2006 NHL Offseason Thread

[chrisj]

Originally Posted by klayman

sigh

Oilers out: Pronger, Peca, Dvorak, Samsanov
Oilers in: Roloson, Lupul.

Wow...It's addition by subtraction. We're really building on success. It should be fun trying to unload Roloson's contract in the next couple of years when Lowe figures out one playoff run does not make a $4 million goalie.

What's wrong with Roloson? He looked solid, not only in the playoffs, but in the regular season. Based on current year salary figures, someone was going to offer him $4 million - better the Oilers do it than play Jussi all season. I'm quite happy with him.

Losing Dvorak? Not a big deal. Samsanov? I really like him as a player, but he didn't impress. Peca? Great playoff leader... wish he'd stay, but everyone knew he was gone. Pronger? Yeah, that hurts.

So we get Lupul. A guy who scored 28 goals at the age of 22 on the third line of the Ducks. Another year of experience, and on the first/second line of the Oilers, and he should be solid.

Smid is an interesting prospect. He should be a #5/6 guy next season, but we'll see how he does after that. Needless to say, not many guys play defence (and put up decent numbers) in the AHL at 19 years of age.

The picks? Probably trade bait - maybe to bring in another d-man at the trade deadline.

[RPI-Fan]

Isles got Brendan Witt!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Also strong rumors of Peca to the Island!

Peca will be great for a guy like Nilsson.

[Honolulu_Blue]

Originally Posted by TazFTW

Rangers signed Aaron Ward for 2 years, $5.5 million.

I like Aaron Ward. A UofM (Michigan) guy. A good Wing, but $2.75 million a year is quite steep. He parlayed his stout playoff performance into a nice chunk of change...

With the Guerin and Witt signings I think it's official...

There is PANIC IN HOCKEYTOWN!

The sum total of the Wings' moves:

Re-sign Lidstrom. (key)
Re-sign Osgood.
Yzerman retires.

On the positive side, they haven't lost anyone yet, though Shanahan is rumored to be interested in heading to Boston (where his wife is from).

Wings' fans are growing restless. It seems like Holland et al are taking a similar approach to free agency as they did last year. Just sort of hang around, let things get sorted out, and then sign cheap guys like Lilja, Samuelsson, Cleary, etc. I dunno there are some wholes in the Wings' line-up that are a bit bigger than the likes of those types of players.

Maybe they'll take a run at ole Kenny Jonsson.

[DeToxRox]

Originally Posted by Honolulu_Blue

I like Aaron Ward. A UofM (Michigan) guy. A good Wing, but $2.75 million a year is quite steep. He parlayed his stout playoff performance into a nice chunk of change...

With the Guerin and Witt signings I think it's official...

There is PANIC IN HOCKEYTOWN!

The sum total of the Wings' moves:

Re-sign Lidstrom. (key)
Re-sign Osgood.
Yzerman retires.

On the positive side, they haven't lost anyone yet, though Shanahan is rumored to be interested in heading to Boston (where his wife is from).

Wings' fans are growing restless. It seems like Holland et al are taking a similar approach to free agency as they did last year. Just sort of hang around, let things get sorted out, and then sign cheap guys like Lilja, Samuelsson, Cleary, etc. I dunno there are some wholes in the Wings' line-up that are a bit bigger than the likes of those types of players.

Maybe they'll take a run at ole Kenny Jonsson.

I'd rather see us take lumps with some kids now then down the road. We're still a playoff team with the core we have, and after how crazy this year was, just getting there is my only concern.

[Wolfpack]

Originally Posted by TazFTW

Rangers signed Aaron Ward for 2 years, $5.5 million and they lose Steve Rucchin who signed with the Thrashers.

Unlike the departure of Gerber, this guy I really hated to lose. We didn't have a guy on the blueline who could hammer it like Pronger could, but we had Ward and Wesley, guys who had tremendous guts and willingly laid down in front of speeding bullets to help out Cam Ward (or Gerber). They'd also seem to make that desperate diving play that would pokecheck a puck away and kill an odd-man rush. They did the dirty work that allowed the pretty boys up front to rack up their goals and assists. With Wesley also a likely departure (retirement), it remains to be seen whether the current group of defensemen going forward have such fortitude in them.

