PuckUpdate :: The Hockey Blog » Blackhawks

Atlanta Roller Coaster and Chicago’s Dilemma

Steven Ovadia — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 10:54:29 +0000

So the past few weeks have been a bit of an emotional roller coaster for Thrashers fans.

Before the Olympics, the team traded away Ilya Kovalchuk. That was a little sad.

Then, GM Don Waddell said the team would be buyers at the trade deadline, rather than sellers. And that had to make the fans happy.

But then, the Thrashers signed Chris Chelios, age 48. And that had to be a huge disappointment.

Chelios is basically injury insurance, but I can’t believe there wasn’t a player of similar quality available for a similar salary, but at half the age. Or even less than half the age.

It’s just a very odd signing. Like instead of making a big move to substantially improve the team, Waddell decided to make a big move everyone would talk about.

Of course, he succeeded. But he would have been just as successful if had signed someone from the Braves to an NHL contract.

Speaking of GMs, it’ll be interesting to see what Blackhawks GM Stan Bowman does at the trade deadline.

Last night’s loss to the Islanders seemed to be Olympic fatigue meeting shaky goaltending.

Will the Blackhawks try and upgrade their goaltending? Will they stand pat (they traded for defenseman Nick Boynton but sent him straight to the NHL) and hope that everyone gets rested?

One theory is the Blackhawks will use their defensive depth to make some big deadline deals. But without a significant goaltending upgrade, and I’m not sure there’s anyone available who’s much better than goalie Cristobal Huet, any defensive sacrifices are going to pretty much lead straight to goals.

Bruins Hold Their Middle

Steven Ovadia — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 11:07:15 +0000

Fourth-liner Byron Bitz has been seeing some time on the first line with Marc Savard (and Blake Wheeler) and is expected to play up there tonight against Montreal.

The Bruins just re-signed Savard. I hadn’t considered this, but part of the reason they wanted to lock Savard down is to give them long-term depth down the middle, a la the Penguins. Savard is joined by fellow centers Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci. While Bergeron is an unrestricted free agent next season, Fluto Shinzawa writes he expects Bergeron to have his contract extended sooner rather than later.

The center-depth strategy is kind of interesting. Part of the rationale behind it seems to be that a good center can elevate an average player. We saw it last season with Bill Guerin and Sidney Crosby and it seems we’re starting to see a comparable effect with Bitz and Savard.

Although, there’s definitely something to be said for a strong top line, like we’ve seen in San Jose with Patrick Marleau, Dany Heatley, and Joe Thornton. But then again, the Sharks don’t have the best post-season record, so maybe they’d be better off going with strength down the middle, rather than strength along one line.

Speaking of signings, here is my take on the Duncan Keith, Patrick Kane, Jonathan Toews contract extensions in Chicago. I love that Kane and Toews were given relatively short-term deals. It gives Chicago flexibility but is also a lot less pressure on two very young players.

NHL Is a Two Financial Tier League

Steven Ovadia — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 10:53:42 +0000

Forbes released their annual NHL franchise valuations and things actually look pretty good for the league. Or at least for some of the franchises. The average operating profit was $6.1 million, aggregate income increased, as did average franchise value.

Unfortunately, this wasn’t an across the board thing for the all of the franchises. While successful teams like Pittsburgh, Washington, and Chicago are doing great (as one might expect), other franchises like Nashville, Atlanta, the Islanders, and, of course, the Coyotes, are struggling. Here is the Forbes valuation chart.

One thing the article doesn’t mention that I’m curious about: the Stars and Avs, two seemingly successful franchises, lost $10 million and $11 million in value, respectively. I’m not sure if that’s a business loss of some kind that has nothing to do with the actual franchises, or if something else is going on.

Looking at the list of struggling franchises (and I’m assuming Dallas and Colorado aren’t actually struggling, that they just lost some value this year), you can’t help but wonder when the NHL is going to contract. You have wildly successful teams rubbing elbows with teams that can’t fill their arenas and can’t attract a buyer. Why not cut the fat and streamline league profits?

Speaking of value, the Blackhawks are about to see some return on their investment in Marian Hossa: he’s expected to begin contact drills this week, putting him one step closer to making his season debut. Like everyone else, I’m very curious how/if he’ll fit in with the rest of the team.

Also, here is my look at Jean-Sebastien Giguere’s demand to be made the starting goalie in Anaheim.

Halpern Returns to DC

Steven Ovadia — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 12:36:13 +0000

Not that he’s horribly objective, but Jeff Halpern expects the Lightning to be much more successful this year.

Tarik El-Bashir caught up with him in DC and it’s interesting to hear Halpern talk about how hard it was for him to leave the Caps. Halpern also talks about the pressures of being in a contract year.

