Free Agent Signings

[fix]

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS


Sin,

One less free agent goalie that Tampa can pursue and increases our chances of unloading Belfour Leaf fans




Sure seems like a lot of money for a backup to Manny though..

[JD]

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

Wanna rethink that bet?

[al?]

^^^^^^^^^^^^



Maybe if Kipper can string together 2 solid years. He pulled a Giguere last year.
Back to Earth for you and your superhuman 'tender Flamefan.

I just hate Osgood. That's all. But my boy sez....and I quote "Ozzie has a lot of demons" so maybe I should cut him some slack.

I'll call him and ask him. Maybe Shoalzie can come up when the Wings come to town, and we'll all party with Ozzie and some of his old mates.

[Shoalzie]

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

Depending on which Ozzie we get, I'm kind of excited to see him back in Detroit. He was scapegoated after the Kings series and I thought he got a raw deal. I'm no fool though, I would've taken Hasek over Osgood if the opportunity was there. The Wings have only $2 million invested in their goaltending but I think they can get pretty good mileage out of the two of them. Both guys will be playing to get the #1 job and to get new contracts for next year...Legace will be a free agent after this year. I wonder how Babcock will handle this situation going into camp. Legace should be the starter but Osgood is the proven veteran...hard to believe he's got over 300 wins in the his NHL career.

The good old days...




Welcome home, Ozzie!

[Shoalzie]

Sure seems like a lot of money for a backup to Manny though..

Between Legace and Osgood, it's costing the Wings only $2 million. Can you name a better goalie tandem for that price? Both guys will be driven to try to win the #1 job and they will both be playing for new contracts after this year...it's a pretty good situation.

[Cross Traffic]

OSSSSSSSSSSSSSSGOOOOOOOOOOOODDDDDDDDDD

:wink:

Hard to believe that was over 4 years ago.

[Shoalzie]

OSSSSSSSSSSSSSSGOOOOOOOOOOOODDDDDDDDDD

:wink:

Hard to believe that was over 4 years ago.

No Yzerman
No Shanahan

Just sayin... :wink:

[fix]

Sure seems like a lot of money for a backup to Manny though..

Between Legace and Osgood, it's costing the Wings only $2 million. Can you name a better goalie tandem for that price? Both guys will be driven to try to win the #1 job and they will both be playing for new contracts after this year...it's a pretty good situation.

Oh hell no... my point was that Manny was good enough that you could have used a rookie to back him up and still been in as good a shape.

[Shoalzie]

Sure seems like a lot of money for a backup to Manny though..

Between Legace and Osgood, it's costing the Wings only $2 million. Can you name a better goalie tandem for that price? Both guys will be driven to try to win the #1 job and they will both be playing for new contracts after this year...it's a pretty good situation.

Oh hell no... my point was that Manny was good enough that you could have used a rookie to back him up and still been in as good a shape.

If Jim Howard was ready leave Maine, I would've agreed with you. Joey MacDonald is a decent goalie in the AHL but being able to pick up a goalie in his early 30s that has a Stanley Cup ring and over 300 wins for less than a million dollars...you've got to jump on it.

Next year when Howard leaves school...he'll probably be the backup and the Wings will either keep Osgood or Legace or sign a free agent to hold down the fort until Howard is ready to take over.

[fix]

Between Legace and Osgood, it's costing the Wings only $2 million. Can you name a better goalie tandem for that price? Both guys will be driven to try to win the #1 job and they will both be playing for new contracts after this year...it's a pretty good situation.

Oh hell no... my point was that Manny was good enough that you could have used a rookie to back him up and still been in as good a shape.

If Jim Howard was ready leave Maine, I would've agreed with you. Joey MacDonald is a decent goalie in the AHL but being able to pick up a goalie in his early 30s that has a Stanley Cup ring and over 300 wins for less than a million dollars...you've got to jump on it.

Next year when Howard leaves school...he'll probably be the backup and the Wings will either keep Osgood or Legace or sign a free agent to hold down the fort until Howard is ready to take over.

Can't argue with that.
Although, it seems to me that with this new salary cap the one area where teams will look to save money to better distribute amongst other areas will be the backup goalie position.

[Hapday]

Sure seems like a lot of money for a backup to Manny though..

