Knightfall
World of Kulan DM
The Score's NHL Weekly
The list of prominent UFA's is dwindling--it's down to Leetch, Legace, Bondra and a few more. With that in mind, we take a team-by-team look back at the week that was...
Avalanche
Time for a little housekeeping. GM Francois Giguere had a quiet week, re-signing restricted free agents Cody McCormick and backup goaltender Peter Budaj. Brett McLean is the only player that is currently scheduled to go to arbitration.
Blackhawks
Rene Bourque, Duncan Keith, Mikael Holmqvist, and Radim Vrbata were all locked up. Besides that, GM Dale Tallon has been shopping around for players to boost their Norfolk (AHL) lineup. Still on Tallon's plate is a scheduled arbitration hearing for Kyle Calder and Jim Vandermeer. Calder was the team's leading scorer in 2005-06, but the Blackhawks have plenty of cap space.
Blue Jackets
The Blue Jackets locked up their new, undisputed No. 1 goalie, Pascal Leclaire, for two years. They also locked up another youngster in Mikko Koivu to a one-year deal. Jason Chimera has an arbitration hearing scheduled for August 3, but what is really on GM Doug McLean's plate is the status of potential superstar Nikolai Zherdev. Zherdev signed with a team in Russia, and will be locked into that contract if he is not signed by Columbus by October 5th. The loss of the youngster would be a devastating blow to the team's playoff hopes, which were already somewhat slim to begin with.
Blues
Other than Monday, the Blues have had a quiet week. Of course, on Monday they signed nine of their restricted free agents--most of which are for the NHL roster. The most notable names include Eric Brewer, Jay McClement, and backup goaltender Jason Bacashihua. As well, former college star Peter Sejna was signed. Sejna had a strong season in the AHL last year, but has yet to make his mark in the NHL. The Blues have no players that filed for arbitration.
Bruins
GM Peter Chiarelli spent the week filling out the roster of Boston's AHL affiliate in Providence. He had David Tanabe up for arbitration, but that is not scheduled for two weeks--more than enough time to lock him up. The biggest task ahead is re-signing Brad Boyes and Patrice Bergeron, who are both coming off big years and have teased with the potential for more.
Canadiens
The Habs secured Russian sophomore Alexander Perezhogin for the next year. GM Bob Gainey also re-signed the No.3 goaltender in the system Yann Danis. On Tuesday, July 25, Gainey may be busy in an arbitration hearing which is scheduled for Michael Ryder.
Canucks
The Canucks are very weak on the wings, and they added Taylor Pyatt from the Buffalo Sabres in exchange for a draft pick. Pyatt is a big, strong player who has had the potential to be a player similar to Todd Bertuzzi. That potential has faded in a big way in recent years, due to injuries and poor play in general. Perhaps joining the team that kick started Bertuzzi will have the same impact on Pyatt. Now they just have to sign him. Vancouver did sign, however, their third-round pick (82nd overall) from this summer, defenseman Daniel Rahimi. They have nobody scheduled to go to arbitration this year.
Capitals
Big Donald Brashear is on his way to the American capital. Besides adding Alexander Ovechkin's new "muscle" in Brashear, GM George McPhee also signed a group of NHL roster hopefuls. Rico Fata, Kris Beech, and Boyd Gordon all signed contracts. There are a handful of arbitration hearings set for the coming days. Matt Bradley, Ben Clymer, and Matt Pettinger all have appointments with an arbitrator.
Coyotes
Last year's AHL goal-scoring champion (tied with Denis Hamel) and AHL MVP, Donald MacLean, was signed as an unrestricted free agent. It is expected he will help their AHL affiliate in San Antonio in a big way, as well as step onto the big club as an injury replacement. The Coyotes also signed a handful of restricted free agents, including Oleg Saprykin and Fredrik Sjostrom. Some huge arbitration hearings are ahead, as their best player Ladislav Nagy is on tap, as well as top center Mike Comrie.
Devils
The budget-swelling Devils made no moves this past week, but with all their big-money signings this summer they have really painted themselves in a corner. New Jersey has only one arbitration hearing scheduled, but it's a doozy. Scott Gomez could be in line for as much as $6 million, which is a sure-fire way to force a trade. The Devils have little room in their budget under the salary cap, and anything over $5 million would force their hand.
