NHL: Free Agency, Trade, Injury, and Rookie News!

[Knightfall]

Free agent signing Anson Carter next Canuck to play on line with Sedin twins

Sportsnet.ca

September 13 @ 18:04, EST

VANCOUVER (CP) - Now it's Anson Carter's turn.

The winger, signed as a free agent in August, is the latest player the Vancouver Canucks will try to partner with Swedish twins Henrik and Daniel Sedin on the NHL team's second line. In their four years with Vancouver the red-haired twins have had a revolving door of linemates.

Trent Klatt, Magnus Arvedson and Jason King all enjoyed some success with the twins. Trevor Linden has served some spot duty while Todd Bertuzzi sometimes double-shifts between the Canucks top line and the Sedin's second unit.

"Hopefully this one will be good," said Daniel Sedin, the winger who is the trigger man for centre Henrik's passes.

Carter, who bounced like a ping-pong ball between three teams during the 2003-04 season, said training camp will help the unit find its pace.

"I think it will take them a little while to get a feel for what I can do and for me what they do," said the 31-year-old Toronto native.

"I don't think I can come in here and do anything differently. I don't want them to play their games differently either. We just have to complement each other and hopefully come together and mesh as a line."

Coach Marc Crawford hopes Carter will add speed, intelligence and some consistency for the Sedins, whose strength is cycling the puck down low.

"They really haven't had a consistent winger during their career here," Crawford said after Tuesday's scrimmage.

"We wanted to give them someone who could finish. Anson has been able to finish in the past and we're quite hopeful he can do it again. Playing with Daniel and Henrik, they are so clever, you're going to find the puck on your stick a few times when you don't expect it."

Carter comes to Vancouver with something to prove.

He had 20 or more goals in four of the five previous seasons, before scoring just 15 times in 77 games in 2003-04. He split that season between the New York Rangers, Washington Capitals and Los Angeles Kings.

"Last year was tough," said Carter, who scored the overtime goal in Canada's gold-medal victory over Sweden at the 2003 world championships.

"We got off to a rough start in New York where I wasn't playing too much. Going to Washington I was having fun playing hockey again but got hurt. I got traded to L.A. and everything was a downward spiral."

Carter underwent abdominal surgery to repair a sports hernia before the 2004-05 season was cancelled by the NHL labour dispute. He was released by the Kings earlier this year.

Carter thinks the year off helped him recover from the surgery.

The knock against Carter is he can score plenty of goals but not necessarily when the team needs them the most. His toughness off the wing has also been questioned, especially in a division where he'll face defencemen like Chris Pronger in Edmonton and Robyn Regehr in Calgary.

The Sedins, the second and third overall picks in the 1999 draft, have received their fair share of abuse from the Vancouver fans.

Hailed as the league's next superstars when drafted by former general manager Brian Burke, the 24-year-old brothers from Ornskoldsvik have been average at best. They often receive the wrath of the Vancouver fans and have been labelled "the Sedin sisters" by many callers to sports radio phone-in programs.

For the Sedins to be successful they need a grinder like Klatt to dig the puck out of the corner for them. It remains to be seen of Carter can fill that role.

"We'll see what happens," said Daniel, who became a father for the first time this summer.

"We played against him and we know he's a great player, a hard working guy with lots of skill. It will be fun."

 

[Knightfall]

All signed, Canadiens have holes to fill with young players heading into camp

Sportsnet.ca

September 13 @ 17:56, EST

MONTREAL (CP) - In the real world, job opportunities may be scarce for young people, but that is not the case at the Montreal Canadiens training camp.

There are openings in goal, on defence and up front and general manager Bob Gainey is looking to his young prospects to fill them. "We have a large group of players who are coming to an age of maturity," Gainey said Tuesday.

That would include centre Mike Ribeiro, winger Michael Ryder and defenceman Mike Komisarek, who all began to make their mark before the 2004-05 season was wiped out by a lockout.

After that, there's "a group of players who have been through the development phase and are ready to come in and join the group ahead of them and, I believe, participate and contribute to winning games."

Who that will be is to be decided in camp, which begins in earnest on Wednesday as 47 players begin on-ice workouts at a suburban Montreal rink.

Strong candidates include centres Chris Higgins and Tomas Plekanec, wingers Alexander Perezhogin, Andrei Kostitsyn and Marcel Hossa, defencemen Ron Hainsey, Mark Streit and goaltender Yann Danis.

There was no free-agent signing spree by the Canadiens when the lockout ended, although they kept free agent winger Alex Kovalev for four years at $18 million US.

