The first round elimination of the Anaheim Ducks not only means there will be a new Stanley Cup champion in 2008 but also the possibility that the NHL careers of Scott Niedermayer and Teemu Selanne might finally be over.

This unexpectedly early exit by the defending champs will raise questions about their off-season plans. The most significant:

- Rumors of GM Brian Burke possibly leaving to take over as team president or GM of the Toronto Maple Leafs have been swirling for months.

- Burke or his successor if he leaves will have to determine if they’ve got enough money to retain their key free agent players.

- Corey Perry is a restricted free agent whom they must re-sign before July 1st to prevent him getting an offer sheet from a rival club.

- Veteran forward Doug Weight faces an uncertain future as he probably won’t be re-signed.

- Trade rumors will likely dog the team over their lack of offensive production this season, among the lowest in the NHL.

But the most immediate question will be the respective futures of Niedermayer and Selanne, who kept fans guessing throughout last summer and the first half of this season if they’d return to the Ducks or retire.

Eventually they returned, which bolstered the Ducks in the regular season but ultimately their presence wasn’t enough to prevent the Dallas Stars from ending Anaheim’s dreams of consecutive championships.

Their contract situations are identical to last summer. Selanne is again an unrestricted free agent while Niedermayer is signed through next season at $6.75 million, although he now only has that one season remaining.

Considering that Ryan Getzlaf and Chris Kunitz re-signed new contracts that begin next season which will take up $5.325 and $3.725 million per season respectively, that could rule out a possible return of Selanne if he so desired.

Burke is on record as saying he won’t be as patient with Niedermayer as he was last year when awaiting his future plans, which means the Ducks GM will probably want a decision from the smooth-skating blueliner before July 1st, perhaps sooner.

It’s unlikely Niedermayer and Selanne will take as long to make decisions on their respective hockey-playing futures as they did this season. It’s possible a decision from both could come as early as this week.

If this season was, indeed, the real last dance for Niedermayer and Selanne, it will bring to a close two future Hall of Fame careers.

Niedermayer has been one of the best defensemen of his era and certainly ranked among the very best in NHL history. He was a key member of four Stanley Cup championship teams (three with New Jersey and one with Anaheim), won the Norris trophy in 2004 as the league’s best defenseman and the Conn Smythe trophy as the 2007 playoff MVP.

Selanne has been of the most exciting goals-corers of his era, with 552 goals and 1158 points in 1067 games. He set the existing NHL rookie record for single season goals (76) and points (132) as the 1992-93 rookie of the year, won the Richard trophy as the 1999 NHL goal-scoring leader, the Masterton in 2006 for perseverance, and a Stanley Cup with Anaheim.

The Vancouver Canucks missed the playoffs this season for the second time in three years which spurred speculation roster changes were coming. On Monday, however, the ax fell on general manager Dave Nonis.

Despite the Canucks futility during Nonis’ three-year tenure, this move still seems surprising. The Canucks only narrowly missed the playoffs in 2006 and 2008, and Nonis was generally considered as having done a good job in taking over for former GM Brian Burke.

The Canucks struggled in 2005-06 was due in large part to a lack of strong goaltending and quality defense, as well as the distraction from Todd Bertuzzi’s legal troubles from his on-ice attack on former Colorado Avalanche Steve Moore in 2004.

Nonis had to make some difficult decisions heading into the summer of 2006. In addition to the aforementioned, there was talk that the team had grown tired of head coach Marc Crawford, and with limited cap space he faced the loss of puck-moving defenseman Ed Jovanovski to free agency.

Nonis acted quickly, pulling off the blockbuster deal of the decade by shipping the unhappy Bertuzzi with two players to the Florida Panthers for all-star goalie Roberto Luongo, defenseman Lukas Krajicek and a draft pick, and peddled goalie Dan Cloutier to the LA Kings.

