Five Things the 2010 Season Taught Us

The 2009-2010 NHL season was one of the most successful in League history. The Stanley Cup Finals recorded the highest Neilson Ratings in over 30 years, and the introduction of the Winter Classic has been an even larger success than anticipated. No matter how you feel about Gary Bettman (I’m not down with the Sunbelt expansion myself), the game is doing very well, and the sport is evolving at a rapid pace. Here’s some of the changes we saw in 2010, and some that might be just around the corner.

#5 Detroit’s Dominance is Over

The Red Wings had a great run – 13 Central Division titles since 91, 6 Western Conference titles, and 4 Stanley Cup wins since 1994. They wreaked complete havoc on the West during their prime, and inarguably, they were a near-perfect model of a successful franchise. Their stranglehold on the Western Conference has come to an end, however, and younger, quicker, and more talented teams have taken control. Chicago won the Division (and the Cup) with 22 year old captain and a rookie goaltender, while the Montreal Canadians ran all the way to the Eastern Conference Finals on the back of a young and untested Jaroslav Halak.

Could this season be an anomaly? It’s certainly possible, but the changing paradigm is undeniable – Crosby, Malkin, Stamkos, Kane, Toews and Ovechkin are all ripping up the League, and contending teams are all skewing younger (more on that later). While Zetterberg, Datsuk and Lidstrom are all immensely talented, I get the sinking feeling that the Western Conference (and the rest of the League, for that matter) is leaving the Wings behind. Vancouver, San Jose, and Chicago have established themselves as the real powerhouses in the West, while teams like LA and Colorado give the distinct impression that they are only a few players away from breaking away from the pack. We just might see another ‘Dead Wings’ era sooner than later.

#4 Expensive Goaltenders are Overrated

The Montreal Canadians got an exceptional performance out of Jaroslav Halak, while paying him a touch over the league minimum at $750,000. The Blackhawks won the Stanley Cup with Antti Niemi in net, and his salary was a meager $826,000. Michael Leighton helped the Flyers win the Eastern Conference Championship while making less than Niemi and Halak both, at $600,000. All three will likely get sizable raises this year, but the fact remains – they all outplayed big name, high-salary goaltenders like Henrik Lundqvist, Evgeni Nabokov, Miikka Kiprusoff, and Marc-Andre Fleury (for this season, at least). Is this a trend that will continue for years to come? Only time will tell, but expect GM’s to start looking for that next cheap, up-and-coming goaltender to run with.

#3 The West > The East

Let’s not take anything away from the Penguins, Capitals and Sabres – they’re all great teams that would do well in any Division or Conference, but statistically, the Western Conference is superior to the East. If the playoffs were decided on the top 16 total teams in the league, regardless of conference or division, the East would have only fielded 7 teams out of 16. Sure, it’s only one team short of an even split, but that doesn’t tell the entire story. The Flyers found themselves ranked 18th in the entire league, while the Canadians followed behind in 19th – behind Anaheim, Calgary and St.Louis, and all three of those teams didn’t even make the playoffs.

#2 Offense Wins Games, but Goaltending and Special Teams Win Cups

The Washington Capitals scored 313 goals in the regular season, which averages out to a little over 3 goals a game, and yet, a hot goaltender and solid team play was all the Montreal Canadians needed to bounce them in the first round. Vancouver finished second, behind the Capitals, but their offensive prowess only got them to the second round of the playoffs. San Jose dominated the Western Conference with their offense-first lineup of Dany Heatly, Joe Thornton, Patrick Marleau, and Joe Pavelski ran up the scoreboard during the regular season, finishing fourth overall in the league in goals for – but Nabokov simply didn’t play consistently enough for the Sharks to get to the Finals. For Chicago, the goaltending and the power play/penalty kill were one of the biggest reasons they won the Cup. The Hawks placed in the top five in both the penalty kill and power play numbers, and Niemi recorded a respectable .910 SV% and 2 shutouts over the Hawks 22 games in the postseason.

