SPORT-SCAN DAILY BRIEFflyers.nhl.com/v2/ext/06.27.2011 nhlc.pdf · 573711 Spencerport’s Prince drafted on 2nd round by Ottawa 573712 Report: NHL considering 'dramatic' realignment

SPORT-SCAN DAILY BRIEF NHL 6/27/2011

Boston Bruins 573668 They fit nicely into Tradition 573669 Most go hungry when coming back for seconds 573670 Solid draft strengthens Bruins’ core 573671 B’s draft pick capsules

Buffalo Sabres 573672 Pegula is making big impact on Sabres 573673 Sabres select Finnish forward Armia with first pick 573674 Robyn Regehr brings grit to Buffalo Sabres 573675 REUNITED: Sabres-Amerks deal benefits both teams

Calgary Flames 573676 Flames net much-needed salary cap relief 573677 Flames subtract another Sutter 573678 Persistence sold Regehr on Sabres

Carolina Hurricanes 573679 Canes wrap up NHL draft

Chicago Blackhawks 573680 Campbell trade should help Hawks keep Sharp 573681 Leddy preparing for more prominent role

Columbus Blue Jackets 573682 Blue Jackets turn their attention to defense 573683 Bob Hunter commentary: Jackets need Carter to get onboard 573684 Blue Jackets draft selections 573685 Jackets use draft picks to load up on centers 573686 Jackets' top pick had to watch, wait 573687 Blue Jackets notebook: Draft pick used to watch sister play for OSU 573688 Blue Jackets: Filatov traded for draft pick

Dallas Stars 573689 Salary cap floor is changing the way the NHL does business

Detroit Red Wings 573690 Red Wings close to deal with defenseman Jonathan Ericsson 573691 Final answers coming soon for Wings veterans

Edmonton Oilers 573692 Oilers trade for Smyth 573693 John MacKinnon: Ultimate Edmonton Oiler happy to be coming home 573694 Tambellini expects Smyth to lead by example 573695 Fraser hits road after brief stay with Oilers 573696 Smyth repatriated with Oilers 573697 Fraser 'surprised' by trade to LA 573698 Oilers finalize trade for Smyth

Florida Panthers 573699 Campbell happy to be reunited with Florida Panthers GM Tallon 573700 Panthers ready to trade and add free agents this week

Los Angeles Kings 573701 Kings trade Ryan Smyth to Edmonton for Colin Fraser, seventh-round draft pick 573702 Ryan Smyth finds his way home, as Kings finalize deal with Edmonton 573703 Smyth talks about trade to Oilers 573704 Lombardi: Smyth trade `probably harder than making the Gretzky deal’ 573705 Smyth traded to Oilers. Yes, really.

Minnesota Wild 573706 Two days of hockey heaven in St. Paul 573707 Minnesota Wild turn attention to free agency market, which opens Friday

Montreal Canadiens 573708 Will anyone take Scott Gomez off Habs' hands?

New York Rangers 573709 Rangers' Drury may take buyout

NHL 573710 Ottawa Senators draft Spencerport's Shane Prince 573711 Spencerport’s Prince drafted on 2nd round by Ottawa 573712 Report: NHL considering 'dramatic' realignment for 2012-13 573713 Big salaries no longer scaring NHL teams

Ottawa Senators 573714 Senators should target Konopka

Philadelphia Flyers 573715 Flyers stuck to plan of choosing best available player in draft 573716 FLYERS' DRAFT PICKS CAPSULES 573717 Placek latest in Flyers’ 6th-round magic

Pittsburgh Penguins 573718 Planning Pens' power surge 573719 All quiet on the Penguins' front

St Louis Blues 573720 Hockey Guy: Blues place upside bets in second round

Tampa Bay Lightning 573721 Lots on to-do list for Lightning 573722 Return to Tampa Bay Lightning for less pay? Brad Richards says he will be flexible in free agency

Toronto Maple Leafs 573723 Leafs keep quiet on Richards sweepstakes

Vancouver Canucks 573724 Canucks get bigger at draft; time will tell if they got better 573725 Canucks' draft performance needs improvement 573726 Monday musings on all things NHL

