Trade Rumors and Free Agent TalkTrade rumors, transactions, and free agent talk. Rumors must contain the word RUMOR in post title. Proposals must contain the word PROPOSAL in post title.
Anyone else laugh at the way Bryzgalov's contact is structured? It is like he knew the chance of a lockout was very high. Huge salary last year, much lower amount this year, jumping way back up next year.
Unlike the clever Bryzgalov, a lot of guys have their peak earning year this season. They stand to lose big time. Funny that guys like Horcoff and Lecavalier are NHLPA representatives, and probably fought hard on the make-whole agreement. Now that this strategy has cost them the season they stand to lose more than they would have under a salary rollback/quick resolution (if a resolution were possible early on).
The Canucks are 4th in team revenues btw, ahead of the Flyers and behind only Montreal, Toronto and NY Rangers. The big 3 Canadian teams would emerge the winners in a cap-free voided contract environment. I doubt the NHL will be able to get all contracts voided though. I'm hoping that the legal threats are just fall-back plans, and they will come to an agreement like the NBA did when it came to this point. However, if all players become UFA, so much for teams like Edmonton that tried to rebuild through the draft.
Vancouver may be 4th in revenues, but it wouldn't mean all that much as I believe the report stated that the Leafs, Rangers and Canadiens make more than the rest of the league combined.
For the record it is a lot more likely that the NHLPA would want the contracts voided than the NHL.
If all contracts were voided and every player became a free agent, what star would ever sign in Columbus willingly? Or Phoenix? Or Nashville? Toronto would offer up $20 mill for Crosby or Malkin easily. Edmonton has some money, but do you really think they could afford to match offers of $10 mil for all of their big 4? I think 10-15 of the franchises would fold if all contracts got voided, or the sport would look like the EPL where only 5-6 "big" teams actually compete, the rest just jockey for position as a formality and hope to develop some good prospects they can sell for money / profit down the line.
All the teams are going to lose but there are teams who are going to lose less.
Columbus has 3 1st in this draft: Their's NYR's and LA's.
If the season played out NYR and LA would be playoff teams, but now, their teams are in the running for the top pick. Using the old system, the Blue Jackets would have 5 balls in the hopper for picks.
Toronto will lose a lot of bad contracts. Connolly and Lombardi and there will be an over grown UFA class because some of the players who were RFA's and UFAs last year will not have been signed. TO loses; Connolly, Lupul, Lombardi, MacArthur, Bozak, Steckle.
This might also save Burke's job. A Luongo trade and solid UFA signings and the Maple Leafs will be a playoff team.
Mike Ribeiro, Caps traded for him and may lose for nothing. I hope GMGM was smart enough to talk about that with him before the lockout started.
i honestly dont think mcphee traded for him with idea of keeping him beyond this one season. he was a year long rental. so...if they lose the season, ribiero was not in their plans beyond the one season.
We get to burn Khabi's final year without watching him.
But at the same time, we risk Smid walking away.
Jones will likely re-sign. And Whitney loves it here, although at this point I am not sure if Tambo even gives him a decent offer.
I am fine with burning Gagner's 1 year. It doesn't give him much of a leg to stand on when he is back at the table.
They also lose at the draft (potentially... statistically likely)
If there was a season, you would probably be drafting top 10.. maybe higher... If there is a full season lock-out you will have one ball, and probably draft 20-30.
but...
Edmonton gets an extra year to develop there young guns (most playing together). Schultz gets to gain experience/chemistry with his new teammates before the NHL begins.
What are you rambling on about? Did you actually bother to read my post?
My post's opinion is that teams that have a minimal number of players who's contracts expire prior to next year's season, especially core players, will be a more stable team during the 2013-14 season while teams with a lot of UFA's and RFA's could lose some of those UFA's & RFA's due to a feeding frenzy or have to over pay to keep those UFA's. Radical roster changes usually take a year or two for the players to settle down and gel as a team.
Stability aside, the Canucks are losing a year on their "window". The organization is losing a year of revenue. The Sedins could be 33 by the time next year starts. They could lose Edler for nothing, and no Ballard is not a replacement for their #1 defenceman.
