Sport Chit Chat

Unlike with the Eastern Conference, where the Wade Redden signing stuck out like a sore thumb as a poor decision, the Western Conference does not seem to have as many stupid off season signings. Or at the very least the stupidity appears to be overshadowed by some smart moves. For that reason I have decided to select three signings that get a large thumbs up and 1 team that receives a “what the hell did you do that for?” thumb to the forehead.

I would like to start with the good signings. First off, top honours goes to the Detroit Red Wings. Hockey Town USA scored yet again by signing Marian Hossa to a one-year, $7.4 million contract. Detroit kept the important pieces of their Stanley Cup winning team and added yet another strong scorer. Hossa had 66 points in 72 games last season and was an important piece of the Pittsburgh Penguins’ playoff run. A one-year contract could have even be an under sight for the 29-year-old powerhouse. On Detroit’s part, they should have tried to lock in the consistent scorer for a longer period of time. Despite his decrease from 100 points two seasons ago, Hossa remained a formidable force this past season. Hossa himself should have looked for a longer contract from the Red Wings, since their current talent, and great nucleus of young talent put them in good standing to raise Stanley a few more times in years to come. I have no idea who is at fault for making the one-year decision, but kudos to the Red Wings for brining in such a great player none-the-less.

Another thumbs up goes to the Dallas Stars for signing Sean Avery to a 4-year, $15.5 million contract. Avery impressed me this past season with his 33 points and 154 minutes in penalties. I used to consider him to be a pest not worth anyone’s time, but in the middle of the Jason Blake vs. Sean Avery war of words, my good friend the Fantasy Guru Maxmillien pointed out Avery’s worth… he is a pest not worth anyone’s time. Other teams loathe him and goalies want to blocker him in the face. But all of that makes Sean Avery a very valuable commodity. His gritty play and surprising scoring touch during the playoffs made NYR games exciting to watch. Plus, any guy who can date Elisha Cuthbert has to get a thumbs up. Congrats Dallas, you are now home to the NFL’s and NHL’s bad boys.

I would like to now give the Chicago Blackhawks two thumbs up. That’s right, TWO!

The first is for signing Brian Campbell to an 8 year, $56.8 million contract. Campbell is in my opinion one of the foremost offensive-defencemen in the league. Since playing his first full season in 2002-03, Campbell’s point totals have climbed steadily higher. Last season, his 62 points were a career high. The one thing that puts Campbell above his peers is his ability to move the puck. While he only scored 8 goals on 142 shots last season, his 54 assists make him ideal to lead Chicago’s young and talented powerplay. Look for Campbell to have another great season in the windy city.
The second thumb is for signing goaltender Christobal Huet to a 4 year, $22.4 million contract. With Khabibulin finishing up his 4 year contract this season Chicago will be looking for another number one to replace him. Khabibulin has struggled since arriving in Chicago. His 17, 25 and 23 wins in each of the past three seasons respectively, have not made him the Stanley Cup winning goalie that Chicago thought they were signing. Huet on the other hand had an excellent start to the season with Montreal and made Bob Gainey look like a fool for trading him for a 2nd round draft pick at the deadline. Huet can command much more on the open market and Chicago was smart to pay him good wages for the next 4 seasons. He was 21 and 12 while with Montreal last season and was an impressive 11 and 2 after being traded to Washington. The Capitals should have held on to this netminder because there is no doubt in my mind that he will become one of the top goalies in the league by the time his contract expires in Chicago. Maybe Campbell and Huet are the pieces that the Blackhawks need to bring glory back to this ‘original 6’ city.

Now for the part where I metaphorically flick someone in the forehead for being an idiot. Today’s honour goes to the entire Colorado Avalanche’s front office. Whose bonehead idea was it to bring in Toronto’s trash? Does anyone believe that Andrew Raycroft will win them anything? The only thing Raycroft is good for is picking up the number one overall draft pick, and that is only if you actually decide to play him. I realize that one year at $800,000 is not that big of a deal. However, the fact that Raycroft is still on an NHL team is ridiculous. Andrew Raycroft is truly good at one thing, talking to the press. Therefore, I suggest that the Avalanche move him quickly to the podium after games and let him handle all questions in a humourous way. That is the only way that it will be $800,000 well spent. (Just as a note, other things that you can buy for $800,000: 381 MacBook Pros, 2 2008 Ferrari 612 Scagliettis, 30303 cases of Pabst Blue Ribbon.) The Avalanche also picked up Darcy Tucker for $4.5 million over 2 seasons. Tucker is a huge fan favourite in Toronto but this does not make him worth anyone’s money. Tucker is old, slow and has lost the grit that made him an NHL commodity. While Tucker is still willing to stand up for his team mates suffering from Leukemia, he does not posses the strength or speed necessary to dig the puck out of the corners. Good luck to the avalanche with their new acquisitions, I suppose they have resolved themselves to making this year a rebuilding one.

I would also like to give a pre-emptive flick to the forehead to the Florida Panthers should they decide to accept a trade for Bryan McCabe. McCabe and Raycroft could captain ‘Team Useless’ at the Olympics in 2010.

-Apples

The Colorado Avalanche signed Darcy Tucker for 2 years and 4.5 million. I think this is an alright signing by Colorado as at most he’ll bring in some key intangibles to your team.

The only real significance about this signing is that this makes the Maple Leafs brass look undoubtedly idiotic. Toronto is already paying Tucker 2 million a season to NOT play for them. Sure Tucker had that No Movement Clause but was he really that bad of player to warrant paying him 2 million dollars a year over 3 years and having salary cap penalties for 6 seasons?

The simple answer is no. Sure Toronto wanted to get “younger” but at the age of 33 he’s not that old and if there’s any consolation the moves that Toronto has made has really left myself and many other Leaf fans scratching their head in wonder.

It was a terrible move when I heard the news and now it’s salt in the wound that the Avs have shown the Leafs exactly what his market price was.