Still, at over $2 million/year, I'm pretty certain that was over what Jim Rutherford wanted to put out for him. JR's been very effective at generally keeping the core of the Hurricanes intact, but there have been some pieces floating away recently and we only have a new backup goaltender brought in. With Ward and Weight gone, it means Carolina's probably hunting around for another center as well as a defenseman.

[Honolulu_Blue]

Originally Posted by DeToxRoxDVHStyle

I'd rather see us take lumps with some kids now then down the road. We're still a playoff team with the core we have, and after how crazy this year was, just getting there is my only concern.

Agreed, especially in a market where Aaron Ward ($2.75 million) is getting more money than Henrik Zetterberg ($2.6 million). I repeat, Aaron Ward now makes more money per year than Henrik Zetterberg.

[MizzouRah]

Originally Posted by TazFTW

The Blues website is saying that they have signed Guerin.

Another interesting signing by the Blues. I hope some of this draft youth can play into the picture as well.

[DeToxRox]

Originally Posted by Honolulu_Blue

Agreed, especially in a market where Aaron Ward ($2.75 million) is getting more money than Henrik Zetterberg ($2.6 million). I repeat, Aaron Ward now makes more money per year than Henrik Zetterberg.

lol. I think the Wings are doing the right thing. In a few years some of these teams are going to be crippled. It's absurd the money flying out there.

[Chief Rum]

Man, my team makes a HUGE move, and I am at work on what should be a day off, unable to respond to anything here.

First off, wow. We talked about this possibility last night, but you never really think it will happen until it does. Burke certainly knows how to make a splash.

I will miss Lupul a lot. That was one heck of a player, and I wonder how this deal will look in five years? If we have a Cup, all is well, but if not, it's going to hurt watching Lups scoring 30-40 every year for the freakin' Oilers. At least he's going to his hometown, so I am happy for him.

I was looking forward to watching Smid next year, but I knew at least one defenceman had to go in any deal for Pronger.

If this works out the way, I hope, the picks will have a low value.

Originally Posted by TurnerONU22

Chief Rum, speaking of Beauchemin, did he really playing that well on the top pairing? I watched him in Columbus when he was here and was NOT impressed with him at all. He just seemed really average when he played, wasn't too physical, skated decently, moved the puck okay, but nothing really special that warranted top pairing time. He didn't look any better than the top 5 (Foote, Klesla, Suchy, Berard, Wescott) that was there at the time and we picked up Ron Hainsey on waivers, who looked better than Beauchemin as well.

Definitely toss out anything you saw in Columbus. It appears he was not in the right system for him, and that he didn't get much of a chance there. Also, for whatever reason, it might be he just was having troubles motivating himself. It's lot harder to act like a lazy deadweight when you're playing next to Niedermayer, I would think.

Beauchemin definitely took it to another level here. He made an awful looking Fedorov deal look like we got a heck of a deal. I am hoping he can continue to build on this season.

[Travis]

Originally Posted by chrisj

What's wrong with Roloson? He looked solid, not only in the playoffs, but in the regular season. Based on current year salary figures, someone was going to offer him $4 million - better the Oilers do it than play Jussi all season. I'm quite happy with him.

Losing Dvorak? Not a big deal. Samsanov? I really like him as a player, but he didn't impress. Peca? Great playoff leader... wish he'd stay, but everyone knew he was gone. Pronger? Yeah, that hurts.

So we get Lupul. A guy who scored 28 goals at the age of 22 on the third line of the Ducks. Another year of experience, and on the first/second line of the Oilers, and he should be solid.

Smid is an interesting prospect. He should be a #5/6 guy next season, but we'll see how he does after that. Needless to say, not many guys play defence (and put up decent numbers) in the AHL at 19 years of age.

The picks? Probably trade bait - maybe to bring in another d-man at the trade deadline.

