NHL 2010-2011: Rick Rypien

ClockworkHouse wrote:

Interesting blog post from Terry Frei at the Denver Post:

Terry Frei[/url]]Matthew Coller, a writer for the Business of Sports Network, contacted me Friday, bringing up the endorsement deal Boston Bruins rookie Tyler Seguin has signed with Dunkin’ Donuts, a sponsor at the TD Garden.

Suspiciously, this happens to come when the Bruins are right at the salary cap ceiling.

Why contact me?

Because I recently wrote this blog entry about how other leagues might be jealous of the NHL’s hard cap and seek to emulate it, and I recalled that when the NHL’s cap was instituted, I spoke with several generals managers in the NFL about their experiences with their own league’s cap.

Here’s what I wrote in the blog: “I was told to look out for how long it took NHL executives to figure out new ways how to not necessarily circumvent or violate the cap, but to at least find imaginative ways to ‘massage’ it. I’ve always thought the biggest potential for a loophole was if teams found ways to line up extra income for players. Example: Colorado signs an unrestricted free agent for a ‘reasonable’ deal, and all of a sudden he signs a huge endorsement deal with the soft drink company whose name is on the Denver arena, on the alleged basis that having him playing in the Pepsi Center enhances the value of the naming rights. Or he signs a Wal Mart endorsement deal.”

Hmmmmm. Seguin is on an entry-level deal, of course, but this opens the doors for other possibilties of abuse and cap circumvention — including providing for an indirect mechanism to get young players above those entry-level figures.

Here’s Matthew’s story.

I expect to see more cap circumvention attempts like this in the future.

partly why caps are silly. Also one can make the argument that caps dont work well as big market teams always have more potential for their players to get endorsements without even having to collude with their own sponsors. NYC =/ Nashville.

I very much enjoy PTI's take on Sean Avery - "He's like the NHL's Kenny Powers."

Also, woo 3-2 Rangers!

Prederick wrote:

I very much enjoy PTI's take on Sean Avery - "He's like the NHL's Kenny Powers."

Also, woo 3-2 Rangers!

Ugh, what rough loss. We finally crack the Lund-wall, and then give up a shortie. With the goalie problems we're having and a power play that is so bad I've heard talk radio shows ponder whether or not the Pens should actually decline the man advantage, it's pretty amazing we're a game over .500.

I'm very excited. I have tickets to the Habs - Leafs game Saturday night, at the Bell Centre. The Leafs are hopefully finding some momentum, too. Should be a good game.

If nothing else, the atmosphere in the Bell Centre on a Saturday night is guaranteed to awesome.

Just be sure to boo irrationally at everything. As a habs fan I love the energy and passion that we bring to games, and the relentless booing of other players, but I hate how we boo EVERY perceived non-call and call against the team. Oh well.

Enjoy the game nihilo!

Dysplastic wrote:

Just be sure to boo irrationally at everything. As a habs fan I love the energy and passion that we bring to games, and the relentless booing of other players, but I hate how we boo EVERY perceived non-call and call against the team. Oh well.

I actually prefer the booing of perceived non-calls. The booing of every good player who hasn't slighted the Habs (Crosby and Chara are two examples) gets old for me. Briere is open season though.

I'm secretly hoping for spontaneous "who's your daddy" chants whenever Campbell touches the puck the next time the Bruins are in Montreal. Won't happen, but that would be awesome.

Roke wrote:

I actually prefer the booing of perceived non-calls. The booing of every good player who hasn't slighted the Habs (Crosby and Chara are two examples) gets old for me. Briere is open season though.

The booing of good players because they're good is fun. The booing of players just because they didn't feel like signing in Montreal (Briere), however, I find annoying

Oh well, I guess that just shows that when you can't agree on what to boo, boo everything!

Dysplastic wrote:
Roke wrote:

I actually prefer the booing of perceived non-calls. The booing of every good player who hasn't slighted the Habs (Crosby and Chara are two examples) gets old for me. Briere is open season though.

