Here’s my latest for Eyes On Isles. I plead my case as to why Garth Snow should throw the book at Grabovski.
Category: NHL
Trash Talk Tuesday: Claude Giroux, Peter Laviolette And Steve Ott
This took place during the Flyers/Rangers 24/7 HBO special. Giroux and Ott are lined up for a faceoff when Ott takes it upon himself to tell everyone that he knows how to use the internet.
After the period is over, he has a fun little altercation with Philadelphia Flyers head coach Peter Laviolette. Lavy’s reaction afterwards is priceless.
WARNING: NSFW Language
Top 10 Goalie Masks Of The 2013 Season Part 1
One of my editors at Eyes On Isles challenged me to compile a list of my 10 favourites from this past season. Of course I was happy to take on the task! Click on the link below to take a look at the first part of my top 10.
Bobby Ryan Is An Ottawa Senator. Alfredsson Who?
Well of course his happens after my big Free Agent Frenzy post but the Ottawa Senators have acquired Bobby Ryan from the Anaheim Ducks in exchange for Silfverberg, Noesen and a first round pick.
This came as a shock as long time captain Daniel Alfredsson left one a one year deal to Detroit. Ryan will definitely help fill the void that was lacking by an aging Alfredsson.
Great pick up for the Senators and gives them that much more fire power down the playoff stretch. Ottawa is going to be a team to watch for the next few years.
Anaheim however will also get a great player in Jakob Silfverberg. The 22 year old was a hard working left winger for the Sens and also played a big part in their playoff pushes in the past few years. Give him a few years to grow and mature and I think this kid will do wonders.
All in all though, what a day for the Ottawa Senators.
FREE AGENT FRENZY
After a whirlwind trip to Kingston, Ontario, home of the great Dougie Gilmour, I am finally back on a computer to catch up with all this Free Agent action.
And boy, did I miss some insane GM deals.
Let’s start off with Tyler Bozak signing for 5 years in Toronto. At 4.2 million per year, Toronto thinks he’s a hockey player or something. Christ, that’s Vinny Lecavalier money. Buying out Grabo to sign Bozak to a longer deal will not be a wise move in the long run. Trust me. I’m not Randy Carlyle though. BUT, the Leafs also signed David Clarkson to 7 years at 5.25 million. That’s not a bad steal for the buds as Clarkson will definitely help them out, filling in for Grabo. I’m actually shaking my head at the buying out of Grabovski. I hope somebody is smart and picks him up and shoves it in Carlyle’s face.
Detroit pulled out a couple big punches stealing away 17 year Ottawa Senators vet, Daniel Alfredsson. Alfredsson signed a one year deal, likely to be his last. To me, all his Swedish buddies are there and I guess attempting a shot at a Cup with friends seems fitting to him. Loyalty means nothing anymore. They also picked up Stephen Weiss from Florida for 5 years at just under 5 million.
Columbus Blue Jackets landed Nathan Horton to 7 FREAKING YEARS. 7 years to a guy who has a known concussion problem AND is undergoing shoulder surgery so he won’t even be on the ice till sometime in December. I’d like to say that was a good signing but…..no, just no.
Danny Briere signed on with the Montreal Canadiens. I think he’ll fit in well there and he’ll help the team out. Briere has a couple more solid years left in him. The only thing that boggles my mind is why Montreal doesn’t try to get bigger. They’re so small, toughen yourselves up with a couple big guys. Wouldn’t hurt.
Boston seems to be going down the drain from their Cup run. They’ve already lost Horton to Columbus and traded away Tyler Seguin to Dallas. Andrew Ference is also on the move as he signed on with the Edmonton Oilers. Maybe they want to keep old man Jagr around for another year.
OTHER NOTABLE SIGNINGS SO FAR:
F Clarke MacArthur to Ottawa from Toronto
F Tyler Kennedy to San Jose from Pittsburgh
D Rob Scuderi to Pittsburgh from Los Angeles
C Peter Regin to NY Islanders from Ottawa
D Mike Komisarek to Carolina from Toronto
F Viktor Stalberg to Nashville from Chicago
The Cookie Monster – Matt Cooke
It looks as if Matt Cooke has been heavily reviewing his options for this trade deadline for some time. As it stands there has been very little talk with Pittsburgh, if at all on resigning with the club.
But of course this is all speculative to a degree, as nothing has been made 100% official at this point. Chris Letang being an example where many thought he was on his way out of Pittsburgh, only to be accommodated.
However, this is an entirely different situation all together. Here we have a 34 year old left winger who is now proving he’s more than just capable of concussing other teams star players (yes, I went there!). In all seriousness this year alone and especially over the regular season, Cooke came out of heavy controversy of seasons past and proved many wrong with a hard work ethic and dropped his outlandish moronic behaviour at the door. More importantly he put up some of his best numbers yet.
I’d say It would be very wise for him at this point – to go where the money is and prove he can get the job done else where. This is a simple case where Cookie will probably get the biggest money shot of his career. Regardless of what people say about loyalty and that stuff, as a player you have to think – “Do I go while I’m still hot and have some worth..or hang around here possibly sign some sort 1-2 year deal for less money, my game goes to hell and/or I end up getting traded.”
Love him or hate him, we shall see what happens in the coming days. We all could be wrong but I think the Cookie Monster will be spreading his crumbs somewhere else this coming year.
2013 NHL Draft: Taking A Look At The Top 5
The draft is finally over and everyone can finally sleep a little bit better at night. At least until Free Agency starts up. Let’s not get ahead of ourselves here though. We’re going to take a look at the top 5 picks who got selected in this years draft.
