Off Wing Opinion

Things are slowing down, but not before the last remaining impact guy got signed. About that Stanley Cup defense:

Stanley Cup-winning goalie Nikolai Khabibulin signed a four-year, $27 million contract with the Chicago Blackhawks on Friday, leaving the defending champion Tampa Bay Lightning.

Khabibulin played in 55 regular-season games for the Lightning during 2003-04, posting a 28-19-7 record with three shutouts, a 2.33 goals against average and a .910 save percentage.

And here comes the understatement of the year in the NHL:

"Is it a setback? It is," Lightning general manager Jay Feaster said.

Feaster added that Tampa Bay will be looking for another goaltender either through the free agent market or by a trade. Khabibulin's backup with the Lightning, John Grahame will be given a shot to win the top job.

"John Grahame is licking his chops to compete for that spot," Feaster said.

John Fontana had some thoughts before the levy broke.

Curtis Joseph is making some noise about playing in Pittsburgh. And apparently Edmonton isn't done yet, as they're taking a hard look at Paul Kariya.

TD back in TO. Brendan Morrison stays in Vancouver. The Rangers signed Ville Nieminen and Jay Ward. If I was a geneticist, I'd try to figure out a way to cross Nieminen's hockey skills with Christopher Walken's demeanor.

Here in D.C., other than seeing Chris Clark acquired, it's been silence on the Potomac:

"Our strategy is to spend money on the right player at the right price," [George] McPhee said last night. "We think this market is very overpriced. It's akin to jumping into the stock market when it's at its height. We've been involved in discussions, but we are not going to jeopardize the future of this hockey club.

"Some teams are going to regret [the long-term free agent] deals in a few years. The salary cap could go down next year. That would put some teams in quite a bind. We're committed to playing our young players next season."

The Clark acquisition seems to have had little impact with the Washington fans.

Sydney Crosby acquitted himself well on Leno last night, though I made the mistake of sitting through two segments of Rob Schneider pumping Deuce Bigalow: European Gigolo. It didn't help that Leno's director kept cutting back to Schneider during Crosby's segment -- and so deftly that it looked pre-planned.

And finally, here's a photo from the memory file. Thanks to Chris Lynch for the pointer, so to speak.

UPDATE: Finally, some good news from the Caps. Something tells me that Alex is going to get a lot of ice time.

This entry was posted on Friday, August 5th, 2005 at 12:36 pm by Eric McErlain and is filed under Hockey. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

About 14 years after he swung a deal with the Quebec Nordiques to land the tempermental Eric Lindros, Philly GM Bobby Clarke finally got to work rectifying that mistake by signing unrestricted free agent Peter Forsberg from the Colorado Avalanche.

As some of you may recall, Forsberg, then a draftee of the Flyers, along with about half of Philly's everyday lineup, was sent to northern Quebec in exchange for Lindros. And sure, the Flyers got to the Finals in 1997, but Colorado won a pair of Stanley Cups with Forsberg in Denver. With Forsberg aboard, there was no reason for Jeremy Roenick to stick around, so the Flyers shipped him to the Kings in a salary dump.

J.R. Couldn't argue with the logic:

Roenick said in a radio interview Wednesday night that he would've liked to remain with the Flyers, but wouldn't stand in the way of letting the team acquire ``the best player in the world.''

In Toronto, folks aren't happy with John Ferguson's failure to land . . . well, anybody. Thanks to Jordon Cooper for the pointer.

"On second thought, I think I'll stay in Dallas."

Back when I was a teenager, discount electronics store Crazy Eddy used to hold a "Xmas in August" clearance. And after the Oilers acquired Michael Peca from the Islanders, that's exactly how Colby Cosh was feeling. 48 hours ago, I was saying that Mike Milbury better start praying that the Isles make the playoffs, else his job would be on the line. But now, I have to admit I'm impressed with the way he's revamped the team.

I'm still going to miss Peca and Dave Scatchard, though. Meanwhile, the Blackhawks signed some spare parts after they said goodbye to Alexi Zhamnov, who fled to Boston.

Scott Niedermayer has fled West where he'll be playing in the OC with the Ducks and his brother Rob. That means a power play unit with Neidermayer the elder combined with Sandis Ozolinsh, Sergei Fedorov and Petr Sykora.

Who's the left wing? With those four, who cares?

EJ Hradek says the Devs won't be the same. No kidding. Meanwhile, New Jersey is moving on. Daymond Langkow heads for Calgary. For other signings, including Teppo Numminen's journey to Buffalo, click here. And Oleg Tverdovsky makes a triumphant return to the NHL with Carolina!