The booing of good players because they're good is fun. The booing of players just because they didn't feel like signing in Montreal (Briere), however, I find annoying

Oh well, I guess that just shows that when you can't agree on what to boo, boo everything!

Including anthems!

Canucks are making me depress......... more and more each day.

jinniee wrote:

Canucks are making me depress......... more and more each day.

It's a small slump. A lot of teams that were rolling out of the gate are hitting a bit of a wall now (LA, St. Louis, Dallas, Tampa).

If nothing else, you can be happy that Vancouver has kept our winning streak alive in Phoenix.

Coldtouch wrote:
jinniee wrote:

Canucks are making me depress......... more and more each day.

It's a small slump. A lot of teams that were rolling out of the gate are hitting a bit of a wall now (LA, St. Louis, Dallas, Tampa).

If nothing else, you can be happy that Vancouver has kept our winning streak alive in Phoenix.

I didn't think you people existed.

The wife and I journeyed up to Buffalo yesterday for the Pens/Sabres game. We decided awhile back that it would be kind of interesting to start getting out to some away games to see some different arenas and take in the atmosphere in some different cities. Buffalo was the closest to Pittsburgh and became our first road game. I'd actually been to HSBC arena before, several years ago the Frozen Four was hosted by Buffalo so I was well aware that it is a pretty sweet place to see a hockey game. We got tix off stub hub just off to the side of the Sabres bench and 5 rows off the glass. Certainly not my preferred location, but since this was our Christmas present, we decided to go big.

We arrived about an hour and a half early and were just happy to get into the arena far enough to pick up some food and get out of the cold. Since Buffalo is so close I expected to see quite a few Pens fans and we quickly realized that I was certainly not the only one wearing a bright yellow, retro Lemieux jersey. Buffalo also isn't too hostile of a place for Pittsburgh fans. Sure the Pens play the Sabres four times a year, but they're in a different division so it's not too heated of a rivalry, in fact the all time series is nearly split at 61-60-43 (if I recall correctly from the stats sheet) in favor of Pittsburgh.

The game itself was a pretty good mix of back and forth hockey. Dupuis kicked off the scoring in the later parts of the first when Crosby forced a turnover deep in the Buffalo zone and made a great pass to a wide open Dupuis hanging out in front of the net. From that point on the goalies stole the spotlight. I'm not too big of a Fleury fan and the Sabres had a call-up from the AHL in net, while Miller is out hurt, but both goalies really made some great saves keeping us on the edge of our seats all night long.

All in all we really had a good time up in Buffalo and I'm looking forward to getting out to some other arenas in the future.

Vector wrote:
Coldtouch wrote:
jinniee wrote:

Canucks are making me depress......... more and more each day.

It's a small slump. A lot of teams that were rolling out of the gate are hitting a bit of a wall now (LA, St. Louis, Dallas, Tampa).

If nothing else, you can be happy that Vancouver has kept our winning streak alive in Phoenix.

I didn't think you people existed.

grrrrrrrrrrr................ winning streakk....

El_Duder wrote:

The wife and I journeyed up to Buffalo yesterday for the Pens/Sabres game. We decided awhile back that it would be kind of interesting to start getting out to some away games to see some different arenas and take in the atmosphere in some different cities. Buffalo was the closest to Pittsburgh and became our first road game. I'd actually been to HSBC arena before, several years ago the Frozen Four was hosted by Buffalo so I was well aware that it is a pretty sweet place to see a hockey game. We got tix off stub hub just off to the side of the Sabres bench and 5 rows off the glass. Certainly not my preferred location, but since this was our Christmas present, we decided to go big.

We arrived about an hour and a half early and were just happy to get into the arena far enough to pick up some food and get out of the cold. Since Buffalo is so close I expected to see quite a few Pens fans and we quickly realized that I was certainly not the only one wearing a bright yellow, retro Lemieux jersey. Buffalo also isn't too hostile of a place for Pittsburgh fans. Sure the Pens play the Sabres four times a year, but they're in a different division so it's not too heated of a rivalry, in fact the all time series is nearly split at 61-60-43 (if I recall correctly from the stats sheet) in favor of Pittsburgh.

