Hockey anyone?

[superkaratemonkey]

im sure any GM will be public enermy #1 if they do that to clarke, not only are they stealing players from philly knowing the flyers are vulerable, but they'll also be driving up RFA salary. but GMs arent hired to make friends w/ other GMs, so if its the clubs best interest to sign esche, the club should do it.
btw, bertuzzi is back!! finally! i thought he deserved a few more games, but as a nucks fan im happy hes back playing for vancouver and canada. having bert the whole season will make us the favorite for the division champ, me think.
and gretzky's first regular season game behind the bench will be against vancouver, dat'll be awesome, i think he'll do ok, if they get a good goalie it'll make gretzky's coachin looks alot better.

[Bai Qi44]

hahahaha, lmao. i love the first one, altho i would add darcy tucker to the list.

I didn't make it. I just ripped it off of someone.

i agree that the oilers lost alot of talented players/prospects, and york especially is gonna hurt. but the additions the oilers made gave them 3 element that they've been lacking from before, thats leadership, grit, and playoff experience. the oilers had some gritty leaders in smyth and smith, but peca and pronger adds so much more to it (both were former captains). and their experience will come in handy for a young team that have limited playoff action (overall). plus, a strong 2 way team prove to be successful in the western conference the last few years, and thats the kinda team edmonton is putting together.

Well, we'll just agree to disagree. Anyway, the regular season will tell.

for every hejduk and langkow, theres 10 holik/lapointe/marchant/etc who skip town for more money. now if the money is close, im sure mo will stay, but if a GM offer him $4.5M per, then its pretty much goodbye brenden. im sure next yr are gonna be less insane then this year, i doubt the kariya/schneider/malik will be getting as much money next yr as this. but the good players will always get good money, and im sure mo will be getting offers from a few teams. again, all these are just speculation in this point, as morrison is already signed, but it depends if ur risk loving or risk adverse.

But the Hejduk's and Langkow's are the RFAs and the Holik's of the world are UFAs. When it comes to arbitration, arbitrators are not allowed to look at UFA contracts. Only RFA contracts must be viewed. You know why I thought the Morrison signing was terrible??? Now, we know cause Ohlund and the Sedins are demanding a lot more than what was offered to them. All 3 will go to arbitration now and if we lose both Ohlund and Jovo through UFA status next year, we're screwed on D!!! I don't care about losing Hendrik, but Daniel has too much potential and after Naslund leaves, he'll be our sniper! Morrison should've been made an example of and Nonis could've really signed him for less or the same wage he was making. Now, other Nucks want a raise and will go the UFA route if they don't get it. Ohlund is a lot more important than Morrison, whom I believe can be replaced. How do you replace both Ohlund and Jovo??? Ottawa is facing the same problem with Chara and Redden.

yea, nonis negotiate the contracts, but burke tells nonis the acceptable range. and burke can veto any deals that he doesnt like.

So far, he's doing pretty bad on RFAs, with the exception of Cloutier who has accepted has qualifier now.

Oh yeah, Burke didn't think when he signed Scotty N. Cause now his team will be over the cap and there's only a couple of teams in the league who might be willing to take on Federov's contract (both in Anaheim's division).

i think the reason we signed morrison is becuz nonis wanna give this core one last shot at the cup. we are not desperate to cut payroll now, we are going w/ a lineup that took the flames to 7th game (same as the cup champs), so we'll be competitive. if things dont work out this year, we can drop jovo/clout next year and cut payroll that way. or if we are really desperate, we can trade bert then (which hopefully after 1 yr his value will be higher then now). but nonis must be thinking that we have a good shot at the cup now, so lets go for it.
i wanna see either slegr or bombardir here, they are cheap enuff and should be serviceable. we'll see what nonis have up his sleeve. im not gonna worry till oct. who knows, mabbe he'll somehow get ohlund under contract for below value to make up for the morrison signing?? haha hope so.