Between Legace and Osgood, it's costing the Wings only $2 million. Can you name a better goalie tandem for that price? Both guys will be driven to try to win the #1 job and they will both be playing for new contracts after this year...it's a pretty good situation.

Oh hell no... my point was that Manny was good enough that you could have used a rookie to back him up and still been in as good a shape.

They could have signe Felix Potvin or Artus Irbe to a one-year deal for the league minimum, and then revisited their goaltending situation at the trade deadline.

[Shoalzie]

Oh hell no... my point was that Manny was good enough that you could have used a rookie to back him up and still been in as good a shape.

If Jim Howard was ready leave Maine, I would've agreed with you. Joey MacDonald is a decent goalie in the AHL but being able to pick up a goalie in his early 30s that has a Stanley Cup ring and over 300 wins for less than a million dollars...you've got to jump on it.

Next year when Howard leaves school...he'll probably be the backup and the Wings will either keep Osgood or Legace or sign a free agent to hold down the fort until Howard is ready to take over.

Can't argue with that.
Although, it seems to me that with this new salary cap the one area where teams will look to save money to better distribute amongst other areas will be the backup goalie position.

Legace has never played more the 40 games in a season so picking up a guy that can play 30-35 games and Legace can play 45-50...it works. Give or take depending on how the two of them play. Howard and MacDonald might only be good for 15 games at the most. Next year will be a major transition year for the Wings...Yzerman will likely retire and Lidstrom and Shanahan's contracts are also up. Since they've still got these veterans here, Holland wants to give the Wings the best chance to contend. Next year might be a step back but they'll begin to filter in some of their players of the future.

[godzilla2002]

We all know Roy won that fight! But Osgood did get a big applause from the home crowd for his "Say Uncle" errrr... tackle....errr take down...errr Mommy Mommy Mommy

[godzilla2002]

I'll give you this one Shoalzie

Damn I miss those days!!!

[Shoalzie]

Roy beat Ozzie but Vernon beat Roy. When they fought fair-and-square...Lemieux held his own but McCarty is the better fighter.

[Cross Traffic]

Well, well, well, look who signed in Toronto:

The Toronto Mapla Leafs announced Thursday that the club has signed unrestricted free agent forward Eric Lindros to a one year contract

Now if they can pick up Deadmarsh, they would have the "Concussion Line" to go with Lindros and Allison.

[Joe Bowen]

Well, well, well, look who signed in Toronto:

The Toronto Mapla Leafs announced Thursday that the club has signed unrestricted free agent forward Eric Lindros to a one year contract

Now if they can pick up Deadmarsh, they would have the "Concussion Line" to go with Lindros and Allison.

HOLY MACKINAW!!

[fix]

Well, well, well, look who signed in Toronto:

The Toronto Mapla Leafs announced Thursday that the club has signed unrestricted free agent forward Eric Lindros to a one year contract

Now if they can pick up Deadmarsh, they would have the "Concussion Line" to go with Lindros and Allison.

Don't knock it Cross Traffic, for the price they got Lindros at, it was a steal.

$1.5 million...

Big upside to it, not much downside to the signing even if he does end up hurt.

[Smoked Meat]

In related news, Lindros has received special NHL authorization to wear this speacial path on the back and front of his Leaf jersey.

[Hapday]

Well, well, well, look who signed in Toronto:

The Toronto Mapla Leafs announced Thursday that the club has signed unrestricted free agent forward Eric Lindros to a one year contract

Now if they can pick up Deadmarsh, they would have the "Concussion Line" to go with Lindros and Allison.

Don't knock it Cross Traffic, for the price they got Lindros at, it was a steal.

$1.5 million...

Big upside to it, not much downside to the signing even if he does end up hurt.

Considering the situation the Leafs found themselves in (the critcism lies with them for being in this situation in the first place) Allison and Lindros are great additions.

[Shoalzie]

If Lindros stays healthy, he's proven to put up nice numbers. The Leafs still have Sundin to lead the way so Lindros can be the second or third line center...he's being relied on to carry the team. They've taken some risks by picking up Allison and Lindros but if they can stay off the injured list, they'll produce...they've certainly done it in the past. Add that to the addition of O'Neill, this could be a very strong offensive club.