Speaking of Dallas, Mike Heika doesn’t believe the Stars will trade Brad Richards to the Rangers for Brandon Dubinsky, Michael Rozsival, and a prospect. Richards and Rozsival are interesting in that they’re both fine players who are just absurdly overpaid. The Richards-to-the-Rangers rumblings continue because of Richards’ reputation as a Tortorella guy. Truthfully, if the Rangers are intent on adding a Tortorella pet, I think they’d be better off trying to get Martin St. Louis out of Tampa.

Also, Chris Zupke had a funny, short post on how much trouble NHLers seem to get into during the off-season. Although, I do like that Patrick Kane’s TaxiGate got LeBron James to talk about the NHL. And I’m sure James loved the chance to not talk about his expiring contract.

KHL is Natural; Esche’s Stardom? Not So Much

Steven Ovadia — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 13:03:24 +0000

Every few months, I tend to think the KHL is making inroads into eventually overtaking the NHL. Yesterday’s reported signing of Nik Zherdev is a blow to the NHL in that if Zherdev didn’t have the KHL out, he probably would have worked harder on his NHL game. Zherdev might not ever reach his full potential in the KHL, but if he does, we’ll miss it here in North America.

But the fact that the KHL is using journeyman goalie Robert Esche as the centerpiece of a publicity campaign makes me think the NHL really has nothing to fear.

Nothing against Esche, of course, but he’s hardly a household name. When people think of quality NHL goaltending, I’m not sure he’s one of the first 10 or 20 names people flip to. He’s a solid goalie, but not the kind I would build a marketing campaign around.

But even if the KHL isn’t a real threat to the NHL, it still serves a purpose. I like that it gives players options. Esche didn’t want to be an NHL backup, so he gets to be a star overseas. It’s like when American baseball players go to Japan. We’ve always seen some degree of international movement in sports, especially with older players trying to extend their careers. It seems for the most part (Sergei Zubov, Jaromir Jagr) the KHL is just the natural continuation of that trend.

But seriously. The KHL might need to invest in a course on how to promote. Those Esche stills look like outtakes from a Japanese cereal commercial/game show.

Also, totally unrelated, but Don Brennan has the line of the week on his blog.

Kane Tips and Zherdev Walks

Steven Ovadia — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 15:21:30 +0000

I’m really not too interested in the Patrick Kane cabdriver altercation story, because there’s really no way to know what went down in that cab. And I’m not sure we ever will know. But Chris Kuc has an interesting post remembering Kane interacting with another cabbie, leaving the driver with a huge tip.

Obviously, one anecdote doesn’t absolve (or condemn) Kane, but it’s an interesting shade to yet another story that pulls the NHL into the mainstream media and paints the league in a negative light.

Also, it looks like former Ranger Nik Zherdev is going to play in the KHL.

The Rangers walked away from Zherdev’s $3.9 million arbitration award. Despite Zherdev’s frustrating ability to disappear for weeks at a time, I really thought another NHL team would make him an offer. His price tag was huge, but I thought the glimmers of tremendous talent would prove too tempting to an NHL GM locked out of the top-tier free agents. A team like the Islanders, which still doesn’t seem to have any scoring wings and has trouble attracting talent, would have been an interesting fit.

But Zherdev didn’t even leave much time for that to happen. It seems like he was done with the NHL much more than the NHL was done with him.

Honoring the Fog; Trading Hindsight

Steven Ovadia — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 11:18:16 +0000

This weekend, Tim Panaccio had a great piece on the great Freddy Shero, who for whatever reason, isn’t in the Hockey Hall of Fame.

Coach Shero was innovative, yet complicated. He was very old school, even for the 1970s, yet he was always ready to embrace a new idea.

Panaccio says Shero might not be in the Hall because no one really got to know him personally.

Yesterday’s piece explains why they called Shero “The Fog.” It has nothing to do with his absent-mindedness. It had to do with his ability to see a puck through the fog during a particularly foggy minor league game.

I think I’ve recommended this before, but if you ever get a chance to pick-up SHERO, THE MAN BEHIND THE SYSTEM, by Shero, I highly recommend it. It’s complex hockey ideas explained in very plain language. And it’s a great insight into a fascinating man.

Also, Larry Brooks had an interesting piece yesterday, reporting that Chicago GM Dale Tallon essentially lost his job when he tried to trade goalie Nikolai Khabibulin for Michael Nylander.

In hindsight, that looks like an awful deal, when you consider that Khabibulin helped play Chicago into the playoffs. But back in November or December, Khabibulin was an expensive spare. And while Nylander never really fit into Washington’s north-south attack, his creativity could have really worked well with quite a few of the young Blackhawk forwards.

Plus, don’t forget the Blackhawks didn’t re-sign Khabibulin, and so lost him for nothing. At least Tallon tried to get some return on the investment.

The Curious Tweets of Martin Havlat

Steven Ovadia — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 11:11:59 +0000

I like the NHL offseason because it sometimes turns into high school.

