Shutdown Pair

Tag: Brad Richards

  • Now, I love Jarome Iginla…

    …but as Scott points out a BSN, this is “Iginla for Pominville!” rumor is a big pile of nothing.  This all comes from a HockeyBuzz blog post by Garth, who says things like (not linking those guys, it’s the Stafford post if you must see it):

    I’ve been told that Pommer ($5.3 million cap hit, next three seasons) and Reggie ($2.75 million cap hit, next four seasons) would be a likely trade package to Calgary for Iginla.

    I would not be surprised at all if Buffalo were to trade Ville Leino to Calgary as part of an Iginla trade. Leino’s six year, $4.5 million UFA contract came as a shocker to all observers. Perhaps Regier grabbed Leino as a pre-emptive strike, at a value price, when he knew that he Buffalo was not a consideration to land Brad Richards on July 1. Leino is the proverbial “ghost man on first” right now. Regehr and Ehrhoff were introduced at pressers in Buffalo. Why hasn’t Leino been introduced to the people of Pegulaville?

    Now.  I probably owe my renewed love for hockey to Calgary and Jarome Iginla, as I had fallen away from the sport for a few years before the lockout (save going to the games a few times due to my buddy’s free Adelphia tix).  I loved watching the cup run the Flames made, and Jarome Iginla’s style of play is exactly what I love.  But that was years ago now.  Iggy isn’t a spring chicken, and I’m not sure trading two young, talented players for one older, more talented player with a rapidly approaching expiry date, is a good idea.  I wouldn’t kill them for it, but it would be a mark against ’em.

    What kills me is the Leino part of this, well, wouldn’t call it a rumor, more of a hope or speculation.  This isn’t the NBA, where sign-and-trade deals are a thing, and I think those are a thing because of the really odd salary structure they use (or did use, before they locked out).  Seems like a HUGE risk to sign a guy as trade bait, so I’m inclined to believe Darcy figured Richards was pretty set on NYR, and went after the next best guy he could get.  Also, who said Leino’s contract was ‘a value price’?  Anyone?  It may end up being one, the way Roy’s is now, but I can’t recall seeing ANYONE who thinks it is now.  Then there’s also the whole “Sabres need centers” thing.  Would be odd to trade him because of that, too.  The “Why hasn’t he been introduced?  HMM?” aspect might be the silliest.  Maybe the guy wasn’t available…he might be in Finland.  He might be lounging on a beach in Aruba.  It seems odd to immediately jump to ‘OMG he will be TRADED for IGGY asdfasdf;lksadjf’, but then again, I don’t write for HockeyBuzz.

  • Leino, Richards and You

    In the end, the Sabres went higher-risk/high reward by picking Ville Leino over Brad Richards.  Can Leino be a center again?  He was very good in limited faceoff duty last year.  He played the position until he was 23, so we have to hope it’s like riding a bike.  Ville has to be happy about potentially being with some solid young talent, whether it’s Gerbe or Ennis or Stafford or Pominville.  I’m willing to give this a try and get behind Leino.  Add in Ehrhoff and Regehr, hope for solid full seasons from Gerbe and Ennis, and this year should be a solid step up from the last.

    Or, Darcy Regier could trade several of the players currently on the roster away, and completely up-end my thoughts here.  Isn’t it fun?

  • Ehrhoff and Circumvention

    Look we all know that a 10 year contract for Christian Ehrhoff is kind of ridiculous, but it’s within the rules.  In face, the rules were ALREADY modified once to stop cap circumvention, and this is STILL fine, so for that part of it, I have no problem.  It’s a risk, but you have to take risks to win the Stanley Cup, and the cap number is not that onerous if Ehrhoff doesn’t match his goal total of the past two years.  I know what gets some people’s goat (*cough*Lambert*cough*) is the use of ridiculous ‘signing bonus’ numbers to work the system.

    But what is REALLY AWESOME is how it is now the Buffalo Sabres who are ticking off the other fanbases in the league.  Seriously, when was the last time ANYBODY was mad at the Sabres for working the system, or scoring a coveted free agent, or anything, really?  I don’t mean other fans hating an individual (Hi Kaleta) but actual irritation and anger towards the Buffalo organization.  It’s kind of refreshing, to be honest.

    So, as free agency begins in earnest today, Buffalo is a player.  They matter, and that bothers the other markets, makes them mad they have to contend with all the usual suspects AND the Sabres.  The team has another club in the bag for how to build, adding the big honking driver of free agent madness to the irons of trades and the wedges of drafting and developing players in the system.  No more laying up and relying on chipping it close and tapping in for par.  ‘Par’ is what the previous regime was all about.

  • Mystery Players, Center Edition

    Let’s play a game.  I’ll give you the stats for several centers in the league, and you tell me which ones are ‘number one’ centers.  Ready, GO:

    • Player A:  28G, 49A for 77 points, 1.07 points/game in 2010/2011.  24G, 57A for 91 points, 1.14 P/G in 2009/2010.
    • Player B:  24G, 58A for 82 points, 1 P/G for 2010/2011.  26G, 43A for 69 points, .86 P/G for 2009/2010.
    • Player C:  32G, 44A for 76 points, .95 P/G for 2010/2011.  25G, 43A for 68 points, .89 P/g for 2009/2010.
    • Player D:  19G, 57A for 76 points, 1.13 P/G for 2010/2011.  19G, 50A for 69 points, 1.05 P/G for 2009/2010.
    • Player E:  21G, 36A for 57 points, .92 P/G for 2010/2011.  23G, 34A for 57 points, .95 P/G for 2009/2010.