But by giving Morrison a raise, he had no choice but to give other Nuck players a pay cut to stay within the cap. It also encourages all other Nuck RFA players to ask for a raise too. I don't get why Nonis signed Park btw. Bad choice when you haven't even signed all your RFAs or signed a D-man, which we desperately need.
We might not be competitive after this year cause at least 3 Nucks are going to arbitration. Salo is unsure right now. He might go to arbitration too. We can't lose both Jovo and Ohlund after this year. Morrison, Ohlund, and Salo have all asked to sign long contracts to stay with the team. But they have also all asked for big raises too. What's wrong with these "me first" people. If they want to stay with the team, then they should do what Hejduk did. I would give Ohlund $3.2 mill and D.S. 1.5-1.7 mill. H.S. should get a lower contract just base on his lack of performance. Salo would be around $1.8-2.

im sure any GM will be public enermy #1 if they do that to clarke, not only are they stealing players from philly knowing the flyers are vulerable, but they'll also be driving up RFA salary. but GMs arent hired to make friends w/ other GMs, so if its the clubs best interest to sign esche, the club should do it.
btw, bertuzzi is back!! finally! i thought he deserved a few more games, but as a nucks fan im happy hes back playing for vancouver and canada. having bert the whole season will make us the favorite for the division champ, me think.
and gretzky's first regular season game behind the bench will be against vancouver, dat'll be awesome, i think he'll do ok, if they get a good goalie it'll make gretzky's coachin looks alot better.

I agree with your take on signing other teams RFAs. As for Bertuzzi, I thought he deserved another 10-15 games at least. But this is good news to our team though. What it looks like now is that our only chance of winning the cup would be this year. After this year, there'll be too many changes. And with Park, he's very speedy, but we have enough 4th liners and for $750,000 a year, I rather we just didn't sign him. Do you think this signing has anything to do with the huge Asian population in Vancouver? I'm incline to think it has a little.

[Bai Qi44]

Well, looks like Chubarov is playing in Russia this season and won't be back with the Nucks. According to his agent, Chubby had an offer from a Russian club that the Nucks can not match. I find this kind of odd since I know star players in Russia will make a lot, but I didn't know 3rd liners could make over $1 mil a season. Anyway, we now know why Park was signed. Though he shouldn't and a checker / faceoff man should've.

[superkaratemonkey]

Well, we'll just agree to disagree. Anyway, the regular season will tell.

all these are just speculation rite now, the first 2 months should be very interesting. w/ the decline of the nhl superpowers (det, col, nj, dal) and the improvements made by some bottom feeding teams (cbj, edm, chi), i think the whole nhl standing will be different from before.

But the Hejduk's and Langkow's are the RFAs and the Holik's of the world are UFAs. When it comes to arbitration, arbitrators are not allowed to look at UFA contracts. Only RFA contracts must be viewed. You know why I thought the Morrison signing was terrible??? Now, we know cause Ohlund and the Sedins are demanding a lot more than what was offered to them. All 3 will go to arbitration now and if we lose both Ohlund and Jovo through UFA status next year, we're screwed on D!!! I don't care about losing Hendrik, but Daniel has too much potential and after Naslund leaves, he'll be our sniper! Morrison should've been made an example of and Nonis could've really signed him for less or the same wage he was making. Now, other Nucks want a raise and will go the UFA route if they don't get it. Ohlund is a lot more important than Morrison, whom I believe can be replaced. How do you replace both Ohlund and Jovo??? Ottawa is facing the same problem with Chara and Redden.

yea the morrison contract will have a domino effect, im sure. but realistically, how do u lowball players from a team that improve 5 straight yrs in a row, and was coming off a division title? i agree that mo isnt a 'steal' or a 'bargain', but i dunno, mabbe im not looking as far ahead as ur, or mabbe i just value mo more then u do, but either way i dont look at this as devastating as u r. next yr im pretty sure jovo is gone (he loves to be in florida), and w/ the ufa price lowered, we can use his money to sign a couple solid #2/3 dman.
btw, the sedins are signed for $2.5M combine, so its surely not back breaking. hopefully they get more icetime and put up better #s. the money seems very fair, mabbe even low considering what other young players are getting, but im glad we finally have them under contract (without the negative 'morrison effect', hehe)

So far, he's doing pretty bad on RFAs, with the exception of Cloutier who has accepted has qualifier now.