Possible signing to report, Calgary is closing to signing Roman Hamrlik according to local radio reports.

[Cross Traffic]

Kings sign Valeri Bure, not a bad pickup, hopefully playing close to his wife and family will motivate him.

Kings also sign Alexander Frolov to a 5 year contract, putting him at the new free agent age of 28 when his contract is up.

[JD]

Possible signing to report, Calgary is closing to signing Roman Hamrlik according to local radio reports.

Yeah, this one kind of came out of the blue.

Although the Flames do need a pp QB.... have needed one since we gave MacInnis to the Blues... I wouldn't have expected Sutter to sign a defenseman given that we've already got a pretty solid corps.

Expect to see a Flames trade in the next week or so, probably involving Toni Lydman.

Roman Hamrlik
Jordan Leopold
Robyn Regehr
Rhett Warrener
Andrew Ference
Toni Lydman
Steve Montador
Dion Phaneuf
^^^ = logjam

Someone's gotta go.

[Hapday]

When it comes to power-play QB's, Hamrlik has always been overrated. I don't think he would be any better (or worse) than what Calgary has right now.

[JD]

When it comes to power-play QB's, Hamrlik has always been overrated. I don't think he would be any better (or worse) than what Calgary has right now.

I disagree. I always found him to be a royal pain in the arse when he was an Oiler. I'm more than happy to see him come to play for the good guys. Good thing for the Flames is that they can pair him with someone like Warrener who never gets caught out of position, so Hamrlik can go "adventuring" without having to worry much about abandoning his post.

The way things stand now, Leopold and Regehr are the pp defensemen. Leopold is good with the puck and a good passer, but doesn't have a big shot. Regehr has a great shot, but has yet to figure out how to use it. His offensive mindset isn't that good. Hamrlik would be a good addition.

One thing worth mentioning, I believe power plays are going to be very important in the "new NHL". Not necessarily because of the increased number of them due to the "obstruction crackdown", but because teams are going to score a lot of goals on the pp with the bigger offensive zones. With the blue lines moved out and the goal lines moved back, there's going to be a LOT of room to manoevre the puck. Pointmen aren't going to be forced as much and will have space to make plays. It will be important for teams to have an effective pp. Good penalty killing won't hurt either, but teams are going to have to change their approaches to it... you won't be able to force the play as much.

[Joey Moss]

Hamerlik has big upside when paired with a responsible defensive partner. The Iles were a disaster in that department Hamerlik, Niinimaa, and Aucoin was alot of talent but no responsiblility.

I haven't watched him lately, but has he learned to keep his point shots low yet? He drove me crazy because he was always missing the net high which meant that there was no chance for a rebound or deflection.

I can't see why the flames want him though. I would have thought that the flames would have picked up a cheep older defensive player to teach the young guys, not a relatively expensive offensive d-man.
I have no ideas what his leadership qualities or work ethic are but I just don't think Sutter hockey when I hear hamerlik.

Edit PS- this one 10 page thread is kinda gay. I would have been nice if each of these rumors/signing would have had their own thread... at least it would give the appearnce of more activity. But I'm just a newbie so I'll watch and learn.

[Shoalzie]

LeClair to the Penguins...

http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/news_story.asp?id=133574


I don't think there's any doubt about which team has done the most to improve their situation from the end of the '03-04 season. They add Recchi before the lockout and draft Malkin with the #2 pick. Then they win the draft lottery and land Crosby. In free agency, they sign Palffy, LeClair and Gonchar and acquire Thibault to help mentor their goalie of the future, Fleury. Add to this, Mario gets plenty of rest during the lockout and he should be refueled and ready to go for a big year. Call me crazy, but I think if Mario can stay healthy, this is a playoff team.

[JD]

Call me crazy, but I think if Mario can stay healthy, this is a playoff team.

You're crazy: they have nobody to play defense!!

But I suppose if the league gets their firewagon hockey, the Pens could score enough goals to get themselves to the dance.

[Shoalzie]

Call me crazy, but I think if Mario can stay healthy, this is a playoff team.

You're crazy: they have nobody to play defense!!

But I suppose if the league gets their firewagon hockey, the Pens could score enough goals to get themselves to the dance.

