Pronger Out / Philly's Options

 Yesterday night, the Philadelphia Flyers dropped a bombshell on the hockey world.  At the recommendation of specialists in Pittsburgh, new captain and sure-fire future Hall of Famer, Chris Pronger, has been shut down for the remainder of the 2011-12 season and playoffs due to post concussion syndrome.  While losing a player of Pronger's caliber for the rest of the year is a huge blow to the Flyers, it does now open up $4.9 million in cap space on their roster and leaves them with many options to fill the void left by Pronger.
 The Flyers, already with an intimidating top four on the blue line without Pronger that consists of Kimmo Timonen, Andrej Meszaros, Matt Carle, and Braydon Coburn, will look to use the new cash opening to acquire a UFA-to-be at the trade deadline in February or sooner.  Players that immediately come to mind are Nashville's star Ryan Suter and Carolina's Tim Gleason.  As a physical presence and solid puck-moving D-man, Suter would be a fantastic addition to any roster, but Nashville seems hell bent on re-signing him.  So if that trade were to happen at all, it would be right at the deadline, not any time soon.  Gleason, on the other hand, is a member of a struggling Hurricanes club that has been surrounded by trade rumors galore over the past few weeks.  Now with Pronger out, Philadelphia could easily decide to make a move with Carolina, it's just a matter if Flyers' GM Paul Holmgren feels Gleason, or either of the other 'Canes defensemen in the last year of their contracts, Jaroslav Spacek and Bryan Allen, are what the Flyers need.

Ryan Suter would be the grand
prize for Philly, but the Preds may
not give up on re-signing him.

 Other notable defensemen set to become unrestricted free agents are Toronto's John-Michael Liles, Anaheim's Francois Bauchemin, Washington's Dennis Wideman, and Tampa Bay's Pavel Kubina.  Liles is certainly the most intriguing name on the list, but do not expect him to be moved, considering the price Toronto paid to acquire him in the offseason and especially the Leafs' improvement so far this season.  Bauchemin would be a nice fit with Philly, but it would be a matter if Anaheim is selling.  Everyone in the Ducks organization remembers Bauchemin's contributions to their Stanley Cup Championship in 2007, and they may not be willing to trade any more blue liners after already trading Kurtis Foster earlier this week.  If Washington's recent struggles continue, it will probably prompt some roster moves, and Wideman may find himself on the trade block.  Kubina is well out of his prime, but could still serve as a slightly salivating acquisition for a power play unit.

 All of this is speculation, of course, but the Flyers would be foolish not to utilize the $4,921,000 in cap space now available as the unfortunate result of their captain's condition.

Chemistry Schemistry

 "Chemistry" has long been recognized in the hockey community as one of the key ingredients to a team's success.  How players positively interact with each other among different lines or defensive pairings, on power plays, and even in the locker room all play into the mystical force that is "chemistry".  Along with the quest GMs and coaches embark on to find "chemistry", has come the age old task of being sure to not mess with it.  Fans are always afraid of roster moves altering their favorite team's chemistry, and even things as simple as moving one winger from the 4th to 3rd line can cause a storm of scrutiny from the always knowledgeable fanbase.
 Chemistry is very important to a team's success, but two teams in the NHL are proving this season that the notion of screwing up chemistry, or even that chemistry takes time to develop, may be overrated.  The Philadelphia Flyers and Florida Panthers had two of the greatest offseason roster overhauls in league history, yet they're both currently leading their respective divisions and the top two seeds in the Eastern Conference.

David Perron Rumors Swirling

 Rumors have started in the hockey universe, and Bob McKenzie has reported on Twitter, that St. Louis Blues long-injured forward David Perron will return to action tomorrow night.  Perron hasn't played a game since recieving a concussion on November 4th, 2010, after taking a nasty blind-side hit to the head delivered by Joe Thornton.  Perron's long-term ailment was long-overshadowed by Sidney Crosby's concussion, but finally Perron's injury can have its moment in the limelight (if that's a good thing...)
 Perron is a tremendous talent, and adds even more to a Blues roster that has been playing spectacular hockey recently.  St. Louis has gone 8-1-2 since hiring Ken Hitchcock as head coach, and will only get better with Perron.  He is a perfect Hitchcockian player, who not only has tons of offensive skill, but is hard-working in all three zones and has a good amount of hockey sense to serve him well under Hitchcock hockey.
 St. Louis plays tonight in Colorado, but will return home tomorrow to face off against the Chicago Blackhawks.  If the rumors are true, we'll finally see David Perron on the ice in an NHL game again at 8pm ET.  Congratulation to David Perron, hope your health remains in check and you can start this season right where you were last year.

Follow David Perron on Twitter: @DP_57

That Didn't Take Long

 Bruce Boudreau, only a few days after being fired by the Washington Capitals, already has a new gig.  he Anaheim Ducks put out a team release around 1am today, stating that the club had come to the decision to fire their head coach who served them behind the bench since 2005, Randy Carlyle, and immediately replace him with Boudreau.  Carlyle is the third NHL coach to be fired so far this week, adding him to the group including Paul Maurice, and his predecessor, Bruce Boudreau.
 The Ducks have limped along so far this season, "earning" a 7-13-4 record so far.  Their year so far has been highlighted by the +/- struggles of their top line, Jonas Hiller's inability to achieve top form since returning from the vertigo condition that plagued him last season, and, on a more positive note, the surprisingly strong and effective play of the Ducks' young role player Devante Smith-Pelly.  Carlyle has been on the hot seat for a majority of the year as Anaheim has inexplicably struggled with a roster chock full of talent.  Management had already made their decision to let Carlyle go before the Ducks' 4-1 victory over the Montréal Canadiens tonight, as they informed him that his job as bench boss was over approximately 40 minutes after the game ended.
 Not only does Boudreau bring a replacement for a big name coach with another big name coach, but one would expect that he also brings with him the end to the Bobby Ryan trade rumors that have run rampant over the past two days.  Nothings official on that front, of course, but Anaheim should wait and see if a new man calling the shots behind the bench will provide the change of scenery necessary to get things back to where they should be before moving one of their star players in an attempt to find that same boost.

