2007/2008 Hockey Thread

[Ruki]

Yay to Vinny for getting the hatrick and two assists last night! Helped me in the hockey pool. I'm like, 5 points back now.

[Toe]

Fucking balls, letting a team that can't score get five goals is just awful.

Let's just fire JFJ and get someone better in here, and let them use the rest of the year to change the team to their liking.

[Toe]

Ilya Bryzgalov has been placed on waivers by the Ducks. Any team with goaltending issues should try to pick him up, as his cap hit for this year is $1.4 million or close to that, and then he is a free agent.

The Leafs are still struggling in between the pipes, even with Toskala and Raycroft. Getting Bryzgalov may not be a bad idea. I could see Phoenix, Pittsburgh and Tampa Bay trying to get him off of waivers.

If he passes through, then you know that there was some sort of back-room deal between Brian Burke and the rest of the NHL GMs.

[NobBe Nobbs]

If the Oilers don't make a claim, I will be horribly disappointed in Kevin Lowe for that exact reason.

[Gabriel]

So, with the intriguing possibilities of where Bryzgalov could end up, I've made a list of the 5 most likely (in my mind) candidates.

1. Phoenix

-You can argue that Phoenix has enough in the goaltending department, but what they don't have is a legitimate starting goaltender. Ilya Bryzgalov has shown that he can be that, and futhermore, with Phoenix in rebuilding mode, he would be a tremendous asset. His salary this season is extremely low in comparison to similarly skilled netminders, and they could potentially lock him up for a few seasons for just a little bit more than that. In a time when key players are making between $4 and $7 million a season, they could probably get him to sign for a couple seasons at $2.5, and young teams need good goaltending.

2. Edmonton

-Just to stick it to Burke a little bit... Roloson's been okay, but not great this year. Garon, however, has been absolutely outstanding. Looking at the situation in Edmonton shows that they don't need another goalie, but Kevin Lowe seems to think that he needs to keep adding to his team. Claiming Bryzgalov could free up Roloson or Garon to be used as trade bait to bring in a veteran defenseman or a top two line forward.

3. Atlanta

-Lehtonen failed miserably to start the season, and from what I've seen, Hedberg's been okay, but Bryzgalov might be the answer to their goaltending woes. It's early in the season, but if the goaltending doesn't get better, their last meaningful game could be in January.

4. Pittsburgh

-Fleury hasn't been horrible, but his development hasn't been amazing. That's not to say that it's his fault. Far from it. He was rushed into a starting role on a team that was shitty up and down when he started. The Penguins management might be starting to panic, and if they are, Bryzgalov might be claimed off waivers. I don't think they should be in panic mode though. Fleury's been good enough, and Dany Sabourin has really stepped up his game this year. They should be just fine, if Sidney Crosby can control his emotions and the whole team plays well.

5. Toronto

-They've got Toskala and Raycroft right now, and I think that's fine, but John Ferguson, Jr is an idiot and I wouldn't put it past him to pick up a third potential number one goalie. We've seen teams split the season between two goaltenders... but could we see a three man rotation? I hope not.

[Guest Grapehead]

I was having an interesting discussion with a friend last night in regards to chicago. I've got Chicago as my backup team this year(obviously behind Ottawa) as well as my usual Washington fondness... anyways not the point. I think some Chicago should try to do, if they have a good shot at the playoffs(like it looks like they do) or if they need just a little push, the best pickup I could think of is Brad Richards. Here's the thing, Richards has a huge contract, and Tampa definitely made a mistake paying their second line center more than their first line center. Richards has proven in the past he can contribute on a top scoring line, especially when given the proper linemates, which I think Chicago definitely has for him. Tampa could clear up some major cap room to start adjusting the team a little so they can return to cup contention. The only thing I can't think of is a proper return from Chicago that wouldn't drain them of the talent that I think Richards would mesh with, and not losing too much of their prospects/draft picks. What would you guys think of Chicago making such a move.

[Gabriel]

Well, the Coyotes picked up Bryzgalov from waivers. Good for both sides, I think. He's starting this afternoon against Los Angeles, I believe. If he has a good season, I expect him to sign a long term contract with the Coyotes club.

[NobBe Nobbs]

It is. I'm still shocked they let Aebischer go to the minors, personally. By the way:

FIRST LINE

Daniel Winnik, Martin Hanzal, Craig Weller.

[SeanDMan]

That's not their first line, since for one thing Weller is a defensemen.

[NobBe Nobbs]

In that case, CBS is a bad source for hockey news.

[SeanDMan]

Since Phoenix sucks and no one follows them or cares about them, it's hard to find updated information, but I would guess their first line would be Shane Doan, Radim Vrbata, and Steven Rineprick.

[NobBe Nobbs]

...so that's just a bad line altogether. Cluck Phoenix.

[Gabriel]

...so that's just a bad line altogether. Cluck Phoenix.

[Clawson]

That is exactly how I imagined this Leaf team playing this year. Fucking beauty of a performance tonight from all the boys.

[Gabriel]

That is exactly how I imagined this Leaf team playing this year. Fucking beauty of a performance tonight from all the boys.

[NobBe Nobbs]

Yes. Gerber should have tried to make the save anyway. If Antropov got in his way and he didn't make, then he's got a case for interference, but he didn't. Tough shit Gerber

[SeanDMan]

...I've been busy, and haven't watched hockey night in a while, so I'm just stopping in to say... "How I Padded My Stats On Kelly Hrudey" is the best thing on television today. Awesome, pure awesome.

[Toe]

What the fuck?

Toronto needs to play defensively like that all year. Seriously, they limited the high flying Senators to only 22 shots.

Also, the Coyotes getting Bryzgalov is only good if they can get him signed. They are an awful team right now, and will only really improve after this season. It doesn't matter who is in net, although it can't hurt to have a good netminder, because they are missing every piece of the puzzle with, in my opinion, only Shane Doan being a top line player anywhere else right now. Jovanovski has just been awful, and while some of their younger guys like Michelak have impressed, the Coyotes just don't have a team this year that can compete.

[Plubby]

Bryz-dawg gets a shutout on Yote debut. If only all goaltenders cost this much, eh, Toronto?

[The Sultan of Swank]

I'm surprised that Toronto won last night. I'm not sure which was the lesser of two evils in that Game. Toronto for obvious reasons I wouldn't want to win, but since we have 2 game at hand and 4? points up on them I sort of wanted Ottawa to slow down, give the other teams a chance to even pretend they can contend with the Sens.

That said, what the hell happened to Montreal last night? 52? They took 52 fucking shots on net. The entire game was just trading end to end rushes. Montreal had 7 different goal scorers, they were throwing around the body. Nobody was taking any shit in the third period, I mean Kostitsyn who had a crazy game and showed off all sorts of skill wouldn't back down from Alberts. Latendresse mixed it up with Chara after Chara threw an elbow at Kovalev... then again, Begin and Chara were just hardcore slashing each other infront of the Montreal net for a good 20 seconds after one play ended with Begin not backing down from someone several times larger than him. Kostopolous threw down in 2 fights. It was a pretty complete effort.