#1 Younger is Better

Ten years ago, NHL GM’s treated grizzled playoff veterans like a hot commodity – experience was one of those intangible virtues that teams valued as much as anything. Now, with the elimination of the two-line pass, the addition of the restricted puck-handling areas for goaltenders, and the automatic face-off in the defensive zone after a penalty, the rule changes have created a faster, more offensive game that’s much more advantageous to younger and quicker players. The vets are finding themselves lagging behind the rapid pace of the new NHL, and even now, they’re quickly finding themselves out of work. Four of the biggest players in the NHL (and all four find themselves in the top ten goal scorers in the playoffs) – Kane, Toews, Crosby, and Claude Giroux were all born after 1987. The trend is obvious, and the GM’s of the league are already responding in a big way, as the 2010 NHL Draft in L.A saw 22 high-schoolers drafted – the most in NHL history.

Cheechoo and Kotalik Hit the Market

Jonathan Cheechoo and Ales Kotalik, among others, will be on the move come July 1st.

“The National Hockey League’s waiver wire was active again on Monday, with Ottawa’s Jonathan Cheechoo, Petteri Nokelainen and Jim Vandermeer of the Phoenix Coyotes, Florida Panthers defenceman Ville Koistinen and Ales Kotalik of the Calgary Flames all made available.

The players are expected to be bought out of their contracts if they go unclaimed and would become unrestricted free agents.

Cheechoo is in the final year of a multi-year contract that will pay him $3.5 million next season. He had five goals and 14 points in 61 games last season.

Kotalik, 31, scored 11 and 27 points in 71 games with the Flames and New York Rangers last season. He will make $3 million in each of the next two seasons.” {TSN.ca}

Cheechoo was generally considered a bust in Ottawa, and while he had an amazing year in 2005 (56g, 93pts), his production has steadily declined since. Players in Canadian markets often times crack under the immense media pressure, and end up playing well for American teams. For example, Alex Steen had the best season of his career (47pts) after being traded from the Leafs to St.Louis. Cheechoo might just need a change of scenery in order to recover his game, and there’s probably a handful of teams willing to give him a shot for the right price.

Ales Kotalik is in a similar situation – he landed a decent contract after having a career year in 2005-06, recording 62 points, but he never produced similar numbers. Again, there’s always a couple of teams who are looking for extra depth on the blueline, so I’d expect Kotalik to get snapped up a few days after the deadline.

Nabokov Might be Traded to the Flyers

We’ve been speculating on which teams would want to sign former Sharks goaltender Evgeni Nabokov – and originally, I thought the Washington Capitals would rush out and sign him to a contract, but a deal with the Philadelphia Flyers seems to be all but done.

“According to a report by Tim Panaccio on CSNPhilly.com, the Philadelphia Flyers have made the first step toward possibly solving their goaltending issue, as they have acquired Evgeni Nabokov from the San Jose Sharks.

The reported deal would see the Flyers send a 2011 seventh-round pick to the Sharks if they can sign Nabokov before he becomes an unrestricted free agent July 1.

Nabokov has a no-trade clause in his contract, but since the Sharks already have said they will not be offering him a new deal, the report says he is willing to waive it if a deal can be done with the Flyers.

Nabokov will turn 35 this summer, but he’s won at least 41 games each of the past three seasons, including 44 in 2009-10, when he posted a 2.43 goals-against average and .922 save percentage.

In 10 seasons with the Sharks, who drafted Nabokov in the ninth round of the 1994 Entry Draft, he has 293 wins, 50 shutouts, a 2.39 GAA and .912 save percentage.

However, he’s only 40-38 lifetime in the playoffs, and only once in the last five seasons has he taken the talent-laden Sharks past the second round of the playoffs. He allowed 12 goals in four games as the Sharks were swept by the Chicago Blackhawks in the Western Conference Final.

Asked by Panaccio if he were optimistic something will happen with San Jose, Holmgren paused and replied, “I don’t know.”

The Flyers dressed seven goalies last season, and watched the season end in Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final with Michael Leighton allowing Patrick Kane’s sharp-angle shot in overtime go under his left pad and into the net, costing the Flyers a chance at their first NHL championship since 1975. Leighton also can become an unrestricted free agent on July 1. Backup Brian Boucher has one year left on his deal, and the club is very high on Swedish goalie Johan Backlund, who just signed a new two-year contract.

If this deal happens, it would be the second time in recent weeks the Flyers have acquired the rights to an impending free agent. On June 19 Philadelphia acquired defenseman Dan Hamhuis from the Nashville Predators for defenseman Ryan Parent, but with Holmgren unlikely to reach a deal, he sent Hamhuis to the Pittsburgh Penguins following the first round of the 2010 Entry Draft on Friday, in exchange for a 2011 third-round pick.