Coaching Carousel

 Two big name head coaches were relieved of their duties today.  The Washington Capitals fired four-year bench boss Bruce Boudreau, and the Carolina Hurricanes let go of their coach for the past three seasons, Paul Maurice.  Both teams have been underachieving throughout November, and both clubs' administrations respectively felt it was time for a change.

Forget Crosby, forget Ovechkin, Boudreau was the
 true break-out star of HBO's 24/7 series!!!

 The Capitals, after getting off to a league leading 10-2-0 start through the first 12 games of the 2011-12 season, have stumbled tremendously during the course of the past month.  Washington has gone 3-7-1 in the 11 games since their start, and have also had to deal with a struggling captain in Alexander Ovechkin, an overpaid misfit growing more distant from "team" mentality in Alexander Semin, a goalie who seems to believe nonchalantly shuffling from post-to-post is an effective goaltending strategy in Tomas Vokoun, as well as an entire roster of players that just have been plagued by fundamental errors recently.  Last year, the Capitals went through a long stretch of futility chronicled by HBO's 24/7 series, but Boudreau and his team were able to collect the pieces of their season and put it back together to earn the best record in the Eastern Conference.  Caps' GM George McPhee clearly did not think Boudreau could do so again this year, so he's out, and Capitals legend and fan-favorite Dale Hunter is in.
 McPhee sent Boudreau a text message, that he received at 6:30 am, informing him that he had lost his job as "as result of the performance over the past 10 games."  Regarding rumors that the move was prompted by the poor play of the team's superstar, Alex Ovechkin, or a growing rift between him and his coach, McPhee was quoted as saying, "I don't think this has anything to do with Ovechkin. I think it's got everything to do with this team not playing well."  He also noted that Ovi will remain the team's captain.
 After practice today, Ovechkin was predictably interviewed and was asked for his thoughts on the subject, to which he responded, "Everybody was in shock."  Mike Knuble was also asked several questions, and had glowing things to say of his now former coach, but is also ready to move on with Dale Hunter at the helm.


This is actually the 2nd time Maurice has
been fired by Carolina.  He served as
head coach for the franchise from
1996-2004 and, most recently, 2008-11.

  Coming into this season, the Hurricanes, with offseason additions of Tomas Kaberle, Anthony Stewart, Alexei Ponikarovsky, and Tim Brent, were expected to not only make the playoffs, but possibly make a deep push towards the Stanley Cup.  These expectations would prove to be Paul Maurice's downfall.  An inconsistent club, and underperforming captain and superstar in Eric Staal, and pitiful 3rd period performances during the year have made Caniacs feeling like an 8th seed in the playoffs would be a blessing at this point.  The 'Canes sit last in the Southeast Division and searching for answers as to why they cannot string together more wins than they already have.  Whether it is the correct answer or not is yet to be seen, but the first answer we've been presented with is the firing of Maurice, and hiring of the AHL's Milwaukee Admirals' coach, Kirk Muller.
 Muller, who was only in his first year of AHL coaching, had gone 10-6-0-1 with Milwaukee before being scooped up
                                                           by Carolina's staff.

 With these two moves being made today, many are wondering how long it is going to take now for similar actions to be taken in other cities, the most notable being Anaheim.  The Ducks, who have a roster loaded with talent that includes the league's reigning MVP, Corey Perry, have been terrible so far this season.  They're dead last in the Pacific Division, have a 6-13-4 record, goalie Jonas Hiller has not been able to regain his All-Star form since his episodes with vertigo that ended his season last year, Jason Blake had his forearm lacerated in a game back in October and hasn't played since, basically nothing is going right for Anaheim, and head coach Randy Carlyle doesn't have much longer to turn things around.  It is unsure whether or not Anaheim will choose to make a trade or fire their skipper to shake things up in an attempt to move their season in a more positive direction, but Carlyle should approach every day in the near future like his Ducks career is in jeopardy, not one of his player's.  I give Carlyle no later than December 14th to turn things around in Anaheim before he is no longer behind the bench.

Exciting Night In Hockey

 The word is out, and it's no secret that Sidney Crosby, arguably the greatest player in the game today, will be reinstituted into the Penguins' line-up tonight against the New York Islanders after a 10 month absence from the game recovering from a nasty concussion.  The media has been abuzz with Crosby-related stories and rumors even during the summer when his return was far from near, so they did not disappoint anyone by immediately jumping on the story after the team announced his return yesterday.  Number 87's story has captivated the NHL's headlines for the day, rightfully so, but this evening contains many other storylines worth mentioning that make tonight the most interesting night of regular season hockey in November the NHL has ever seen.

 Not only will Sidney Crosby be back in a Penguins uniform tonight, but the club will also be gaining the services of golden, shot-blocking, defensive defenseman Zbynek Michalek.  The Penguins have been plagued by injuries throughout 2011, but with the additions of Crosby and Michalek, who missed 10 games with a broken finger, back into their roster, Pittsburgh will have their first completely healthy roster since January 5, 2011.  You may recognize that date as the same day Crosby suffered the concussion that caused all of this madness to begin with.

Montréal leads this series all-time,
345-259-103-6 in 713 games.