I can't see how this year is anything but a negative.
Same can be said for any team in "win now" mode: Detroit, Boston, Chicago, etc..
Calgary Flames will take a hit with an aging team. Jarome needs to be resigned and won't make as much because his window to win is closing and don't think that he walks in free agency.
Things could go either way for the Flames:
1) If things played out this year like they did last year, then Iginla would be retained, and the Flames would get a 12-16 type of pick (not spectacular).
2) If there is no season, Iginla may or may not be re-signed. The Flames, however, have a shot at a much higher draft pick.
So it all boils down to what happens with Iginla and how the Flames do in the next draft. There is a good chance Iginla would have not been traded at the deadline regardless of the lockout. If the Flames walk away with a top 5 pick, they win regardless.
I think Chicago will benefit greatly, probably more so than any other contender.
They buy a year of crappy goaltending and could pick up a fairly solid replacement for Emery, like a Tim Thomas or Nick Backstrom.
All of their young guns have an extra year of seasoning, like Danault, McNeill, Saad, Morin etc and are hopefully ready for 13-14 to replace guys like Mayers, Bickell, and Kruger.
Canucks benefit quite a bit, Kesler is the obvious reason as he's still a few months away from being 100%.
Also gives our prospects more time to develop (I know, every team can say this), players like Schroeder, Jensen, and Kassian have more time to prove they are ready for the big leagues.
Ballard was also just getting over a concussion in the latter half of last season.
In Edmonton: Anything that shortens Horcs contract is awesome... Haha as for Smid I really can't see him walking, he married a edmontonian and truly seems to enjoy it here. That'd be a huge loss though.
I think overall it could be a good thing for Detroit. Yes Z, Kronner, Pav, and Franzen get a year older but they also get a year off or in a much less physical league to heal up. These guys outside of Kronner have all had some nagging injuries over the past few years, so a downer year might negate some of the wear and tear on their bodies.
No NHL = our older prospects not getting as annoyed about having to play in the AHL. The Wings have signed some older players to unnecessary multi-year contracts which means there isn't a whole lot of space for the kids. A lost year eats up one of those years off the older guys contracts and prevents the kids from feeling like they should be in NHL and not playing as well in the AHL. The AHL is also extra competitive this year so I don't think its a huge issue to have some NHL ready guys down there. The Griffs are a very young team and the added leadership roles for Smith, Nyquist, and Tatar can only be a good thing.
1 more year of minor league play should mean that Tatar, Nyquist, Smith, Andersson, and Jarnkrok should all be ready for NHL duty. The Wings are going to get a lot younger really fast in the next couple of seasons, and I'm excited to see it.
The only negatives could be that Flip and Howard will be UFAs. I'm not too concerned about Howard because while he has played he hasn't been elite consistently. That means that the Wings should be able to lock him up for between 3.5-5 mil per season. I am however a bit worried about Flip. He will be coming off a breakout season and has a lot of attractive qualities. I could easily see teams overpaying for him, and I would be a bit worried about the Wings matching because he has not consistently displayed a high end offensive game.
All the teams are going to lose but there are teams who are going to lose less.
Columbus has 3 1st in this draft: Their's NYR's and LA's.
If the season played out NYR and LA would be playoff teams, but now, their teams are in the running for the top pick. Using the old system, the Blue Jackets would have 5 balls in the hopper for picks.
Toronto will lose a lot of bad contracts. Connolly and Lombardi and there will be an over grown UFA class because some of the players who were RFA's and UFAs last year will not have been signed. TO loses; Connolly, Lupul, Lombardi, MacArthur, Bozak, Steckle.
This might also save Burke's job. A Luongo trade and solid UFA signings and the Maple Leafs will be a playoff team.
If the players decertify those 3 firsts turn into 3 nothings. By the looks of it decertification is the players answer to a lockout.