The game itself was a pretty good mix of back and forth hockey. Dupuis kicked off the scoring in the later parts of the first when Crosby forced a turnover deep in the Buffalo zone and made a great pass to a wide open Dupuis hanging out in front of the net. From that point on the goalies stole the spotlight. I'm not too big of a Fleury fan and the Sabres had a call-up from the AHL in net, while Miller is out hurt, but both goalies really made some great saves keeping us on the edge of our seats all night long.

All in all we really had a good time up in Buffalo and I'm looking forward to getting out to some other arenas in the future.

You should really get up to Montreal sometime...some fans can be hostile but its not that bad, and there are actually a lot of Pens fans in Montreal due to Lemieux so you'll be in good company. Plus it's an amazing atmosphere. And an amazing city to visit.

Skip Ottawa, Though.

Now this is concentration:

If only Kevin Weekes had that much mental fortitude in net.

The good old days are long gone, when there was one Zamboni cleaning the ice and one for back-up in case one broke down.

If I believed in "momentum shifts" and "turning points" Jacques Martin having Tom Pyatt and Maxim Lapierre out against Edmonton's top line (the Hemsky goal) would be it. I don't, but it was a horrible decision that allowed Edmonton some quality scoring chances and a goal to cut the lead to one. Those two not being babysat like they need to be sucked.

The bigger problem was the Habs abandoning all closing down/pressing in the 3rd period. Absolutely stupid hockey, especially when the other team only had one line that was playing well for the first 2/3 of the game.

I feel obligated to say something positive... The Oilers are fast and their coaches did a good job by not playing the 4th line much at all in the game.

After an embarassing string of games the Canucks are making it a habit of embarassing teams themselves. Killed Calgary 7-2 last night. Hopefully the hat-trick gets Raymond goaing. If he's scoring then the team's about where you'd expect them: scary good.

Roke wrote:

If I believed in "momentum shifts" and "turning points" Jacques Martin having Tom Pyatt and Maxim Lapierre out against Edmonton's top line (the Hemsky goal) would be it. I don't, but it was a horrible decision that allowed Edmonton some quality scoring chances and a goal to cut the lead to one. Those two not being babysat like they need to be sucked.

The bigger problem was the Habs abandoning all closing down/pressing in the 3rd period. Absolutely stupid hockey, especially when the other team only had one line that was playing well for the first 2/3 of the game.

I feel obligated to say something positive... The Oilers are fast and their coaches did a good job by not playing the 4th line much at all in the game.

Subban and Cammaleri were pretty brutal out there last night too....but yeah, I'm not a fan of Pyatt.

Vector wrote:

After an embarassing string of games the Canucks are making it a habit of embarassing teams themselves. Killed Calgary 7-2 last night. Hopefully the hat-trick gets Raymond goaing. If he's scoring then the team's about where you'd expect them: scary good.

HEHEEHE Last nights games were so gooood!

But I have to say though....... Canucks plays so much better than Caps... Nucks games are so much more speedy and exciting...

yes.. I maybe a traitor but at least I'm not a poser like some of the dc fans... *sigh*...

IMAGE(http://www.onfrozenblog.com/files/2010/04/3235535092_a479d8b934.jpg)

vs

IMAGE(http://www.716stuff.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/torreszj1.jpg)

Since we seem to have a lot of Vancouver fans here, it's the Supermen vs. Team Kryptonite tonight. Looking forward to seeing this rivalry grow some more.

The Leafs seem absolutely determined to beat me into depression.

5 - 0. Against Edmonton.

The thing is, I don't want them to sack Wilson for this. Maybe he's part of the problem (his system is tough to play), but this team is also not good. We don't have a top 6 centre. We can't score.

What I want to avoid is doing something big for the sake doing it. Toronto has a long history of making the emotional move rather than the calculated move. Toronto fans aren't stupid. If we see that you have a plan and are working towards it, we can be patient. I've never seen the Leafs compete in the Stanley Cup finals in my lifetime. I can wait. I don't need this team to be good today. I'd love them to be good, but don't jeopardize the big picture for a few wins now.