 Elsewhere outside of Pittsburgh, one of the oldest and most intense rivalries in the game hook-up tonight as the defending Stanley Cup Champion Boston Bruins take on the Montréal Canadiens in the Bell Centre.  Both teams surprisingly struggled early in the year, but have turned their fortunes around as of late.  The Bruins are the hottest team in hockey, currently on an eight-game winning streak and undefeated in the month of November.  During this streak, Boston has put up a staggering 42 goals for in eight games.  Montréal began the year with a very disappointing start, but have gone 6-3-1 in their last 10 games.  The Canadiens still sit at the bottom of the Northeast Division as a result of their lackluster start, but look to continue turning their season around at home tonight as they meet up with their bitter rivals.

 Dallas Stars' defenseman Sheldon Souray will have the opportunity to sweeten some of his sour grapes tonight in Big D, as he takes on his estranged, former employer.  The Edmonton Oilers gave Souray a much inflated contract when they signed him in the summer of 2007, and Souray never really lived up to it.  After only playing 26 games in 2007-08 due to injury and 37 games in 2009-10 between injury and the Oilers scratching him on various night, Edmonton buried him and his contract in the minors for the entire 2010-11 season.  Much to Souray and the Oilers' relief, his contract ran out over the summer.  Still believing he could still be effective in the NHL, Souray signed a one-year, $1,650,000 contract with the Dallas Stars, and he has exceeded expectations.  Souray is 15th in the league among defensemen in points, and tied for 3rd among defesemen in goals.  Souray will duke it out with his former team as the Stars (who led the NHL in points a little over a week ago) look to snap a five-game losing streak.

 When Peter DeBoer was relieved of his duties as head coach of the Florida Panthers late last season, the was more speculation over whether or not Theo Fleury would attempt a second comeback with the Phoenix Coyotes than where DeBoer would be hired next, (in case you couldn't detect the sarcasm, Theo Fleury was never going to attempt a second comeback.)  But low and behold, Pete DeBoer was hired as the head coach of the New Jersey Devils, a team with a pedigree of winning.  Despite New Jersey's struggles last season and DeBoer's career sub-.500 record as an NHL coach, analysts praised the decision calling it, "the perfect fit for what [The Devils] need right now," even though many of those same analysts also admitted they didn't see it coming.  The Devils have gotten off to a decent start this season, posting a 10-7-1 record and going 6-4-0 in their last 10 games, but Florida has been off to an unexpected start with 23 points, a total good enough to have them currently in first place of the Southwest Division.  Tonight, DeBoer will return back to the sunshine state to duke it out with the team that gave him his chance as a head coach in the NHL, but never delivered them a playoff berth.

Other note-worthy games to be played this evening:

• The Washington Capitals are in desperate need of a win, going 3-6-1 in their last 10.  They hope to end their recent skid at home against the Phoenix Coyotes, a team who is 6-2-1 on the road so far this season.  The Caps' sniper and notorious lack-of-work horse, Alexander Semin, is a healthy scratch for tonight's game.
• The Carolina Hurricanes are fresh off of a big win against Toronto yesterday, but now have to travel to the conference-leading Philadelphia Flyers' barn for a game tonight.  Carolina has been off to a surprisingly slow start, and have lost many games where they have arguably outplayed their opponent.  Can the Hurricanes take the momentum they earned yesterday to continue to turn their season around early, or will the Broadstreet Bullies set them back a step on the road to recovery?
• The Columbus Blue Jackets, the league's lowliest team at this point with only 10 points, just won their fourth game of the season in their most recent contest, a game in which Jeff Carter finally scored his first goal as a Jacket.  Tonight they host the Calgary Flames at Nationwide Arena.  This may not be a high marquee game that you'd flip to on the remote, but it is definitely a game you will want to keep track of the score at the bottom of your TV screen or on your laptop to see if Columbus can string together two wins in a row... or at least an OT loss.  They need all the points they can get.

The End Is Near

Mark Letestu has been falling
out of favor under coach
Dan Bylsma for months, now

 The Pittsburgh Penguins have traded young centerman Mark Letestu to the Columbus Blue Jackets for a 4^th round draft pick.  Letestu, a player who has been plummeting out of favor in the ‘Burgh since last spring, was given a 2-year, $1,250,000 contract extension by Penguins’ GM Ray Shero back in January.  In addition to the Pens shipping out Letestu, the team also distributed a press release earlier today stating that Dustin Jeffrey and enforcer Steve MacIntyre had been sent to the Penguins’ AHL farm team in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton on a “conditioning” stint.  No players were recalled from Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.

 So the question must be asked, what’s the cause for a successful team’s sudden creation of roster openings in Pittsburgh?  Allow me to jump to the fairly obvious conclusion.  Sidney Crosby is (almost) ready to play hockey again.

 Crosby, who has not played a game since January 5^th, 2011, sent the hockey world into a frenzy when he didn’t rule out this Friday’s game against Dallas as his possible return date.  After all, 11/11 was the day many people predicted he would see NHL ice again, but to the same token, we cannot take his quote regarding the specific game in which he’d play again, “Anyone’s guess is as good as mine,” as insincere.

 Tyler Kennedy, who has been suffering from concussion symptoms since mid-October, started skating again last week.  So these roster moves could foreshadow his return just as much as they may hint at Crosby’s.  The one word that best describes #87’s concussion is “unpredictable”.  These moves do not point to the immediate reemergence of Sidney Crosby into Pittsburgh’s daily line-up.  No one should get discouraged all of a sudden if 11/11 rolls around and Sid isn’t on the ice in a game.  No one should get discouraged if 11/15 is Crosby-less, either.  These moves only point to three things that we can say for certain: Letestu had underperformed to the point where the Penguins had to deal him, Pittsburgh’s injured players in general have been improving, and even if 11/11, 11/12, 11/15, or whenever comes and doesn’t have Sidney Crosby with a game played, rest assured we will see him before 12/1.

 And you can run and tell that, homeboy.

The Pens' sudden roster moves point to Sidney Crosby, Tyler Kennedy, and most of their injured players' improving health.