Smyth-Horcoff-Hemsky
Torres-Stoll-Lupul
Moreau-Reasoner-Pisani
Jacques-Pouliott-Winchester

There seems to be a lot of fuel to the fire that Reasoner will be back in Edmonton next season, and if that's the case, I think our forward group is looking much better than it ended last season. Assuming Lupul signs a deal somewhere in the range of 3 years at around $1.75-$2 million per, the Pronger trade saves us a bunch of money.

The other thing it does is gives Lowe some wiggle room if the Roloson deal doesn't work out. 1st round picks always make a deal look better, and now we've got some to play with at the next trading deadline if we need to improve on the blueline or in net (if my worst Roloson fears come true).

This deal also (I would think) gives Spacek a blank cheque to write a number on to come back and play. In the end we likely end up overpaying Roloson and Spacek, with Tarnstrom now being a wildcard. At worst, I'm guessing we're looking at something like:

Spacek-Greene
Smith-Bergeron
Staios-Smid

Not a ton of PP defensemen there, but they'll likely continue to use Stoll in addition to Spacek and Bergeron, so there's only one spot left to fill.

There's a lot of time left before next year to try and work out a way to bring in a semi offensive type defenseman if Tarnstrom won't resign, and it was proven by many teams in this year's playoffs that you don't necessarily need the superstar on the blue line to get deep into the playoffs.

The Oilers continue to get younger, faster, and more importantly, finally added the closest thing they've had to a sniper since Guerin.

As for the losses?

Samsonov: We already have Torres. He was on fire when he first got here, but did very little in the playoffs to make him a must resign. Somebody will overpay for him, and provided we can ink Lupul to a contract at less than what Samsonov signs elsewhere for, we come out ahead.

Peca: We already have Stoll and Horcoff. Maybe not the playoff leaders Peca was, but they're both around his calibre (if not better) on the dot, and both provide more offense on a game in/game out basis while being just as valuable on the PK. We also have Pouliot and Schremp coming through the system, so losing a $4 million contract at the center position is just freeing up assets.

Dvorak: Unless I've missed him signing elsewhere, don't be so sure that he's gone. I'm not sure what his feelings are, but his performance this past season hasn't likely driven his price up, and if the Oilers could bring him back at the right price to play 3rd or 4th line, he just might be back in Edmonton next year as a depth player. Can't imagine too many teams are envisioning him as an answer on the 2nd line, so it'll come down to where he'd be happiest playing a checking role.

In the end, we lose a 30 minute a night guy, but we've got more than enough depth and time to make sure we end up with 3 pairings that can handle 20 minutes a night to make up for that loss. Our PP will become more forward oriented rather than relying on Pronger quarterbacking it, but with the developing offensive talent that we have, I don't think it'll be a bad thing to have Hemsky setting things up off the boards with Smyth in front of the net, Lupul set up on the far side for a one timer while Spacek (hopefully) and Stoll/Bergeron slide to and fro looking for open lanes to also set up for one timers. Our PK shouldn't miss much of a beat, but in the end, it's just going to reinforce the ideal that they need to pick up the slack as a team, not one or two individuals.

Now if we can't get Spacek back, then it's definitely time for Lowe to get back on the phone and get a top 2 guy in here.

[MizzouRah]

We want Shanny.... we want Shanny...

[Fidatelo]

I think I mentioned in the old thread about how much I felt the Oilers D-Corps, aside from Pronger, sucked. The loss of Pronger is, in my opinion, going to expose those guys big time.

That is, of course, if Lowe doesn't make any further additions to the D-Corps over the summer.

[Travis]

Originally Posted by Fidatelo

I think I mentioned in the old thread about how much I felt the Oilers D-Corps, aside from Pronger, sucked. The loss of Pronger is, in my opinion, going to expose those guys big time.

That is, of course, if Lowe doesn't make any further additions to the D-Corps over the summer.

I'd be curious to hear why you figure that. Smith and Staios are both very solid in their own end, and from time to time supply some quality offensive chances, which I think you'll see more of next year with the absense of Pronger. Greene and Bergeron are both highly skilled young guys, and once Bergeron begins to think the game a bit better, he'll be an absolute terror on the backend. Greene is already getting there, all he really needs is to learn how to look less menacing when hitting people so the refs don't send him to the box everytime he looks at somebody the wrong way.