Holmgren obviously is hoping for more success this time, but according to the CSNPhilly.com report, Nabokov’s agent, Don Meehan, has said it might not be “feasible” to get a deal done before July 1.” {NHL.com}

You’ve got to think that Sharks GM Doug Wilson saw much better offers from other teams right before the trade deadline for Nabokov, but he didn’t pull the trigger. Now, Nabby will probably just head to free-agent market with little or no return. A seventh-round pick is better than nothing, but I can’t help but think the Sharks would have been in better shape if they had traded Nabokov before the post-season, instead of just letting him walk.

The Flyers would be a decent organization for Evgeni. He’d easily swipe the starting job from Leighton/Emery/Boucher, and I’d imagine Philadelphia would be wiling to ink him for $4-$5 Million. From the way Meehan (Nabokov’s agent) and Holmgren (Flyers GM) are talking, it sounds like Evgeni wants more money than Philly is willing to dish out. If the Flyers can’t sign him by the 1st, expect Washington to send an offer sheet his way as well.

Oilers Select Hall First Overall

The Edmonton Oilers opened the 2010 Draft in Los Angeles by selecting standout left winger Taylor Hall. Only time will tell if Hall can develop into a star in the NHL, but by all appearances, the Oilers took the best available player.

“Even though he knew the moment was at hand, Taylor Hall still had no idea he was about to become the first pick of the 2010 Entry Draft.

“Before the thing TSN told me they were going to make the first pick at 4:30 (Pacific time), so I wasn’t expecting it,” Hall told NHL.com minutes after pulling on an Oilers jersey for the first time at the Staples Center . “At 4:15 they went up to the podium to pick, so it was good I wasn’t ready for it.”

Hall, the dynamic left wing from the Windsor Spitfires, was the Oilers’ pick, ahead of Plymouth Whalers’ center Tyler Seguin.

The two have been tied together for much of the season as the consensus best two players available in the draft. Seguin and Hall were ranked Nos. 1 and 2, respectively, by NHL Central Scouting, with the sole difference in the scouts’ eyes being their position.

“The full season of body of work that said he (Seguin) is going to be a great player in the National Hockey League,” Central Scouting Director E.J. McGuire told NHL.com. “So is Taylor Hall. In our mind, other than the position, they are equal.”

But the Oilers had to make a decision. So what pushed the needle to Hall?

“We felt like with Taylor, if you look at his resume of playing with the best team and being the best player, back-to-back Memorial Cup MVP’s, prominent in the World Junior tournament, prominent on his own team for his entire junior career,” GM Steve Tambellini told TSN. “I haven’t met a more competitive player than this young man.”

Hall’s resume is pretty strong — 6 goals and 12 points in helping Canada win a silver medal at the World Junior Championship, 106 points and a share of the OHL scoring title, and the first-ever two-time Memorial Cup MVP.

I think we had a lot of discussion about the centerman,” Oilers president Kevin Lowe said. “We’re not trying to build a Stanley Cup (champion) overnight. If the guys we have don’t evolve into that No. 1 centerman, we hope we will be able to draft one or acquire one in the coming years.”

Seguin said he wasn’t sure what was going to happen when Tambellini went to the podium, but he was hopeful.

“It just got really hot and my cheeks got rosy,” Seguin said. “Nothing really was going through my head, just curious to see who they were going to pick.”

That left Seguin to the Boston Bruins, who after a bit of a wait made him the No. 2 pick.

“I was sitting there and wondering if Boston was going to make a trade,” Seguin told NHL.com not long after pulling on his black Bruins jersey. “I was a little confused, but it was worth it. It’s a great feeling. I can sit back and relax now.”

Chiarelli may have been picking second, but he certainly doesn’t think he got the second-best player.

“He’s got a tremendous shot, vision and creativity. He’s got a lot of things going for him,” Chiarelli told TSN. “He’s a good kid, he comes from a good family and we are happy to have him.”

The debate on Tyler vs. Taylor is over — for now.”

Top Ten NHL Free Agents

Free-agency for the NHL begins in little under a week, and there’s still a decent amount of great talent ready to be signed. Here’s the top ten guys you definitely want your team to sign.