Leafs benefit alot, lose MacA, Steckel, Connolly, Lombardi, the Armstrong/Tucker buyouts will only have 1 year left, and a year off of rights of Komi. Opening up 3/4 spots for forward prospects would be great, could be something like this;
-----------------------------------------
Joffrey Lupul ($5.000m) / Tyler Bozak ($2.250m) / Phil Kessel ($5.400m)
James Van Riemsdyk ($4.250m) / Mikhail Grabovski ($5.500m) / Nikolai Kulemin ($2.800m)
Brad Ross ($0.900m) / Nazem Kadri ($2.100m) / Matt Frattin ($0.925m)
Leo Komarov ($1.250m) / Jay McClement ($1.500m) / Mike Brown ($0.737m)
DEFENSEMEN
Dion Phaneuf ($6.500m) / Carl Gunnarsson ($1.325m)
Jake Gardiner ($1.117m) / Korbinian Holzer ($0.575m)
John-Michael Liles ($3.875m) / Jesse Blacker ($0.870m)
Mike Komisarek ($4.500m) /
GOALTENDERS
James Reimer ($1.800m)
Ben Scrivens ($0.613m)
BUYOUTS
Darcy Tucker ($1.000m) / Colby Armstrong ($1.000m)
------
SALARY CAP: $70,200,000; CAP PAYROLL: $68,385,833; BONUSES: $682,500
CAP SPACE (25-man roster): $2,496,667
Stability aside, the Canucks are losing a year on their "window". The organization is losing a year of revenue. The Sedins could be 33 by the time next year starts. They could lose Edler for nothing, and no Ballard is not a replacement for their #1 defenceman.
I can't see how this year is anything but a negative.
Same can be said for any team in "win now" mode: Detroit, Boston, Chicago, etc..
can't dwell on the negative. What has happened, has happened. Though the team lost a year of the window they had, they gain a bit more of a lead over a lot of teams for the 2013-14 season (as does Boston).
If teams are not able to negotiate with any player, including their own, until July 1, 2013, the Canucks are about the strongest western team with core players already signed for the 2013-14 and beyond. Other teams with the extra year to develop their prospects will rapidly gain ground but only after those prospects have 2 or 3 years to get used to each other and the level of play needed in the NHL. It doesn't take much to sign 23 players, but it takes time to get them to play as a team.
The Canucks would start the 2013-14 season with almost all their core players as well as a couple of their core prospects, already signed now.
*Gaunce, Corrado, Mallet, Lack & Cannata are all signed but would stay in AHL for now.
That is a pretty solid core to start the season with. Especially seeing bottom six forwards & 3rd pairing D's are much easier & cheaper to find than top six and top 4.
The only core Canuck players that would turn UFA are Edler and Higgins.
The only core Canuck prospects that would turn RFA & be open to an offer sheet would be Tanev and Schroeder. There are a lot of players becoming RFA's and also open to offer sheets that are far more skilled then Tanev and Schroeder that the Canucks could go after. The Canucks still have all their picks for the 2014-15 season.
Above average players (all teams) that turn UFA and who the Canucks could try to sign are:
When a cup contending team with bucks and not needing to add much has the parent team not able to negotiate with their own player any sooner than the Canucks, this gives the Canucks a huge advantage to target specific players they want. This is a vast difference to a team like Toronto who have the bucks also, but need to acquire far more quality players than a team like the Canucks. The Leafs might sign two or three players and still be short where as the Canucks already have a full core team and are only improving on that or filling in non core roster spots. Imagine getting one or two of Iginla, Perry, Getzlaf, Penner, Gagne or Lupul without having to give up any assets.
Not having a season, could mean you don't have a strong season to convince a guy like Perry to re-sign (Getz due to external circumstances such as his wife, is very likely to re-sign). On the flip side, you avoid a potential bad season that may give him more reason to explore other offers.
Selanne may retire. Or, perhaps the extra year of rest will have him want one more year and be less tired and ready to go.
You can re-sign RFAs like Palmieri for cheaper than you would if they played and had a nice season. Guys like Lindholm, Etem, Palmieri, Holland, DSP all gained more experience and a better shot to make the big club.
Guys like Souray and Allen become only two year deals, so not as bad should they fail.
Lydman and his $3M is gone, to open a spot for a cheaper youngster (like Lindholm).
All in all, I think there are enough positives for Anaheim in this scenario.
However, the lockout still makes everyone losers, period.