Celebration in Smashville (Part I)

 Superstar goalie Pekka Rinne has signed a 7-year contract extension with the Nashville Predators.
 Rinne, one of the elite goaltanders in the National Hockey League, was set to become an unrestricted free agent on July 1st after this season.  He would have certainly seen top-dollar offers from teams interested in his services, but instead Peks decided to make a long-term commitment to the Nashville organization.  Not only should the Predators be excited now that they can expect to see this spectacular netminder in a golden Nashville uniform for years to come, but they inked him at a bargain price, too.  There is still no official word on the monetary details of the 7-year deal, but word on the street is it will equal somewhere around $49 million.

 Predators' mastermind GM David Poile has very little time to celebrate this accomplishment, however.  Rinne, along with star defensemen Ryan Suter and Shea Weber were going to become UFAs on July 1st, but just because we can scratch Rinne off of that list doesn't mean Poile's job is even close to being done.  Suter and Weber have been key to the Preds' success over the past few seasons, and both players continue to imprive year after year.

Photo by John Russel / Getty Images

 It has been reported that Poile and his staff will resume negotiations with Suter's party on November 14th.  No one expects those negotiations to move along as quickly as Rinne's, but hopefully they go well.  If Ryan Suter re-ups with the Peks and the Preds, rhen you can expect a swift Part II be made to the "Celebration in Smashville" post.  Heck, I already plan on it.  As you can see, this post is titled Part I, because I expect more celebrations to come out of Poile's office.
 Everyone loves the feel-good story.  What's more feel good than the small market team locking up their stars long term?  If the "Celebration in Smashville" posts can become a trilogy, meaning the Predators were able to resign Rinne, Suter, and Shea Weber, it would certainly be one of the greatest stories in NHL free agency history as well as one of the most well-crafted GM jobs anyone has ever seen, too.  But until then, Predator fans can get excited about the fact that they have Pekka Rinne to look forward to in net for a long, long time.

Capital Trouble in the Cage Again?

 When the Capitals acquired goaltender Tomas Vokoun in the offseason via unrestricted free agency, the Caps instantly became my favorites to walk away with the 1^st overall seed in the East and finally make a significant playoff push.  Not to mention, after seeing the absurdly discounted price at which Washington was able to sign him for, it looked like both parties (especially Vokoun) were dedicated to one thing: winning.  It seemed as if the Ovechkin-era Capitals’ goaltending woes were finally in the past… or so I thought.

 Washington may be 8-2-0 and be boasting the highest winning percentage in the league coming into November, but some red flags have already gone up in our nation’s capital, particularly between the pipes.  Can somebody please tell me what in the world Tomas Vokoun is trying to do here???

10/13/11 James Neal Goal

10/13/11 James Neal 2nd Goal

11/1/11 Teemu Selanne Goal 

 Hey, Gilles Meloche called.  He wants his goaltending style back.

 Actually, at least Gilles looked like he was giving some kind of effort or like he knew what he was doing when he’d shuffle side to side to make saves like that.

 Vokoun may have seven wins right now, and it will come to no surprise to anyone if he amasses many more during the course of the year, but the fact of the matter is, stats lie.  The tape doesn’t.  The playoffs are a time where teams thrive on capitalizing on the mistakes of their opponents, and Washington, a team with a reputation for porous defense in the playoffs, can’t afford to have their players’ mistakes and then the mistakes of their goalie be taken advantage of, too.  They need Vokoun to be the guy between the pipes to bail them out if he has to.

 It doesn’t matter is the Caps locked-up Vokoun for a discounted price or not, if he continues to play like he is right now, you can expect another glorious regular season accompanied by postseason disappointment this year from the Washington Capitals.

 I really wish I could have found the video of another play from yesterday night with Selanne, too.  It was Vokoun's worst effort yet (looked like Selanne's goal vid from above,) and he's lucky the Finnish Flash missed the net.  Seriously though, what is he trying to do there?

A Day Of Little Stories

 Sorry for the lack of a witty or cheesy post title, but I think it appropriately describes a day like today. We have a few little stories, but as small as they may seem, they are certainly worth mentioning.

Lookin' fresh as always, Mr. Avery

 The National Hockey League's most-wanted man and the poster boy for agitators everywhere, Sean Avery, cleared re-entry waivers at noon earlier today.  Some are reporting we may see him on the ice in a Rangers uniform as early as their next game on Thursday against Anaheim.  Avery's stint so far this season with the AHL's Connecticut Whale was a very short one, so why call him back up so soon?  Did the Rangers succumb to mounting fan pressure, after disgruntled fans loudly chanted, "WE WANT AVERY!" during the 3rd period of New York's home opener?  Probably not.  Tortorella does things his way, not the fans' way.  If he didn't want Avery here to begin with, no number of nacho-popping, New Yorker season ticket holders are going to change his mind.  Avery's return is probably the result of the criticisms coming from across the league that the Rangers have been lacking a sense of grit down the roster.


  Almost simultaneously with the news breaking of Avery clearing re-entry waivers, it was reported that the Rangers offer to Swedish defenseman Anton Stralman, a 1-year, one-way contract, made earlier is still on the table.  Stralman, who is still in Sweden, would provide a minor boost to the New York blue line, but would definitely give their roster more depth upon the return of All-Star defender Marc Staal.  Don't look for Stralman, a Jekyll & Hyde-esque player during his last season as a member of the Columbus Blue Jackets, to make any significant impact to the Rangers if he were to decide to accept the deal in front of him, but that still wouldn't necessarily make it a "useless pick-up" by New York.  He could help if they needed him to, not to mention it's a better situation for Anton Stralman himself, instead of just sitting on his couch in Sweden.