#10 Michael Leighton – Philadelphia Flyers

During the Flyers’ improbable playoff run, Leighton was thrust into the starting goaltending job after season-ending injuries to Ray Emery and Brian Boucher. Sure, he gave up a handful of soft goals during the Stanley Cup Final (the series-ending goal by Kane could be one of the worst in recent memory), but Leighton has tons of potential, and would be a reasonable cap hit. Montreal was rumored to be in on him after unloading Jaro Halak to St.Louis, but essentially any team looking for a backup would do well with Leighton.

#9 Sergei Gonchar – Pittsburgh Penguins

He’s been the backbone for the Penguins powerplay for a handful of years, but by all appearances, he’s likely on his way out of town. A 16 year NHL veteran, Gonchar’s age hasn’t hindered his point production, notching 50 points last season. He’s managed to stay relatively healthy over his lengthy career, and his puck-moving skills from the blueline could be useful to a great deal of teams. Some rumors popped up last week, claiming that the Sharks had signed Gonchar, but they originated from less that reputable sources, and were quickly debunked. San Jose would be a solid destination for him, however, after the retirement of Rob Blake.

#8 Chris Mason – St. Louis Blues

The Blues somehow managed to deal for Montreal’s young goaltender, Jaroslav Halak, and Mason was unceremoniously booted out of town. Arguably, Mason was a bit overpaid ($6 million) for his generally mediocre performance, but he’d be a big improvement in net for a handful of teams. The Capitals have had struggles in goal, shuffling between youngster Semyon Varlamov, and Jose Theodore, without much success to show for it. San Jose recently cut their ties with Evgeni Nabokov, and Mason could work out for the Sharks as well. He’s not the best keeper in the free agent pool, but he’s definitely not the worst.

#7 Matthew Lombardi – Phoenix Coyotes

One of the pieces moved in the Jokinen trade to Calgary, Matthew Lombardi broke the 50-point mark for the first time in his career with the Coyotes, notching 19 goals and 34 assists. Last season, Lombardi recorded 6 points over 7 playoff games, churning out points at nearly a point-per-game clip. Coming off the best season of his NHL career, Lombardi is due for a raise, and the ‘Yotes might not be able to re-sign him to another contract. He could probably get as much as $3-$5 million a year, so the team that grabs him will need the adequate cap space.

#6 Maxim Afinogenov – Atlanta Thrashers

The speedy Russian forward tallied 63 points last year, and over the course of his career, broke the 20+ goal plateau three times. His contract expired in Atlanta, and he’s currently an unrestricted free agent who will no doubt receive a slew of offers come July 1st. He works well on the power play, and could fit well on a number of teams as a first or second line right-wing. His playoff point totals with the Sabres are respectable (10 goals, 23 points over four years), and his cap hit wouldn’t be all that bad. He’s an attractive option for a number of teams who are looking to add a little kick of offense.

#5 Evgeni Nabokov – San Jose Sharks

Sharks GM Doug Wilson made it perfectly clear earlier this week that Nabby will not be returning to San Jose, and the veteran goaltender is searching for greener pastures. Sure, you could legitimately argue that Nabokov has a nasty propensity for choking in the post-season, and at age 34, he’s not a lasting goaltending solution, but Nabby might still have something left in the tank. Washington seems like the best possible solution for Evgeni, as Jose Theodore is a UFA, and if the Capitals actually believe in Varlamov, Nabokov could be a great mentor for the youngster. Playoff troubles aside, his numbers are solid (9.22 SV%, 44 W), and Nabokov is one of (if not the) best keepers in the free agent pool.

#4 Olli Jokinen – New York Rangers

The enigmatic and streaky forward, who some have described as a ‘locker room cancer’, is undeniably devastating on the attack. In 2006, Jokinen recorded 91 points (39g, 51a), but recently, his numbers have stalled while with the Rangers. He represents the biggest gamble in the UFA game right now – could he rediscover his 2006 form, or will his point production steadily decline? He’s jumped around the league, playing for Calgary, Phoenix, Florida, NYI, LA, and New York, but it really seems like he’s yet to find an organization he can stay happy with. This is a player that could really boom or bust, but he won’t sign cheap, so it’s a risky move no matter how you look at it.