Jim at Hockeybird is wondering if Rangers GM Glen Sather is thinking of changing the team's name to Spartha Prague. And the Rodent has a nice interview with Martin Straka.

In Detroit, one Mathieu goes, another stays. And don't forget, the Carnival of the NHL #4 is tomorrow at On The Wings. And Matt Saler is proposing an idea:

Hey Eric, if the competition to host this thing starts to heat up more, maybe you should start a sort of "Hockey Blogoshere Carnival Commission" (Off Wing readers, perhaps?) to vote on awarding the Carnival to sites after they present bids (like the IOC does with the Olympics).

Indeed, this sounds like a good idea, especially as Jim Mirlte has backed out of hosting NHL Carnival #5 much like Denver pulled out of hosting the 1976 Winter Olympics. Let the bribery and fiscal malfeasance begin!

Tom Benajmin rises to Ben Wright's challenge (Joe Tasca has some related thoughts). And Tom's "Whacking Day" activities continue with Vancouver GM Dave Nonis.

Don't forget to set your TiVo -- Sid Crosby is on Leno tonight. Earlier, the Pens got some protection for the youngster in the form of Andre Roy.

How much you want to bet the kid would rather hang with Jimmy Kimmel?

And thanks to Dave Smith for helping me to strike the motherlode when it comes to hockey horns! This one is for Ben Wright.

This entry was posted on Thursday, August 4th, 2005 at 12:56 pm by Eric McErlain and is filed under Hockey. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

Mike Modano says thanks but no thanks:

Modano's agent told the Stars on Wednesday afternoon that the free agent would not accept the Stars' latest offer, a five-year, $17.75 million deal.

"It's just far too much of a hometown discount,'' agent Brian Lawton told The Dallas Morning News. "Mike knew there was going to be a difference between offers, but not as much a $9 million, and that's what it could turn out to be.''

When asked if a deal could still get done with the Stars, Lawton told the newspaper, "It's possible, but not likely.''

Boston, Atlanta (those pesky Thrashers again) and Chicago apparently have all made offers. I'd still love to see him go to Detroit, or even finish his career with the Wild in Minnesota. In the meantime, Stars owner Tom Hicks will have to salve his wounds with Martin Skoula.

Jarome Iginla, however, will be returning to Calgary, Markus Naslund will be back in Vancouver and Alexi Kovalev will stay in Montreal where he'll be joined by Mathieu Dandenault.

Sergei Gonchar, most famous in Washington for sneaking in from the weakside point for goals, as well as regular pre-season holdouts, is going to Pittsburgh, where things are really looking up all of a sudden. With Gonchar gone from Boston, Brian Leetch signed a one-year deal with the Bruins.

With Adrian Aucoin taking a flight to Midway to join the Blackhawks, Mike Milbury signed Alexi Zhitnik, and then acquired Brent Sopel from Vancouver. Does it make up for losing Kenny Jonsson, Adrian Aucoin and Roman Hamrlik? No, but it's probably the most cost-effective solution "Mad Mike" could come up with. Tom Benjamin is sorry to see Sopel go, but thinks that something very insane is going on right now:

The labour dispute was supposedly launched because small market teams could not compete for the best players because salaries were too high. Everybody takes a year off. Salaries are reset so that a Sergei Gonchar would have earned $2.75 million last year. Suddenly Pittsburgh - Pittsburgh! - is committing $25 million to him over five years!

The whole point was supposed to be that salaries were out of whack. We go through all that pain, the players are put in their place, salaries are whacked back, and the Pittsburgh Penguins and Edmonton Oilers start throwing around money. Why? What has made the financial situation of the Pittsburgh Penguins so much better over the past year? Why aren't the gains made in the new CBA being used to put franchises that were supposedly doomed on sound financial footing?

Good question. Joe Tasca is similarly perplexed. Any suggestions? In any case, All Things Canadian likes what he's seen so far, and Ben Wright is calling out Benjamin and James Mirtle (who are undoubtedly stunned to find themselves in the same boat). And check out Ben's whirlwind roundup of yesterday's moves.

Slay the fatted calf, Breakaway Beach has returned to the fold!

In Manhattan, the Rangers signed Kevin Weekes, Marek Malik and Martin Straka. Check in with the Rodent for more Rangers news, as Jes Golbez questions the sanity of Glen Sather and Kevin Lowe.