Ducks
GM Brian Burke signed a depth winger in Shawn Thornton, and a new No. 3 goaltender in Michael Leighton. What Burke is more worried about is an escalating goaltending controversy. With Ilya Bryzgalov and Jean-Sebastien Giguere in the fold, a controversy is unavoidable. Throw in some misconstrued comments by one of the parties involved, and the problem starts to fester. Two arbitration hearings were scheduled, but Burke already managed to settle one of them in advance with the signing of left winger Chris Kunitz. Vitaly Vishnevski is still left, his hearing is set for July 26.
Flames
Now that Darryl Sutter can focus strictly on his GM duties, he has plenty of time to·sign one minor league defenseman. That's the extent of the Calgary transactions this past week. The Flames' NHL roster is already pretty much set.
Flyers
After locking up future-star rearguard Joni Pitkanen for the season, GM Bob Clarke addressed the team's continuing need for "lower-priced" speed by signing Geoff Sanderson. Sanderson's still one of the quicker wingers in the NHL, and with his signing the Flyers now boast six lines of forwards who can all play in the NHL with varying degrees of success. Expecting a few injuries, are we? No players signed up for an arbitration hearing.
Kings
Los Angeles locked up their projected No. 2 goaltender in Mathieu Garon, as well as their No. 3 center Eric Belanger. When they traded Pavol Demitra on draft day to Minnesota for Patrick O'Sullivan and the 17th overall draft pick, they chose Trevor Lewis with that selection. Well, they didn't waste any time signing the youngster. Lewis signed a three-year entry level contract that will kick in when he joins the team in a couple of years. Sean Avery and leading goal-scorer Mike Cammalleri (Mark Parrish doesn't count, as he scored just five goals in Los Angeles) are both scheduled for arbitration.
Lightning
Ryan Craig impressed GM Jay Feaster in his rookie year, and was rewarded with a contract. The only player that Feaster has to worry about in arbitration is rearguard Cory Sarich.
Maple Leafs
GM John Ferguson Jr. had a busy week, capped off with the signing of unrestricted free agent Michael Peca. Peca will slide in neatly into the second-line center role behind captain Mats Sundin. Ferguson also signed their top draft pick in this summer's draft Jiri Tlusty, as well as an entire slate of young defensemen (Brendan Bell, Carlo Colaiacovo, and Jay Harrison) and sophomore forward Kyle Wellwood. The signing of Peca officially bids adieu to last year's second-line center Jason Allison, who is still looking for a new home. The Leafs have no players going to arbitration.
Oilers
Edmonton had two huge signings this past week, and they will have two more huge signings over the next week. Last week they locked up No. 1 center Shawn Horcoff, as well as head coach Craig MacTavish. In the week ahead, arbitration hearings are slated for budding star Ales Hemsky, as well as No. 2 center Jarret Stoll.
Panthers
The Panthers locked up their two goaltenders this week, as both Alex Auld and Craig Anderson signed contracts. GM Mike Keenan also had youngsters Juraj Kolnik and Stephen Weiss put the pen to paper for one-year deals. Both of them (as well as Anderson) were scheduled for arbitration. Keenan's not out of the woods yet, as he still has three rearguards slated for arbitration hearings: Mike Van Ryn, Jay Bouwmeester, and Ric Jackman.
Penguins
GM Ray Shero pulled the trigger on a couple of deals over the past few days, and the Pittsburgh roster is starting to take shape. Desperate for wingers, Shero added three without touching his roster. Nils Ekman was brought in to take a shot at Sidney Crosby's wing, or perhaps Evgeni Malkin's. The Penguins also added energy player Dominic Moore and a big, but unproven, winger in Libor Pivko. Ryan Malone, Brooks Orpik, and Moore are all scheduled for arbitration hearings.
Predators
The only problem that the Predators had was an abundance of skilled wingers. Some room had to be made for Scottie Upshall, who has proven that he is more than ready for the NHL on a full-time basis. GM David Poile addressed that by shipping off Scott Walker to Carolina, while at the same time addressing a lesser need in a skilled third-line center be getting Josef Vasicek in return. Poile also traded away winger Adam Hall. These moves not only cleared the way for Upshall, but will also give more ice time to Scott Hartnell and Martin Erat. Speaking of Erat and Hartnell, both of them are scheduled for arbitration, as is No. 2 center David Legwand.
Rangers
The Rangers upgraded their skill level on the wing in acquiring Adam Hall from Nashville as part of a three-way deal that saw them give up Dominic Moore. They still need to sign Hall by August 2, or they will be off to arbitration.
Red Wings
The Red Wings had a lot of communication with goaltender Ed Belfour, but decided not to sign him for the asking price. As things stand now, the Red Wings have Chris Osgood as their starting goalie, and Jimmy Howard as their backup. Not the worst situation to be in, but you can't help but believe that the Red Wings aren't thrilled with it and are looking to upgrade. There is only one player who filed for arbitration-- Jason Williams, who is coming off a career year and should be rewarded with a big raise as a result.