Oh yeah, Burke didn't think when he signed Scotty N. Cause now his team will be over the cap and there's only a couple of teams in the league who might be willing to take on Federov's contract (both in Anaheim's division).

well clout didnt have many options, outside of vancouver ppl seem to have a very low regard for his skills. this is his make-or-break contract i think, if he fails to go deep in the playoff or get injured, i think hes gone.
and u know how burke always wanna make a huge splash in a new city (pronger in hartford, sedins in vancouver, now SN in anaheim) so im not surprise. the thing is, he always goes to bottom feeding teams, and he wants to create instant interest among the locals, so he always goes out and try to create a level of excitment by drafting/signing good players. we'll see if it backfire, i think he shoulda rebuild, but i'll give him 3 yrs to turn it around in anahiem. oh and i think they'll be ok w/ the cap, they just dont have a lot of wiggling room, but i dont think they are over the cap, are they?

But by giving Morrison a raise, he had no choice but to give other Nuck players a pay cut to stay within the cap. It also encourages all other Nuck RFA players to ask for a raise too. I don't get why Nonis signed Park btw. Bad choice when you haven't even signed all your RFAs or signed a D-man, which we desperately need.
We might not be competitive after this year cause at least 3 Nucks are going to arbitration. Salo is unsure right now. He might go to arbitration too. We can't lose both Jovo and Ohlund after this year. Morrison, Ohlund, and Salo have all asked to sign long contracts to stay with the team. But they have also all asked for big raises too. What's wrong with these "me first" people. If they want to stay with the team, then they should do what Hejduk did. I would give Ohlund $3.2 mill and D.S. 1.5-1.7 mill. H.S. should get a lower contract just base on his lack of performance. Salo would be around $1.8-2.

well at least the twins are cheaper then u expect but, i think, nonis's intention all along is to retain this core for 1 more run at the cup. whatever happens after that will be deal w/ later, but nonis obviously believes this core have what it takes, and i agree w/ him.
btw, i was really down on the park signing as well, thinking we need to spend dat money on d. ppl say park will do well in the new nhl w/ his speed and skill, but until i see the crackdown being call consistently and the effect of red line elimination, i'll reserve judgement.

I agree with your take on signing other teams RFAs. As for Bertuzzi, I thought he deserved another 10-15 games at least. But this is good news to our team though. What it looks like now is that our only chance of winning the cup would be this year. After this year, there'll be too many changes. And with Park, he's very speedy, but we have enough 4th liners and for $750,000 a year, I rather we just didn't sign him. Do you think this signing has anything to do with the huge Asian population in Vancouver? I'm incline to think it has a little.

haha, well the park signing is hugely popular among my korean friends, so it worked in dat regard. i think we have some toughness (brookbank), peskiness (ruutu) and grit (linden) in our bottom 6. we need some speed and skill and dats what park brings. hes not what i want, but he'll give us depth and options. and w/ chubby not coming back, we need the depth/options. im gonna miss chubby tho, hopefully kesler can fill his shoe.
btw, ohlund is going to arbitration. if he signs for only 1 yr, we are in huge trouble next yr, like u said. hope we'll get him lock up long term b4 dat.

[Bai Qi44]

all these are just speculation rite now, the first 2 months should be very interesting. w/ the decline of the nhl superpowers (det, col, nj, dal) and the improvements made by some bottom feeding teams (cbj, edm, chi), i think the whole nhl standing will be different from before.