 The other story of the day isn't about someone's return to the NHL from overseas or the AHL, but rather if they will stay in the NHL at all.  Anaheim's 19 year-old 4th liner, Devante Smith-Pelly, may not have impressive numbers on the scoresheet, but he has been very effective grinding it out on the Ducks' bottom two lines through the first nine games of the season.  Smith-Pelly, an Anaheim 2nd round draft pick in 2010 who no one seemed to be talking about coming into this season, has outlasted talk-of-the-town youngsters Mark Scheifele, Ryan Strome, Brandon Saad, and Mika Zibanejad... but still has received no owrd on whether he's staying with the squad or not.  Smith-Pelly skated on the 4th line during the Ducks' morning skate today, and with reporters swarming to find out if he knew whether or not he'd be staying on the team or not, he didn't really know what to tell them.  Tonight's game against the Washington Capitals (a nationally broadcasted Versus game, mind you) would be his 10th game of the year.  If I were a betting man, I would say Smith-Pelly gets to stay with the Anaheim Ducks' for the rest of the year and hopefully continue to add some sandpaper and strong forechecking to the team.   But I'm not a betting man.  I'm a blogger.  So what do I know?

Kronwall Re-Signed; Wings Stay Awesome

 To the shock of no one in the hockey community, hard-hitting Red Wings' defenseman, Niklas Kronwall, re-signed with the club, adding a solid presence on their historically awesome blue line for a few more years to come.  Everyone knew Kronwall would be returning to the Motor City one way or another with a new contract in 2012-13, it was only going to be a matter of time until the two sides came to an agreement.
 The new deal, which will take effect at the start of next season, has an annual cap-hit of $4.75 mil, a $1.25 mil signing bonus, and, surprisingly, lasts for seven years.  Seven is a big number for a defenseman set to turn 31 years-old in January.  You don't see too many long-term contacts given out to defensemen of that age, but Detroit has been spoiled in the past with players staying effective in their old age, such as Kris Draper, Chris Osgood, and the legend and ageless wonder Nicklas Lidstrom.  As far as price goes, this deal was a bargain for the Wings (the contract is a little front-loaded, we'll cover that later,) but can you really say you'd still be willing to have Kronwall's $4.75 mil cap-hit on your books when he's 37 or 38?  Whether you agree or not, the Red Wings have made their decision, and they seem to feel rather confident in Kronwall's longevity.
 Now then, let's examine the numbers and take a closer look.  Thanks to Darren Dreger of TSN and our friends at CapGeek, we know the season-by-season salary details of this deal look like this:

2012-13:    $4,500,000

2013-14:    $6,000,000

2014-15:    $6,000,000

2015-16:    $6,000,000

2016-17:    $5,500,000

2017-18:    $3,500,000*

2018-19:    $1,750,000*

 Seasons denoted with a * signify a modified No Trade Clause.  Kronwall will submit a list of 10 teams he will go to if Detroit would choose to trade him.  All other seasons under the new contract have a full NTC.

IN OTHER NEWS:

• DET's Fabian Brunnstrom clears waivers, and the Wings call-up Gustav Nyquist from Grand Rapids.
• TOR reportedly to honor Mats Sundin's number 13.
• NJ activates Martin Brodeur off of IR.

Gag Order

 First we had "Dry Island" in Philadelphia, but now we have a Gag Order, too.

 The Flyers' offseason signing and notorious chatterbox, Ilya Bryzgalov, has been at the focus of much scrutiny despite the Flyers' strong start to the season.  After the orgy of scoring that took place last Thursday as Philadelphia fell 9-8 in Winnipeg, Bryzgalov admittedly stated he was far from where he feels he should be as a #1 goaltender in the NHL, and that he needs to simply stop the puck more.  Quite an honest, humble confession that many people appreciated, but the Flyers' organization didn't seem to like his post-game comments to the media too much.  In fact, they don't seem to enjoy any of his comments to the media as much as the microphones, recorders, pens, pencils, and papers do.
 Tim Panaccio of Philadelphia's Comcast Sports Network, tweeted earlier today that just a few days after Bryz's goaltending coach criticized him for talking to the media too much, the Flyers have come down with a gag order on the veteran goalie.  Bryzgalov will now be prohibited from speaking to the media the day before a game or the day of a game.  He also cannot receive any questions from the media on nights when he does not see the ice.  He can only speak to the media after games in which he plays, or other practice days that do not interfere with the restrictions just outlined.
 Wow.
 We're still awaing news if this "Gag Order", applies to all Flyers players and not just Bryzgalov.  If this new rule goes for all in an orange uniform, journalists in Philly are going to have some extremely boring morning skates to look forward to and near-pandemonium post-game routines to scavenge interviews and information.  So I wouldn't expect that to be the case.  On the other hand, if it did only just apply to Bryzgalov, singling one player out in an official team policy has to be in some violation of some rules or guidelines somewhere that the NHLPA could get upset about, and if it isn't, I'm sure it will be a subject of discussion when the owners and PA meet to negotiate a new CBA over the summer.

 Bryz, a very camera-friendly personality never afraid of answering any question posed before him, has never really seen as much media attention in his career as he's gotten day in and day out in Philadelphia.  Compared to Phoenix and pre-Stanley Cup Anaheim, Bryzgalov may feel like he's being mobbed by the Toronto media every day!  Now, if the Flyers really feel like Bryz getting caught up in speaking to journalists and reporters in a mass media market he's never experienced before is hindering his on-ice performance, good for them for stepping in.  But I can only believe this is a reasonable solution if the Flyers had already spoken to Bryz about chatting too much to the cameras, instead of quickly jumping to the conclusion to maroon a player on Dry Island Part II, or "Mute Island", as it is becoming known as on various Flyers' message boards.  That part of the story, we may never know.

Here's a List of Awesome Quotes Bryzgalov Had After the Winnipeg Game:

"When you have terrible goalies it's no surprise why you have so many goals."