Washington Capitals 573727 Washington Capitals pick trio of NCAA-bound players at 2011 NHL draft 573728 Deal signaled Capitals’ desire to win now

Websites 573733 NBCSports.com / Phil Kessel to the Leafs trade is finally complete 573734 Sportsnet.ca /Injection of Smyth 573735 USA TODAY / These 10 teams improved the most during NHL draft week

Winnipeg Jets 573729 Jets pick Kasdorf knows it's a tough road 573730 One down, only 999 to go 573731 Jets are active on Day 2 573732 Jets weighing their options

SPORT-SCAN, INC. 941-284-4129

573668 Boston Bruins

They fit nicely into Tradition

By Bob Ryan

Aren’t we great?

Hmm . . . perhaps we should rephrase that.

Aren’t we lucky?

There’s no arguing which North American city has had the most successful run of 21st century sports franchises. Boston has already had seven champions in the four primary team sports. Throw in the two NCAA hockey championships won by Boston College and the one taken home by Boston University, and that’s 10 recent occasions to salute one of our teams as the unquestioned best.

Not that any of us has scored a touchdown, hit a home run, sank a 3-pointer, or stopped a puck in any of these high-level competitions, but simply by caring as much as we obviously do, we can claim to be at least a teeny-weeny part of the story. So I would implore my fellow citizens of New England to make an attempt to act humble when in the company of the less fortunate American sports fans — that is to say, everyone else.

Yes, even New Yorkers.

Given the latest rousing success story — the Bruins appear to be raising Stanley Cup celebrating to a new level — the timing is right to remember that one of our great New England traditions is honoring tradition. We are embarrassingly blessed to have had in residence scores of exceptional athletes. And one of our primary ways to celebrate them is the annual event put on by the Sports Museum known as, yup, The Tradition, which will take place Tuesday night at TD Garden.

This is the 10th annual event, and thus the Sports Museum is proud to present a true top-of-the-line attraction. Joining Willie O’Ree, Micky Ward, Ty Law, Mike Lowell, and Bobbi Gibb on the podium will be one of the truly great basketball players, and, more important in these parts, one of the truly great Celtics. That would be No. 33 himself, Larry Bird.

The evening’s format works very nicely. Ticket buyers enjoy a gala reception, during which they get to mingle with the honorees. Each honoree has a presenter, and after the appropriate remarks, he or she takes a seat on the stage for a stimulating discussion in which the presenter joins WEEI’s Glenn Ordway and Michael Holley to engage in some reminiscences. You never know for sure where that will go. It’s not as though there’s a script.

The Class of 2011 is a truly diverse one.

O’Ree was a true pioneer as the first African-Canadian to play in the National Hockey League. He did so despite being 95 percent blind in his right eye, the result of having been struck by a puck two years earlier than his 1958 debut with the Bruins. He played in two games during the 1957-58 season and 43 in 1960-61 before becoming a Western Hockey League legend. He has devoted his life to teaching and promoting the game he loves, most recently as director of youth development for the NHL’s diversity task force. He will receive the Hockey Legacy Award.

Ward’s fascinating life (some of it, anyway) was celebrated last year in the entertaining movie “The Fighter,’’ which ended before the tale of his three memorable fights with Arturo Gatti could be told. The Lowell native is not just one of the greatest New England-bred fighters ever. He may be the toughest, period. He will receive the Boxing Legacy Award.

A two-time All-Pro, a five-time Pro Bowl selection, and a Pro Bowl MVP, Law will be remembered around here for anchoring the defensive backfield on all three Patriots Super Bowl champs. Released following the 2005 season in a salary cap move, he was never really replaced. Law will receive the Football Legacy Award.

Essentially a throw-in on the Josh Beckett deal, Lowell left Boston five years later as a beloved member of the team. This pro’s pro was the MVP of the 2007 World Series, following a season in which he drove in 120 runs while playing an impeccable third base. We in the media will always remember his extraordinary civility. He will receive the Baseball Legacy Award.