#3 Ray Whitney – Carolina Hurricanes

Yes, he’s fairly old (38), and his best days might be behind him, but the guy is solid, and has consistently put up respectable numbers in almost every single season of his career. Even in the twilight of his NHL career, he’s hit the 20+ goal mark four years in a row, and a playoff team like Pittsburgh, Colorado, Vancouver, or even St. Louis could sign him to a relatively low one or two year deal with a decent cap hit. Great playoff experience, fantastic locker room presence, and manageable economic impact shoots Whitney up to the top three on this list.

#2 Alexander Frolov – L.A Kings

The Kings drafted and developed Frolov, an immensely talented left winger who has broken the 20 goal mark in 5 out of 7 total seasons in the NHL. He’s a dangler with the rare ability to consistently produce points while avoiding injury problems, and he’s always given the distinct impression that he’s just one step away from stacking up points with the big names in the League. The Kings had their coming out party this year, giving the Canucks a decent run in the first round of the playoffs, and Frolov was a key piece in their success, but the rumors are already swirling, and the Kings might have to trade his negotiating rights before he reaches free agency. Where could he end up? Your guess is as about as good as mine, but I’m thinking he’ll have his career year in 2011.

#1 Ilya Kovalchuk – New Jersey Devils

Who else could take the top spot on this list? Kovalchuk is one of the NHL’s premier talents, consistently flirting with the 100 point plateau, and he’s scored at least 40 goals every season since his junior year in the NHL. He’s absolutely sick in the offensive zone, and he is the kind of player that can take a good team and make them into a Stanley Cup threat. New Jersey could retain his services, but Kovalchuk has made it clear that he’ll be listening to the slew of offers that will be streaming in July 1st. Colorado and L.A have constantly come up in the conversation, but there are some darkhorses in the race, like Toronto (despite Burke’s denials) and St. Louis. Wherever he goes, he’ll take one of the biggest cap hits in the league with him, and his salary will land somewhere in the $8 million a year range. I think the ship is sinking in New Jersey, and Kovie will once again jump to a team he thinks can contend for a Cup within a year or two.

San Jose Releasing Nabokov

The Sharks GM Doug Wilson announced Tuesday that the San Jose and goaltender Evgeni Nabokov will part ways for the 2010-2011 season.

“The San Jose Sharks will not offer goaltender Evgeni Nabokov a contract when he becomes an unrestricted free agent next week, cutting ties with one of the franchise’s cornerstone players.

General manager Doug Wilson announced the decision Tuesday in a pre-draft news conference, shortly after delivering the news personally to Nabokov.

“He’s been outstanding for this organization, a big part of our successes,” Wilson said. “I have great respect for him as a player, as a man and a teammate.”

Nabokov said at the end of the season that he would like to remain in San Jose, but noted that it was not his decision entirely. Nabokov made US$6 million last year in the final season of his five-year contract.

Wilson noted a direction in the NHL in which teams have had great success with lower-paid goaltenders, most recently with Chicago winning the Stanley Cup with Antti Niemi, who made $827,000 this season.

“If you look at the trends in this league the last four or five years in particular and the dollars that are dedicated to that position,” he said. “If you’re dedicating $5 or $6 million, that’s coming out of somewhere else.”
Nabokov has been one of the top goalies in the league the past few years, winning an NHL-best 131 games over the past three seasons. He has a 293-215-29 record in 10 seasons with the Sharks, with a 2.39 goals against average.

Nabokov went 44-26 with a 2.43 goals against average last season, helping the Sharks reach the Western Conference final this year, where they were swept by Chicago.

The Sharks will give a chance to backup Thomas Greiss, who started 11 games this season and also played for Germany in the Olympics, as well as minor league goalie Alex Stalock, who won 39 games and had a 2.63 goals against average with Worcester in the AHL.

Wilson said the team would also look to add a veteran goalie either through a trade or free agency to pair with one of the younger goalies. Among the goalies eligible to become unrestricted free agents are Dallas’ Marty Turco, St. Louis’ Chris Mason, Philadelphia’s Michael Leighton and Washington’s Jose Theodore.

“The goaltending market is very deep,” Wilson said. “There’s lots of goalies that are out there that you can supplement or build a tandem with what you have. Make no mistake, we’re very pleased with the goaltenders we have in our system and they’ll be given an opportunity.”

