people here agree that Dallas overpaid.

If Adam Foote is making $4.5 million, Zubov $4 million, Nieuwendyk and Roberts each $2.5 million, I am begining to think that perhaps the players didn't get screwed quite so badly after all. Sure, they could have demanded a bit more in a no-cap NHL, but these aren't bad salaries.

:mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad:

Wow, I didn't wake up expecting to see this news!!! This is awesome!!!

While MacLean might have overpaid a little bit, his top priority over the past three years has been to get a tough D-man that will clear out the crease. It seems that the Jackets have finally got their guy. Now, lets see what else MacLean does, as he still wants another forward and another d-man. Also, on our TV station last night, they said that Doug has put out pretty good offers to Forsberg and Naslund..........wow.

What about Luke Richardson? Isn't that what he is? A tough D-man that will clear out the crease? Poor Luke Richardson. Is he even playing anymore?

Luke has been a MAJOR disappointment and the only reason I don't think MacLean bought him out was the fact that he was the captain, and what does that tell your team when the captain is bought out? Also, he bought out Lachance, and I don't think he wanted to buy out two D-men.

I like Luke because he's a really nice guy, but I still am waiting for that mean streak he supposedly has on the ice. My nickname for him when he's out on the ice is "Standing Pylon". Of course, my nickname for Lachance was "Bag O' Pucks", because that's all I thought we could get for him in a trade.

you know it's a new era when Modano is a free agent and the teams chasing him aren't Toronto, Colorado and Detroit but Pittsburgh, Atlanta and Boston.

Yup, I've made peace with the fact that Modano might not be a Star much longer. New NHL and all of that.


*Sniff, Sniff*

Will someone hold me?


Foote is overpaid, IMO.

TSN is now reporting that the Flyers are on the verge of announcing deals with Derian Hatcher and Mike Rathje. This should surprise no one. Clarke and the Flyers have always gone for biggest defensemen they can find. Perhaps Clarke was giving advice to George McPhee of the Caps during this years draft...

Latest from Eklund (still needs to be confirmed from one acutally reliable source) Aucoin signed with Chicago at $4 million a year for four years (need to confirm). I think that's a pretty good deal for Chicago. Aucoin is a few years younger than Zubov/Foote. He can play like 57 minutes a night. He's physical, can kill penalties, and has a big shot from the point. I like this signing.

Ohhh, Hatcher is going to LOVE playing for Hitch again.

Hatcher and Rathje to Philly (no terms disclosed)
Aucoin to Chicago $16 million/4 years

They've also added Chris Therein.

a nice looking blueline for the Flyers - Hatcher and Rathje joining Johnsson, Markov and Desjardins.

If the obstruction rules are called this season the Flyers are in trouble...if they are'nt called...the Flyers may win the cup.

Holik to Thrashers.....

http://www.philly.com/mld/philly/spo...l/12284336.htm

To make cap room for all four players, the Flyers traded defenseman Danny Markov to the Nashville Predators, according to league sources. That trade will be announced later today.

LeafsLunch (radio) reporting Allison will sign here w/in the next day or so.

wow...alot of cash getting tossed around.....more then i thought would be anyway...
Im thinking that if people arent getting signed right now, they will have to take less, cuz the cap room wont be there for some teams...also, I can see contracts like Adam Foote's and Sergei Zubov becoming very bad after the 1st few years of them.....Dallas will probably spend near the cap, and will be looking to dump Zubov in a year or 2, cuz he will take up too much cap room.....Adam Foote will be very hard to move when Columbus gets tired of him....noone will want that cap figure on their team....

Really hoping the Allison deal with Toronto is about 1-1.5

I'm guessing Allison won't be for much more than a million, plus bonuses. There's some clause in the CBA whereby his bonuses won't count against the cap (or will count less, or something) because he hasn't played in almost two years. Given the unproven nature of his comeback, I'd be amazed (and frankly, a little pissed at JFJ) if Allison saw much money up front at all.