Another big name, Scott Niedermayer, is apparently weighing deals from New Jersey, Vancouver, Detroit, Calgary and Pittsburgh. And the Hawks (who are now minus Bryan Berard who took a commuter flight to Columbus) are apparently after Nikolai Khabibulin.

Confused? Check out TSN's daily transaction log, or the ESPN version.

After the Russians said nyet, the Czechs became refusniks as well on the IIHF transfer agreement.

Jay Leno has got to be seriously desperate:

Trying to remember the last time an NHL player was on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno?

You won't have to think too hard after Thursday night.

Sidney Crosby, the teenage phenom selected by the Penguins with the No. 1 overall pick in this year's NHL Entry Draft, will make a guest appearance on the show. Other guests on Thursday will include actors Rob Schneider and Michael Penn.

Hmmm, sharing the stage with the star of Deuce Bigelow, European Gigolo, and a recording artist who's best known for being Mr. Aimee Mann. Guess Jay was desperate.

And finally, congrats to Steve Walkom, the NHL's new director of officiating, the man who will have the unwelcome responsibility of making sure the league's new guidelines on obstruction are actually enforced. If goals per game isn't up by Thanksgiving (Canadian), Walkom will be served with the bird.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, August 3rd, 2005 at 12:16 pm by Eric McErlain and is filed under Hockey. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

The seal has been broken on big free agent acquisitions. Adam Foote is headed to Columbus. Tom Benjamin is ready to fit Columbus GM Doug McLean for a straightjacket:

The decision to sign the 34 year old Adam Foote to a three year contract at $4.5 million a year is insane in so many ways a guy could write a book. I'm going to narrow the subject in this post to the absolutely stupidest part. Yoohoo! Doug! You aren't getting the player you think you are getting! That's the stupidest part, ya dumb cluck!

Ben Wright begs to differ. Only 64 days before we start to see who's right!

Adrian Aucoin, one of the most underrated defensemen in the NHL, is leaving Long Island for Chicago. Here's Newsday's Islanders beat writer, Alan Hahn:

The loss of Aucoin, along with the departures of Kenny Jonsson (signed in Sweden) and Roman Hamrlik (expected to sign elsewhere), leaves the Islanders with just one experienced defenseman, Janne Niinimaa. There are still several quality defensemen left on the free agent open market, but they are going fast. Adam Foote signed with the Columbus Blue Jackets on Monday night. Scott Niedermayer, Brian Leetch, Brian Rafalski and Sergei Gonchar still remain.

Leetch, the former Ranger, is a prime target of the Islanders, but he is not expected to sign right away. Leetch plans to follow the market and decide where he wants to go depending upon the makeup of a team and their chances to contend. Right now, the Islanders do not have the makeup of a contender.

It's going to be a very long year on Long Island. And if the team fails to make the playoffs -- a real possibility considering who might be leaving -- I think Mike Milbury is done. In a move that will cheer Dany Heatley and Ilya Kovalchuk, the Atlanta Thrashers have signed Bobby Holik -- which means teams won't be able to count on erasing the Thrashers' top scoring line any longer.

Here's John Buccigross:

NHL teams are dealing with all of this uncertainty with hesitation. General managers are confused: Whom do I qualify? How much should one player make? How much should Tom Poti be paid in the "New" NHL? The GM who is aggressive and smart can build a Stanley Cup champion this year.

He's right -- and Don Waddell's signing of Holik is just the sort of move that could catapult Atlanta to the top of the Eastern Conference.

After reading the Rodent, I can only conclude that Jaromir Jagr won't coming back to New York anytime soon.

And after clearing Tony Amonte and John LeClair off the payroll, the Flyers signed Derian Hatcher, Mike Rathje, Chris Therien and John Sim.

New CBA. Same old Flyers.

Glen Murray and Shawn McEachern will be in Boston this season -- will Mike Modano follow? Personally, I'd like to see the Livonia, Michigan native go to the Red Wings, but I don't think they want to spend that kind of money on a thirty-something player on the downside of an incredible career.

As expected, Stevie Y. is coming back to Detroit.

For other signings from late Monday, click here. Check in with the ESPN free agent tracker here.

Jes Golbez has a great roundup, including some thoughts on a signing that might have escaped notice -- Tom Kostopoulos:

Tom is a hard-working forward who, I feel, would be a solid 2-way 3rd liner if given the chance in the NHL. The Penguins, for some odd reason, dicked around with him and he had a hard time earning real shot at the NHL. Tom produced 22 points in 60 games with the Penguinos in 03/04, and then played last year with Manchester in the AHL and racked up 71 points in 64 games. Tom is a 26 year-old and coming into his prime. He is a very hard-working player and could give the Kings 30-40 points at a very low price.