You talk pioneer, you must cite Bobbi Gibb, who had the effrontery to think that a female had just as much a right to run the Boston Marathon as a male. She finished first three times as an “unofficial’’ entrant in 1966, 1967, and 1968 before being given official credit in 1996. She will receive a Special Achievement Award.

And then there’s Larry.

The three championship teams he led will always be remembered. His statistical achievements are in the books. But Bird’s lasting legacy was to play the game with a combination of skill, intelligence, and passion that had every fan thinking that if only he or she could play at that level, that’s the precise game he or she would want to play. He was the personal embodiment of all the good things basketball has to offer. Bird will receive the Lifetime Achievement Award.

A general admission seat is $200. A reserved seat is $300. That, admittedly, is a lot. But all proceeds go to the Sports Museum, a vital local treasure. This would be a wonderful belated Father’s Day gift or birthday gift, or just a thank you for that great sports fan who has enriched someone’s life. Or you can simply reward yourself for rooting home all those championship teams.

For information, go to www.sportsmuseum.org. Start a personal tradition by going to The Tradition.

Boston Globe LOADED: 06.27.2011


Most go hungry when coming back for seconds

By Kevin Paul Dupont

If you are convinced that the Bruins are set up for a string of Stanley Cup championships, then you probably haven’t spent much time dwelling on the harsh reality of recent history. It’s hard to get there. It’s much harder to do it a second time.

In the last 20 years, only the Penguins (1991-92) and the Red Wings (1997-98) have pulled off repeats.

Last year’s Cup champs, the Blackhawks, were dinged in Round 1 this year by the Canucks, who initially appeared to have what it takes, until their netminder, Roberto Luongo, blew out like a threadbare Bridgestone radial. No amount of tire pumping could have saved Bobby Lou.

Twice in the last 15-plus years, in fact, the defending Cup champion has failed to so much as qualify for the playoffs the following year. The Devils played their trap to perfection in 1995, then fell into a DNQ black hole in ’96. The Cam Ward-backed Hurricanes won in 2006, the first year out of the lockout, then posted back-to-back DNQs.

Of the last 26 Cup winners, dating back to the Oilers’ first championship in 1984, 15 were eliminated by the end of the second round the following season.

Now, what does that tell us of the Bruins’ chance to be back here same time, same place, same rolling parade next year? We’ll get our first hints when the 2011-12 season begins Oct. 6 with the retooled Flyers (Jeff Carter and Mike Richards offloaded last week) at the Garden for the banner-lifting opener.

But here at worrisome central, a few thoughts to keep in mind while basking in the warmth you’re feeling after that 39-year hibernation:

?This win was mostly about goalie Tim Thomas, which is what the entire regular season was most about as well. Without Thomas, this is a team that easily could have missed the playoffs. Yes, solid goaltending is a necessity all year. But Thomas provided goaltending that was even better than the Dominik Hasek “Dominator’’ variety, which, Sabres fans will remember, fell just short in the ’99 Final.

If it takes that kind of performance to win the Cup again in 2012, no doubt the ever-battling Thomas is up for it, but those kind of out-of-body experiences pass this way with the frequency of comets.

“Just something about Timmy,’’ mused his old Vermont pal, Martin St. Louis, whose Tampa Bay team was rubbed out by the Bruins in the conference final. “It’s like he knows how good he has to be and plays up to that level. We got more by him in our series than Vancouver did, but he beat us. Then he held Vancouver to, what, eight goals? Unbelievable.’’

That’s money goaltending. And it’s a safe bet that even Thomas can’t bank on it a second time. The Cup win was decidedly goalie-centric, which isn’t to diminish the work of others, but is to say it would be a mistake to think other areas don’t need upgrading.

? Big-time goal scoring. In the end, the Bruins got the goals when they needed them, specifically two each from Brad Marchand and Patrice Bergeron in the Game 7 clincher. Overall, though, they lacked that mainstay scorer (notice we did not say “sniper’’), who was capable of saying, “Follow me, boys, I’ll get you there’’ on a nightly basis.