$4.5 million for the first year for Holik

This site has the quickest updates that I've come across. Just keep refreshing:
http://www2.sportsnet.ca/nhl/free_agent_tracker.html

Goodness. I hope the salary goes down after this season, but not likely, eh?

im thinking some of these contracts are part of the growing pains alot of teams will suffer through....4.5 for Holik is way too much....the average salary will be about 1.3.......that means Holik is over 3 teams better then the average player.......dumb sigining at that price

I know nothing about hockey, and just looking at his stats came to the same conclusion.

if holik is used correctly, hes the best defensive forward in hockey. he'll shut down the opposing teams top center. he is worth it, but only if you use him the way the devils did, not the way the rangers did.

Yzerman has re-signed with Detroit. Murray has re-signed with Boston for 4 years. They also signed Shawn McEachern for 2 years.

*sigh*

Carolina is apparently going to play the role of leach. They've already told reporters that they aren't interested in going over the threshold for which teams receive money in revenue redistribution, which is somewhere around $28 mil from what I've read. They say they'll shell out for a couple of free agents for around $5 mil total. Nothing like having a cheapskate for an owner. He and others like him get the NHL shut down for a year and then when they get what they want, he still refuses to commit more money to be competitive? This isn't Chicago. The natives already have college basketball to get them through the winter and the defending national champion is just up the road from them. If anything, they needed to be aggressive to get some headlines to compete with the Triangle schools. This will just mean more empty seats and a continuing embarassment for the city and league.

I'm just amazed at some of these salaries. Johnny compared Holik to the average player, but I think it's even more ludicrous to compare his salary to the maximum. an Igninla or a Sakic or a Forsberg or a Naslund will just barely be making more than Holik, who maintains his status of being one of the most overpaid/overrated players in the league.

really quite stunned by all this, and question whether anyone is going to have any money left next year for what should be an even better free agency crop.

So long as the contracts are reasonable (whatever that means), these seem like good pick ups for Boston even if Murray is a bit one-dimensional and I have never been sold on McEachern.

While the Yzerman signing comes as no surprise at all, it still makes me very happy. This will in all likelihood be his last year, but it's pretty much a given that Yzerman will be on the team for as long as he likes. It'll be a pleasure to watch him play. It will be interesting to see what the Wings do next. This is their first "free agent" movie. So long as Yzerman is playing they should be gearing up for a Cup run.

Greatest. Sports figure. Ever.

nice to see Yzerman back.
wonder how some of the older guys (Yzerman, Messier, Hull, etc) will do with the year off. On one hand, I think their bodies would enjoy the season off without the punishment, but it's also one more year for their physical skills to erode just that much more.

Islanders look like we might blow it big-time. I'm not asking for us to sign anyone for more than $3mil a year or so (and can live with Aucoin leaving for $4mil for 4 years). HOWEVER, we absolutely HAVE to sign a player or two for well over the average salary to be competitive (especially on defense).

But Milbury's comments of "the team will look very similar to last year (2003)" is extremely disturbing, given that Aucoin is gone.

~rpi-fan

But you have Alexei Yashin! :D

Murray is a decent player who is made significantly better by playing with Joe Thornton - they have a great chemistry together on the ice. Playing with Thornton turned Murray into a 30-goal scorer (never hit that mark before he came here). I'm not saying he's a bum, but he's an all-star who is just average without Joe (who, btw, really wants out of Boston).

McEachern? meh.

Milbury is on a short-list of guys (along with Keenan and Boobie Clark) that I am consistently amazed are still gainfully employed in this league.

Pavol Demitra to the Kings 3 years, 4.5 million per.
a bargain compared to Holik or Aucoin

Hatcher signed for $14 million/4 years.
Rathje signed for $17.5 million/5 years with a no-trade clause.

I need to stop sitting here refreshing that damn page

:confused:
Rathje, wow.....Hatcher, a deal compared to others

the teams that are giving these contracts out may be better this year, but will hurt themself in the future......I guess you need to overspend to get players in the free agent market, but I think this will come back and bite some of these teams in the ass

BTW, Kings, Demitra, thats a great signing