Sabres
GM Darcy Regier re-signed some key players in Derek Roy, Nathan Paetsch, and Andrej Sekera, but the biggest action is still ahead of him. An NHL-high 10 players are headed to arbitration, including star Daniel Briere, Maxim Afinogenov, J.P. Dumont, Jason Pominville, Tim Connolly, and Ales Kotalik. Regier doesn't have time for anything else right now.
Senators
The biggest signing of the week for the Sens was Antoine Vermette. The 24-year-old may find a much bigger role with the team this year due to the Martin Havlat trade. Moving Havlat leaves a gaping hole up front, and Vermette could very well fill that hole. Vermette avoided arbitration with the signing, but Chris Kelly, Chris Neil, and Peter Schaefer are still on tap.
Sharks
Newly acquired left winger Mark Bell is slated for an arbitration hearing next week. The good thing for the Sharks is that whatever price he is awarded, he will be compensated for his performance to date, and not his future performance. Playing with superstar Joe Thornton and Rocket Richard Trophy winner Jonathan Cheechoo will make last year's numbers look pretty insignificant. Centerman Mark Smith also filed for arbitration.
Stars
In one of the bigger moves of the NHL this past week, the Stars landed the Big E. Eric Lindros put pen to paper and will be the second-line center on a Dallas team in desperate need of replacing Jason Arnott. The four-time 40-goal scorer will look for a successful return from wrist surgery and try to duplicate the monster season that Arnott gave Dallas last year. The Stars also signed rookie Junior Lessard, who will have a chance to crack the lineup this year. Nobody is slated for arbitration this year.
Thrashers
The Thrashers locked up newly-acquired pivot Niko Kapanen to a multi-year contract. GM Don Waddell also added a pair of depth wingers with modest upside via unrestricted free agency in Jon Sim and Kyle Wanvig. Kapanen was the only player slated for an arbitration hearing, and his signing avoided the process.
Wild
Minnesota signed youngster Matt Foy, who will have a good shot at cracking the lineup this year. They also added depth at center with the signing of Minneapolis native Wyatt Smith. No Minnesota players filed for arbitration this year.
The list of prominent UFA's is dwindling--it's down to Leetch, Legace, Bondra and a few more. With that in mind, we take a team-by-team look back at the week that was...
Avalanche
Time for a little housekeeping. GM Francois Giguere had a quiet week, re-signing restricted free agents Cody McCormick and backup goaltender Peter Budaj. Brett McLean is the only player that is currently scheduled to go to arbitration.
Blackhawks
Rene Bourque, Duncan Keith, Mikael Holmqvist, and Radim Vrbata were all locked up. Besides that, GM Dale Tallon has been shopping around for players to boost their Norfolk (AHL) lineup. Still on Tallon's plate is a scheduled arbitration hearing for Kyle Calder and Jim Vandermeer. Calder was the team's leading scorer in 2005-06, but the Blackhawks have plenty of cap space.
Blue Jackets
The Blue Jackets locked up their new, undisputed No. 1 goalie, Pascal Leclaire, for two years. They also locked up another youngster in Mikko Koivu to a one-year deal. Jason Chimera has an arbitration hearing scheduled for August 3, but what is really on GM Doug McLean's plate is the status of potential superstar Nikolai Zherdev. Zherdev signed with a team in Russia, and will be locked into that contract if he is not signed by Columbus by October 5th. The loss of the youngster would be a devastating blow to the team's playoff hopes, which were already somewhat slim to begin with.
Blues
Other than Monday, the Blues have had a quiet week. Of course, on Monday they signed nine of their restricted free agents--most of which are for the NHL roster. The most notable names include Eric Brewer, Jay McClement, and backup goaltender Jason Bacashihua. As well, former college star Peter Sejna was signed. Sejna had a strong season in the AHL last year, but has yet to make his mark in the NHL. The Blues have no players that filed for arbitration.
Bruins
GM Peter Chiarelli spent the week filling out the roster of Boston's AHL affiliate in Providence. He had David Tanabe up for arbitration, but that is not scheduled for two weeks--more than enough time to lock him up. The biggest task ahead is re-signing Brad Boyes and Patrice Bergeron, who are both coming off big years and have teased with the potential for more.