Nonis also moved to improve his team’s defense corps, signing veteran defenseman Willie Mitchell as an unrestricted free agent and re-signing Mattias Ohlund and Sami Salo to long-term contracts. Krajicek turned into pleasant surprise having a strong performance in the 2006-07 season.

Two notable forward re-signings were the Sedin Twins, who emerged over the last two seasons as the Canucks offensive leaders.

He also hired Alain Vigneault to replace Crawford as head coach, and under Vigneault the Canucks improved to a franchise record 105 point performance in 2006-07, earning him the Adams trophy as NHL coach of the year.

Nonis also did a good job at the draft table, selecting promising youngsters Cory Schneider, Mason Raymond, Alexander Edler, and Luc Bourdon.

Injuries to several key defensemen and center Brendan Morrisont his season severely hampered the Canucks , as did the decline in production of team captain Markus Naslund,and they slid to an 88 point performance and out of the post-season.

Nonis acknowledged at season’s end that his club needed to bolster their offensive depth, and while he was adamant against trading away his promising youth, suggested the willingness to perhaps trade a defenseman or shopin this summer’s UFA market. for scoring help.

While the Canucks are still a work in progress, it’s clear that Nonis was doing his best to build the team the right way, from the net out. Had the Canucks been healthier this season, odds are they would’ve made the playoffs despite their offensive struggles and Nonis wouldn't have lost his job.

It appears that team ownership has panicked, making Nonis the scapegoat for the club’s step back this season.

Nonis couldn’t be blamed for the lack of cap space available to him over the last two years to bolster his scoring depth when the club’s defensive needs and the retention of the Sedins took priority, and certainly couldn’t be faulted for the rash of injuries that dogged the team throughout the season.

Having proven that he’s capable of making smart trades and free agent signings to address his team’s previously biggest needs, he deserved the opportunity this summer to address the club’s offensive shortfalls.

It’s puzzling why ownership would make this decision, and it’ll be interesting to see who they decide to bring in as Nonis’ replacement.

 A rumor in the Toronto Sun this past weekend hinted that former GM Burke was apparently interested in returning to Vancouver, so don’t be surprised if this speculation gains steam in the coming days if ownership doesn’t immediately announce Nonis’ successor.

In response to one of my readers, I think the title of this post neatly sums up my feelings about the foot-dragging of Anaheim's Scott Niedermayer and Teemu Selanne regarding retirement.

Throughout the off-season we've heard that both players were "leaning toward retirement". It's easy to understand why. Niedermayer had won everything at every level of the game that a professional hockey defenseman can win and now has nothing left to prove, while Selanne could cap his sixteen year NHL career by going out at the top of his game with a Stanley Cup ring.

Yet here it is September, NHL training camps are opening next week, and no real word yet from either guy. The Ducks have called a press conference for today to discuss Niedermayer's status, where it's believed they'll announce he hasn't yet made up his mind about retirement but won't be attending the start of the Ducks training camp.

If this were any other player than a star of Niedermayer's caliber, Ducks GM Brian Burke would be publicly lambasting this guy for his indecisiveness, telling the blueliner to make up his mind or Burke would make it for him.

As for Selanne, he's an unrestricted free agent but he's believed taking his cue off Niedermayer, since any attempt at returning to the Ducks this season will likely require Niedermayer to retire in order to free up the cap space for Burke to re-sign "the Finnish Flash".

But with Niedermayer still under contract for two more years at $6.75 million per, his indecisiveness is not only handcuffing Burke if he wants to re-sign Selanne but also limiting any potential player roster decisions that could emerge during training camp or early in the season.

I have great respect for Niedermayer and Selanne, and having gone through a major career change myself recently, I acknowledge that retiring from something you've done for most of your life isn't easy.

But their indecisiveness isn't fair to Ducks management, players or fans. Niedermayer and Selanne have had over two months to decide on retirement, more than enough time to weight the pros and cons.

Either retire or don't, fellas, but make a decision soon!