"You know, I have zero confidence in myself right now."

"I am terrible right now."

"They're trying to play hard, everybody, but bottom line: I am a

goalie, I'm the guy who has to stop the puck, you know?"

"I can't even stop the simple shot!  You know, maybe that's why the players

make more mistakes, because they have no confidence in their goalie."

"I am the reason we are losing games."

"I am lost in the woods right now."

There's Something About Shanny

 News broke on Saturday that the Chicago Blackhawks' agitator, Daniel Carcillo, would be suspended for two games after delivering a hit from behind to Joni Pitkanen of the Carolina Hurricanes.  The announcement came, of course, after Carcillo had a hearing with Brenden Shanahan and the rest of the NHL Department of Player Safety.  This marked another suspension handed out under Shanahan's regime as the NHL's Senior VP of Player Safety, and the mark he's made on the league since replacing Colin Campbell has been a very positive one.

 Shanahan established a precedent for illegal hits in the preseason by eliminating most gray areas in hit-to-the-head and boarding penalties as well as being swift and unafraid to levy suspensions on those committing infractions to the new rules.  What was also interesting about Shanny's new style of heading up discipline was the videos posted online via NHL.com, YouTube, and Shanahan's Twitter that would display illegal hits meriting disciplinary action of any kind and narrorating WHY said play deserved a suspension/fine.  This technique, that I wouldn't say is a stretch to refer to as "revolutionary", has proven time and time again to not only be effective in setting a precedent for illegal plays, but also calming disgruntled fans, further educating all around the game on what will now be prohibited in today's NHL.
 For example, when Pittsburgh's All-Star defenseman Kris Letang was suspended for a hit on Winnipeg's Alex Burmistrov, I was fuming.  I, along with many among the Pittsburgh media, felt that Letang's hit did merit a 2-minute boarding penalty, but fit in Shanahan's loophole of "the opposing player turning his back immediately prior to or simultaneous to the hit".  However, after seeing Shanahan's explanation video, which explained in great detail all of the factors that went into his decision to give the defender a 2-game suspension, all of my frustrations were calmed.  Shanahan gave me every reason to be at peace with his choice for suspension.

 Adding even more to the positive precedents being made that I keep referring to, the Department of Player Safety has posted numerous explanation videos of good, clean hits that are still acceptable in today's game.  With these videos, players not only have examples of illegal activity, but huge hits within the rules that everyone can still get on their feet for.  Some people are complaining that Shanahan and the rest of the Department of Player Safety's recent reign in 2011 is "eliminating hitting from the game", "It's sissy-fying hockey", and "Shanahan is just Gary Bettman and Colin Campbell's new 'Yes Man'", but this is far from the case, as displayed by Shanny's acceptable hit videos and in every single game you watch.

Shanny back in his playing days.
Good times, good times.

 Brended Shanahan may have came in like a bat out of hell with changes to rules.  He may have been quicker to strike down offenders with suspensions and fines than any other disciplinarian in league history.  But he's making the game safer for the players who are already willing to sacrifice their bodies night in and night out for their team's success.  Safer for the players we love to watch, cheer for, and even hate.  Brenden Shanahan is off to a great start in his role as the NHL's disciplinarian, the Senior VP of Player Safety.

In Other News

• NYR's Sean Avery is reportedly going to go on re-entry waivers tomorrow, Monday, October 31.  This means he will either A: Be back on the Rangers' roster, or B: Get claimed by another team for half-price.  Any takers?
• CBJ is slowly turning their game around, as they defeated ANA 3-1 tonight for their 2nd win on the year.  They may be earning garbage goals, but the bottom line is they've been earning those goals.  They've looked much less lethargic and interested in putting effort into winning hockey games since James Wisniewski came back into the line-up.
• Jaromir Jagr of PHI reached another milestone in his illustrious career, scoring his 650th career goal yesterday night.



Jackets Got Me Feelin' Blue

The Blue Jackets are 0-7-1 in the first 8 games of the season

 Before the season began, I had the Columbus Blue Jackets pegged as a dark horse playoff team after the offseason additions of Jeff Carter and James Wisniewski.  It only made sense; Columbus sat 16 points out of the playoff picture last season, but had 23 losses by only one goal (including 8 shooutout losses,) so it would be expected that the acquisitions of those two players would eliminate many of those one-goal losses, right?  Carter is a gifted goal scorer, not to mention he is the first legitimate first-line center the franchise has ever gotten to play alongside Rick Nash.  Right there, that adds an offensive partnership any hockey fan should be drooling over.  Although the Jackets may have overpaid for Wiz Khalumbus, he adds strength and some physical presence to a mediocre blue-line, and he (along with Carter) provides punch to Columbus' ailing power play that finished 29th in the NHL last season. It seemed if as long as Steve Mason didn't play terrible in goal, all of the chips were in place for the Blue Jackets to snag the 7th or 8th seed in the Western Conference.
 It did not take long for all of that to fall apart.
 Eight games into the season, Columbus is 0-7-1, the worst record in the NHL, and the only winless team left.  The problem is not the new additions failing to produce, as some might quickly jump to conclude.  The line of Rick Nash, Jeff Carter, and Vaclav Prospal (an often overlooked offseason pick-up by Columbus management) were the ONLY consistent producers of any offense and efficiency shift-in and shift-out until Carter was injured in the 5th game of the season.

 The rest of the team, on the other hand, just looks pathetic.  There is a terrible lack of consistent execution.  Some players just look like they lose interest halfway though shifts.  Fedor Tyutin, a typically valuable defenseman, has been burned multiple times and has been the culprit of various uncharacteristic mental mistakes.  R.J. Umberger, usually a very gritty and undaunted skater every shift, has been next to unnoticeable in many shifts, and has no goals, one assist, and is -3 through the first eight games of the season.