They also picked up veteran defenceman Mathieu Dandenault from Detroit to replace the departed Patrice Brisebois and signed tough guy Peter Vandermeer to take Darren Langdon's vacated post.

Centre Radek Bonk and goaltender Cristobal Huet were acquired before the lockout, although Huet is expected to be out until December with a knee injury.

Huet is the only player not yet in camp. With the signing of Ryder to a $1 million, one-year deal on Monday, all their players are under contract. Their payroll sits at about $32 million, well within the $39-million salary cap.

Gainey is confident that some young players, most of whom have been developing in the Canadiens system for a few years, are ready to step in.

With some spending an extra year in the AHL due to the lockout, he said it was "like we have two graduating classes at the same time."

Veteran defenceman Craig Rivet said the team chose the smart path.

"We have some outstanding young players, so it will be a very competitive and exciting camp," he said. "We have some guys coming into the line-up who are going to make us a powerhouse in future years."

Gone from the side that reached the Eastern Conference semifinals in 2004 are, beside Brisebois and Langdon, goaltender Mathieu Garon, defencemen Stephane Quintal, Karl Dykhuis and forwards Andreas Dackell, Joe Juneau, Yannick Perreault, Jason Ward and Jim Dowd.

Those returning include captain Saku Koivi with linemates Kovalev and Richard Zednik; Ribeiro with linemate Ryder and a third spot, possibly returnee Pierre Dagenais, to be decided; Bonk, perhaps with Jan Bulis and Niklas Sundstrom; and fourth-line centre Steve Begin with linemates to be determined, although likely including Vandermeer.

The defence so far has Rivet, Komisarek, Dandenault, Andrei Markov, Sheldon Souray and Francis Bouillon, who is forever on the bubble.

"There's a lot of new faces, so it's too early to tell how we'll end up or what kind of team we'll have," said Koivu. "But there are young guys who showed two years ago they can do a lot of positive things.

"It gets us old guys going when you see young guys coming up and trying to get in the line-up."

In goal, Danis is likely to replace Huet as Jose Theodore's back-up when the season opens Oct. 5. The 24-year-old was signed as a free agent out of Brown University in 2004 and spent last season as the top goalie for AHL Hamilton, where he went 28-17-6 in 53 games.

"Last year was like a blessing being able to work on things in Hamilton without the pressure of being in Montreal," said Danis, a native of Lafontaine, Que. "Now, I just want to make the team and get as much playing time as I can."

On defence, it could be a make-or-break camp for Hainsey, a first-round draft pick in 2000 who has not always played up to his obvious talent as a big, rushing defenceman.

Competition comes from Streit, a 27-year-old veteran of international hockey from Switzerland taking his second shot at making the NHL.

"I was here when I was 21 and it didn't work out," said the five-foot-11, 198-pound Streit. "I just want to work hard and make the team."

Higgins, a 2002 first-rounder, had 28 goals for Hamilton last season and is considered a solid prospect, as is Plekanec, a smaller centre who had 29 goals for Hamilton.

Perezhogin, a 2001 first round pick, was suspended for the entire AHL season from a nasty slashing incident in 2003-04, but spent last winter playing with superstar Jaromir Jagr with Omsk of the Russian league, where he had 33 points in 43 games in a low-scoring league.

Kostitsyn was Montreal's first pick in 2003 and while he had a quiet first year in Hamilton with 12 goals in 66 games, some feel he is the most talented of the lot.

Hossa, the younger, bigger but not as gifted brother of Atlanta star Marian Hossa, made the Slovak national team at the world championships last spring, although he didn't play much.

Also to be watched in camp are goaltender Carey Price, drafted fifth overall in June, big centre Kyle Chipchura, a 2004 first rounder and Raitis Ivanans, a Latvian tough guy who had 259 penalty minutes for Hamilton,

Coach Claude Julien was on hand but elected not to speak to the media. His wife Karen gave birth to their first child, a daughter, on the weekend.

 

[Knightfall]

Thrashers begin training camp with Bondra - but no Kovalchuk

Sportsnet.ca

September 13 @ 18:47, EST

DULUTH, Ga. (AP) - Seventeen months after their last game, the Atlanta Thrashers finally got back on the ice.

Peter Bondra was there. Ilya Kovalchuk was not. The Thrashers opened training camp Tuesday with a full-speed workout that left the team's newest player gasping for breath. Bondra, 37, said he's never been through such a strenuous practice on the first day.

"After you sit down, it feels good," he quipped. "But we're all going to benefit from this hard work. The better shape we're in, the better we'll be on the ice."

