We are now officially a week away from the start of the free agency period in the NHL. The names are all there Hossa, Sundin, Campbell, Theodore, Redden, and everyone in between.
Here are five potential teams who could be buyers July 1.
Boston Bruins
New York Rangers
Montreal Canadiens
Philadelphia Flyers
Chicago Blackhawks
Some people will wonder what Tampa Bay will do this off-season. Well, with Barry Melrose back coaching, it could be a start. Of course, signing Lecaviler will be huge, and No. 1 pick Steven Stamkos will make an immediate impact.
And finally, those five free agents I listed above, I will give you where I think they will fit on the five teams (listed above as well).
Marian Hossa: Boston Bruins Mats Sundin: Montreal Canadiens or New York Rangers Brian Campbell: Philadelphia Flyers Wade Redden: Chicago Blackhawks Jose Theodore: Chicago Blackhawks (but most likely he will stay in Colorado. Just a possibility if he does leave)
I will be back with some more off-season buzz in the days leading up to free agency. Until then keep it happening.
Reports are that Marian Hossa is going to test the free agent market after turning down an offer to sign with the Penguins.
Hossa will indeed be the most coveted free agent on the market, and many teams will bid for him. Here are a few teams that should be in the running for Hossa.
Boston Bruins: If the Bruins indeed buy out Glen Murray, they will have some more room to work with to afford Hossa. Murray is being paid over $4 million per year and even though he wasn't bought out before the draft, I believe that he will be soon. This could be the best fit for Hossa. He could play along with Savard, and Marco Sturm or Phil Kessel on one line. Nontheless, expect the Bruins to be a major player in the Marian Hossa sweepstakes.
New York Rangers: Another good fit for Hossa would be the New York Rangers. Hossa could have Chris Drury or Scott Gomez passing the puck to him and could also play alongside the likes of Jamior Jagr or Brendan Shanahan (if they stay). The Rangers should also be a player in the Hossa sweepstakes.
Philadelphia Flyers: I'm going to throw in a wildcard team in the mix, and that indeed is the Flyers. With the Montreal Canadiens getting Alex Tanguay in a trade with Calgary, and the rumor of Mats Sundin talking to the Habs, this leaves Philadelphia in the mix. The Flyers just lost R.J. Umberger in a trade and have created some cap room for free agency. Although their biggest need is a puck moving defenseman, I wouldn't be surprised if they went after Hossa.
Out of the three, I think Hossa will go to the Bruins. We will see on July 1 if he lands anywhere, maybe even a few days after that. Should be interesting.
On this Saturday morning of June 21, here is my take on round one.
The OHL dominated the first 10 picks, with seven. Four players (Steven Stamkos, Drew Doughty, Zach Bogosian and Alex Pietrangelo) were picked in the top four. Overall 11 players from the OHL were picked in the first round. Pretty impressive.
Colin Wilson was the top college player taken in the first round. Be interesting to see what he does this off-season whether he signs with Nashville or play one more year at BU.
Joe Colborne got picked by the Bruins at No. 16. The Denver recruit (class of 2012) is built similar to Joe Thornton at 6-foot-5. Perhaps the Bruins have another Jumbo Joe in the future. Anyway, it was a good pick by the Bruins, and the fans at the Bruins Draft Party seemed to like the pick as well.
Even though this was a year for defnesemen, centers also got attention in the first round. In fact 12 d-men and 12 centers were picked. Pretty impressive.
Now to the trades:
Phoenix got the best deal of the night getting Olli Jokinen from Florida in exchange for defensemen Keith Ballard, Nick Boynton and the 49th pick of this years draft. A steal for Phoenix nonetheless.
Mike Cammalleri is now a member of the Calgary Flames.
R.J. Umberger is out of Philly and going back to Columbus. Umberger played college hockey at Ohio State.
Steve Eminger is going to Philly from Washington. Don't really understand this move, especially after the two teams met in the first round. Eminger is a good young defensman who is only going to get better. Only time will tell of John Carlson, Washington's draft pick at No. 27 will step in to fill the void. Maybe Washington could make some room for a Wade Redden too. Anyway will see if Washington wins out on this.
And finally, Alex Tanguay is now a member of the Montreal Canadiens. The Habs gave up their first round pick and second round pick in 2009 for this deal. A good move by Montreal, but will this mean they are out of the Marian Hossa sweepstakes?
And just a couple of other notes, one is Evgeni Malkin looks like he will be staying in Pittsburgh according to The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. And finally the Canadiens have recieved permission to talk to Toronto captain Mats Sundin.
That's a wrap for round one. I'll be back at the beginning of the week with some draft grades.
As we are an hour and a half away from the draft, here are some thoughts on what I heard.
The obvious choice for No. 1 is Steven Stamkos, that announcement was indeed made by the Lightning.
Evgeni Malkin has rumored to have been offered $15 million in NHL money in Russia ($12.5 million tax free per-season). Malkin's agent, has told the Toronto Globe and Mail that the rumor is not true and that his client is not interested in going back to Russia.
Thrashers named their coach, John Anderson, three hours prior to the Draft.
And finally, Bruins GM Peter Chiarelli and the team will most likely stay put at No. 16, but, did make inquiries about possibly moving up.
Thats all I have for now. I'll be back later tonight with some day one thoughts, but for now I'm going to be on my way to the Bruins Draft Party. Hope to see you there.
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