Last night the Pittsburgh Penguins showed everyone that they are one of the teams that really has a chance this year to take the Cup. Still playing without their captain Sidney Crosby and now also without leading defenseman Kris Letang, they easily beat Colorado Avalanche, a team desperately clinging for their chance to make it to the playoffs. And this all on a night where some of the other big teams (Vancouver, Boston, San Jose) stumbled with losses. What made Penguin's feat even more impressing was that the guys scoring the goals came throughout the lineup. NHL scoring leader Evgeni Malkin contributed one goal, which was expected. Other four came from rare scorers; Arron Asham (3rd), Deryk Engelland (4th), Richard Park (6th) and Steve Sulliven (13th). This team really has the winning spirit and will be hard to contain.
On the West, Los Angeles is showing signs of finally waking up with their impressive lineup. The whole season they're been solid defensively, but haven't been able to score. Now, after the acquisition of troubled star forward Jeff Carter from lowly Blue Jackets, they seem to have found some confidence. With San Jose Sharks in free fall and other bubble teams struggling to find another gear, the city of angels might well find themselves in the top eight when the regular season ends.
Showing posts with label Jeff Carter. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Jeff Carter. Show all posts
2012/02/29
Deadline pancake and a bunch of false prophets
So, the long waited NHL trade deadline came and went. Lots of articles were written and anticipation was attracted to highest levels. Then the actual day went on and pretty much nothing happened. I followed on the path of the big boys and played with the thoughts of big names moving to new teams and changing the franchises' directions. Well, should have known better. I now believe this was one big hoax conjured by the viewer hungry sports media and not really based on any proper background work.
Rick Nash stayed put. No one really even tried to get him. Or at least the seller and buyers were totally on different pages. Well, he's not entering free agency so it should have been easier to predict that all the fuzz about him was bit unnecessary.
Zach Parise, Ryan Suter, Alex Semin and other big names with big contracts that fill be free agents? No moves, nothing.
The kids with remarkably upbeat seasons, e.g. P.A. Parenteau and Michael Del Zotto? Nothing? New York teams must know something we don't to not make a move with these guys. Re-sign, that is.
Biggest of the actual trades took place before the deadline day. LA Kings putting their hope on fallen star Jeff Carter and New Jersey Devils coughing up a lot to take a chance with slick blueliner Marek Zidlicky were probably the biggest. Then there was some third line reshaping and grit adding moves by potential cup contenders. Added experience may well be worth a lot duning the long playoff run. Just as well it may be irrelevant.
It seems that the trend today is to trust in the team chemistry built in the first two thirds of the season instead of trying to pull a magical move in the last minute to get an edge. The mystifying part is that all the teams on the bubble or having already lost the season are also pretty content with what they have. One could think that the bubble teams would be willing to take the biggest risks at this time and the bottom dwellers would start dramatic reshaping by unloading the failed core of the team.
As a summary, I was disappointed with the deadline action and fooled by the buzz like everyone else. Mental note is to aim to be one step ahead of this media hype instead of following on the beaten path. We'll see..
Rick Nash stayed put. No one really even tried to get him. Or at least the seller and buyers were totally on different pages. Well, he's not entering free agency so it should have been easier to predict that all the fuzz about him was bit unnecessary.
Zach Parise, Ryan Suter, Alex Semin and other big names with big contracts that fill be free agents? No moves, nothing.
The kids with remarkably upbeat seasons, e.g. P.A. Parenteau and Michael Del Zotto? Nothing? New York teams must know something we don't to not make a move with these guys. Re-sign, that is.
Biggest of the actual trades took place before the deadline day. LA Kings putting their hope on fallen star Jeff Carter and New Jersey Devils coughing up a lot to take a chance with slick blueliner Marek Zidlicky were probably the biggest. Then there was some third line reshaping and grit adding moves by potential cup contenders. Added experience may well be worth a lot duning the long playoff run. Just as well it may be irrelevant.
It seems that the trend today is to trust in the team chemistry built in the first two thirds of the season instead of trying to pull a magical move in the last minute to get an edge. The mystifying part is that all the teams on the bubble or having already lost the season are also pretty content with what they have. One could think that the bubble teams would be willing to take the biggest risks at this time and the bottom dwellers would start dramatic reshaping by unloading the failed core of the team.