 Yesterday night was a painful microcosm of the entire season so far for the Blue Jackets.  It seemed as if Columbus was going to grind their way toward finally achieving their first win of the year in Ottawa, when Jason Spezza scored with 36.7 seconds remaining in the 3rd to tie the game for the Senators.  "Darn!  Oh well, we'll get 'em in overtime now, right?"  Unfortunately for the Jackets, that couldn't be more wrong.  Before time could run out in the final period, the Sens' Milan Michalek tipped-in a slapshot by Sergei Gonchar with only 4.7 seconds left.  This sealed the victory for Ottawa, and secured unimaginable defeat for Columbus.  The Jackets were a mere 36 seconds away from their first win of the year, only to leave the game without even a point.

 Despite several close games, the opening to the Columbus Blue Jackets' 2011-12 season has been among one of the most pathetic in recent memory when you judge the performance of the collective team, but is all hope lost for CBJ?
 On Tuesday, the Jackets' 9th game of the season, James Wisniewski will make his debut in a Columbus uniform, as his suspension from an incident in the preseason will expire.  He can now actually contribute to his struggling team, as opposed to just hanging out in the locker room and luxury boxes.  Jeff Carter still remains day-to-day with a foot injury, but until we can see him and Wiz Khalumbus healthy together in the Jackets' line-up for an extended period of time, it is slightly unfair to judge this team at this point.  We've seen terrible starts in the NHL get turned around before.  Just look at Buffalo last season, or the Devils (even though their push was a little too late.)  It is certainly plausible for them to still have a great year.
 The jury may be out on the beginning to Columbus' season, but there are still 74 games left to be played.  When Carter and Wisniewski can both get into the game with the rest of the Jackets' weapons, then we can start to truly judge where this team belongs among the rest of the NHL.  But if they want to put themselves in a position to turn their year around and make a push for the playoffs, the majority of the Blue Jackets roster will have to get their act together.  If your name isn't Rick Nash, Vinny Prospal, or Jeff Carter, what you've got going right now just will not cut it (that means you too, Head Coach Scott Arniel.)

Photo by Jana Chytilova / Getty Images

Ready For Takeoff

 As of yesterday night, the new Jets got their first win since moving back to the 'Peg in thrilling fashion at home against the undermanned Pittsburgh Penguins.  The fans in the MTS Centre, blew the roof off the house with cheering and screaming as the clock struck zero on a 2-1 final.  Although it was a moving sight to see the Jets' first win since April 26th, 1996 in front of their home fans who had waited so long to have NHL hockey return to their city, the secondary story coming out of this victory is the stellar performance by Jets goalie Ondrej Pavelec.

 (Photo by Marianne Helm/Getty Images)

 The Czech goaltender was selected 41st overall in 2005 by Atlanta, and was expected to develop into a premiere player between the pipes in the NHL.  Pavelec spent the early part of his career in the AHL or backing up Atlanta's other potential superstar-bound goalie Kari Lehtonen.  When Lehtonen was traded to Dallas in 2009-10, Atlanta opened the door for Pavelec to prove he was worth the hype that had tattoed on him by members of the organization during his tenure with the Thrashers.
 After a decent-at-best campaign as a starter in '09-'10, Pavelec came into form during the first half of last season.  Many point to the surprising offensive production of the recently acquired defenseman Dustin Byfuglien for Atlanta's hot start to year, but Pavelec was the consistent night-in-night out performer that Atlanta could rely on after a breakdown here and there.  Pavelec was proving he was just as good, if not better, as he was expected to be by the Thrashers' scouts when they drafted him.  I would have probably put him among my top five or six goalies in the entire league during those first few months.  However, the honeymoon did not last long.
 As the team's overall performance on the ice declined, so did Pavelec's ability to stop the puck.  The second of half of his year can only be described as "collapse".  Atlanta melted out of the playoff picture as the losses mounted, and even though the team around him was not nearly playing up to snuff themselves, Pavelec just seemed lost some games.
 Despite a change of scenery for the netminder and the rest of the Thrashers, the first few games of this season were no different, unfortunately.  After a 5-1 massacre in the Jets season opener against Montréal and tough losses in their insuing two matches after that, Pavelec just looked horrendous.  Just bad.  Pavy seemed flustered, out of place, let in weak goals (such as the eventual game winning goal in Chicago,) and became a "puck fighter".
 Everything changed yesterday night, as Pavelec denied the Penguins time and time again, including a series of semi-breakaways late in the 2nd period.  Although the opponent netted one goal shortly after that spectacular series of stonewalling the Pens' forwards, Pavelec deserved a shutout for his game.  He looked like the Ondrej Pavelec of early last season, only this time, he got to hear the earth-shaking ovation of crazed Winnipeg hockey fans after each big play and at the conclusion of the game (instead of an uneducated, lethargic Thrashers crowd of 5,000-some.)
 Hopefully this game will prove to be huge for Ondrej Pavelec's confidence.  He really has the ability to be a great goalie in this league, it is just a matter how how consistently he can string together performances like yesterday's to get him back on track to becoming the prized netminder he was once expected to be.

SEE SOME OF ONDREJ PAVELEC'S BIG SAVES FROM THE GAME:

Richard Park, 2nd 16:47 semi-breakaway
Pascal Dupuis, 2nd 17:59 semi-breakaway
Deryk Engelland, 2nd 18:16 glove save
Steve Sullivan, 3rd 4:40 semi-breakaway

All videos curtosey of http://www.jets.nhl.com

The Saga Continues...

Crosby recorded 66 points in 41 games before
his concussion.  His 1.61 points per game
led the entire NHL in 2010-11.

