2011 NHL Offseason Thread (Draft, Trades, Free Agent Signings, etc...)

[Doc Holliday]

Love the Leafs landing Cody Franson from Nashville! But shot, great offensive upside... still, Lombardi was a cash dump by the Preds since Lombardi won't play significant mins with his concussion problem.

Nice deal for Burke!

It is indeed a great deal for the Leafs, possibly one of the best deals during the entire off-season. If Lombardi can't play, he can be put on the long-term injury list & his cap amount won't count. The Leafs don't lose anything with this transaction & literally committed a heist!

I also wouldn't mind seeng the Leafs sign Jason Arnott, who'd be a great veteran presence in the lineup & the guy can still play top-level hockey. The Leafs likely could get him at a bargain price & the risk would be minimal.

 

[Doc Holliday]

Langenbrunner & Arnott to the Blues. Very good move by GM Doug Armstrong.

Meanwhile, goon & knucklehead Colton Gillies (who can barely skate) signs a 2-year deal with the Minnesota Wild.

 

[G1GBallday]

With the league working hard to eliminate head shots and concussions it's only a question of time before fighting is banned (I say within four years or just one more career ending fight like Nick Kypreos ) so any team signing an enforcer these days is wasting their money.

 

[lgna69xxx]

Not if its not gonna happen for four more years, right? I Saw an interview at the draft with bettman where he discussed this topic. he said that he understands that fighting is part of the history of the game and sees the need for it to remain, or something to that effect and something about the rules changing but that it will not be eliminated. So with that said, as long as Bettman is in charge, it doesnt appear it will go away anytime soon. But who knows?

With the league working hard to eliminate head shots and concussions it's only a question of time before fighting is banned (I say within four years or just one more career ending fight like Nick Kypreos ) so any team signing an enforcer these days is wasting their money.

 

[evillethings]

... I also wouldn't mind seeng the Leafs sign Jason Arnott, who'd be a great veteran presence in the lineup & the guy can still play top-level hockey. The Leafs likely could get him at a bargain price & the risk would be minimal.

Looks like the Blues for Arnie at a bargain $ for 2.5$Million. Blues apparently also got Langenbrunner for the same price. Those are good signs but I dont think St Louis needed 2 old vets up front.

 

[evillethings]

With the league working hard to eliminate head shots and concussions it's only a question of time before fighting is banned...

Not sure the enforcer role is goin the way of the Dinosaur ... it's evolving into hybrid roles like enforcer/face-off specialist (Konopka), enforce/pest (Callahan), enforcer/team captain/blueline anchor (Pronger/Phaneuf), enforcer/power fwd (Shanny was the best example, cant think of a replacement).

Actually, I'll be real interested in seeing how Shanny dishes out punishment as the new Colin Campbell.

 

[evillethings]

Free agents shy away from Toronto

Of course the Sun article is actually entitled "Leafs have been quiet on free-agent front"

Can't blame high-end UFA's for sidestepping Toronto given the Leafs' lack of postseason play in the past decade which speak to the lack to Toronto management's ability to build a competitive team. Missing the playoffs 6 straight years is damning for the Buds! And of course there's having Ron Wilson as a coach ... sure it's acceptable when the team's winning but that hasn't been the norm in Toronto for a long time... except for that nice James Reimer run last Spring.

 

[evillethings]

Rumour: Carbonneau to Coach Devils?

Apparently there's an assumption that Guy Carbonneau stepping down from his QMJHL coaching duties this past wk was a signal that he may be preparing to sign on in NJ as the Devils' new coach.

He had an OK stink as Montreal's Head Coach but the guy isn't Championship material being the bench as the main guy... maybe an Assistant but not the Head Coach.

 

[lgna69xxx]

Same with Montreal, it has more to do with the media than anything, When cammy and gionta were signed as free agents, the habs had to overpay, same way the Leafs had to do with Komiserak, it is the only way either will get top free agents to come right now. All that will change when either club starts to win and contend for a cup.

Richards picked the rangers because of the coach, which btw was on your "most hated" list at #3 out of 30 coaches, therefore, means squat. Also Richards said in a interview a cpl days agoi that "Torts is not always the nicest guy to be around or play for, but that just means he wants to win, like i do" ....... You think Wilson or any coach does not want to win? Wilson is a hard nosed coach and is exactly what the youngest team in the league needs, and yes i fully believe that. He has the credentials and will surprise alot of ppl just like he did with team Usa who was given zero chance at a medal in VanCity and lost the gold even tho his team was the better team overall.