    So who are they?  Drum roll, please!

    A:  Brad Richards
    B:  Derek Roy (10/11 numbers extrapolated to a full season)
    C:  Jonathan Toews
    D:  Ryan Getzlaf
    E:  Jason Spezza

    A couple of those guys missed 10-15 games in a season (Spezza and Getzlaf especially), but the numbers are still close, aren’t they?  And yet, some folks around town scoff at Roy as a top-flight center.  There’s usually one or two centers who outperform the crowd (Sedin or Crosby for example) but beyond that, this is what you get as a number one C.  I was curious about these numbers, and I hope this gives you another perspective on the center pursuit by the Sabres.

  • We’re Still Talking About HIM?

    Tim Connolly.  Say that name near Sabres fans, and you’ll get a reaction.  Largely, a negative one.  Maybe a few will reminisce about when he was ‘good’, recall his play in the playoffs after the lockout, but then they bring up the injuries, the concussions, and you end up back at the same place – good riddance!

    Except…have you seen the other options for centers out there?  You’ve got Brad Richards on the radar (you and every other team that is), but then what?  For UFA’s, the field is pretty bleak.  Jason Arnott?  Eric Belanger?  Brooks Laich?  Laich might be the best bet, but nobody out there is screaming Number ONE center loudly (or Number TWO for that matter).  RFAs aren’t happening either.  Offer sheets for the good ones will be matched, and if they aren’t ‘good’, see above.  You aren’t finding Danny Briere on the scrap heap every year.  Though if they could pull it off again…well, we can dream.

    So that leaves trades.  The trick here is having what others want, and the other team needing to make a move for some reason.  The fact that the salary cap went up as much as it did complicates that – not as many teams need to shed salary to keep their best players.  There are some targets out there (Stephen Weiss?  Paul Stastny?) but their are complicating factors (for Weiss, the Panthers are barely hitting the floor, and Weiss’s cap hit is over $3mil, and Stastny has a big money deal on another team near the floor).

    That brings things back to Tim Connolly.  He’s a known quantity, for better or worse.  He’s had productive stretches, though not in the playoffs lately.  He’s been brittle.  He infuriates you with his potential.  He doesn’t talk to the media very much, so despite the fact that he’s been here seemingly forever, we don’t really know him.  At least for Max, he had the language barrier, but Timmy is from this very state.

    Look, we all know the Sabres NEED a center for one of the top two lines.  I don’t think TC can do that anymore.  However, this year is not a year with an easy solution to that problem.  Sign Brad Richards! but for how much and how long?  Despite the loosened purse strings and Darcy flexing his deal-making muscles, you still don’t want to kill your flexibility.  Especially with Tyler Myers coming due for a pay upgrade.  Timmy might just be the only feasible option (at a much lower price than the last contract) while we wait and see if someone else comes available, or someone like Luke Adam takes hold of a spot.  I’m not sure I like it any more than you do, but what I am saying is, don’t be surprised if it does happen.

  • That’s Decidedly NOT Great, Derek

    By now you’ve probably heard the news:  top center Derek Roy is out 4-6 months, due to a quad tendon tear.  The surgery is scheduled in the next few days.  Considering the next guy down the depth chart is Tim ‘I just had my face rebuilt from spare parts) Connolly, that leaves Buffalo extremely thin at center.  Derek lead the team in assists and points, and was second behind Thomas Vanek with 10 goals.  I guess this is one way to get Luke Adam back in the lineup.  Ugh.

    What this goes to show is how lacking this team is in the heart department.  I keep coming back to the teams from 05-07 and how they soldiered on despite player after player dropping from the lineup.  Whether it was Biron stepping in and rattling off 13 straight wins when Miller was out, or rallying around their injured captain and beating Ottawa that night and continuing to win some games after that after the infamous brawl (down 6+ players for much of that).  Why does that not happen now?  Was it really Drury and Briere that drove that?  Jay McKee?  We thought Grier was, and Rivet seemed like the kind of guy that would bring that, but look at where they are.  Back in ’06, if one guy went down, whatever, someone else will step in.  The system would adjust.  Now?  It seems like the balance is so delicate even when things are going well that one minor change sends things into a death spiral.

    Where do the Sabres go from here?  I’ve already looked at tradeable assets, and it seems more likely that Buffalo WILL be sellers.  Unfortunately, it’s hard to justify trading Connolly when he might very well be the only ‘healthy’ center here.  Goose needs to say on the third line, so Luke Adam should see time on the second.  They can trade Rivet if anyone wants him.  Beyond that, it’s just playing out the string on a lost season, and giving guys like Weber, Gerbe, and Ennis as much time as possible to prove they belong.

    The ONLY way Buffalo shouldn’t gear up for next year right now is if they can pull off a deal for one of the big-name forwards rumored to be available, Jarome Iginla or Brad Richards.  Richards makes the most sense, being a center, and if there is one thing that Buffalo has in abundance it’s picks and prospects other teams will covet.  He’s got an NTC, and is playing for a team that’s challenging for 1st in the west.  Dallas may not be able to re-sign him, and their ownership situation is unsettled, but it doesn’t make much sense for either side to move at this point.  Especially to go somewhere which has some ownership questions also.

    I’ll be watching what does (or doesn’t) happen after the freeze with interest.  We’ll find out soon whether Darcy and company have decided to go for broke, or for next year.