Is it Milan Lucic? Is it Nathan Horton? Perhaps one day, but not yet. Both remain too inconsistent to be considered elite scorers. And with Mark Recchi retired, one-sixth of that top-six equation has been lost. Find a bona fide perennial 40-goal guy out there, someone who can lift the tide, and the chance of a repeat increases exponentially.

? The power play. It was supposed to get better with the addition of Tomas Kaberle, but instead it went from frustrating to futile to fahgettaboutit. Truth is, the man-advantage has been a struggle for years, though respectable when Marc Savard was operating at peak performance.

The fix? Answer that here, in the sports section? No clue. That’s not just me, but also those who are paid to figure it out, including players, coaches,

and management. Often during the playoffs, both PP1 and PP2 were barely able to hold the zone. It was not uncommon to see the opposition clear the puck four, five, even six times in the first minute of the advantage.

Can they win again with a clueless, powerless power play? There is probably a better chance of that than of winning again with Thomas being less than Thomas. But there has to be a better way, be it with better players or better coaching.

The end result was 10 for 88 in the playoffs, only an 11.4 percent success rate. The only clubs to be worse were the Rangers (5 percent) and Penguins (2.9 percent), both of whom didn’t make it out of Round 1.

So maybe some of you will consider that a buzzkill even before the post-parade hangover has faded. But again, the “repeat’’ statistics are sobering and the shortcomings don’t disappear no matter how bright the Cup’s glimmer. Like that household “to do’’ list, there is always something that needs attention.

GOING SOUTH

Campbell rejoins Tallon The moribund Panthers — now with a record 10 straight postseason DNQs — stirred things up on draft night Friday with the acquisition of puck-wheeling defenseman Brian Campbell from the Blackhawks. Florida general manager Dale Tallon was the boss in Chicago three years ago when he signed Campbell to that eye-popping eight-year, $57 million deal as a free agent out of San Jose (where he was a brief rental via Buffalo).

To mitigate the sting of adding $35.5 million in salary, Tallon shipped out Czech center Rostislav Olesz, 25, who to date has been another underperforming forward to get lost in Sunrise (see: Nathan Horton).

Even with the addition of Campbell, Tallon still has gobs of money to spend and is expected to be very active in the free agent market when it opens Friday. He could be one of the GMs knee-deep in the Brad Richards bidding, especially with the sun having set on Olesz. Richards is no stranger to Florida. He won a Cup with the Bolts in 2004, one of his six-plus seasons in Tampa.

Meanwhile, a year after winning their first Cup since 1961, the Hawks have gutted two more players — Campbell and Troy Brouwer — who were part of that championship run. Other key brothers departed include Dustin Byfuglien, Kris Versteeg, Brent Sopel, Adam Burish, John Madden, Andrew Ladd, Ben Eager, and goalie Antti Niemi.

All in all, roughly a 50 percent turnover. Not totally unexpected, given how tight the Hawks were against the cap, especially after new big contracts for Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews.

BLUE LINE UPGRADE

Burns a mover for Sharks now Philadelphia stole the trade thunder before the draft started by shipping out Mike Richards and Jeff Carter Thursday. A day later, San Jose pulled off its own blockbuster. The Sharks acquired Brent Burns from Minnesota for Devin Setoguchi, Weymouth native Charlie Coyle, and a 2012 second-round pick.

In Burns, the Sharks land another right-shot, two-way defenseman to complement Dan Boyle. Even more important, a healthy Burns (17-29—46 in 80 games, 25:02 ice time) should make Joe Thornton, Dany Heatley, Patrick Marleau, Ryan Clowe, Joe Pavelski, and Logan Couture even better.

Burns excels at retrieving pucks and getting them up to his forwards with speed. During the Western Conference finals, the Canucks gave the Sharks headaches because of the speed and ferocity of their forecheck.

With Burns, 26, in the lineup, there should be better cohesion between San Jose’s defensemen and forwards.