Yes. before the Palffy signing, I would've picked the Pens to finish outside of the playoffs. Now, I would pick them to end up in a playoff spot.

yea the morrison contract will have a domino effect, im sure. but realistically, how do u lowball players from a team that improve 5 straight yrs in a row, and was coming off a division title? i agree that mo isnt a 'steal' or a 'bargain', but i dunno, mabbe im not looking as far ahead as ur, or mabbe i just value mo more then u do, but either way i dont look at this as devastating as u r. next yr im pretty sure jovo is gone (he loves to be in florida), and w/ the ufa price lowered, we can use his money to sign a couple solid #2/3 dman.
btw, the sedins are signed for $2.5M combine, so its surely not back breaking. hopefully they get more icetime and put up better #s. the money seems very fair, mabbe even low considering what other young players are getting, but im glad we finally have them under contract (without the negative 'morrison effect', hehe)

Yeah, I was too worried about Mo. I like the guy and all, but from the way he speaks, he sounds like a team guy and I don't expect my team guys to ask for raises, knowing that it'll handicap the team, when they're already making a lot.
Anyway, I think we might have to applaud Cooke, Cloutier, and the Sedins for not asking for too much and in the case of Cloutier, making less than before.

well clout didnt have many options, outside of vancouver ppl seem to have a very low regard for his skills. this is his make-or-break contract i think, if he fails to go deep in the playoff or get injured, i think hes gone.
and u know how burke always wanna make a huge splash in a new city (pronger in hartford, sedins in vancouver, now SN in anaheim) so im not surprise. the thing is, he always goes to bottom feeding teams, and he wants to create instant interest among the locals, so he always goes out and try to create a level of excitment by drafting/signing good players. we'll see if it backfire, i think he shoulda rebuild, but i'll give him 3 yrs to turn it around in anahiem. oh and i think they'll be ok w/ the cap, they just dont have a lot of wiggling room, but i dont think they are over the cap, are they?

Well, fans of other teams aren't high on him, but I bet there are a few gms who would take him in a heartbeat. He's actually pretty damn good.... for the regular season anyway. I hope he has learned how to handle pressure. From his past playoff meltdowns, if he hasn't, then he should be gone next season.

As for the Ducks, if they sign everyone including their RFAs and the RFAs have to sign their QOs, then the Ducks will be over the cap by $1mil.

well at least the twins are cheaper then u expect but, i think, nonis's intention all along is to retain this core for 1 more run at the cup. whatever happens after that will be deal w/ later, but nonis obviously believes this core have what it takes, and i agree w/ him.
btw, i was really down on the park signing as well, thinking we need to spend dat money on d. ppl say park will do well in the new nhl w/ his speed and skill, but until i see the crackdown being call consistently and the effect of red line elimination, i'll reserve judgement.

Yes, I have to applaud them for taking less than what everyone expected ($1.5 each). I didn't say HS deserves $1.5-$1.7. I only said that for Daniel. Hendrik might be the one who's keeping Daniel from reaching his potential.

haha, well the park signing is hugely popular among my korean friends, so it worked in dat regard. i think we have some toughness (brookbank), peskiness (ruutu) and grit (linden) in our bottom 6. we need some speed and skill and dats what park brings. hes not what i want, but he'll give us depth and options. and w/ chubby not coming back, we need the depth/options. im gonna miss chubby tho, hopefully kesler can fill his shoe.
btw, ohlund is going to arbitration. if he signs for only 1 yr, we are in huge trouble next yr, like u said. hope we'll get him lock up long term b4 dat.

Yeah, we signed the wrong player to replace Chubby. Still, he's not a bad 4th liner and at least has a better scoring touch than Chubby.

As for Ohlund (forgot his age), even if he doesn't get awarded too much, we might still lose him and Jovo next year as UFAs. I hope this doesn't happen cause everyone including me values Ohlund more than Jovo even if Jovo didn't become an UFA next year.

[superkaratemonkey]

Yes. before the Palffy signing, I would've picked the Pens to finish outside of the playoffs. Now, I would pick them to end up in a playoff spot.




Yeah, I was too worried about Mo. I like the guy and all, but from the way he speaks, he sounds like a team guy and I don't expect my team guys to ask for raises, knowing that it'll handicap the team, when they're already making a lot.
Anyway, I think we might have to applaud Cooke, Cloutier, and the Sedins for not asking for too much and in the case of Cloutier, making less than before.





Well, fans of other teams aren't high on him, but I bet there are a few gms who would take him in a heartbeat. He's actually pretty damn good.... for the regular season anyway. I hope he has learned how to handle pressure. From his past playoff meltdowns, if he hasn't, then he should be gone next season.