But the Thrashers have yet to sign Kovalchuk, a 41-goal scorer in the last season before the lockout. The restricted free agent is playing in his native Russia and, according to his agent, might just stay there for the entire season if a deal can't be reached with the Thrashers.

General manager Don Waddell said he's offered a five-year contract at terms slightly better than Columbus's Rick Nash, who got $27 million US for the same-length deal. Both were restricted free agents after tying for the NHL goal-scoring title in 2003-04.

"I feel like we've made a big push to sign Ilya," Waddell said. "He's a big part of our past, and we want him to be a big part of our future. Unfortunately, this is a business first and a sport second. But we're going to do everything in our power to get Ilya here."

The Thrashers had no trouble persuading Bondra to come aboard. In fact, they had brushed off the unrestricted free agent for several weeks, not wanting to commit money that might be needed to sign Kovalchuk under the league's new $39-million salary cap.

But Bondra kept lowering the price, finally agreeing on an incentive-laden deal that guarantees him a base salary of $505,000 - far less than he could have made with another team. He could earn another $2.9 million in bonuses if the Thrashers win the Stanley Cup.

Bondra was so eager to play in Atlanta that he took part in the first day of training camp, even though he had yet to sign his new deal. Waddell said there were still some insurance issues to work out, but he expected things to be finalized in a day or two.

Only 23 goals short of 500 in his career, Bondra believes the Thrashers are finally a post-season contender after missing the playoffs in their first five seasons. Atlanta signed centre Bobby Holik, traded for Marian Hossa, brought in several new defencemen and groomed top prospect Kari Lehtonen to take over in goal.

"I really believe this is going to be our year," Bondra said.

Of course, the Thrashers would be even stronger with Kovalchuk, one of the league's most dynamic offensive players and someone who would surely thrive in the post-lockout NHL, with all the new rules that are designed to open up the game and produce more scoring chances.

"You want to see one of the top players in your lineup," Hossa said. "He's a big part of this hockey club."

But Waddell insists that he's brought in enough talent for the Thrashers to contend for the championship, even if Kovalchuk stays in Russia.

The team still has several weeks to work out a deal, facing an important deadline on Oct. 5. After that, if Kovalchuk continues to play in Russia, he would have to clear waivers to rejoin the Thrashers - effectively ending any chances of rejoining the NHL this season.

If Kovalchuk quit his Russian team by Oct. 5, he would have until Dec. 1 to sign with the Thrashers in order to be eligible to play this season.

"Ilya makes us a better team," Waddell said. "But with the other pieces we've put in place, we're confident that we're ready to take that next step.

 

[Knightfall]

Flames start quest for return to finals

Canadian Press

9/13/2005 6:49:43 PM

CALGARY (CP) - Jarome Iginla is ready for the greater expectations that come from being a Western Conference champion.

The Calgary Flames captain had a glint of steel in his eye Tuesday as the NHL team's training camp began, the first skate since its unlikely run through the playoffs that only stopped at Game 7 of the Stanley Cup final.

"It awakens something you never even knew you had when you're that close - so we'll have to work at finding that chemistry again," said Iginla, who led the Flames with 41 goals and 73 points in the regular season and 26 points in the 2003-04 playoffs.

After years of starting camp with the modest hope of making the playoffs, the Flames veterans were on the ice with a little swagger and a lot more resolve.

"There's no question they came hungry and that's just what a coach wants to see," said Flames assistant Rich Preston. "The (lockout) year doesn't wash away the disappointment of how we ended that year two (seasons) ago.

"The players know what's at stake and what they can accomplish now so they're cranked up and ready to go."

And what they want is a return crack at taking home Lord Stanley's mug.

If anything, this year's Flames might be a little tougher than the gritty squad that Darryl Sutter put together in 2003-2004.

Included in the new Flames are Darren McCarty and rookie Dion Phaneuf, a member of last year's gold medal world junior squad whose punishing style made him a fan favourite.

"There's going to be a little more pressure that comes with going to the final," said the tough-as-nails McCarty, who was among the Detroit Red Wings stunned by the over-achieving Flames. "I know everybody in town is psyched up.

"I know everyone in the hockey world is talking about the moves that Darryl's made and the team he's put together, but we expect that."

They've also added finesse and scoring ability with Roman Hamrlik, Tony Amonte and Daymond Langkow - the latter two on Iginla's line during Tuesday's skate.

"It's awesome out there," said veteran winger Shean Donovan. "We added a lot of depth, a lot of leadership - a guy like Darren McCarty has won three Stanley Cups so you have that intangible, he knows how to win."

Calgary's defence has been bolstered with the addition of Phaneuf, who was paired with Robyn Regher on Tuesday.