1. Colorado Avalanche – Nathan MacKinnon
Of course to no one’s surprise MacKinnon went first overall. Joe Sakic and Patrick Roy had been saying for weeks that they weren’t going to draft defensemen Seth Jones. That led for lots of speculation of “will they” or “won’t they”. Well, as we can see they weren’t bluffing. Mackinnon was the first player from the QMJHL to be drafted first overall since Sidney Crosby in 2005. After putting up outstanding numbers with the Halifax Mooseheads and capturing a Memorial Cup championship title, MacKinnon will be a no brainer in training camp and should make the cut. See him on the first line with Landeskog and O’Reilly but no lower than the second where Matt Duchesne could offer great veteran support.
2. Florida Panthers – Alexander Barkov
With the first shocker of the draft, the Florida Panthers also declined to pick up Seth Jones and went with Finnish-Russian powerhouse Alexander Barkov. Coming out of SM-Liga with Tappara in Finland, Barkov collected 48 points in 53 games. A massive man at 6’2, Barkov shows a great amount of hockey sense and should add depth to the Panthers squad.
3. Tampa Bay Lightning – Jonathan Drouin
As expected, Steve Yzerman and company selected MacKinnon’s Halifax teammate Jonathan Drouin. Fast feet and good hands, Drouin is a great pick to fill in the void that was left with Vincent Lecavalier’s buyout. Drouin seems to know what’s going on around him on the ice at all times. He was an integral part of Halifax’s Memorial Cup win.
4. Nashville Predators – Seth Jones
What a steal for the Nashville Predators! American defencemen Seth Jones was choosen 4th overall and could not have gone to a better team. Imagine him and Shea Weber on your blue line. This year with Portland, Jones racked up 56 points in the 61 games he played. Should be interesting to see how his career first starts out.
5. Carolina Hurricanes – Elias Lindholm
A jack of all trades, Lindholm is a great addition for the Hurricanes and the Stall brothers. A stick handler with lots of leadership skills in him, Lindholm could go a long way in the Carolina system. Providing he doesn’t head back to Europe, he’s a rising star on the east coast.
The View Of The Draft From The Peanut Gallery
As the draft rolls on before our eyes I would like to point some what of an observation…
What strikes me as odd is that for many of these kids and their families, this is the happiest day of their lives and some of these GMs are skulking up to the podiums and just nonchalantly announcing names..Washington’s seemed outright rude.
Is it their intention to make it seem as if they don’t give a crap about these kids..? Cause it certainly comes across that way.
Anyway its great to see these young kids and their families looking so proud and excited. The coming years will be pivotal for all them, some will join the elite and others may disappear into obscurity. However this has to be the proudest day of their lives.
Moving Parts – Players to watch over the next few days
A short summary of some of the names rumoured to be hitting the trade/free agency block the next few days. There of plenty of names hitting free agency on July 1st, but here are a few names already hitting the headlines recently.
Big Vinny
Lecavalier WILL be picked up. The Dallas Stars seem to be going after him pretty hard but i’ts early days right now. But a guy like this will a huge aid to any hockey club he chooses to join. It’s a no brainer for those GMs out there!
Tanger
Kris Letang is also someone who seems to be heading for the trading block right now. After rejecting a Pittsburgh Penguin offer, and the Penguins then rejecting his more costly counter offer, Letang may well be made available to teams in the coming days. After his questionable play this year it will be interesting to see what teams will take an interest, he still has a heck of a lot to contribute.
Nate
Nathan Horton has decided to move on from the B’s. He will also aid plenty of clubs out there wanting to add size to their bench.
Danny Briere
After disappointing Philadelphia again, Briere was bought out by the Flyers recently. Although I dont see many teams going hard for him – he deserves a mention.. he is a stand up guy, March and all Flyer fans will be cheering for this guy wherever he goes.
Seguin
Another one hitting the rumour mill this week on a possible trade. He is a young skilled player with a Stanley Cup in his rookie year, and deep playoffs experience. He is also a no brainer for many clubs looking to add some depth.
Ranger Brad
The Rangers are currently denying any movement on Brad Richards as of now..will keep an eye on that.
The Current State Of Officiating
I have read a lot of talk on the inter webs this year from fans the league about poor officiating. Many point out unfair or just flat out stupid penalties being called. I’m not sure if I’m inclined to support that statement entirely..
I do think officiating has slipped in recent seasons. My argument has been more the fact that games are not allowed to flow as they should at times. Every game before a face off, players are kicked out for arbitrary infraction reasons, sometimes two or three guys are thrown out in a row.
DROP THE FREAKIN’ PUCK ALREADY !
I have heard the hockey media say things like ‘Well referees have a way of evening things out..’ I do not like these statements at all. It’s something soccer commentators talk about. Being someone who has watched soccer my whole life, I know how flat out appalling refereeing can be. My hope is that it will never slip to that degree . These guys aren’t machines, mistakes will be made. Apart from a few big games such as Dallas’s Brett Hull 1999 goal, (which was more because of a poor rule than poor officiating), the NHL still fairs as being some of the best in sports. In my opinion anyway.
One can also argue that views on officiating are often where your allegiances lie. Which I can honestly say is true. I mean if referees call an awful penalty on the Penguins for example are Philidelphia fans really going to care? Then again Flyers/Pens games are like a bar brawl down in southwest Philly. So what do you expect?!
I sense myself starting to ramble here so I’m going to cut this short.
In closing, if people have issues with officiating. Easy solution. Bring this man back.
Nuff Said.
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