As for the Ducks, if they sign everyone including their RFAs and the RFAs have to sign their QOs, then the Ducks will be over the cap by $1mil.




Yes, I have to applaud them for taking less than what everyone expected ($1.5 each). I didn't say HS deserves $1.5-$1.7. I only said that for Daniel. Hendrik might be the one who's keeping Daniel from reaching his potential.





Yeah, we signed the wrong player to replace Chubby. Still, he's not a bad 4th liner and at least has a better scoring touch than Chubby.

As for Ohlund (forgot his age), even if he doesn't get awarded too much, we might still lose him and Jovo next year as UFAs. I hope this doesn't happen cause everyone including me values Ohlund more than Jovo even if Jovo didn't become an UFA next year.

i dont think hanrik is holding daniel back at all. if u look at it purely from the statistically point of view, then yea daniel have more points last nhl year, and potential to score more then henrik. but last yr in SEL, hank have goals and points then daniel, while playing less game. hank is a 2 way center, he excel even if hes not putting up points. w/out him, daniel will be less effective. they deserved the same money.

[Bai Qi44]

i dont think hanrik is holding daniel back at all. if u look at it purely from the statistically point of view, then yea daniel have more points last nhl year, and potential to score more then henrik. but last yr in SEL, hank have goals and points then daniel, while playing less game. hank is a 2 way center, he excel even if hes not putting up points. w/out him, daniel will be less effective. they deserved the same money.

Well, I kind of disagree. I don't think Hendrik is that good of a center. He's a good 3rd line center, but it's better to have a better playmaker with Daniel I think. The guy has the potential to score 40, but his brother playing with him seems to make both of them want to play more defensive (not a bad idea, but I rather they score more).

anyway, I can't believe we signed Anson Carter. The guy's a floater and it would've been better to sign LeClair at the same price. This signing also has me worrying that Cooke isn't going to be signed. Cooke is really underrated and outside of the big 2, Ohlund, Jovo, and Daniel (for potential alone), I would consider Cooke more important to the team than everyone else...including Morrison!

Anyway, the Sopel trade seems bad now cause the guy actually signed for less than what he was making here. We need a d-man desperately and Nonis goes out there and signs Anson Carter? This could only mean that one of the players on our roster is going to get traded or not going to sign.

[superkaratemonkey]

Well, I kind of disagree. I don't think Hendrik is that good of a center. He's a good 3rd line center, but it's better to have a better playmaker with Daniel I think. The guy has the potential to score 40, but his brother playing with him seems to make both of them want to play more defensive (not a bad idea, but I rather they score more).

anyway, I can't believe we signed Anson Carter. The guy's a floater and it would've been better to sign LeClair at the same price. This signing also has me worrying that Cooke isn't going to be signed. Cooke is really underrated and outside of the big 2, Ohlund, Jovo, and Daniel (for potential alone), I would consider Cooke more important to the team than everyone else...including Morrison!

Anyway, the Sopel trade seems bad now cause the guy actually signed for less than what he was making here. We need a d-man desperately and Nonis goes out there and signs Anson Carter? This could only mean that one of the players on our roster is going to get traded or not going to sign.

i think henrik is way better then a 3rd line center. check out hf board, they have a few thread talkin about how the twins get 3rd liner minutes and still put up 2nd liner numbers. i suggest dat u pay closer attention to henrik this season as well, hes not just a defensive center, his playmaking skill is top notch. if he can actually shoot the puck he could be a 1st center.

i dont mind the carter deal. hes a big speedy winger with a good shot and a finisher, dats the ideal winger for the sedins. sure hes not perfect, hes not physical, not great defensively, inconsistent, etc. but for $1M u dont expect the perfect player. assuming he'll work hard for the whole season, i expect 20goals from him and improving the production of the sedins line, and thats a good investment. leclair is the older, slower, more injury prone version of carter, so im happy we didnt get him at the same price.

cooke shouldnt be traded. he should be making ~ $1.2-1.5. i dont think hes asking for more then dat. if he is then mabbe he should be traded afterall. he'll be able to get us a good #4 dman in return. ideally i'd keep cooke, but if his demand is too outragous then we should move him. he is not irreplaceable.

btw, how much did sopel signed for? and since he signed for 2 yrs, does dat mean we'll get NYI's 2nd rounder in 06?