These are the types of signings that will be key in the new NHL: Spend low to get quality depth players that slip under the radar, and then use that extra cap room to sign the star players. Being able to identify 'value' signings like Kostopoulos has always been important, but not so much as it is nowadays.

Tom Kostopoulos: The Mike Vrabel of the NHL. In pro hockey, we're all living in Belichick Nation now.

As Phil Pilmar noted yesterday, the Russians all voted thumbs down on the IIHF transfer agreement:

"If the agreement doesn't happen, if Rene Fasel can't persuade them to change their minds, we will have a chaotic situation on the transfer market," IIHF spokesman Szymon Szemberg told the AP.

"Everything between the IIHF and the NHL in the collective bargaining agreement would be void," Szemberg added. "There would be no NHL participation at the Olympics, at the world championships or a possible World Cup. There would be no transfer agreement."

Send a Frenchman to negotiate with the Russians? I'm sure that will work, or what's left of the Red Army will be sunning themselves in Brittany next week. Be sure to check out Phil's take on why NHL.com needs an upgrade.

Here's Buccigross on possible cable partners for the league:

As I write this, the NHL has yet to announce its other television partner. NBC will televise seven regular-season games starting in January and six playoff games in regular Saturday afternoon time slots. In addition, NBC will broadcast Games 3-7 of the Stanley Cup finals. ESPN is one of the possible carriers, and since both would benefit with each other, I'd be surprised if they didn't make a deal. But there are other networks out there that see the NHL as a possible positive part of their network. Don't forget there will be an NHL Center Ice Package once again.

Here's more from Newsday's Steve Zipay.

Jason Kirk is experiencing something folks in Washington can understand: Frustration with GM David Poile:

So, before there was a cap the complaint from small market teams was that the big guys set the market and limited their ability to get free agents. Now, in the new NHL, the big guys are setting the market - the only difference is that the big guys can

This entry was posted on Tuesday, August 2nd, 2005 at 12:41 pm by Eric McErlain and is filed under Hockey. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

Let's start with some weekend draft fallout. Brian List has some thoughts on how new draft rules will affect the development process of European-based talent, as does The Puck Stops Here. Jes Golbez is pointing out some of the silliness over Montreal's pick of Carey Price in the first round. Tom Benjamin says it was a boring draft, which suggests to me that streaming it over the Web outside of Canada instead of making it part of a larger broadcast package is probably a good idea.

PJ has got all the Sharks-related stuff covered -- though Mirtle doesn't understand what Doug Wilson is up to. And Mirlte says out loud something I've been pointing out for years now -- that after more than seven seasons in Washington, George McPhee's record on draft day leaves a lot to be desired.

The 2006 Draft is headed for Vancouver. Bad news for owners of draft rights for Russian players: Phil Pilmar is reporting that Russian GM's have rejected the new IIHF player transfer agreement.

Here's a list of Sunday's qualifying offers. One name that ought to draw some interest: P.J. Stock, who the Bruins let go. Something tells me P.J. is going to find some work. And the Leafs have made six qualifying offers, while Chicao locked up Jocelyn Thibault as well.

Satan has left Buffalo. Sergei Zubov will return to Dallas(though Mirlte says Dallas overpaid). Brad Isbister is leaving Edmonton, and heading East to Boston in exchange for a fourth round draft pick. And in a move that we missed over the weekend, Jeff O'Neill went from Carolina to Toronto. For a complete list of all free agents, click here, and then check in with Brett Mirtle and Steve Ovadia for a roundup of all the available talent.

Stevie Y. will talk to the suits in Detroit today about his future. Brian at On The Wings has some thoughts.

And finally, Bill Simmons paid attention to the NHL long enough to pen an amusing analysis of the lockout. I anticipate it will be the last column he writes on the NHL for many a year, barring a Bruins Stanley Cup run.

UPDATE: The Florida Panthers have just signed Joe Nieuwendyk and Gary Roberts away from the Maple Leafs. No terms yet, but I can't imagine these are long-term deals. In fact, I think there's plenty more going on here, and that the Panthers might think they've got a shot at making some noise in the Southeast right now. Otherwise why sign two geezers at all?

This entry was posted on Monday, August 1st, 2005 at 1:24 pm by Eric McErlain and is filed under Hockey. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.