Canadiens
The Habs secured Russian sophomore Alexander Perezhogin for the next year. GM Bob Gainey also re-signed the No.3 goaltender in the system Yann Danis. On Tuesday, July 25, Gainey may be busy in an arbitration hearing which is scheduled for Michael Ryder.
Canucks
The Canucks are very weak on the wings, and they added Taylor Pyatt from the Buffalo Sabres in exchange for a draft pick. Pyatt is a big, strong player who has had the potential to be a player similar to Todd Bertuzzi. That potential has faded in a big way in recent years, due to injuries and poor play in general. Perhaps joining the team that kick started Bertuzzi will have the same impact on Pyatt. Now they just have to sign him. Vancouver did sign, however, their third-round pick (82nd overall) from this summer, defenseman Daniel Rahimi. They have nobody scheduled to go to arbitration this year.
Capitals
Big Donald Brashear is on his way to the American capital. Besides adding Alexander Ovechkin's new "muscle" in Brashear, GM George McPhee also signed a group of NHL roster hopefuls. Rico Fata, Kris Beech, and Boyd Gordon all signed contracts. There are a handful of arbitration hearings set for the coming days. Matt Bradley, Ben Clymer, and Matt Pettinger all have appointments with an arbitrator.
Coyotes
Last year's AHL goal-scoring champion (tied with Denis Hamel) and AHL MVP, Donald MacLean, was signed as an unrestricted free agent. It is expected he will help their AHL affiliate in San Antonio in a big way, as well as step onto the big club as an injury replacement. The Coyotes also signed a handful of restricted free agents, including Oleg Saprykin and Fredrik Sjostrom. Some huge arbitration hearings are ahead, as their best player Ladislav Nagy is on tap, as well as top center Mike Comrie.
Devils
The budget-swelling Devils made no moves this past week, but with all their big-money signings this summer they have really painted themselves in a corner. New Jersey has only one arbitration hearing scheduled, but it's a doozy. Scott Gomez could be in line for as much as $6 million, which is a sure-fire way to force a trade. The Devils have little room in their budget under the salary cap, and anything over $5 million would force their hand.
Ducks
GM Brian Burke signed a depth winger in Shawn Thornton, and a new No. 3 goaltender in Michael Leighton. What Burke is more worried about is an escalating goaltending controversy. With Ilya Bryzgalov and Jean-Sebastien Giguere in the fold, a controversy is unavoidable. Throw in some misconstrued comments by one of the parties involved, and the problem starts to fester. Two arbitration hearings were scheduled, but Burke already managed to settle one of them in advance with the signing of left winger Chris Kunitz. Vitaly Vishnevski is still left, his hearing is set for July 26.
Flames
Now that Darryl Sutter can focus strictly on his GM duties, he has plenty of time to·sign one minor league defenseman. That's the extent of the Calgary transactions this past week. The Flames' NHL roster is already pretty much set.
Flyers
After locking up future-star rearguard Joni Pitkanen for the season, GM Bob Clarke addressed the team's continuing need for "lower-priced" speed by signing Geoff Sanderson. Sanderson's still one of the quicker wingers in the NHL, and with his signing the Flyers now boast six lines of forwards who can all play in the NHL with varying degrees of success. Expecting a few injuries, are we? No players signed up for an arbitration hearing.
Kings
Los Angeles locked up their projected No. 2 goaltender in Mathieu Garon, as well as their No. 3 center Eric Belanger. When they traded Pavol Demitra on draft day to Minnesota for Patrick O'Sullivan and the 17th overall draft pick, they chose Trevor Lewis with that selection. Well, they didn't waste any time signing the youngster. Lewis signed a three-year entry level contract that will kick in when he joins the team in a couple of years. Sean Avery and leading goal-scorer Mike Cammalleri (Mark Parrish doesn't count, as he scored just five goals in Los Angeles) are both scheduled for arbitration.
Lightning
Ryan Craig impressed GM Jay Feaster in his rookie year, and was rewarded with a contract. The only player that Feaster has to worry about in arbitration is rearguard Cory Sarich.
Maple Leafs
GM John Ferguson Jr. had a busy week, capped off with the signing of unrestricted free agent Michael Peca. Peca will slide in neatly into the second-line center role behind captain Mats Sundin. Ferguson also signed their top draft pick in this summer's draft Jiri Tlusty, as well as an entire slate of young defensemen (Brendan Bell, Carlo Colaiacovo, and Jay Harrison) and sophomore forward Kyle Wellwood. The signing of Peca officially bids adieu to last year's second-line center Jason Allison, who is still looking for a new home. The Leafs have no players going to arbitration.
