Arena Hello Out There, We're On the Air: The Hockey Thread (OVIE PASSES GRETZKY!)

Yeah, Fleury didn't really have an MVP-type playoffs. I mean, just compare his stats between this year and last year:

2008: 1.97 GAA, .933 SV %, 3 SO
2009: 2.61 GAA, .908 SV %, 0 SO

But he did make the big saves when it counted, especially in Game 7.

 

Malkin was a completely different player from last year's playoffs to this year's playoffs.

I know the Wings' gameplan was to stop Crosby, because i think they thought we'd have Malkin doing what he did LAST year again..

The main reason the Pens won that Cup was Malkin. He was just an absolute force. I was stunned by how physical he was!


Everyone laughed at that fight he had with Zetterberg, but that really seemed to fire the Pens up...He was the difference.

Fleury was good enough to win 4 out of 7, but he had some awful awful games in there...

 

I kind of agree, there. Malkin was very good.

 

Kind of? What don't you agree with?

 

There are plenty of other worthy candidates.

 

Yzerman, Hull, Robitaille, and Leetch to be inducted into the Hall Of Fame

Pretty damn good group.

 

Stevie Y is the reason i love hockey.

What a legendary group of players going in this year!

 

Yes, good choices for once.

 

San Jose has started it's roster makeover by declining to make offers to forwards Goc, Plihal, and Kaspar. No great loss there. Goc was a 2001 first round pick and has a pretty good faceoff % but thats about it. They did make offers to Griess, Clowe, Mitchell, and Staubitz though. Clowe was clutch all season and I really hope he signs. Too early to tell with Staubitz IMO. Mitchell should be good if he can stay healthy. He broke his leg twice last season; once in training camp and again around Christmas and didn't wind up playing a single game until the playoffs in what should have been his breakout year. Griess will be unnecessary if the Sharks can pick up Gustavsson. They desperatly need someone who's more consistant than Nabokov.

 

Gustavasson's coming to Toronto, says I.

 

Some pretty good links here;

Evgeni "Geno" Malkin enjoying his off season

Penguins Sign Guerin to 1 Year deal

 

Gomez traded to the Habs

Looks like the Rangers are trying to clear up cap space in order to get Heatley.

 

Wherever he goes we won't know until after tomorrow it seems.
Also: Blake took a $1.5 million pay cut to re-sign for 1 year with the Sharks.

 

And now it looks like the Oilers may have beaten the Rangers.

Oliers, Senators Agree To Deal, Ask Heatley To Waive No-Move

Sources say Dany Heatley has been asked to waive his no-trade clause to go to Edmonton in exchange for Andrew Cogliano, Dustin Penner and Ladislav Smid.

If Heatley agrees to waive, it would appear the Sens and Oilers will have a deal, pending the official trade call with NHL central registry, but that is generally a formality.

 

I hope that's a good trade for Ottawa; they need one.

 

Hossa to Chicago;

Ohlund to Tampa Bay;

Khabibulin to Edmonton.

 

-Komisarek to Toronto
-Cammalleri to Montreal
-Roloson to the Islanders
-Sedins re-sign
-Heatley did not waive his no-trade for Edmonton deal

EDIT: -Gaborik to the Rangers

 

The salary cap is not San Jose's friend right now.
They still need to sign six forwards and a backup goalie with only $5.274M left under the cap. Doug Wilson is gonna have to do a lot more pruning. Trades forthcoming...

 

Heatley is beginning to look like a giant creep.

 

Canada's Olympic Orientation Camp Invitees Announced

Goalies:

Martin Brodeur
Roberto Luongo
Marc-André Fleury
Steve Mason
Cam Ward

Defencemen:

Jay Bouwmeester
Dan Boyle
Scott Niedermayer
Chris Pronger
Robyn Regehr
Dion Phaneuf
Marc Staal
Shea Weber
François Beauchemin
Brent Burns
Drew Doughty
Stéphane Robidas
Mike Green
Dan Hamhuis
Duncan Keith
Brent Seabrook

Forwards:

Sidney Crosby
Shane Doan
Simon Gagné
Dany Heatley
Jarome Iginla
Rick Nash
Joe Sakic
Martin St-Louis
Eric Staal
Joe Thornton
Vincent Lecavalier
Ryan Smyth
Jeff Carter
Ryan Getzlaf
Milan Lucic
Patrick Marleau
Andy McDonald
Brenden Morrow
Corey Perry
Michael Richards
Derek Roy
Patrick Sharp
Jordan Staal
Jonathan Toews
Dan Cleary

I must say it's pretty bogus that Steve Mason got invited and Chris Osgood didn't, especially when you consider that it's Steve Yzerman who's running the show.

 

It disturbs me that I don't even *know* some of these people...

 

Yes, well you didn't know who Henrik Lundqvist is so that doesn't surprise me.

 

Eh, let it not be said that Stevie Y ever plays favourites (and it's the right call)...

For fun, out of that group if i had to put together a team...

G- Luongo, Brodeur and Mason

D- Bouwmeester, Phaneuf, Weber, Niedermayer, Green and Keith

F- Crosby, Gagne, Doan, Toews, Heatley, Iginla, Nash, Lecavalier, Thornton, Morrow, Getzlaf and Mike Richards


Good gosh, that's a tough team to put together. It was SO hard to leave Captain Canada (Ryan Smyth) off that list.

 

I'm not saying Osgood should be a lock to be in the roster but should have at least been invited and Mason really should not be there. They didn't invite Crosby in '06 because he was a rookie but they'll invite Mason?

Also, one notable missing player is Marc Savard.

 

Yeah, i'd probably have Savard on there over Andy McDonald, but i think Mcdonald has had some previous experience on the world stage where he played fairly well.. Being a good skater really makes a difference on the larger international ice surface.

Even still, that team is absolutely stacked at center. It'd be tough for Savard or McDonald to make the cut.

As for Ozzie: eh, the Red Wings probably have whispered in Stevie's ear that they want Ozzie to stay healthy for their season.. He isn't a spring chicken anymore, and has a recent history of battling some minor injuries in the past couple seasons.

I'd rank Mason as a possibility for the future no. 1 Goalie of Canadian hockey on the national stage.....I'd take Luongo as the starter, Brodeur as the veteran backup who has been there and won a Gold and can step in at the first sign of Luongo not "having it", and then i'd have Mason there for the experience...