As a summary, I was disappointed with the deadline action and fooled by the buzz like everyone else. Mental note is to aim to be one step ahead of this media hype instead of following on the beaten path. We'll see..
2011/08/12
Shuffle up in Philly
Trade market is a topic that may result in rather long posts. I'll start with something that comes to my mind right away.
It sure has been a busy summer on the trade market. Lots of big names have landed on new teams, some surprisingly, some likely expecting or even wanting to get traded. Anyhow, this really injects some needed surprise factor on the team's overall success rate in the beginning of the next season. Gray hairs for owners, good fun for fans and gamblers.
Let's focus on the Philadelphia Flyers. They drew the biggest attention to themselves with a major decision in letting go many of their top guns from the last few seasons. Let's take a closer look on the guys who left and the ones that came in to fill in the gaps.
Mike Richards, for starters, was the team captain, fan favourite and the poster boy for the whole franchise, if not sometimes for the whole NHL. His style of hard nosed but efficient play was feared and followed alike. Sometimes it seemed even that he had some free passes on the NHL disciplinary actions for not getting punished for very hard hits with disturbing results. Well, he was one of the guys to start the discussion that ended up in the current blind side hits rule. Whatever that means in practice.. Anyway, teams don't often let these caliber guys go away. There's not many who could fill up his role in the whole sport. Beats me, maybe he was too greedy, unhappy or didn't get along with the management. Anyway, LA is the massive winner in this trade. It's going to be awesome to see how soon he finds a line in LA to deliver the goods.
Jeff Carter got shipped to Columbus. Well, not exactly what a guy with high and growing rating in the league wants to see. No matter what he says. Playing for half empty arenas in a non-competitive team is just bad PR. On the positive side, he'll get to play just as much as he wants as the ultimate superstar in the team. Winner again, Columbus, hands down. Carter's true skills will now be seen with mediocre linemates. I wouldn't expect 40 goals this season..
Ville Leino has hit the high wave on his career just on the right spot and that led Buffalo Sabres to lock him in for a long term, high salary contract. It's good to see Ville with a new chance to prove himself as a first line NHL forward. As a fellow Finn I hope he succeeds. Not too many high profile forwards from Finland anymore in the league. However, it's a gamble for the Sabres, like most of their moves this summer. Flyers should have tried to keep Leino, but likely couldn't match the offer he got.
The newcomers then. Bryzgalov, with a foolish contract for the eternity, forces the Flyers to commit to one goalie for bettor or worse. He did fantastic job in Phoenix, so it's not at all unlikely that he'd be able to plug the goals against column for good. Voracek, Simmonds and Talbot are work horses for second to fourth lines. Nothing spectacular, but likely worth their salary when played in right roles. Lilja is a lower minute defenceman in Philly, not a difference maker. The rookies, including Brayden Schenn, are the unknown. Maybe there's a new star in the making, maybe these guys will never secure a spot in the starting lineup, who knows.
Last but definitely not least is the grand old maestro, Jaromir Jagr. Currently gray bearded, but still extremely dangerous in the offensive zone. It's absolutely thrilling to see him get adjusted in today's NHL. With proper linemates he might well pull off another stellar season. The wildest predictions put him in the fight for the scoring title. That's a bit though to believe, but I could well believe in a bit less than a point per game season. Jagr, in his prime, has been one of the best to play the game ever. He's a no brainer to the Hall of Fame after he retires no matter how he does this season. I had a chance to follow his play in the last year's world championships and he didn't fall short to any of the younger stars in Czech lineup. In the Flyers he might be able to take the role of the living legend, leading younger guns to great things with his example. Obviously, I've always liked his style of play. Massive skills in one of the strongest packages in the game, combined with a world class eye for the play. I sincerely hope he still has the gas in the tank to compete on the ultimate top of this sport. Good catch form the Flyers indeed, if for nothing else than getting a truckload of interest directed in their games.
All in all, Philly really shook up its roster. On the first look it got way worse, but looking a bit further down the line, this may provide some stability to the franchise that likely expected to take it all with the lineup from the past couple of years. They ended up falling just short, but definitely showing that the "Rangers approach", of gathering the cream of players without paying too much attention to paychecks, can succeed with the right coordination.