They probably aren't done spending. I'd imagine they're in the market for another defenseman. If they don't make the playoffs this year, they'll certainly be in contention to get there. The outlook of this franchise has turned a complete 180 from where it was at 2 years ago.

[Shoalzie]

Mogilny goes back to the Devils...
http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/news_story.asp?id=133724

Carter signs with the Canucks...
http://tsn.ca/nhl/news_story.asp?ID=133726&hubName=nhl

Joseph close to signing a deal with the Coyotes...
http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/news_story.asp?id=133703

Lecavalier signs long-term deal with the defending champs...
http://tsn.ca/nhl/news_story.asp?ID=133678

[Hapday]

Mogilny got $3.5 million? The guy is going to be playing on only one leg, for Pete's sake.

[al?]

Cujo's a Coyote.

All the best to him. He never really got a fair shake in Detroit, a team notoriously tough on goaltenders.

Too bad he'll never win a Cup now.

[JD]

Lecavalier gets $6.8M/season over 4 years. Talk about overpaying.

He's a decent player, and he was good in the playoffs, but if he's worth $200k less than Jarome Iginla, I'll eat my hat.

By overpaying for Lecavalier, the Lightning pretty much took themselves out of the running to get Khabibulin back, and with the cap in place, I doubt they'll be able to give Martin St. Louis the money he's looking for. If a 50-60 point/year player is worth $6.8M, what is the reigning league MVP worth??

Stupid move Feaster. Not that I'll shed tears to see that team dismantled.

[MuchoBulls]

By overpaying for Lecavalier, the Lightning pretty much took themselves out of the running to get Khabibulin back, and with the cap in place, I doubt they'll be able to give Martin St. Louis the money he's looking for. If a 50-60 point/year player is worth $6.8M, what is the reigning league MVP worth??

How are they going to get Khabibulin back? He signed long term in Chicago and once he was gone the Lightning had more to spend, hence Vinny's deal and the upcoming St. Louis deal. Marty will probably make about the same money.

[al?]

Lecavalier gets $6.8M/season over 4 years. Talk about overpaying.

He's a decent player, and he was good in the playoffs, but if he's worth $200k less than Jarome Iginla, I'll eat my hat.

You want salt with that?

Lecavalier OWNED you in the final, especially on the game winning goal. He's a 30-30 player who is about to break out.

He is the new school Steve Yzerman.

[JD]

How are they going to get Khabibulin back? He signed long term in Chicago and once he was gone the Lightning had more to spend, hence Vinny's deal and the upcoming St. Louis deal. Marty will probably make about the same money.

I never said get him back, I'm saying they could have chose to throw some money at Khabibulin and play hardball with Vinny. If I'm building a team, I'll take the goalie that just won me a Cup over the streaky centreman. And that's not to make Lecavalier sound bad, because he's good, but not as good as his contract is... he's now one of the highest paid players in the LEAGUE... he was maybe the fourth best player on his TEAM last playoff.

And, yeah, Marty will probably make the same money, which is why the Lightning probably won't be able to afford him now. St. Louis IS good enough to be paid as one of the highest paid in the league.

http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/feature.asp?fid=6926

According to the payroll tracker, they've got 5 more players to sign, one being St. Louis and another probably being Andreychuk, and only about $8M to do so. Things will be tight.

Lecavalier OWNED you in the final, especially on the game winning goal. He's a 30-30 player who is about to break out.

Dude had three assists in that series. If that's "owning" us, then Richards must be our freaking deity or something. Lecavalier made a big play in Game 7, I'll give him that, but he really wasn't that big of a factor the rest of the series. Khabibulin and Richards were the guys that that got them their Cup.

[Cross Traffic]

Hope the Yucks enjoy Carter...Mr. Invisible

[Shoalzie]

Stumpel signs with Florida...
http://tsn.ca/nhl/news_story.asp?ID=133795

Minor signings for the Wings, they re-sign Williams and Bootland and add Delmore for the league minimum...
http://tsn.ca/nhl/news_story.asp?ID=133679

[fix]

Sure seems like an awful lot of money being dolled out to players on long term contracts by teams that have no idea where the cap limit will be levelled at in one, two or three seasons from now.

Further proof that apparently money must grow on trees... or in hidden books.

[Cross Traffic]

When I think of a Keenan player.....Stumpel does not come to mind.....lol