[someguy44]

oops... always signing in with the wrong username. Damn! I'm so use to using this handle on every other forum that's not SPCnet.

[Bai Qi44]

I'll just ignore the Hendrik comments for now cause we're only going to disagree.

Sopel signed for $2.5mill for 2 years...meaning it's only $1.25 for each year. Since NYI signed him for 2 years, we get a 2nd rounder, but I'm really P'd now. We could have been better off signing Sopel to that kind of deal. Now, our D looks like sh**.

Not only that, but Cloutier signs for $5 mil for 2 years??? WTF is Nonis thinking / doing??? He is overpaying the core in a cap world!!! Cloutier deserves a lot less than that. If he signed for 1 year at $2.5mil, I might be able to swallow it, but the guy has done nothing in the playoffs and doesn't deserve the money. This means we have a lot less money to sign both Ohlund and Cooke. Ohlund will be signed and might go for anywhere from $3.5-$4mil. Cooke might ask for more than $1mil and after both are signed, we have like $2mil to sign a NHL caliber d-man and quite a few other players.

I don't like to trade Cooke either, but it looks like he might be asking for too much and thus the Carter signing. I don't like the guy at all. He's not what he used to be when he was playing in Edmonton. I much rather have Cooke (who could do a lot with the first line) than Carter.

[superkaratemonkey]

I'll just ignore the Hendrik comments for now cause we're only going to disagree.

Sopel signed for $2.5mill for 2 years...meaning it's only $1.25 for each year. Since NYI signed him for 2 years, we get a 2nd rounder, but I'm really P'd now. We could have been better off signing Sopel to that kind of deal. Now, our D looks like sh**.

Not only that, but Cloutier signs for $5 mil for 2 years??? WTF is Nonis thinking / doing??? He is overpaying the core in a cap world!!! Cloutier deserves a lot less than that. If he signed for 1 year at $2.5mil, I might be able to swallow it, but the guy has done nothing in the playoffs and doesn't deserve the money. This means we have a lot less money to sign both Ohlund and Cooke. Ohlund will be signed and might go for anywhere from $3.5-$4mil. Cooke might ask for more than $1mil and after both are signed, we have like $2mil to sign a NHL caliber d-man and quite a few other players.

I don't like to trade Cooke either, but it looks like he might be asking for too much and thus the Carter signing. I don't like the guy at all. He's not what he used to be when he was playing in Edmonton. I much rather have Cooke (who could do a lot with the first line) than Carter.

its weird, but i think we actually can agree on something. cloutier is overpaid as of now. hes proven to be a good regular season who won 1 series in the playoff with a stacked team. thats not the kinda goalie u throw $5M at. and TWO YEARS!?!? why oh why would u do this to us nonis. let him prove himself in th eplayoff first then give him the money. im not happy with this deal either. i know theres no better alternative, but thats no reason to overpay for OUR OWN player.
now we have very little money to sign a 5th dman. and i cant believe sopel signed for so little, wasnt his last contract for $2.1M? so after the 24% hes gonna take a further paycut?? why cant our player do that??
i dont think cookie is getting trade, but this summers been so unpredictable i wouldnt be surprised. cooke deserve $1M-$1.25M, if hes asking more then mabbe we should move him, but i'd really hate to see him go. mabbe park was signed to replace cooke? it makes more sense that way. park isnt a center so he cant replace chubby, park isnt a 2nd line winger for the sedins, he can play 3rd line tho in cookes place. we'll see how it turns out.

[James Ko]

So hockey talk is back up again

To tell you the truth until I actually see a game, is hard for me to get excited again. I do think Flames have a chance of repeating since they sign majority of their key players back.

I really think Pens is stacking up for nothing... they really need a good goaltending and hopefully Fleury will live up to his juniors days because he was really good back then.