“Right in our wheelhouse in our window with our team,’’ said Sharks GM Doug Wilson. “A guy at his age and his type of game complements our team.’’

ETC.

Leafs giving it old college try Massachusetts natives Greg Cronin (Arlington) and Scott Gordon (Easton) were hired by Toronto to serve as assistants to coach Ron Wilson. The Maple Leafs are bursting with ties to New England college hockey. Cronin was most recently head coach at Northeastern, and was also an assistant to Shawn Walsh at Maine. Gordon is a Boston College alum. Wilson and GM Brian Burke played at Providence. Dave Nonis, senior vice president of hockey operations, is an ex-Black Bear.

Director of player development Jim Hughes is a Providence grad. No surprise that Cronin returned to pro hockey, especially after his suspension for voicemails and text messages that were in violation of NCAA policy. At times, Cronin was overwhelmed by the administrative duties required of college coaches. Both Cronin and Gordon expressed their interest in the Florida job that ultimately went to former Portland Pirates coach Kevin Dineen.

Capital punishment ahead? Before the start of the draft Friday, Washington acquired Troy Brouwer from Chicago for the No. 26 pick. In Brouwer, the Capitals bring in an abrasive forward who can play both wings and shift from a scoring position to a grinding role. “That’s the beauty of his versatility,’’ said Capitals GM George McPhee. “He can also play the left side. With the way the game’s going now, we can play him up and down the lineup.’’ Bruins fans will remember Brouwer as one of the Blackhawks under suspicion of chirping at Shawn Thornton on March 29. Thornton suffered a cut above his right eye when he fell forward into one of Fernando Pisani’s skate blades. As Thornton skated off, one or more Blackhawks gave him the business. Thornton’s teammates pointed fingers at Brouwer and Patrick Kane. “There was some stuff said that I’m not very happy about,’’ Thornton said after the game. “If I ever find out who it was, I’ll deal with it in my own way.’’ The Bruins play the Capitals four times next season. First showdown is Jan. 24, 2012.

If they build it . . . On Aug. 1, Nassau County voters will have the future of the Islanders in their hands. That day, they will vote, via public referendum, on a $400 million bond that will go toward the funding of a new rink. Nassau Coliseum, decaying by the hour, is not a viable home for the Islanders. The franchise is banking on a new arena to be in place when some of their up-and-comers — John Tavares, Michael Grabner, Kyle Okposo, Calvin de Haan — hit the sweet spots of their careers. All you have to do is look at the later seasons of recent five-year extensions signed by Grabner and Okposo. Grabner carries a $3 million annual hit. Okposo is at $2.8 million. According to www.capgeek.com, Grabner will earn a $5 million salary in 2015-16, while Okposo will pocket $4.5 million. The Islanders are hoping to be in their new building by then.

Cup will be getting around The Bruins will have the Stanley Cup for 100 days. It was present at the team dinner Friday in Minneapolis. It also was on display during the draft at the Xcel Energy Center. The Bruins will not release a schedule for when each member of the organization will host the Cup. Most of the players have declined to make those dates public.

Loose pucks Had the Bruins lost to the Canadiens in the first round, Zdeno Chara would have bolted for Slovakia to participate in the World Championships. It would have been Chara’s first time to play in the tournament in his home country. Naturally, Chara was pleased he didn’t have that opportunity . . . Jonathan Huberdeau, selected third overall by the Panthers Friday, was one of the first players to pull on Florida’s new red sweater. Nice-looking piece. Flashback to ex-Panthers like John Vanbiesbrouck rocking the red in the 1990s . . . Great stat from Brant Berglund, former video coordinator for the Bruins. During the Final, when the Bruins were up by one goal, tied, or trailing by one, David Krejci and Dennis Seidenberg led the team in shots on goal. Small sample size, but shows who was successful, in clutch situations, in getting pucks through traffic and on net . . . No idea what the Bruins’ rings will look like. Zero doubt, however, that they will be pricey. No big deal for the millionaire players. But staffers earning real-world salaries will be required to pay taxes on their jewelry. Perhaps the players can take care of their guys appropriately . . . People in both pro and college hockey are hoping Boston College assistant Mike Cavanaugh lands the Northeastern job vacated by Cronin. Cavanaugh has served as Jerry York’s right-hand man since 1995. He deserves to run his own show . . . Leave it to an ex-Terrier to be one of the first on the scene in Santa Monica once Whitey Bulger was finally pinched. Jack Baker, captain of the 2002 BU squad and proud South Boston native, hustled to 3d Street when the news broke.