... but it looks like it will be over soon!
 The biggest story in the hockey world broke earlier today, when Sidney Crosby was noticeably not wearing his white no-contact helmet during practice this morning.  It was not long after the team left the ice that reporters and cameras swarmed Crosby's stall asking the question, "Are you cleared for contact?"  With no hesitation, Sid the Kid officially told the media that after meeting with specialists in Pittsburgh, he has finally been cleared for full contact.
 The news spread quickly, as expected.  Twitter blew up as every reporter wanted to get the word out there as soon as he/she could, Facebook status after Facebook status from giddy Pens fans flew on the interweb, and it even managed to take the top story on the noon edition of ESPN's SportsCenter (gasp!  Hockey the top story on SportsCenter!?)
 Crosby was also quick to point out that he has only been cleared for such contact in practice, so the date we'll see #87 in a Penguins uniform for an actual game is still uncertain.  Many in the Pittsburgh media, including super genius Mark Madden, had predicted November 11th (a home game against the Dallas Stars) as Crosby's return date.  After Sid's news broke today. a lot of people are sticking to that prediction.  Others have said they still don't expect Crosby back any time before Thanksgiving.  Fair enough.  This injury has been on an absolutely unpredictable schedule, and I would not expect that to suddenly change with the color of his helmet.  Whenever he is able to play again, though, he will provide a huge boost to an already threatening Penguins team that goes without saying.
 These concussions are proving to become more and more confusing and incalculable every year, and this now goes beyond one high profile injury.  Long-term post concussion syndrome-related injuries have popped up all over the NHL over the past few seasons, mostly with enforcers, but many of which have flown under the radar as a result of Crosby's concussion saga.  Here's a look at a few other big name players who have been out for far too long, but have been overlooked due to all the hubbub over 87.

Savard has not played a game in
the NHL since January 22, 2011

MARC SAVARD
 This is truly one of the saddest examples of what a career plagued by concussions can do to you.  Marc Savard was one of the most talented playmakers in the game, a player who could thread the needle on any pass, whose talent has been chopped down and hacked away by concussions.
 Savard already had a history of head injuries coming into March 7, 2010, but what would happen that night would truly change the course of his life.  Penguins forward Matt Cooke delivered a straight blow to Savard's head on the backcheck, instantly knocking the Bruins star unconscious.  It has since become one of the most infamous hits in hockey history, and inspired Rule 41 regarding hits to the head. Savard obviously received a concussion from the vicious hit, one that put him out until the 2nd round of the playoffs.  Many believe Savard came back in played despite still exhibiting concussion symptoms.
 Savard then began showing intense signs of post concussion syndrome during the offseason, and had to miss several games at the start of the 2010-11 season.  Once he returned, though, it didn't take long for Savard's well-documented history of head injuries to return to the headlines.  On January 22, 2011, Matt Hunwick of the Colorado Avalanche connected on a hit with Savard in the corner, a check that would give Savard yet another concussion.  Since that day, Savard has not seen NHL ice.
 Savard missed out on the Bruins' magical Stanley Cup run, and the team announced over ther summer that Savard is expected to miss all of the 2011-12 season.

Perron has not played a game in
the NHL since November 4, 2010

DAVID PERRON
 This is an excellent example of long-term injuries flying under the radar because of all the attention Crosby (and even Savard) has gotten.  Perron was originally a 1st round selection of the St. Louis Blues in 2007, and was developing into quite an impressive player, posting 50 points in the 2008-09 season and 47 points in '09-10.  All of that potential came to a screeching halt on November 4, 2010.
 The San Jose Sharks were visiting the Blues that night, and Joe Thornton took a boarding penalty at 3:22 of the 2nd period.  No big deal.  However, right upon leaving the sin bin, Big Joe laid into an unsuspecting Perron, who was skating quickly up the ice, looking behind to catch a pass.  Perron hit the ice, and laid there motionless.  A fight erupted between Logan Couture and Alex Pietrangelo (two rather unlikely combatants,) and Thornton received a 5 minute major hit to the head penalty as well as a game misconduct.
 Needless to say, David Perron suffered a severe concussion and has yet to play a game since the night he was laid out.  Perron was on pace to set a career-high 56 points before the injury.

Markov has not played a game in
the NHL since November 13, 2010

ANDREI MARKOV
 Okay, so this one isn't a concussion-related injury.  But still, it's surprising how a long-term injury to a player of Markov's caliber in the Montréal media market can go so unnoticed!  Markov has had to deal with many injuries throughout his playing career, probably more serious ones than most players will ever have in their lifetime.  But his most recent troubles have proven to be the most, well... troubling.
 Canadiens fans could not wait to get the injury-prone defenseman back into their line-up after he was knocked out for an extended period of time after receiving a hard check from the Penguins' Matt Cooke (this was a clean hit, mind you,) in the playoffs the previous year.  Markov only returned for 7 games, because a knee-to-knee collision with Carolina's captain, Eric Staal, put him on the IR for the remainder of the '10-11 season.
 Markov has been in physical therapy sessions and rehabbing his injured knee since the day he was cleared to do so by doctors, but he still has not played since November 13, 2010, the night he collided with the oldest sibling of the Staal family.

IN OTHER NEWS

• TOR offseason UFA signing Tim Connolly's injury is worse than originally expected, TSN reports.  Stroy here: http://www.tsn.ca/toronto/blogs/jonas_siegel/?id=378001
• PIT resigns Chris Kunitz to a 2-year contract extension with an annual cap-hit of $3.725 mil.
• NYI reassigns 2011 draft pick Ryan Strome back to the Niagara IceDogs (OHL).
• CAR reassigns 2011 draft pick Ryan Murphy back to the Kitchener Rangers (OHL).
• Martin Erat of NSH is placed on injured reserve with an unspecified upper-body injury.
• Preseason stand-out Cam Atkinson assigned to the Springfield Falcons of the AHL by CBJ.