[Bai Qi44]

its weird, but i think we actually can agree on something. cloutier is overpaid as of now. hes proven to be a good regular season who won 1 series in the playoff with a stacked team. thats not the kinda goalie u throw $5M at. and TWO YEARS!?!? why oh why would u do this to us nonis. let him prove himself in th eplayoff first then give him the money. im not happy with this deal either. i know theres no better alternative, but thats no reason to overpay for OUR OWN player.
now we have very little money to sign a 5th dman. and i cant believe sopel signed for so little, wasnt his last contract for $2.1M? so after the 24% hes gonna take a further paycut?? why cant our player do that??
i dont think cookie is getting trade, but this summers been so unpredictable i wouldnt be surprised. cooke deserve $1M-$1.25M, if hes asking more then mabbe we should move him, but i'd really hate to see him go. mabbe park was signed to replace cooke? it makes more sense that way. park isnt a center so he cant replace chubby, park isnt a 2nd line winger for the sedins, he can play 3rd line tho in cookes place. we'll see how it turns out.

I agree with everything you said, except for the Park to replace Cooke thing. They are both speedy players, but that's their only likeless. Cooke is much more gritty than Park is and Park was signed long before Cooke was even in negotiations with Nonis (at least serious negotiations and before the QO deadline). Park would be a horrible winger for the Sedins. That line would get knocked around more than Maddona. I think Nonis signed Park, thinking that the new NHL rules would be more fitting for a Park type of player than a Chubarov type of player. Anyway, the roster is almost set. We need both Ohlund and Cooke here if we want any chance at a cup.

So hockey talk is back up again

To tell you the truth until I actually see a game, is hard for me to get excited again. I do think Flames have a chance of repeating since they sign majority of their key players back.

I really think Pens is stacking up for nothing... they really need a good goaltending and hopefully Fleury will live up to his juniors days because he was really good back then.

Hockey talk is back up because both Monkey and I are die hard fans. Can't say the same for everyone else. The entry draft alone already got me and Monkey excited in hockey again. The free agent market was just icing on the cake.

As for the Flames repeating, I have two words for you.... ..."Miikka Kiprusoff"! Their team made the playoffs mainly because of him. Overall, the Flames aren't that good and too many people are overrating them base on their over achievement in the playoffs. Remember the Ducks, Canes, and Panthers??? The Flames lost Martin Gelina, who'd finish playoff series for them. He's not an easy player to replace, though I think Langkow is a lot better than Conroy. Amonte is good and McCarty adds grit. Still... overall, they really don't have much of an offense.

[superkaratemonkey]

only about 50 more days till the start of the season, hopefully u'll get back into it james, this thread is different w/out u and trizz (btw where is that guy?? lol)
flames looks good on paper, and i dont think they are a cinderella team like the canes, ducks, sabres, caps. but to repeat what they did last yr will be tough. now ppl are gunning for them cuz they are a top team, and they lost playoff hero gelinas. they have more skill now, but we'll see how they gel together.
pitt is a funny team, they must really believe the game will be open up alot. they are building a team like they have in the early '90s, all offense, no defense (even their defense are mainly good for offense, ex: gonchar, tarnstrom, jackman) lol. we'll see how successful the run-and-gun teams do in the new nhl. btw, fleury is ready for 50 games. not saying hes gonna stand on his head and win the vezina, but hes ready to be a starter.

[James Ko]

As for the Flames repeating, I have two words for you.... ..."Miikka Kiprusoff"! Their team made the playoffs mainly because of him. Overall, the Flames aren't that good and too many people are overrating them base on their over achievement in the playoffs. Remember the Ducks, Canes, and Panthers??? The Flames lost Martin Gelina, who'd finish playoff series for them. He's not an easy player to replace, though I think Langkow is a lot better than Conroy. Amonte is good and McCarty adds grit. Still... overall, they really don't have much of an offense.

You bought up a good point about the Ducks, Canes and Panthers all road their goalie to a successful run at the playoff but didn't quite get the cup. I really believe the Flames and Kipo is different because he is a great goalie. He did well the whole season before getting the Flames to playoff and even got better. Of couse Lightening had a good Goaltending too too bad he is gone... so good luck Ligthening repeating.