One week after the Edmonton Oilers signed Anaheim Ducks forward Dustin Penner to a five-year, $21.5 million contract, Ducks general manager Brian Burke announced he wouldn’t match the offer, allowing Penner to officially become an Oiler.

In return the Ducks will receive as compensation the Oilers first, second and third round picks in 2008.

Debate has been considerable both on this blog and elsewhere in hockey cyberspace as to whether or not this is a good signing by the Oilers.

It’s obvious that Penner at this point in his career isn’t worth a $4.3 million per season salary, but that’s what it took – an unmatchable offer – for Oilers GM Kevin Lowe to ensure he’d get his man.

For Burke, it’s easier to let Penner walk, although he bears the responsibility for allowing this situation to occur in the first place. If he’d re-signed Penner to a more reasonable $2-$2.5 million per season contract (comparable that which the Oilers signed Joffrey Lupul to last year), none of this would’ve happened.

Still, it’s a minor loss for Burke, who was likely more upset over the fact it was his good buddy Lowe who signed away Penner.

Burke’s priority is to ensure he re-signs the better-talented former linemates of Penner, Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry.

Both these players become restricted free agents next summer, and both are likely to command as much – if not more – than what their former linemate received from the Oilers.

And if Burke hopes to prevent another team from trying to pitch those two offer sheets next July, he’d best be starting contract talks now, before their respective performances in the upcoming season potentially drives their value even higher.

Don’t blame Penner for signing that offer sheet, Ducks fans. He saw a chance to make big money, much more than he was being offer by the Ducks, and decided to take it, thus ensuring financial security for himself and his family.

And don’t blame Kevin Lowe for pitching that offer, for he’s fully entitled to do so under the CBA. Burke had plenty of time and opportunity to keep Penner off the market and failed to do so.

All eyes will now be on the Oilers next season and how well Penner performs.

Kevin Lowe is taking a huge gamble with Penner, one that could end up costing him his job.

If Penner plays like the second coming of John LeClair (or even a reasonable facsimile), Lowe will look like a genius for not only signing him away from the Ducks, but getting him for a bargain price of $4.3 million per season for five years.

However, if Penner should fold like his former Ducks teammates Lupul did last season with the Oilers, Lowe will have saddled his team with an immovable contract eating up valuable cap space, and that could end up being the epitaph of his career as the Oilers’ general manager.

It’s a huge risk, and even if Penner plays reasonably well there’s no certainty that he’ll make the Oilers a better hockey team.  

There’ll be pressure on Penner to perform well and play up to now-lofty (and perhaps unreasonable) expectations, but even if he tanks it, he’s guaranteed big money for the next five years.

That contract is the only guarantee thus far in this situation. 

The hockey world will have to wait a little while for the Anaheim Ducks decision on Dustin Penner's offer sheet.

Ducks GM Brian Burke addressed the situation on Friday, July 27th, telling the Canadian Press that he expects to meet with Ducks ownership on Sunday to discuss their options. Burke was being inducted into the British Columbia Hockey Hall of Fame, which would explain why he didn't immediately respond to the offer sheet on Thursday.

The Edmonton Oilers on Thursday tendered a five-year, $21.5 million contract to Penner. The Ducks have one week to match the offer or lose Penner to the Oilers, receiving the Oilers 2008 first, second and third round picks.

As expected, Burke had some choice words for Oilers GM Kevin Lowe, who's also considered one of Burke's good friends. As per Canadian Press:

"I have no problem with offer sheets, they are part of the CBA," Burke said on a conference call. "I think it's a tool certainly a team is entitled to use. My issue here is this is the second time this year in my opinion Edmonton have offered a grossly inflated salary for a player, and it impacts on all 30 teams and I think it's an act of desperation by a general manager who is fighting to keep his job."

The way it all came down also bothered Burke.

"I was not notified of this until an agent faxed it into us," he said. "I thought Kevin would have called me and told me it was coming. I thought that was gutless."