There are some bright spots on this team this year. The Leafs have players like Mike Brown who are stepping in front of pucks and paying the price (injured for 4 - 6 weeks). I've seen Toronto play energetic, exciting hockey and dominate their opponent. They're capable of it.

But wow, are they ever awful sometimes.

Coldtouch wrote:

Since we seem to have a lot of Vancouver fans here, it's the Supermen vs. Team Kryptonite tonight. Looking forward to seeing this rivalry grow some more.

I'm laughing and scowling at the same time. I might pull a muscle.

nihilo wrote:

The Leafs seem absolutely determined to beat me into depression.

5 - 0. Against Edmonton.

The thing is, I don't want them to sack Wilson for this. Maybe he's part of the problem (his system is tough to play), but this team is also not good. We don't have a top 6 centre. We can't score.

What I want to avoid is doing something big for the sake doing it. Toronto has a long history of making the emotional move rather than the calculated move. Toronto fans aren't stupid. If we see that you have a plan and are working towards it, we can be patient. I've never seen the Leafs compete in the Stanley Cup finals in my lifetime. I can wait. I don't need this team to be good today. I'd love them to be good, but don't jeopardize the big picture for a few wins now.

There are some bright spots on this team this year. The Leafs have players like Mike Brown who are stepping in front of pucks and paying the price (injured for 4 - 6 weeks). I've seen Toronto play energetic, exciting hockey and dominate their opponent. They're capable of it.

But wow, are they ever awful sometimes.

The problem isn't Wilson, it's Burke. His emphasis on truculence and building a team from the goal out just isn't working. The deals for Giguere and Phaneuf were great, but ultimately he's got a defensive core with 0 chemistry and an AHL-quality offense. Selling the farm for Phil Kessel and providing him with garbage linemates was just stupid. At this point, if I'm the Leafs players, I'm demoralized as hell. Burke should have traded Kaberle ages ago.

Kings finally won again last night after going 1-8. They started 12-3.

Good news about the losing streak - They were in every game except the Montreal one.

Bad news about the losing streak - Jack Johnson lost confidence and Drew Doughty is fat.

Dysplastic wrote:

The problem isn't Wilson, it's Burke. His emphasis on truculence and building a team from the goal out just isn't working. The deals for Giguere and Phaneuf were great, but ultimately he's got a defensive core with 0 chemistry and an AHL-quality offense. Selling the farm for Phil Kessel and providing him with garbage linemates was just stupid. At this point, if I'm the Leafs players, I'm demoralized as hell. Burke should have traded Kaberle ages ago.

Is it? The Leafs were a team in desperate need of some character. Burke walked in and said: "you guys are going to be mean and hard working." And I think that was a vast improvement. Our record may not be better than pre-Burke, but they are in more games and I think are playing the way you need to play to have any chance at post season success.

The Giguere and Phaneuf moves were great, agreed. He also brought in Dallas Eakins to be the coach of the Marlies (excellent), picked Jonas Gustavasson from free agency (against a lot of competition), brought in Francois Allaire to be goalie coach, which has helped Gustavasson a lot, rebuilt our youthful depth from undrafted free agency (Bozak, Stalberg, Hansen.. more).

I mean.. Burke had nothing to work with to start. He had Nazem Kadri as a prospect. The Leafs have been desperate for free agent forwards but they haven't been available at all. The salary cap has killed player movement with remarkable effectiveness. Our lack of forwards isn't because Burke hasn't been trying to fill in those gaps.

The Phil Kessel deal is going to haunt Burke, and it really is the one place I'd disagree with his actions. And actually, it's not because Kessel won't be as good as Seguin and our first pick this year. It's way too early to tell how good Kessel can be and how good Seguin will be. The reason I don't like the Kessel deal is because it was very bad timing for the Leafs. We needed a year or two where our youth could go out and make mistakes and learn. Trading away our first and second picks last year and our first this year put a lot of pressure on the Leafs to perform quickly. And Toronto is a place that multiplies pressure and throws it in your face in every game and after every mistake.