Oilers
Edmonton had two huge signings this past week, and they will have two more huge signings over the next week. Last week they locked up No. 1 center Shawn Horcoff, as well as head coach Craig MacTavish. In the week ahead, arbitration hearings are slated for budding star Ales Hemsky, as well as No. 2 center Jarret Stoll.
Panthers
The Panthers locked up their two goaltenders this week, as both Alex Auld and Craig Anderson signed contracts. GM Mike Keenan also had youngsters Juraj Kolnik and Stephen Weiss put the pen to paper for one-year deals. Both of them (as well as Anderson) were scheduled for arbitration. Keenan's not out of the woods yet, as he still has three rearguards slated for arbitration hearings: Mike Van Ryn, Jay Bouwmeester, and Ric Jackman.
Penguins
GM Ray Shero pulled the trigger on a couple of deals over the past few days, and the Pittsburgh roster is starting to take shape. Desperate for wingers, Shero added three without touching his roster. Nils Ekman was brought in to take a shot at Sidney Crosby's wing, or perhaps Evgeni Malkin's. The Penguins also added energy player Dominic Moore and a big, but unproven, winger in Libor Pivko. Ryan Malone, Brooks Orpik, and Moore are all scheduled for arbitration hearings.
Predators
The only problem that the Predators had was an abundance of skilled wingers. Some room had to be made for Scottie Upshall, who has proven that he is more than ready for the NHL on a full-time basis. GM David Poile addressed that by shipping off Scott Walker to Carolina, while at the same time addressing a lesser need in a skilled third-line center be getting Josef Vasicek in return. Poile also traded away winger Adam Hall. These moves not only cleared the way for Upshall, but will also give more ice time to Scott Hartnell and Martin Erat. Speaking of Erat and Hartnell, both of them are scheduled for arbitration, as is No. 2 center David Legwand.
Rangers
The Rangers upgraded their skill level on the wing in acquiring Adam Hall from Nashville as part of a three-way deal that saw them give up Dominic Moore. They still need to sign Hall by August 2, or they will be off to arbitration.
Red Wings
The Red Wings had a lot of communication with goaltender Ed Belfour, but decided not to sign him for the asking price. As things stand now, the Red Wings have Chris Osgood as their starting goalie, and Jimmy Howard as their backup. Not the worst situation to be in, but you can't help but believe that the Red Wings aren't thrilled with it and are looking to upgrade. There is only one player who filed for arbitration-- Jason Williams, who is coming off a career year and should be rewarded with a big raise as a result.
Sabres
GM Darcy Regier re-signed some key players in Derek Roy, Nathan Paetsch, and Andrej Sekera, but the biggest action is still ahead of him. An NHL-high 10 players are headed to arbitration, including star Daniel Briere, Maxim Afinogenov, J.P. Dumont, Jason Pominville, Tim Connolly, and Ales Kotalik. Regier doesn't have time for anything else right now.
Senators
The biggest signing of the week for the Sens was Antoine Vermette. The 24-year-old may find a much bigger role with the team this year due to the Martin Havlat trade. Moving Havlat leaves a gaping hole up front, and Vermette could very well fill that hole. Vermette avoided arbitration with the signing, but Chris Kelly, Chris Neil, and Peter Schaefer are still on tap.
Sharks
Newly acquired left winger Mark Bell is slated for an arbitration hearing next week. The good thing for the Sharks is that whatever price he is awarded, he will be compensated for his performance to date, and not his future performance. Playing with superstar Joe Thornton and Rocket Richard Trophy winner Jonathan Cheechoo will make last year's numbers look pretty insignificant. Centerman Mark Smith also filed for arbitration.
Stars
In one of the bigger moves of the NHL this past week, the Stars landed the Big E. Eric Lindros put pen to paper and will be the second-line center on a Dallas team in desperate need of replacing Jason Arnott. The four-time 40-goal scorer will look for a successful return from wrist surgery and try to duplicate the monster season that Arnott gave Dallas last year. The Stars also signed rookie Junior Lessard, who will have a chance to crack the lineup this year. Nobody is slated for arbitration this year.
Thrashers
The Thrashers locked up newly-acquired pivot Niko Kapanen to a multi-year contract. GM Don Waddell also added a pair of depth wingers with modest upside via unrestricted free agency in Jon Sim and Kyle Wanvig. Kapanen was the only player slated for an arbitration hearing, and his signing avoided the process.
Wild
Minnesota signed youngster Matt Foy, who will have a good shot at cracking the lineup this year. They also added depth at center with the signing of Minneapolis native Wyatt Smith. No Minnesota players filed for arbitration this year.