Spacek looked great for most of his time here last year, though I'm reserving some judgement until I see him as the #1 guy without Pronger's support, but his PP ability is pretty fun to watch. He's very good at sliding into a shooting lane without drawing a lot of attention, which will hopefully work well if our PP this year is controlled along the halfboards by Hemsky rather than shifting Spacek into the PP QB (if he does indeed resign).

All in all, it's a group that is very solid in their own end (even if I'm not a huge fan of the zone D we started playing last year), super effective on the PK, and houses 2 guys that are more than capable of playing extended time on the PP. About the only thing we're missing is one more offensive minded guy (which could be rectified by the resigning of Tarnstrom), and we'd have 3 pairings that could easily split a game into thirds without having a real weak link out there. Given that Smid will likely draw in as well, he has some very good guys to learn from, and the trio of Greene/Bergeron/Smid bring a nice compliment of skills for hopefully the next 8-10 seasons, eventually taking over from Smith/Staios/Spacek.

[Fidatelo]

Admittedly my opinions are all based off of playoff viewing (primarily the final), as I didn't watch many Oiler games during the regular season.

That said, what I saw was not pretty. It surprises me that you feel Spacek was "fun to watch" on the powerplay. All I saw was him sending passes into Pronger's feet, not cleanly accepting passes his way so that what would have been an open lane is quickly a closed one, and also passing up most opportunities to shoot when he did actually have a good chance (this last part could be said about almost every Oiler in the finals, however).

I don't feel Jason Smith is the right type of D-Man for the new NHL. He just can't skate well enough. I'm not saying he should be out of the league, I just don't think he's anything special anymore.

Staios strikes me as a decent #3/4 type of guy.

All I saw of Greene was a moron that couldn't stay out of the box.

Bergeron might be alright, didn't see enough of him to really comment.

Basically, Edmonton has a whole bunch of #4-6 defencemen, in my mind. Some of them might be passable #3's, but I don't see a bonifide #1-2 in the mix.

[Travis]

Well, if you go strictly from the finals, a lot of the Oilers left something to be desired in 3 or 4 of those 7 games.

As far as Greene, I'd guess half the calls against him were a result of him being a rookie, and just being bigger than the people he's hitting. Maybe half the calls against him were the sort that you could call deserved, while at least 1/3 of the calls were borderline ridiculous. He doesn't get the "respect" a guy like Chelios gets, but he's also smart enough to learn to adjust his game. His play is improving rapidly, and while he'll never be an offensive threat, he's a legitmate #3/4 guy already, and could be a 2/3 guy soon.

Spacek didn't have the greatest series in the finals, but from the moment he came to Edmonton, he upgraded their powerplay. No, he wasn't always perfect, and struggled somewhat in the playoffs, but when he was the #2 guy on the PP and allowed to shift around, he showed a very good knack for knowing when to drive a lane for that backdoor one time pass (usually from Hemsky). The reason I think he'd succeed next year is because that's where I really expect the Oilers PP to come from, rather than having the puck concentrated on the blue line (ie: On Pronger's stick).

Bergeron is likely the most skilled of the bunch. Small, but very quick feet, and surprising top end speed, he also has a slap shot that doesn't fit his stature. The issue with him right now is that he's prone to making the bad pass too often, and while he has the speed to usually get back and make up for it, it's still taken an offensive chance and turned it into a situation of having to make a great defensive play. Once he turns that corner, and I don't doubt that it's close, he is a legitimate 1 or 2 guy with his tools. It's up to him to get his mental game to that level though, and that'll take a year or two yet.

Smith and Staios you're pretty much bang on. They're both 3/4 guys and when they flash some offense, you appreciate it, but they're real job is in their own end and to play smart. Smith is smart enough to make up for his lack of speed, but what you're likely noticing is moreso the Oilers zone defense rather than his lack of speed at this point. I'm hoping this system changes during the offseason, but knowing MacT, it's highly unlikely. The way they played this year, they like to let the other team have the boards and the outside area of the zone, and not to give up the slot shot. Force them to pass around the perimeter and take outside shots until they make a mistake, then you know where your outlet passes are and can start a rush of your own.