Of course the Sun article is actually entitled "Leafs have been quiet on free-agent front"

Can't blame high-end UFA's for sidestepping Toronto given the Leafs' lack of postseason play in the past decade which speak to the lack to Toronto management's ability to build a competitive team. Missing the playoffs 6 straight years is damning for the Buds! And of course there's having Ron Wilson as a coach ... sure it's acceptable when the team's winning but that hasn't been the norm in Toronto for a long time... except for that nice James Reimer run last Spring.

 

[lgna69xxx]

Yup, that also, so there are TWO main reasons. About Therrien going to coach the Devils, heard that as well and think he would be a better fit than Carbo at this time. Surprised tho that they are not looking at Ken Hitchcock.

The main reason that the Habs have to overpay is due to the high taxation rate in Quebec.

 

[Doc Holliday]

Ideas to prevent cap circumvention

One of the ways to get the best bang for your salary cap buck is to sign a player to long-term, front-loaded contract. This essentially lowers the cap hit while still paying the player, thanks to a loophole in the current CBA. The NHL tried to do something about this after the Ilya Kovalchuk deal last summer, but the loophole is still wide open -- which is why Christian Ehrhoff, Ilya Bryzgalov and Brad Richards were able to sign the deals they did.

So how might the NHL close this hole when the current CBA expires next season? The New York Post's Larry Brooks proposes the following: "The cap charge will be defined by the average of the three-to-five highest salaried seasons. Contracts will be kept to a minimum of five-to-seven years."

If the three highest salaried seasons were used for the cap hit for Ehrhoff, his cap hit would be $7.33 million. (It is $4 million right now.) For Bryzgalov, it would be $8.17 million. (It's $5.67 million now.) For Richards, it would be a whopping $11 million. (It's $6.67 million now.) If the NHL can push through such a rule, this is a huge game-changer.

 

[lgna69xxx]

I like it!

Ideas to prevent cap circumvention

One of the ways to get the best bang for your salary cap buck is to sign a player to long-term, front-loaded contract. This essentially lowers the cap hit while still paying the player, thanks to a loophole in the current CBA. The NHL tried to do something about this after the Ilya Kovalchuk deal last summer, but the loophole is still wide open -- which is why Christian Ehrhoff, Ilya Bryzgalov and Brad Richards were able to sign the deals they did.

So how might the NHL close this hole when the current CBA expires next season? The New York Post's Larry Brooks proposes the following: "The cap charge will be defined by the average of the three-to-five highest salaried seasons. Contracts will be kept to a minimum of five-to-seven years."

If the three highest salaried seasons were used for the cap hit for Ehrhoff, his cap hit would be $7.33 million. (It is $4 million right now.) For Bryzgalov, it would be $8.17 million. (It's $5.67 million now.) For Richards, it would be a whopping $11 million. (It's $6.67 million now.) If the NHL can push through such a rule, this is a huge game-changer.

 

[lgna69xxx]

Must be you did not know the author of that article is steve simmons aka a Leafs hater and basically, a moron and nowhere even close to being "Hockey People" ROFL! I much more believe Connolly's former teammates and especially the very credible source of one, Ryan Miller, a most respected guy in the entire NHL. Check it out and thanks for playing Mr. 8 sides. :lol:



http://www.theglobeandmail.com/spor...teammate-defends-tim-connolly/article2098040/

When you ask hockey people questions about Connolly the first thing they ask in return is: “Can we go off the record?” They want to tell you the story or at least their version of the story. They just don’t want their names attached to the Maple Leafs’ $9.5 million signing. Among the terms used to describe Connolly are: Soft. Sullen.

Difficult. Loner. Spoiled brat. Silver spoon kid. Entitled. Not a team player. Almost the opposite of what you expect most hockey players to be.

 

[evillethings]

Smart deal for both Stamkos and the Lightning.

5yrs @ $37.5 means...
Motivated Player to earn nxt contract for the Team.
Player gets a whoppin' annual salary but doesn't get locked down by more than 1 yr past UFA eligibility.

A pretty decent contract given the seriously thoughtless deals being handed out these days!

 

[evillethings]

... I much more believe Connolly's former teammates and especially the very credible source...