I don't know I believe that goalie is what can get you all the way to the playoff.

[almo89]

I don't know I believe that goalie is what can get you all the way to the playoff.

Well that's how it works all these years. Without a good goalie u can't get anywhere as he is the player that stays on the ice for 60 minutes. Such an important player

[Bai Qi44]

Monkey, I just found out that Sopel didn't sign for $1.2 mil a season as stated in TSN (still stated as that on TSN). It's actually $2.4 mil as recently reported on NHLPA. NHLPA is the only accurate source here. They got Malik signing to the Rangers almost a day before everyone even heard about it. Btw, the $2.4mil was already reported on Sportsnet weeks ago. Anyway, it was a good thing we got rid of him cause he ain't worth $2.4 mil for all the defensive blunders he makes. I get scare everytime he skates out of our zone cause he's bound to turnover the puck.

Oh and we just signed McCarthy. I really don't know a lot about this guy, except that he's injure a lot. But at least we have a NHL d-man....I think.

You bought up a good point about the Ducks, Canes and Panthers all road their goalie to a successful run at the playoff but didn't quite get the cup. I really believe the Flames and Kipo is different because he is a great goalie. He did well the whole season before getting the Flames to playoff and even got better. Of couse Lightening had a good Goaltending too too bad he is gone... so good luck Ligthening repeating.

I don't know I believe that goalie is what can get you all the way to the playoff.

Yes, Kipper was playing extremely well before the playoffs. I'm not saying the Flames aren't a good team, but it seems like a lot of people are putting them in the top 5 best teams of the league. They're more like 10-15 in my opinion. If Kipper goes down and even with Iginla, they're screwed! I should know, I live in Calgary. Iginla was not able to get the Flames to the playoffs for all the years he's been in Calgary, but once Kipper came, the Flames make the playoffs for the first time in 7 years!!! Even if Iggy goes down, I can still see the Flames make the playoffs, but I can't see them doing down once Kipper goes down.

[James Ko]

Yes, Kipper was playing extremely well before the playoffs. I'm not saying the Flames aren't a good team, but it seems like a lot of people are putting them in the top 5 best teams of the league. They're more like 10-15 in my opinion. If Kipper goes down and even with Iginla, they're screwed! I should know, I live in Calgary. Iginla was not able to get the Flames to the playoffs for all the years he's been in Calgary, but once Kipper came, the Flames make the playoffs for the first time in 7 years!!! Even if Iggy goes down, I can still see the Flames make the playoffs, but I can't see them doing down once Kipper goes down.

ya I agree... without Kipper they are done. With out Iggy I think they can still manage

[superkaratemonkey]

wow, sopes for $2.4M per!? that deal with the islander looks better everyday i was gonna miss him, but not if hes getting so much money.
im kinda nervously-excited about the nucks new look D. the top 4 of allen-jovo and ohlund-salo is set, but our bottom pair looks very interesting. mcarthy is old enuff to take the next step, and from reading up about him over on hfboard makes me even more excited. its always a good thing when the other team's fans are angry at the trade. a 3rd rounder for him seems like a good gamble, its a low risk/high reward type trade. if bieska makes a good transition to the nhl we'll be fine. unless ohlund/jovo gets injured.
i think the flames will finish higher in the regular season then 03/04, just because they have pretty much the same team, while other higher rank teams lots some players (det, col). but i still think iggy is more important then kipper. sure goalie plays 60mins, but iggy provides so much to the team (leadership, chemistry, shouldering the pressure, draws the spotlight) that goes unnotice, hes really the mvp of the league IMO.
btw, hossa for heatly!? shocking!! i think ott won the deal (slightly) becuz they cut payroll (dumping de vies) and got younger, while getting a player with similar skillset but higher potential. now if kovalchuk demands a trade, which team will step up and make an offer??

[superkaratemonkey]

ohlund signed for 4 years!! yay. now get cooke locked up and we are ready to start the season