Smid, well, the talk on him is that he should develop into a 2/3 guy, and Tarnstrom, if he's back, is no more than a 4/5 guy at this point. That all said, Spacek is our only real 1/2 guy right now (if he comes back), then Staios, Smith, Bergeron and Greene are all currently 3/4 guys with Bergeron and Greene likely into that 2/3 category by the end of the season. If Smid is a 3/4 guy by the end of the year, then we're laughing with the depth we'll have.

And with the picks Lowe has to play with, don't be too surprised if a legitimate 1/2 guy is brought in for a year while Bergeron/Greene/Smid all develop. The top defensive pairing is really the only hole left for him to fill prior to next season, and provided we can get Spacek back, that's a lot of time to deal with picking up a final piece. Worst case scenario being Jaroslav gets lured elsewhere, I think we still have enough time/assets to take care of things in more than satisfactory fashion.

[Maple Leafs]

Random thing that's annoying me...

What's up with these FA signings that include the line "Per club policy, financial terms were not disclosed"?

I mean, NHL contracts and salaries are public. They have been for about 15 years now. Does anybody really think that the big secret of Randy Robitaille's contract is never going to get out? It always comes out about a half hour later. Just tell us already. What possible purpose does this policy serve?

[TazFTW]

Stars plug in the hole made by the departures of Arnott and Guerin by signing Matthew Barnaby...

[Maple Leafs]

Originally Posted by TazFTW

Stars plug in the hole made by the departures of Arnott and Guerin by signing Matthew Barnaby...

Were Arnott and Guerin responsible for being beat to a pulp by everyone in the league?

[Travis]

Well, local sources say that Spacek will not be back in an Oilers uniform, so Lowe definitely has to bring somebody in somehow. Very happy we have some ammunition to work with because we definitely need somebody to step into the #1 spot now.

Wonder if Huddy is the issue for these guys...

[sachmo71]

Originally Posted by TazFTW

Stars plug in the hole made by the departures of Arnott and Guerin by signing Matthew Barnaby...

The Jeff Halpern signing is a much better sign...although Barnaby does NOTHING for me.

[bbor]

Apparently the Leafs are passing on Roberts and hope to sign Anson Carter instead.

[Wolfpack]

Carolina re-signs Erik Cole, 3 years at $4 million per.

About what I expected given the team market set by the Williams and Staal signings. Cole will still be young enough to test true free agency at 31 in 2009, but he also secures himself financially regardless of the long-term implications of his neck injury. If he signed off on a one-year deal and his injury in turn caused his play to worsen next year, there would be no way he could get $4 million a year as a UFA (well, maybe in Toronto... ). Carolina also has some protection for while it's a lot of money, the terms are short and it should be known by the end of the deal whether the injury was just an injury or something career-affecting. If he can replicate his pre-injury performance for the next three years, he and Staal will be absolutely scary on the first line. I love it.

[Travis]

Haven't seen any terms other than it's a multiyear deal, but Spacek was added to Buffalo's defensive core today. Good signing for them, but I hope they had to pony up $4.5 million per or more to get him away from Edmonton

[Pyser]

cloutier to the kings. no word what the trade was yet.

[Johnny93g]

Looks like the Wings are close to signing Eddie Belfour. I read he is in Detroit for a physical today

[bbor]

Originally Posted by Johnny93g

Looks like the Wings are close to signing Eddie Belfour. I read he is in Detroit for a physical today

Is'nt he too young to play for them?

[NoSkillz]

Originally Posted by Travis

Haven't seen any terms other than it's a multiyear deal, but Spacek was added to Buffalo's defensive core today. Good signing for them, but I hope they had to pony up $4.5 million per or more to get him away from Edmonton

Buffalo does something!!!

The Associated Press is reporting that it's a 3-year deal for around $10 million. If so, it's a steal compared to what some of these other guys like Kubina are getting.

[Honolulu_Blue]

Originally Posted by bbor

Is'nt he too young to play for them?

This is part of the new youth movement. Belfour will inject some much needed energy and enthusiasm into the Wings' line-up. There has also been mention of Hasek to fill the same role...

No me gusta.