I'm sure Connolly is a good team mate or Ruff wouldnt dispatched him yrs ago. Pt is he is made of Glass unless Toronto's training staff has discovered a cure for reversing this degenerative disease... Tim Connolly will break.

Hey, if Tim was chunkier, we could NN him "Humpty!" :lol:

 

[evillethings]

Come to think of it, Lupul was a bit of a fragile player too until he healed up enough to be traded by the Ducks to the Leafs.

Lups might be another candidate to hit the IR.
There's already potential for 2 Top 6 guys going down just based on recent history.

Don't get me started about Andrei Markov who's also likely headed to the IR at some point this season for a month or more. I just cant think of a player that's returned from Knee problems to play consistently ... especially one who's in their mid-30's!!!

 

[evillethings]

They were saying this week on RDS that Michel Therrien is the front runner for the job.

Octavian, looks like we're both just rumour mongers. It wasn't Therrien nor Carbo, but the guy from the Panthers who never produced a winning season, DaBore, TheBear,... Peter DeBoer! This just has the makings of another John MacLean 2010-11 Devils' start... not sure Junior success translates all that well into NHL success... honestly think Lou is losing his touch!

 

[lgna69xxx]

Something tells me that the reason this took so long was because steve-Y wanted long term not just 5 years, and like you say he will be a UFA in five years and only 26, entering his prime. Something also tells me that Stamkos wanted shorter term but settled for 5 years. With Tampa losing money left and right, Stamkos knows that this team might not even be here in 5 years and most likely will be moving if they continue to lose 20 mil a yr. Stamkos 1 steve-why 0

Smart deal for both Stamkos and the Lightning.

5yrs @ $37.5 means...
Motivated Player to earn nxt contract for the Team.
Player gets a whoppin' annual salary but doesn't get locked down by more than 1 yr past UFA eligibility.

A pretty decent contract given the seriously thoughtless deals being handed out these days!

 

[lgna69xxx]

I will take my chances on both Connolly and Lupul, there mainly there as stop gaps until the young guns on the farm are ready anyways, but they may also surprise this season. Connolly will be protected more in Toronto than he was in buffalo, and Lupul has been cleared as 100% healthy and when he is, he is a very strong power forward, doing the dirty work in the corners and has strong passing abilities as does Connolly. Kessel could net 40 plus this yr if that line stays together.

Sometimes players need a change of scenery to rejuvinate their careers, i think that is exactly what Tim C needed and he is on record as saying for the first time in years he is more excited than ever for camp to begin. How is Connolly chunky at 6'1 190lbs? besides when he got signed by the Leafs, he was already 6 weeks into his training for the coming season, i doubt that training was eating donuts :lol:

I'm sure Connolly is a good team mate or Ruff wouldnt dispatched him yrs ago. Pt is he is made of Glass unless Toronto's training staff has discovered a cure for reversing this degenerative disease... Tim Connolly will break.

Hey, if Tim was chunkier, we could NN him "Humpty!" :lol:

 

[Doc Holliday]

Have to agree with Iggy on all counts. Connolly was signed for only 2 years. If he plays like expected, that's great. If he plays better, that's fantastic. If he struggles or gets injured, so be it.

I would't exactly refer to Lupul as being fragile. He had back surgery (which is now somewhat of a common thing) and wound up getting a blood infection due to the surgery that cost him an entire season. Anyone can get an infection.

The Leafs badly needed a center to play pivot between Kessel & Lupul. They went after Brad Richards, but the Rangers overpaid for him & Toronto went at what was available next. They got their man & didn't overpay to get him.

And now we have Steven Stamkos & the big contract he just signed. Tampa wanted to sign him for more years in order to lessen his cap value. Stamkos balked at their offer & settled for five years, which was a bit too much than what he wanted to sign for, but the $$ they threw at him made him accept their proposal. There are rumblings around the league as i'm writing this that there's a good chance he might get traded away. Personally, i don't think it's going to happen. However, the Bolts are just under the cap & they will have to clear up some salaries in order not to go under. A team like Tampa with no corporate backing & no fans going to the games cannot operate at the cap ceiling, or else they'll go under.

As for Andrei Markov, i might have liked to see him with the Leafs, but at much less money than Mtl is giving him & for less years. Maybe two, max. If he remains healthy & productive, the Habs will have got their money's worth. However, if he spends a good part of the season on the injury list once again, they'll be asking for Mini-Bob's head.