About 300 fans packed a community arena in northeast Calgary on Tuesday for the first skate of training camp, many wearing the flaming red jerseys that were virtually a uniform during the pre-lockout playoff run. Many waited for hours after their hockey heroes were off the ice to get autographs.

The Battle of Alberta begins quickly with the Flames' first pre-season game Friday in Edmonton against the Oilers. But although the rivalry will be key - eight regular-season games and four in the pre-season - no one should forget the Flames other divisional opponents who all improved in the restructured NHL.

"It's going to be a battle," said Donovan. "Everyone in our conference got better, so we've got to get better just to get into the playoffs."

Regher also cautioned that the picture is much more important beyond Edmonton.

"It's really important that we don't get ahead of ourselves here and we keep setting goals that are realistic that we can achieve," he said. "First we have to make the playoffs."

Some habits die hard.

 

[Knightfall]

NHL Transactions for Tuesday, September 13th

NY Islanders - Re-signed restricted free agent forward Mark Parrish.

Pittsburgh Penguins - Re-signed restricted free agent defenceman Brooks Orpik.

St. Louis Blues - Signed unrestricted free agent forward Scott Young.

 

[Mista Collins]

Mark Messier, will be missed.

 

[Teflon Billy]

Mark Messier, will be missed.

Not by me :\

He sucked here in Vancouver. Came in, made everything worse, and left.

 

[devilbat]

I gotta agree with TB. I've never been a big Messier fan. Too many cheap shots behind the play against my beloved Jets.

 

[Knightfall]

Report: Elias to miss start of season

TSN.ca Staff

9/14/2005 11:55:35 AM

According to a report in the Newark Star-Ledger the New Jersey Devils will begin the season without Patrik Elias.

The paper reports that Elias will miss training camp and the beginning of the season because he is recovering from a severe case of hepatitis A.

Doctors believe that Elias contracted the disease while playing in Russia during the NHL lockout. The 29-year-old forward lost 30 pounds and spent nearly a month in a Czech Republic hospital.

Elias will start the season on injured reserve and will miss at least New Jersey's first ten regular-season games.

''I can't put a date on (a return),'' Elias told the Star-Ledger. ''If I do too much, I'll get a pain in the liver area. It expands and pushes on your pancreas.''

 

[Knightfall]

Another legend retires...

Francis retires after 23 NHL seasons

TSN.ca Staff

9/14/2005 10:44:22 AM

Ron Francis, a 23-year veteran with the Hartford Whalers, Pittsburgh Penguins, Carolina Hurricanes, and Toronto Maple Leafs announced his retirement Wednesday from the National Hockey League.

Francis, 42, was a 4-time NHL All-Star (1983, 1985, 1990, 1996). He appeared in a total of 1,731 NHL games, which ranks him third on the all-time list. His stellar career also included 549 goals (19th), 1,249 assists (2nd), and 1,798 total points (4th).

"As a kid growing up in the little city of Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, I dreamed of one day playing in the NHL, but never did I expect it to be as much fun as it turned out to be," Francis said in a press release. "I thank everyone who I came in contact with during this long ride for their contributions to making it fun."

Francis was drafted by the Hartford Whalers in 1981 (1st choice, 4th overall). Twenty times, Francis would score at least 20 goals in an NHL season, a feat surpassed only by hockey legend Gordie Howe.

"To all the players I had the chance to play with over my career, I thank you for all your hard work and dedication, your friendship, and for making this entire experience one I thoroughly enjoyed," Francis added. "To all my opponents over the years, I always had the utmost respect for your talents and how you competed every night. To the equipment guys and medical staffs, I thank you for all the hours you quietly put in to make sure that the players have the best opportunity to do their jobs well."

Francis was known for playing the game with class, as his three Lady Byng Memorial Trophies (1995, 1998, 2002) will attest, and his Frank J. Selke Trophy (1995) solidified his reputation as an excellent all-around player. His Hall-of-Fame career was highlighted by consecutive Stanley Cup victories in 1990-91 and 1991-92 with the Pittsburgh Penguins.

"My thanks to all the owners, general managers, and coaches I have had the pleasure of playing for. To all the fans of the NHL, I have enjoyed playing in front of you, whether you were cheering for me or against me, I appreciate the fact that you were willing to spend your hard earned dollars to come and see the games," Francis said. "To my family and friends, I could not think of a greater group of people that I would have wanted to share these years with. It has been truly a fun, memorable experience, and I look forward to having the opportunity to spend more time with you all over the coming years."

Francis and his wife Mary Lou live in Raleigh, North Carolina with their daughter Kaitlyn and two sons, Michael and Connor.