[Travis]

Originally Posted by NoSkillz

Buffalo does something!!!

The Associated Press is reporting that it's a 3-year deal for around $10 million. If so, it's a steal compared to what some of these other guys like Kubina are getting.

Wow. I'm not sure what the Oilers offered, but I was expecting to hear something along the lines of 3 years at $3.5-$4.0 million per for Spacek had the Oilers signed him prior to July 1st. From what I had read, the money was supposed to be pretty close in both deals, and it was other influences that led him to Buffalo, kind of surprised Lowe didn't pony up. Gotta think that there is a deal or two in the works if Lowe wasn't willing to overpay for Spacek (in his mind at least), not like him to run out of options.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by Pyser

cloutier to the kings. no word what the trade was yet.

http://www.nhl.com/news/2006/07/276740.html
LOS ANGELES - The Los Angeles Kings have acquired goaltender Dan Cloutier from the Vancouver Canucks in exchange for a second-round selection in the 2007 NHL Entry Draft and a conditional selection in the 2009 NHL Entry Draft, it was announced today by Kings President/General Manager Dean Lombardi.

[Karim]

What the hell is going on in Edmonton? Who is the bad apple among the coaches/management that is scaring guys away?

12 Sabres have filed for arbitration! That's what happens when you have too many RFAs in one year.
http://www.sabres.com/newsarchive.cfm?id=568

The Flames sign Jeff Friesen for $1.6 million/1 year and Alex Tanguay for $15.75 million/3 years.

[RPI-Fan]

Witt's deal is 3 yrs @ 2.76mil per. That is an absolutely phenomenal bargain.

We're apparantly zeroing in on Peca & Leetch. If we get those two guys, or one of those and one of Markov/Samsonov I'll be thrilled with our offseason.

We have enough youth with our own draft picks and last year's trade loot (Nilsson will be a stud, Bergenheim could/should break out, Tambellini is looking solid, and our young d-men showed a lot of potnetial).

[Travis]

Not a headline grabber, but Phoenix signs Georges Laraque to (I think it was) a two year deal.

Laraque may never be a huge contributor in the new NHL, but his work in the community was tireless and sincere. Good luck with the Coyotes Georges and I hope you find your groove there.

[Karim]

$1.2 million per is still too much for a guy who is good off-the-ice like Laraque.

[Suburban Rhythm]

Originally Posted by Karim

12 Sabres have filed for arbitration! That's what happens when you have too many RFAs in one year.

Holding out hope the Pens can snag one of these wings whose arbitration number is a little too much for Buffalo to handle. Dumont, Afinogenov...even Kotalik.

[NoSkillz]

Originally Posted by Suburban Rhythm

Holding out hope the Pens can snag one of these wings whose arbitration number is a little too much for Buffalo to handle. Dumont, Afinogenov...even Kotalik.

I'll tell you this much. No matter what happens with arbitration, Darcy Regier won't walk away from any of the arbitrators decisions.

At the very least, he'll grudgingly sign the guy and trade him if he doesn't fit into the budget. Those guys are all big assets for Buffalo (as opposed to the case with Dmitri Khristich a few years back in Boston).

[Maple Leafs]

Originally Posted by NoSkillz

(as opposed to the case with Dmitri Khristich a few years back in Boston).

This never happened. Please stop referring to it. Who's Dmitri Khristich, we've never even heard of him. La la la la.

[sachmo71]

Originally Posted by Maple Leafs

This never happened. Please stop referring to it. Who's Dmitri Khristich, we've never even heard of him. La la la la.

http://www.autograph-cards.com/sp4_d..._Khristich.asp


Maybe you know him by his other name...Martin Lapointe?

[Suburban Rhythm]

Originally Posted by NoSkillz

I'll tell you this much. No matter what happens with arbitration, Darcy Regier won't walk away from any of the arbitrators decisions.

At the very least, he'll grudgingly sign the guy and trade him if he doesn't fit into the budget. Those guys are all big assets for Buffalo (as opposed to the case with Dmitri Khristich a few years back in Boston).

Meant it exactly in that manner...I don't expect Regier to walk away from a guy. I think the Pens would move Orpik for the wing that they want.