With a decision made not to try to retain Nabokov, the focus for the Sharks turns to the other unrestricted free agents, most notably leading goal scorer Patrick Marleau. The decision to let Nabokov leave could free up more money for Marleau if necessary.” {THN.com}

After the Blues dealt for Jaroslav Halak, the goaltending market really opened up, and there’s a great deal of free agents that the Sharks could go with. Thomas Griess played well this season (and in Vancouver for Team Germany), and he could legitimately take over as the starting goaltender without too much trouble. I’d expect the Capitals to make a move for a keeper too – Theodore was terrible during the first round, and Varlamov doesn’t inspire a ton of confidence, so any of these free-agent goaltenders would work well in Washington.

Toews Makes Cover of NHL 11

The guys over at Operation Sports managed to grab a snapshot of the EA Sports website, and it’s pretty clear that they’ve selected Blackhawks captain Jonathan Toews as the coverboy for NHL 11:

Puck Daddy jumped on the story as well, and it had totally slipped my mind that EA Sports chose Patrick Kane last year, making this the two Blackhawk players in a row.

“Interesting that they’re going for two Blackhawks in a row, eh?

Normally EA Sports waits until midsummer to announce who’ll be on the cover of the annual best-selling game, but this apparent slip-up must have coincided with the beginning of E3, the annual convention that previews the year’s top gaming releases.”

Seriously, what an amazing year for Jonathan Toews. He wins a Gold Medal in Vancouver, the Conn Symthe Trophy (which came with a $1.3 million dollar bonus, by the way), the Stanley Cup, and now, he’s on the cover for NHL 11. Toews should just retire now and quit while he’s ahead.

Flyers and Blackhawks to Trim Rosters

After winning their respective conference championships, both the Flyers and the Hawks will have to trim their ranks, and let some key components go in order to fit under the NHL’s salary cap. Without question, Chicago spent a great deal of money to build such a dominant roster, and even though they already have their key pieces locked up (Kane, Toews and Hossa), it still leaves integral elements potentially out of the fold.

“Various sources noted the Blackhawks currently have more than $57 million committed to 14 players for next season and with the cap expected to rise to $58.8 million it’s clear Bowman must dump salary to not only get under the cap, but retain several key players and still fill out the remainder of his roster.

Compounding the problem are bonuses for stars Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane, including $1.3 million to Toews for winning the Conn Smythe Trophy, which James Mirtle of the Globe and Mail estimated puts the Hawks over the cap by $4 million.

It’s expected Bowman will bury goalie Cristobal Huet and his $5.625 million cap hit for next season in the minors, while defenseman Brent Sopel and his $2.33 million salary could also be demoted or bought out.

That still won’t free up enough space and could force Bowman to consider trading a couple of key roster players.

The obvious trade candidate would be defenseman Brian Campbell and his $7.14 million per season contract, but his performance this season didn’t match his salary level and combined with his limited no-trade clause, that makes him almost impossible to move.

Jim Kelley of Sports Illustrated suggested winger Marian Hossa as a trade candidate, but his contract is considerably longer than Campbell’s (expiring in 2021) with a cap hit of $5.275 million per season, which probably won’t be attractive to other clubs, either.

Other trade possibilities include center Patrick Sharp ($3.9 million), winger Kris Versteeg ($3.08 million) and playoff hero Dustin Byfuglien ($3 million).

Bowman’s cap woes also make his team a prime target for offer sheets to restricted free agents such as goaltender Antti Niemi and defenseman Niklas Hjalmarsson.

The Blackhawks still have plenty of talented depth to repeat as Cup champions, but dealing away key players like Sharp or Versteeg or failing to re-sign Niemi or Hjalmarsson will make it considerably more difficult to defend the title.” {THN.com}

Niemi is probably due for significant raise after his stellar performance in the postseason, and the same can be said for Patrick Sharp – he finished the playoffs fifth overall in scoring, notching eleven goals and eleven assists over twenty-two games played. Dustin Byfuglien was another critical asset for the Hawks during their run to the Cup, and he’s also due for another contract. It’s probably not reasonable to expect the Blackhawks to hang on to all three of these players, but I’d want to keep Niemi and Sharp above all others if it was my call. Good top-six forwards are hard to come by, and Antti Niemi has the potential to turn into a franchise goaltender for Chicago.

