I think people are exaggerating the impact of Ehrhoff. He had 21 ESP and Bieksa had 19. Where Ehrhoff thrived was on the PP but I don't think he's irreplaceable, to a large extent the reason he thrived is because he was on the #1 unit and got a ton of minutes there.
Chicken/egg though. Last season the second unit was much stronger than the first, and it had Ehrhoff QBing it. To my eye he's a guy that makes a difference in that regard.
Having trouble understanding this, personally. They aren't replacing Ehrhoff for any cheaper and they likely aren't getting the same quality either. It's going to be tough to ice a better or even similar strength team next season without Ehrhoff.
You need a slick puckhandling d with wheels to rush the puck up. Breakout plays are not always available, it really helps to be able to carry it out and be that end to end threat.
I wonder what the thinking is here. Is Connauton the guy? Would they sign Jovo if he's not resigned by Phoenix? Bieksa was heading in the direction of being that guy three or four years ago, but he seems like more of a drop-back containment defender now.
I think most people here are being short-sighted with their views.
Ehrhoff most likely wants 5M+ and he'll get that and more on the open market. Good for him, based on his stats he deserves it.
However, the guy was a salary dump by San Jose two years ago and that's when he was a 40pt guy. Nothing has really changed since then.
He's great on the offensive end but pretty horrible defensively. For 5M plus, you want your defenseman to be a solid 2-way player. Bieksa is better than Ehrhoff as a 2-way player, less so as a strictly offensive player.
I have no doubt MG has planned for this. We'll be fine.
I'd much rather him put together a big package and try and land a potential #1 d-man for slightly more than what Ehrhoff wants.
That and addressing the need for a legit Top 6 forward.
I'm fine with no Ehrhoff as long as we re-sign Salo, I think our defense still looks pretty damn good then.
Salo is good to be a depth guy who can fill-in in the top four. Relying on him to be there when you really need him is asking for failure (re: injury history).
Ehrhoff is a great player and it will be a big blow to lose him, but he is going to command a big contract from whichever team is lucky enough to sign him. Saw this one coming, sadly.
Chicken/egg though. Last season the second unit was much stronger than the first, and it had Ehrhoff QBing it. To my eye he's a guy that makes a difference in that regard.
Having trouble understanding this, personally. They aren't replacing Ehrhoff for any cheaper and they likely aren't getting the same quality either. It's going to be tough to ice a better or even similar strength team next season without Ehrhoff.
Chicken/egg though. Last season the second unit was much stronger than the first, and it had Ehrhoff QBing it. To my eye he's a guy that makes a difference in that regard.
Having trouble understanding this, personally. They aren't replacing Ehrhoff for any cheaper and they likely aren't getting the same quality either. It's going to be tough to ice a better or even similar strength team next season without Ehrhoff.
Bingo. Look at at guy like Liles who makes 4+ million. He makes Ehrhoff look like Lidstrom.
I think most people here are being short-sighted with their views.
Ehrhoff mos tlikely wants 5M+ and he get that and more on the open market. Good for him, based on his stats he deserves it.
However, the guy was a salary dump by San Jose two years agao and that's when he was a 40pt guy. Nothing has really changed since then.
He's great on the offensive end but pretty horrible defensively. For 5M plus, you want your defenseman to be a solid 2-way player. Bieksa is better than Ehrhoff as a 2-way player, less so as a strictly offensive player.
I have no doubt MG has planned for this. We'll be fine.
I'd much rather him put together a big package and try and land a potential #1 d-man for slightly more than what Ehrhoff wants.
That and addressing the need for a legit Top 6 forward.
I think people are exaggerating the impact of Ehrhoff. He had 21 ESP and Bieksa had 19. Where Ehrhoff thrived was on the PP but I don't think he's irreplaceable, to a large extent the reason he thrived is because he was on the #1 unit and got a ton of minutes there.
And he had 30 PP points to Bieksa's 3...
The improved PP can be traced back to Ehrhoff. The twins were ineffective before he arrived with the man advantage. Then in '09-10 the 2nd unit quarterbacked by Ehrhoff outscored the Sedin unit. This past year Ehrhoff took the 1st unit to #1 in the NHL and the 2nd unit led by Bieksa was as futile as the league has ever seen.
If Ehrhoff isn't re-signed look for the PP to fall out of the top 10 IMO.
You need a slick puckhandling d with wheels to rush the puck up. Breakout plays are not always available, it really helps to be able to carry it out and be that end to end threat.
I wonder what the thinking is here. Is Connauton the guy? Would they sign Jovo if he's not resigned by Phoenix? Bieksa was heading in the direction of being that guy three or four years ago, but he seems like more of a drop-back containment defender now.
Sounds like Ballard to me! Good old MG, one step ahead.
The improved PP can be traced back to Ehrhoff. The twins were ineffective before he arrived with the man advantage. Then in '09-10 the 2nd unit quarterbacked by Ehrhoff outscored the Sedin unit. This past year Ehrhoff took the 1st unit to #1 in the NHL and the 2nd unit led by Bieksa was as futile as the league has ever seen.
If Ehrhoff isn't re-signed look for the PP to fall out of the top 10 IMO.
Bieksa had 25PP points in 08-09 before the arrival of Ehrhoff. If you look around the league, the PP setup usually has more to do with its effectiveness than any one particular player.
I'm waiting to hear from people who think Ehrhoff will be easy to replace with possible solutions that don't include an injury prone Salo on the wrong side of 30.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tiranis
Bieksa had 25PP points in 08-09 before the arrival of Ehrhoff. If you look around the league, the PP setup usually has more to do with its effectiveness than any one particular player.
..and he was more horrible defensively than Ehrhoff that season than Ehrhoff was this past season.
Salo is good to be a depth guy who can fill-in in the top four. Relying on him to be there when you really need him is asking for failure (re: injury history).
True.
I don't know, it seems like our defense managed to play through losing so many guys to injury, I just feel like they'll be able to compensate for the loss of one guy who one could argue is our 4th most important dman at times (I'd rather keep Hammer, Bieksa and Edler over Ehrhoff for sure).
Good negotiation tactic on MG's part. There is likely a part of Erhoff that wants to stay, and so far he's had all the leverage. MG has nothing to loose letting this leak out, and might gain a tiny bit of leverage.
