Oiled Duck
Defenceman Chris Pronger got his wish, and was traded from Edmonton to the Anaheim Ducks, in exchange for Joffrey Lupul, prospect Ladislav Smid, and a 1st round pick in 2007. Edmonton gets a forward who is a prototypical Oilers forward, Lupul, and hopefully a can't miss prospect in Smid. Anaheim gets arguably one of the best defenseman in the league and can now boast one of the best pairings with Pronger now complementing Scott Neidermayer. As I said yesterday, Pronger's only achilles' heel is his playoff beard.
Guerin lands in St. Louis
Did I call this one or what? Bill Guerin signed a one year deal with St. Louis less than a week after he was bought out by the Dallas Stars. He joins his Team USA linemates Keith Tkachuk, and Doug Weight.
Brendan Witt signs with Islanders
The Islanders have signed defenceman Brendan Witt to a 3 year deal, and have obtained one of the largest defenceman on the free agent market (after Chara). Great pickup for the Isles, and I really like what Neil Smith is doing so far with this team. No big splashes but solid character guys that will help younger players grow.
Teppo Numminen re-ups with Sabres
If it isn't broken.....Numminen re-signed with the Buffalo Sabres for one more year. Numminen was a big part of their Stanley Cup playoffs run, and when he was injured his loss was one that was glaring.
Thrashers sign Steve Rucchin
Steve Rucchin has just signed a 3 year deal that will grow from $1.85 million the first year to $4.25 million in the final year of the contract.
Rangers continue to mine Stanley Cup Champs
A few days after signing teammate Matt Cullen, the Rangers have signed defenceman Aaron Ward to a 2 year deal worth $5.5 million. Another pivotal player in the Carolina's Stanley Cup run, Ward will definitely be a welcome addition to the Ranger's blueline.
Shark Attack
The San Jose Sharks have added so much needed grit in Mike Grier and Curtis Brown. Mike Grier has signed a three year deal worth $1.775 a season. Nice pickup, Grier is one of those guys you would love to have on your team, and I really hoped the Rangers would grab him. Grier is the second player to leave the Sabres via free agency following Jay Mckee leaving for St. Louis.
Anyone else like what John Davidson is doing to revamp the St. Louis Blues?
Happy 4th of July!
Your friend on ice,
Captain Bosh
Comments
Do I like what Davidson is doing you ask? Well, I look at the Blues and I see a team who just got a sensational player with the #1 pick who will likely be on the team this year, and then they've added to that with a couple of big name but slightly older players who have produced in the past and could help lead them back into the playoffs. Sounds great doesn't it? Sounds familiar too. Wait, what team followed this exact same plan in the 2005 offseason? Gosh, the name is on the tip of my tongue...
Oh yeah. It's the PITTSBURGH MOTHERFRIGGIN' PENGUNS.
I don't think this plan will collapse as hard as it did in Pittsburgh, but I don't think it will get the Blues back in the playoffs either. They should be improved, but the West is too tough for the Blues to see dramatic gains. If Tkachuk, Weight, and Guerin end up on the same line and it works I will paint my testicles with New Jersey Devil emblems.
And that's a promise.
Posted by: Playoff Moustache | July 4, 2006 02:56 PM
Erik Johnson probably won't be with the Blues this year. He'll play in NCAA.
I like the Blues pick ups, but hate the comparisons to the Penguins. The Pens were building around Crosby, the Blues are building around getting back to glory. They had to work hard to get to the 28M floor and still have plenty of room left to add more.
I think with the ownership issues resolved in St. Louis, they are actually focusing on hockey rather than trying to lessen the losses at the gate which they experienced last year.
Posted by: Wazz | July 4, 2006 04:40 PM
I don't really think the Pens were building around Crosby when they added Palffy, LeClair, Thibault, Recchi, and Gonchar. They certainly didn't expect Sid to become the single best player on their team last year and it's a sign of how good he is and how badly things went that it ended up that way. They were trying to be competitive, had money to spend, and wanted to fill seats. They accomplished the last two things, but came way short on the first one and trust me - I'm a fan and watched damn near every game last year; they were NOT very competitive until late in the season. At all...
Having vets like Recchi, Palffy, LeClair could have been great come playoff time but the Pens miscalculated what it would take to get to the playoffs with the new rules in place. I just feel like I'm seeing the same thing in St. Louis. Who wouldn't want a Tkachuk, Weight, or Guerin in the locker room during the playoffs? Problem is, they have to get there first - and are these the guys who are going to do it in such a tough conference??? You can't name 8 teams in the West better than the Blues even with these new additions??
Posted by: Playoff Moustache | July 5, 2006 10:46 AM