Like the Blackhawks, Philadelphia is facing a cap crunch of their own:

“Holmgren presently has more than $48 million committed to 16 players for 2010-11 and has several key players – including Braydon Coburn, Dan Carcillo, Darroll Powe, and Arron Asham – to re-sign.

As always with the Flyers, goaltending is a critical issue. Despite journeyman Michael Leighton’s strong playoff performance, he gave up some weak goals in the final, leading to suggestions he’s not ready to handle a full-time starter’s role.

If Holmgren opts for a replacement, he might not find much to his liking via free agency, where Marty Turco, Evgeni Nabokov, Chris Mason and Dan Ellis could be available.

A trade is a more viable route as the Flyers possess considerable depth at forward with which to use as trade bait. It is possible Jeff Carter’s name will pop up again in the rumor mill.

As always when it comes to the Flyers’ goaltenders, the salary cap will determine if they seek a better starter or bring back Leighton as their No. 1 under an affordable one- or two-year extension.” {THN.com}

Carter was the source of many complaints throughout the postseason – Flyers fans thought he simply dropped off the map, and failed to produce during the crucial moments in the Stanley Cup Final. Goaltender Michael Leighton played incredibly well, but it’s hard to imagine that he’ll be the starter in Philadelphia for three or four years. If he does resign in Philly, where does that leave Ray Emery? Will they choose to give the youngster a raise and throw him into a starting job?

Montreal Trades Halak to St.Louis

Absolutely crazy news coming out of Montreal today, as the Habs have dealt star goaltender Jaroslav Halak to the St.Louis Blues:

“St. Louis Blues President John Davidson announced Thursday the club has acquired goaltender Jaroslav Halak from the Montreal Canadiens in exchange for forwards Lars Eller and Ian Schultz.

“Jaroslav’s play in this year’s regular season and Stanley Cup Playoffs was remarkable,” said Davidson. “He has had very impressive numbers in the NHL and we are thrilled that he will be wearing the Bluenote for us.”

Halak, 25, was 26-13-5 in 2009-10 for Montreal and ranked 4th in the NHL in save percentage (.940), 9th in goals against average (2.40) and was tied for 5th with five shutouts. In his 26 wins this season he had a GAA of 1.68 and a save % of .948. He was 4-2-0 vs. the Western Conference with a GAA of 2.19 and a .928 save %. The 2009-10 “Molson Cup” winner as team MVP was 44-27-6 over the last two seasons in Montreal with a save percentage of .924 and GAA of 2.59.

In the 2010 Stanley Cup Playoffs, he took the Canadiens to the Conference Finals by winning two Game Sevens and eliminating Washington and Pittsburgh. He was the talk of the playoffs at one point when he won three straight games and eliminated the Capitals in Round One by stopping 131 of 134 shots, which included his stellar 53 of 54 shots saved in Game Five.

The 5’11″, 182 lb. Bratislava, Slovakia native was originally drafted by Montreal in the 9th round (271st overall) of the 2003 NHL Entry Draft.

Eller, 21, played in seven games for the Blues in 2009-10, scoring two goals and played 70 games for Peoria and recorded 57 points (18g, 39a). He was the 13th overall in pick in the 2007 NHL Entry Draft.

Schultz, 20, played the last four seasons for the Calgary Hitmen in the Western Hockey League. He recorded 55 points (24g, 31a) last season. He was the 87th overall pick (3rd round) by the Blues in the 2008 NHL Entry Draft.”

Your humble editor is a St.Louis native, and a lifelong Blues fan, and I’m absolutely stunned by this deal. Lars Eller had some playing time last year, and scored a goal and some change, but I can’t believe Montreal would part with him for a couple of prospects. As a Blues fan, I’m cautiously optimistic about this deal – how many times have we seen a goaltender get playoff success, only to completely fall off the map after getting a huge raise? J.S Giguere was straight-up replaced in Anaheim because of his dwindling numbers.

From the Canadians perspective, this whole thing feels a bit confusing. Inarguably, the Habs went as far as they did because of Halak. Why couldn’t they bring him back? Was it a cap situation for the Habs? Did Halak simply ask for too much? More details will iron out in the future, but I’m sure some Canadians fans have to be livid over this deal.