Like Dale Tallon gets whacked in Chicago, and Martin Havlat jumps on Twitter to drop some cryptic messages:

I guess everyone saw what happened to Dale….yes, the story is starting to come out but it’s just the tip of the iceberg.

What are we even supposed to do with that? Is Havlat confusing Twitter and LiveJournal?

It’s cool that Havlat is so accessible, but some of his work needs to be edited:

As I said before, I didn’t leave Chicago, it left me.

If you substitute Chicago for New Jersey, you have the shell of a really great Bruce Springsteen parody.

My favorite Havlat Tweet from yesterday was this one. Mrs. PuckUpdate and I are re-watching THE X-FILES, so I like to pretend David Duchovny is saying it:

Lot’s of people are telling me to stay quiet but shouldn’t the fans know the truth? It’s your loyalty, season ticket money and emotions here

I’m totally getting Havlat this poster for his birthday:

As weird as all of those Tweets were, though, I truly did enjoy watching an athlete get so candid in such a public way. While I’m making fun of said candor, there’s actually something very sweet and innocent about Havlat, and I’m not sure I would have seen that side of him without Twitter.

I wish Sergei Zubov was on Twitter. Then maybe we could get some insight into where he’s heading.

First, it sounded like he’s out of Dallas and now it seems like the Stars are open to keeping him, assuming he’s healthy. Zubov’s last season was rough, but he’s a smart player, so while he does need a baseline level of fitness, he can really get away with playing at like 75%, just by knowing exactly when and where he can cheat. If the Stars can get him to re-sign for a decent price, I don’t know why they’d even consider letting him leave for nothing. Even if he spends half the season injured again, you can still put him to work mentoring your younger defensemen. There just aren’t a lot of offensive defensemen like Zubov kicking around the league. The Stars should do what they can to keep him around. He can’t leave Dallas and Dallas can’t leave him. The truth is in him.

Senators Lose Leverage and Increase Demands

Steven Ovadia — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 13:21:13 +0000

There’s a lot I don’t get about the Dany Heatley ransom demands.

Like why are the Oilers so hot for a player who so obviously doesn’t want to play for them? Are they only interested because they know he’ll demand a trade in another two seasons? Do they think they can change him?

And as the demand for Heatley has pretty much entirely evaporated (which is really saying something in the NHL, where there was even a market for Sean Avery after his “sloppy seconds” penance was over), Ottawa is increasing what they want back for Heatley. You just have to bow down to Ottawa GM Bryan Murray’s business sense/powers of denial. He wants more for a player no one else really wants and who everyone knows doesn’t want to play in Ottawa. Most GMs would just love to have an ungrateful Heatley’s salary off of their cap. Murray is looking to make the deal of the century. I’d love to give him a really basic ECON101 textbook, just to see his mind blown as he sees the actual rules of supply and demand.

And I’d love to see Edmonton take a stand and stop chasing players who don’t want to play for them. If you want a contract offer from the Oilers, the quickest path is to say you prefer not to play in Edmonton. And somehow, players like Jay Bouwmeester and Ryan Smyth, who actively wanted to play there, wind up someplace else.

Also, people are making a big deal about Marian Hossa’s mammoth Chicago contract and it’s really overshadowing one of their very smart, smaller moves: their signing of John Madden. Madden still has tremendous speed, even at 36, so he won’t slow the ‘Hawks down. His defensive prowess is legendary. His work ethic is unmatched. He’s the perfect players for the Blackhawks. I think he’s going to have some real influence on the team’s development.

Dallas Finally Goes With Solo GM

Steven Ovadia — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 11:10:48 +0000

I love Joe Nieuwendyk taking over as GM in Dallas.

First of all, just the move to a single GM model is pretty huge for the Stars. That alone makes this a great move. But you also have to love Nieuwendyk’s pedigree. He’s a player who knows how to win. Not only did he win the Stanley Cup with three different teams, but he had different roles with each of the three teams, from offensive force to calming veteran to defensive specialist. And even at the end of his career, when he was injured more than he was healthy, he still found ways to be effective. He’s got a tremendous hockey IQ and I’m guessing it will translate to the GM’s office. I’m also guessing Dallas coach Dave Tippett will be on a very, very short leash to start the season. I imagine Nieuwendyk is watching the playoffs and seeing the value of a strong, aggressive forecheck — a style Tippett has fairly consistently avoided.

Allan Muir also likes the move in Dallas, but cautions that Nieuwendyk could stand a bit more seasoning.

Also, Bucky Gleason has a terrifying theory that the Blackhawks could be the Sabres of the Western Conference in terms of an inability to retain key players on a successful team. Of course, I kind of think the Blackhawks will at least extend offers to players they’d like to keep, while that was never the style of the Sabres.