[Pyser]

i havent seen it reported anywhere, but on the tsn team salary pages, it says the devils signed colin white to a 6 yr deal worth $18m total. He's still only 28. Me likey.

Though I have NO idea where the cap room is coming from at this point (especially with Gomez having filed for arbitration, and Gionta and Martin still unsigned).

We also signed Zach Parise's older brother, a goalie, from UND. Looks like Lou learned his lesson about keeping brothers together.

[RPI-Fan]

Originally Posted by Pyser

i havent seen it reported anywhere, but on the tsn team salary pages, it says the devils signed colin white to a 6 yr deal worth $18m total. He's still only 28. Me likey.

Though I have NO idea where the cap room is coming from at this point (especially with Gomez having filed for arbitration, and Gionta and Martin still unsigned).

We also signed Zach Parise's older brother, a goalie, from UND. Looks like Lou learned his lesson about keeping brothers together.

You guys were apparantly after Leetch, too. I would think that the White signing has to put that to rest.

[Pyser]

Originally Posted by RPI-Fan

You guys were apparantly after Leetch, too. I would think that the White signing has to put that to rest.

well, talk about comletely polar opposite players. i dont think one has anything to do with the other.

right now we are committed to rafalski, martin, white, and id assume hale simply for cap purposes (though i like him a lot, the devils still seem hesitant).

on the bubble: lukowich, matvichuk (both signed but could be moved).

leetch would honestly make sense...provided its only a 1 year deal. but really, i dont see where the money would come from.

where did you read that?

[RPI-Fan]

Originally Posted by Pyser

well, talk about comletely polar opposite players. i dont think one has anything to do with the other.

right now we are committed to rafalski, martin, white, and id assume hale simply for cap purposes (though i like him a lot, the devils still seem hesitant).

on the bubble: lukowich, matvichuk (both signed but could be moved).

leetch would honestly make sense...provided its only a 1 year deal. but really, i dont see where the money would come from.

where did you read that?

The two are related because the money that White's roster spot takes up can no longer be used on another defenseman.

[Wolfpack]

A little surprising, but...

Glen Wesley is coming back to Raleigh for another year at $1.2 million.

Carolina has now pretty much re-signed just about everyone who was on the roster at the end of last season except Weight, Aaron Ward, Gerber, and Recchi (who still is unsigned by anyone). They've got 21 players under contract at about $37.5 million total, leaving about $2.5 million under the ceiling Rutherford set, which should be able to afford at least a couple of depth players somewhere or make an effort to re-sign Recchi (they are a winger short right now).

[Pyser]

There was never any debate between the 2, im sure.

28 year old top 4 defenseman, vs pushing 40 d-man on a 1 yr deal.

still, i hadnt heard a peep about leetch. interesting.

[Karim]

Thinking how Lou parked Mogilny and McGillis, I wonder if any player with a hefty contract has in the back of their mind that they may be spending the year in Albany. Lou's already stated that he's willing to spend up to $48.4 million which means he'd need to deal to get under the cap by opening day. I wonder how accomodating other GMs will be...

I still can't believe Mogilny will be playing in Albany again this season for $3.5 million.

[RPI-Fan]

Originally Posted by Karim

Thinking how Lou parked Mogilny and McGillis, I wonder if any player with a hefty contract has in the back of their mind that they may be spending the year in Albany. Lou's already stated that he's willing to spend up to $48.4 million which means he'd need to deal to get under the cap by opening day. I wonder how accomodating other GMs will be...

I still can't believe Mogilny will be playing in Albany again this season for $3.5 million.

Albany is no longer the Devils' affiliate (woo!). Actually, I think they were talking about Carolina.

[NoSkillz]

Originally Posted by Maple Leafs

This never happened. Please stop referring to it. Who's Dmitri Khristich, we've never even heard of him. La la la la.

[General Mike]

do the Rangers have no money to spend?

[Maple Leafs]

Howard Berger did a bizarre interview with Peca in which he basically begged to come to Toronto at any price. I'm sure his agent was thrilled.

As for me, I'm only accepting Peca into the Leafs family if he's willing to admit the Tucker hit was squeaky clean.