UPDATE: Pierre Gauthier speaks on the Halak deal:

“When we discuss players, we discuss what we think they’re going to do in the future. Every decision, especially in the offseason like this, is a big-picture decision. The decision is based on our projections. We are very comfortable with Carey Price. He’s a young man that has almost 150 games in the League even though he’s only 22 years old. He’s got a few rounds of playoffs, he’s won a Calder Cup at a very young age. He brings a lot to the table and is a young man who we think will be a good goalie in the League.”

“The interesting thing about that is that we’re looking into the future. And we thought that, at the time of the trade deadline and we still think, that we had two good young goaltenders and now we have one good young goaltender. We feel we’ve obtained some players that can help us. One of them is closer in Lars Eller. In the big picture of things, going forward, we feel very comfortable doing this today.” {Puck Daddy}

Kovalchuk Won’t Sign in Toronto – Colorado and L.A Still Interested

The Kovalchuk sweepstakes are in full swing yet again, as July 1st is just around the corner, and the coveted Russian forward will be fielding offer sheets from teams all over the NHL. After New Jersey imploded in the first round, it was safe to assume that Kovalchuk wouldn’t re-up with the Devils before at least getting a look at some of offers coming in. As usual, the speculation is off the charts – some were even claiming that Illya will forget the NHL entirely and head back to Russia to sign with the KHL.

In any case, let’s clear the air and strike the Maple Leafs from contention:

“NHL free agency opens exactly 15 days from today, and as you’ve no doubt heard already, Ilya Kovalchuk is, if not the prize, then certainly one of the top two along with Patrick Marleau.

Yesterday, ESPN’s Pierre LeBrun had a quote from Leafs GM Brian Burke basically squashing any speculation his team would be in the mix for Kovalchuk, saying simply: “We’re not going to be involved in that race.”

So there goes one top-six forward candidate.

What’s interesting about the Kovalchuk talk is that I’ve been told pretty definitively that the Leafs were among the teams he was interested in. While the player (who is under contract to the Devils until July 1) and his camp remain quiet on all this, the general feeling around the league is that Toronto was at least among the teams in the running.

Now, that might seem at odds with some of the things Kovalchuk’s looking for – with a winning team near the top of the list – but many still believe that Burke can, in adding pieces via free agency and trade this summer, turn things around rather quickly.” {Globe and Mail}

Definitely a wistfully hopeful viewpoint from Mirtle, but I doubt Burke would be willing to burden the Leafs organization with a back-loaded, Hossa-style contract. Later in the article, he writes about how he has it on good authority that Toronto was on Illya’s shortlist, and that he wouldn’t mind signing there, but with Burke already going on record saying that the Leafs won’t be in on Kovalchuk, the odds of him landing in Toronto are slim to none.

Two frontrunners have seemed to emerge – The Los Angeles Kings and the Colorado Avalanche. Both teams are young and resurgent, and are both holding their own in the highly competitive Western Conference.

“I view the Los Angeles Kings as a prime landing spot for him. They have the cap space to accommodate his salary, they’re a team on the rise, and there are people high up in the organization who view him as the missing piece in terms of star appeal.

A year ago, the rising Chicago Blackhawks added Marian Hossa to an already-stocked roster. This would be a similar move by a Kings team poised to take that next step toward Stanley Cup contention.

The thing is, I believe Kings GM Dean Lombardi also has an interest in Patrick Marleau should the veteran forward not re-sign in San Jose. (I think the Sharks want to keep Marleau if the money is right.)

One team you likely can rule out of the Kovalchuk sweepstakes is the deep-pocketed Toronto Maple Leafs.

“We’re not going to be involved in that race,” Leafs GM Brian Burke told ESPN.com on Monday when asked about Kovalchuk.

Toronto needs offense but will try to acquire a top-six forward via a trade of Tomas Kaberle. Burke reiterated Monday that he’s not desperate to move the star defenseman but will continue to listen to offers as the draft approaches. The number of teams inquiring about Kaberle has reached double digits, but there are no serious offers at this point. That will change once we reach the draft.” {ESPN}

Watching both of those teams compete in the post-season last year, I did get the sense that Colorado and LA were one or two skill players away from becoming serious powerhouse in the West, and offensive talent rarely gets any better than Kovalchuk. Once July 1st rolls around, it’ll interesting to see where Illya will end up after it’s all said and done – it’s still entirely possible that he re-signs with the Devils, but there are a handful of teams that would be a good fit, and could actually afford his massive contract.

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