So the Leafs are frustrated, because they aren't performing how they want to be performing, even though guys are being asked to step up at almost every position.

nihilo wrote:

Is it? The Leafs were a team in desperate need of some character. Burke walked in and said: "you guys are going to be mean and hard working." And I think that was a vast improvement. Our record may not be better than pre-Burke, but they are in more games and I think are playing the way you need to play to have any chance at post season success.

Are they really in more games? I saw them live in Ottawa on Saturday night and on TV in Edmonton yesterday...they didn't look even close to "in" either of those games. They got absolutely smoked by two sub-par teams.

Burke might have said "you guys are going to be mean and hard working"...but that only gets you so far. You say the record is not better than pre-Burke but it is still a vast improvement...I say the record is what matters, and speaks for itself. I'll agree that you can build a team for playoff success and do well sneaking into 7th or 8th spot...but the leafs aren't even close to challenging for that spot. At this point, even the "hard working" aspect of their game has dissapeared because they're so demoralized that their hard work hasn't led to goals. (Hint: you need skill as well as hard work). I'm not convinced that Kessel is a hard worker...on Saturday he looked to be taking a LOT of shots from the perimiter.

I'm also not sold on The Monster yet...but Giguerre is definitely a step in the right direction.

The one thing I'm shocked by the most is how bad the Defence is. Kaberle, Phaneuf, Komisarek, Beauchemin...it sounds like an all-star lineup. How do they suck so much? I mean, I'd take Hal Gil and Josh Gorges over any of the leafs defencemen right now...they have Chemistry, the leafs don't. So maybe that is the coaches' fault.

Kessel's a floater. He's young but he has all the makings of the kind of guy you want as your 3rd or 4th best forward. Speedy, but streaky, scoring forward who teams will give a lot of room due to his goal scoring ability. Problem is guys like that will disappear for stretches. They can't be the focus. I think the package they gave up was a terrible idea and the timing was even worse.

I'm a pretty big Burke fan. He did a great job rebuilding the Canucks and did an excellent job tinkering in Anaheim. His problem is that he's not good at identifying where problems are. He could never get a true goalie for the Canucks and stuck with Crawford for too long. In Anaheim he let himself get into situations where he had to give away excellent players for nothing in return (Bryzgalov and McDonald). In Toronto he's coming into a situation like he had in Vancouver but is treating it like he's in Anaheim. It's not going to work. He had more to work with in Vancouver too.

He overpaid for a bunch of UFAs as well. There was no reason to sign Komisarek, Beauchemin, and Armstrong. Beauchemin has a good contract but he shouldn't be on the team. None of them should be. MacArthur was a good signing.

He has done an excellent job in signing undrafted UFAs (Hanson, Bozak, Gustavsson, Mueller, and a host of others). Helped replenish the prospect depth. The top-end is still really weak. I'm not convinced that Schenn's upside is much more than Ken Daneyko. Nazem Kadri would worry me. He could be an offensive force but his ability to score when it matters is will be his most important test.

Burke's trading has generally been good. Acquring Phaneuf and Sjostrom was cherry. Getting Giguere for Blake and Toskala was excellent. Mike Brown is the perfect kind of player to have on the 4th line: young, plays with his heart, and willing to stick up for anyone. I thought the Versteeg trade was bad. Having watched Versteeg for two years in Chicago, it didn't make sense to me to acquire a worse version of Kessel. A decent depth scorer but not someone who makes things happen on his own. Bill Sweatt, who was traded with Versteeg to Toronto, refused to sign with the Leafs so it ended up being Versteeg for 2 good prospects and Stalberg, who I was a big fan of. Just seemed non-sensical.

I see some direction in where Burke is taking the Leafs but only in what he says. He tells people he will make a tough team. Signs some tough players but then goes out and gets softies that are supposed to be impact players like Versteeg and Kessel. Even Kadri is a soft scorerer. Phaneuf, for everyone's bluster, isn't what people make him out to be. Will have some highlight hits and join in the scrums after the whistle but he's not tough to play against.