NHL Free Agency Frenzy
NBA free agency is underway, but it doesn’t get going nearly as aggressively as it does in the NHL. The free agency period starts at noon eastern time on July 1st, and money flies around like crazy. The 30 teams in the NHL have spent more than a billion dollars in the last three years combined on the first day alone, and this year was no slower. Here’s a look at the impact of the big deals today and those that came just before players became free agents:
Jay Bouwmeester to Calgary - I live in Calgary, so I should be excited about this one, but I’m conflicted. He’s the best defenseman who was available, and he was signed at a reasonable bargain for the team. I’m just not convinced that this was what was needed for the team. We didn’t play great defense last year, but we have lots of talent back there and a new coach who will focus on the blueliners . Scoring seems to be a much bigger need, and signing Jay Bo means that we can’t add the offensive talent that the team probably needs. Bouwmeester needs to be as good as the hype because this team won’t be able to afford to give up a lot of goals and still win.
Scott Gomez to Montreal – This deal is absolutely mystifying. Gomez is hugely overpaid, and he was brutal last year for the Rangers, yet the Habs took on his huge contract in a trade. He’s not worth the money, and he handcuffs a team that badly needs to reshape their team. I don’t get it at all.
Mike Cammalleri to Montreal - This one is more like it. Cammalleri had a breakout year for the Flames last year, and if he can find a teammate he clicks with he’ll keep it up this year. He can definitely live with the pressure he’ll face in Montreal. I expect big things.
Brian Gionta to Montreal – The Habs are the busiest team out there, and this is another deal I love. Gionta is tiny, but he can flat out play. He has scored 48 goals in a season before, and he is a remarkable playmaker in the right situation. They’ll have to find a big player to play with the two mighty mites, but I would love to see Cammalleri and Gionta play together. They could own the highlights reels.
The Sedin Twins back to Vancouver - I don’t have a ton of respect for these guys – I call them the Sedin sisters. They are annoying in so many ways, but they put the numbers up year after year, and Vancouver really had no choice but to get this deal done. They paid a reasonable price, and they didn’t have to get locked in for the ridiculously long term that was being talked about originally. I like the move.
Marian Hossa to Chicago – I don’t mine the annual cost, and I like his chances of fitting in with the team, but I hate that Chicago committed to a 12 year term. They have a lot of young talent that is going to need big new contracts down the road, and this could make it harder for them to do. The deal will definitely help in the short term, though – especially if Hossa forgets that the playoffs ever happened this year and he returns to playing like he can.
Marian Gaborik to the Rangers – Gaborik is injury prone, but when he is at his best he is brilliant. This deal is essentially a straight up trade of Gaborik for Gomez. Looking at it that way makes this one of the best deals of the day. Like every other offensive talent who winds up in New York over the last decade, though, you can pretty much be sure that he’ll underperform.
Nikolai Khabibulkin to Edmonton – I hate the Oilers with every fibre of my being, so that meas I love this deal. Khabibulin hasn’t looked like a star for a long, long time, and I don’t believe that he is a legitimate number one anymore. Good luck with this, you losers.
Mattias Ohlund to Tampa Bay - This is a great deal. Ohlund is the definition of a reliable defenseman. He’s nothing fancy, but he just gets the job done. That’s exactly what Tampa Bay needs after having been so brutal defensively last year. This move makes even more sense on another level as well.Ohlund is a veteran member of the Swedish Olympic team, and very well respected at home. Tampa Bay just picked hotshot young Swedish defenseman Victor Hedman with their second overall pick at the draft. Hedman has to respect Ohlund already, and Ohlund will be able to make Hedman’s transition to the States, and to the NHL much, much smoother. This is a very sharp move for a team that hasn’t made many of those lately.
Related posts:
- Free Agency Lunacy The Redski
- NBA Free Agency Thoughts 2010 is su
- An Unfortunate Free Fall It remains
Tags: Brian Gionta, Daniel Sedin, free agency, Henrik Sedin, Jay Bouwmeester, Marian Gaborik, Marian Hossa, Mattias Ohlund, Mike Cammalleri, NHL, Nikolai Khabibulin, Scott Gomez