Burke was also disappointed with the timing of it _ Burke was entering the B.C. Hockey Hall of Fame in Penticton, B.C., on Friday night.

"Kevin Lowe has been in Penticton this week," Burke said. "Tonight is the induction ceremony for the B.C. Hockey Hall of Fame and I certainly think this could have waited until Monday. I don't think it shows a lot of respect for the B.C Hockey Hall of Fame.

"I think it's a classless move timing-wise."

Sabres GM Darcy Regier, who matched an earlier offer sheet from the Oilers for forward Thomas Vanek, also chimed in:

"I still don't believe that this will be an effective way to acquire players," Regier told The Canadian Press on Friday. "There will be circumstances where the odd offer sheet will not be matched but I think it'll be driven because of cap issues.

"But generally, and I may end up being wrong, but I'm in the camp where I don't thinks this is going to work."

Well, boo-hoo-hoo.

Forgive me if I don't have any sympathy for either Regier or Burke.

As I noted in my recent Foxsports.com article, Burke had plenty of warning that Lowe was trolling the offer sheet waters when the Oilers GM made his seven-year, $50 million pitch for Vanek. He could've re-signed Penner to a more affordable $2-$2.5 million per season contract (comparable to former Duck Joffrey Lupul), or taken Penner to arbitration thus making him ineligible to receive an offer sheet.

But Burke didn't do those things, so he's got no right to huff and puff about it. I think he's just ticked because it was his buddy Lowe who did this. Burke's one of the better GMs in the league but this time he got caught napping.

As for Regier, there was widespread speculation back in May that Vanek could be a target for an offer sheet, but he didn't use that time to re-sign Vanek to keep him off the market. Rather than paying the talented forward a more affordable salary, say, comparable to Carolina's Eric Staal, Regier is now paying Vanek over $7 million per season for the next seven year.

Yes, Lowe's offer sheet efforts will drive up the salaries of comparables, but it's his right to do so under the current collective bargaining agreement.

You know, the "owners" CBA? The one that guys like Burke and Regier claimed in 2005 would make it possible for their respective teams to be competitive.

As Chrissie Hynde once sang: "It is time for you to stop all of your sobbing".

 They deserved it. They out-played, out-muscled and out-hit the Ottawa Senators, and proved they could also match the Senators speed.

I’m thrilled for Teemu Selanne, who waited fifteen years to finally play on a Cup champion, and he was able to do it for the team with which he’d had most of his greatest individual success.

I’m happy for the Niedermayer brothers, who got to win a Cup together.

I’m also happy for warhorses Sean O’Donnell and Todd Marchant, who like Selanne went years without playing for a winner and now, in the twilight of their careers, are part of a Cup championship.

I'm happy for guys like Ric Jackman and Chris Kunitz, who were fortunate to be picked away from struggling teams to end up playing key roles in the Ducks success.

GM Brian Burke deserves full marks for taking a team with lots of promising young talent, bringing in some key veterans like Scott Niedermayer, Chris Pronger, Selanne, O’Donnell and Marchant, hiring Randy Carlyle as head coach, and forging a championship team.

But some credit also goes to Ottawa Senators head coach – and Burke’s predecessor – Bryan Murray, as the Ducks two brightest young stars, Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry, were drafted by him.

Speaking of the Senators, they deserve credit for getting this far. They’re a very good team, one that has made significant strides in their growth, and finally shook off the “choke artist” label. This is a team that, with a bit more grit and scoring depth, could find themselves hoisting the Cup in the near future.

I think this Ducks team is built to last, but then again, so many of us thought the same thing about the Carolina Hurricanes and the Tampa Bay Lightning.

The salary cap broke up those Cup champions, and it remains to be seen if the Ducks will suffer the same fate.

But that’s in the future. For now, all that matters is the Ducks are the 2007 Stanley Cup champions, and deserving champs at that.