Around the league (signings, RFAs injuries)

[sagebrush]

^^
He's a classy player, & was a significant asset to the cause - until the injury.

[Topper]

Dineen and his assistants have been fired by Tallon

[tantalum]

Ah to be a coach in the NHL. GM gives you a downright terrible team and you get forced to walk the plank. Panthers are a mess. Wonder if Tallon panics and makes some trades where he ends up adding some prospects to get rid of the vets. Better for him to sit tight and just get rid of the vets at the deadline when he won't have to include other assets. Shaping up to be a wasted year for the Panthers.

In other news Luongo sends Gillis a nice thank you card.

[herb]

In other news Luongo sends Gillis a nice thank you card.

All things considered, Luongo should be sending Gillis a pretty nice freaking Christmas basket!

[Lancer]

Ah to be a coach in the NHL. GM gives you a downright terrible team and you get forced to walk the plank. Panthers are a mess. Wonder if Tallon panics and makes some trades where he ends up adding some prospects to get rid of the vets. Better for him to sit tight and just get rid of the vets at the deadline when he won't have to include other assets. Shaping up to be a wasted year for the Panthers.

In other news Luongo sends Gillis a nice thank you card.

The problem is that the vets he has are largely either a) big contracts which very few teams could afford cap-wise and even then either couldn't fit under internal budgetary restraints or just aren't interested; or b) are of limited utility and, thus, have limited marketability. Unless Tallon is interested in gathering 3rd and 4th round picks for whatever vet contracts he can jettison, he's either trading big contract for big contract (which I'm sure the owners will not like) for limited headway or he has to part with some of his precious young assets.

Something has to give, because his Chicago model is just not working and the kiddies he compiled are getting wasted down there.

The irony is that with a goalie like Luongo and a couple of other moves, that team could be a mover in the standings. If there's one thing I've learned looking at the likes of Florida, Chicago, Florida and the Isles, is that superstars forward prospects are all well and good, but a good goaltender can make all the difference in the world

[BurningBeard]

http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nhl-puck- ... --nhl.html

His frustration was becoming palpable, as was evident last week after a loss to the St. Louis Blues when he said: “We probably had three competitive guys,’’ Dineen said, mentioning Shawn Matthias, Jesse Winchester and Mike Weaver.

How bad is a team when Mike Weaver is being talked about like this?

[tantalum]

Correct his vets just aren't worth much. Which is why he will need the deadline to inflate value. Right now GMs are circling him like sharks hoping they can convince him to throw in some picks/prospects to take Player X off his hands. I don't think he will panic. Seems clear that the coaching change is designed to buy some time on the player movement front.

^^^on Weaver...Weaver is really a steady D-man. Could be in the top 6 of most if not all teams. But he is a #6 guy ideally.

[Benjo]

I remember a few years ago that statistically the Weaver-Garrison pairing was a very good shutdown pair. Garrison really shined the next year when he was paired with Campbell on the PP.

The other trouble with FLA is that they signed all those vets to bad deals just so they could get to the cap floor so if they are going to jettison vets for picks they will also likely need to take dead weight contracts back as well.

[Meds]

Correct his vets just aren't worth much. Which is why he will need the deadline to inflate value. Right now GMs are circling him like sharks hoping they can convince him to throw in some picks/prospects to take Player X off his hands. I don't think he will panic. Seems clear that the coaching change is designed to buy some time on the player movement front.

^^^on Weaver...Weaver is really a steady D-man. Could be in the top 6 of most if not all teams. But he is a #6 guy ideally.

TSN's write up on Dineen's firing talked about Tallon kicking a lot of tires to reshape the roster, but Tallon has said that its tough to make a move right now and doesn't want to pull the trigger prematurely.

I suspect that this year's trade deadline is going to be either very slow or very active, probably the former as the reduced cap is going to make things pretty tight for some teams. If there are some big moves they will be from teams like Edmonton and Buffalo.

The Oilers will make a move that sends out one of their young guns, probably Yakupov, in exchange for a package that includes a top 6 veteran with a bit of term left on his deal. They desperately need some real experience in that room to mentor the young guys. Problem with that is I think Yakupov's stock is dropping right now. He's done jack shit since being drafted, his biggest headline has been his Theo Fleury impression last season. If MacTavish had half a brain he would have traded Yakupov and a 2nd to Florida last year in exchange for their 1st. The Oilers could then have drafted Jones and Nichushkin. And they should also have tried to trade up in the 2nd round to pick up Zach Fucale. That would have given them a top prospect on the blueline, replaced Yak on the wing with someone who brings skill with more size, something they desperately need up front, and also a top prospect goaltender, another gaping hole in their organization. Since I hate Edmonton, and they are a divisional riv....errr.....opponent, I'm glad that nobody in that organization has any brains.

Buffalo will look to move out Miller. If they are smart they will do everything they can to get a return that sets them up to have a shot at a 2015 1st overall pick. A 1-2 punch of McDavid and Hodgson might look really scary coming at you in 3 or 4 years. I won't be surprised to see Ehrhoff moved either. If Gillis could somehow pull off a miracle that sent Booth and something to the Sabers in exchange for Hoff.....that would be amazing.

[herb]

Edit - wrong thread

[dbr]

I suspect that this year's trade deadline is going to be either very slow or very active,

Really sticking your neck out with that prediction

[Meds]

I suspect that this year's trade deadline is going to be either very slow or very active,

Really sticking your neck out with that prediction

Totally.

[dbr]

15. I spent some time on the Panthers website. The way their hockey operations department is listed is a little, um, odd. Panthers owner Vinnie Viola made it very clear when he bought the team that it would be a family-style operation, which is no problem. But is son Travis the No. 1 hockey person in the organization? Maybe some time in the future. But this seems a little soon.

Link

you-know-wots and their "family-style operations"

[BurningBeard]

15. I spent some time on the Panthers website. The way their hockey operations department is listed is a little, um, odd. Panthers owner Vinnie Viola made it very clear when he bought the team that it would be a family-style operation, which is no problem. But is son Travis the No. 1 hockey person in the organization? Maybe some time in the future. But this seems a little soon.

Link

you-know-wots and their "family-style operations"

Here's the website being talked about, and the fact that Travis Viola is listed as VP Hockey Operations, above the Panthers AGM, and under only Tallon himself. Travis is 25 years old by the way.

http://panthers.nhl.com/club/page.htm?id=37734

All that said, I hear he's been running some interesting tests through NHL 14', and he's read the entire "If you had $64,000,000, how would you build your NHL Team?" thread, so he's probably qualified at this point.

[herb]

^ Characterizing that as a joke would be an insult to comedians everywhere.