I'll continue with another rambling post on some other trades this offseason later.
It sure has been a busy summer on the trade market. Lots of big names have landed on new teams, some surprisingly, some likely expecting or even wanting to get traded. Anyhow, this really injects some needed surprise factor on the team's overall success rate in the beginning of the next season. Gray hairs for owners, good fun for fans and gamblers.
Let's focus on the Philadelphia Flyers. They drew the biggest attention to themselves with a major decision in letting go many of their top guns from the last few seasons. Let's take a closer look on the guys who left and the ones that came in to fill in the gaps.
Mike Richards, for starters, was the team captain, fan favourite and the poster boy for the whole franchise, if not sometimes for the whole NHL. His style of hard nosed but efficient play was feared and followed alike. Sometimes it seemed even that he had some free passes on the NHL disciplinary actions for not getting punished for very hard hits with disturbing results. Well, he was one of the guys to start the discussion that ended up in the current blind side hits rule. Whatever that means in practice.. Anyway, teams don't often let these caliber guys go away. There's not many who could fill up his role in the whole sport. Beats me, maybe he was too greedy, unhappy or didn't get along with the management. Anyway, LA is the massive winner in this trade. It's going to be awesome to see how soon he finds a line in LA to deliver the goods.
Jeff Carter got shipped to Columbus. Well, not exactly what a guy with high and growing rating in the league wants to see. No matter what he says. Playing for half empty arenas in a non-competitive team is just bad PR. On the positive side, he'll get to play just as much as he wants as the ultimate superstar in the team. Winner again, Columbus, hands down. Carter's true skills will now be seen with mediocre linemates. I wouldn't expect 40 goals this season..
Ville Leino has hit the high wave on his career just on the right spot and that led Buffalo Sabres to lock him in for a long term, high salary contract. It's good to see Ville with a new chance to prove himself as a first line NHL forward. As a fellow Finn I hope he succeeds. Not too many high profile forwards from Finland anymore in the league. However, it's a gamble for the Sabres, like most of their moves this summer. Flyers should have tried to keep Leino, but likely couldn't match the offer he got.
The newcomers then. Bryzgalov, with a foolish contract for the eternity, forces the Flyers to commit to one goalie for bettor or worse. He did fantastic job in Phoenix, so it's not at all unlikely that he'd be able to plug the goals against column for good. Voracek, Simmonds and Talbot are work horses for second to fourth lines. Nothing spectacular, but likely worth their salary when played in right roles. Lilja is a lower minute defenceman in Philly, not a difference maker. The rookies, including Brayden Schenn, are the unknown. Maybe there's a new star in the making, maybe these guys will never secure a spot in the starting lineup, who knows.
Last but definitely not least is the grand old maestro, Jaromir Jagr. Currently gray bearded, but still extremely dangerous in the offensive zone. It's absolutely thrilling to see him get adjusted in today's NHL. With proper linemates he might well pull off another stellar season. The wildest predictions put him in the fight for the scoring title. That's a bit though to believe, but I could well believe in a bit less than a point per game season. Jagr, in his prime, has been one of the best to play the game ever. He's a no brainer to the Hall of Fame after he retires no matter how he does this season. I had a chance to follow his play in the last year's world championships and he didn't fall short to any of the younger stars in Czech lineup. In the Flyers he might be able to take the role of the living legend, leading younger guns to great things with his example. Obviously, I've always liked his style of play. Massive skills in one of the strongest packages in the game, combined with a world class eye for the play. I sincerely hope he still has the gas in the tank to compete on the ultimate top of this sport. Good catch form the Flyers indeed, if for nothing else than getting a truckload of interest directed in their games.
All in all, Philly really shook up its roster. On the first look it got way worse, but looking a bit further down the line, this may provide some stability to the franchise that likely expected to take it all with the lineup from the past couple of years. They ended up falling just short, but definitely showing that the "Rangers approach", of gathering the cream of players without paying too much attention to paychecks, can succeed with the right coordination.
I'll continue with another rambling post on some other trades this offseason later.
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