Kevin Paul Dupont can be reached at [email protected]; material from interviews, wire services, other beat writers, and league and team sources was used in this report.

Boston Globe LOADED: 06.27.2011


Solid draft strengthens Bruins’ core

By Steve Conroy | Monday, June 27, 2011 | http://www.bostonherald.com | Boston Bruins

ST. PAUL, Minn. — As the 2011 NHL draft wrapped up Saturday afternoon, there were hearty handshakes and back slaps all around the Bruins table on the floor of the Xcel Energy Center.

The Bruins added six players, including a couple in defenseman Dougie Hamilton and forward Alexander Khokhlachev that many observers believe to be real steals. But perhaps even more satisfying is the fact that, given the stability of the Stanley Cup champions, they won’t need to see any of them on Causeway Street for at least a couple of years.

Drafting may be Step 1 in building a good organization, but development might be 1A. And the Bruins are now in a position that development won’t have to take a backseat to immediate need. Going into the free agency period that begins Friday, the club has two unrestricted free agents of significance, defenseman Tomas Kaberle and winger Michael Ryder. They may sign them at some point or they may not, but they have plenty of money ($12?million-plus) under the new $64.3?million salary cap to do whatever they want.

Not only are the B’s Cup champs, but organizationally, they are right where they want to be to make themselves a long-term contender. Already they’ve got good prospects pushing to become NHL regulars like defenseman Steve Kampfer and forward Jordan Caron.

But with the way the club is set up, nothing has to be handed to them.

“Since we’ve taken over, that’s what we were trying to get to, to the point where we could develop our players the right way, by letting them play in Providence and develop there,” said assistant general manager Jim Benning. “And then when they’re ready, pull them up and they are ready to play in the NHL, and I think as an organization, depth-wise, we’re at that point now.”

With free agency approaching, the B’s have the cap space to take a big bite, if needed, or their depth allows them to take just a nibble, if they prefer.

“Our younger players really made a step up this last year,” said Benning, “and with the depth we have and the young players coming, you know we feel like we’re in a good position going into July 1.”

As for the most recent haul of talent, Hamilton is the jewel. Thought to be a top five pick on most team’s boards, Hamilton lasted until the B’s were picking at nine. And the Bruins, who were looking to add a top flight defenseman to their stable of prospects, were crossing their fingers right to the end.

“We didn’t know until we saw Philadelphia make that pick (forward Sean Couturier at the eighth spot),” said Benning. “And it’s happened in the last couple of years where teams want scoring so they’re stepping up and they’re taking scorers early. Like last year we’d seen with (Anaheim’s Cam) Fowler and (Phoenix’ Brandon) Gormley kind of slip. And then this year maybe even Hamilton kind of slipped.

“You know, I don’t think it’s a reflection on the player himself, but more that teams are looking to fill a need, whether it’s center ice or scoring. And we’re just lucky to be in position where he ended up in our lap.”

And they’re in a good position to be a very good team for a long time.

Boston Herald LOADED: 06.27.2011


B’s draft pick capsules

Dougie Hamilton

ROUND: 1st OVERALL: 9

POSITION: Defenseman

AGE: 18

HEIGHT: 6-foot-5

WEIGHT: 193

SHOOTS: Right

LAST TEAM: Niagara Ice Dogs (Ontario Hockey League)

KEY 2010-11 STATS: 12 goals, 46 assists, 58 points, plus-35

WHY HE FITS WITH BRUINS: The B’s have not drafted a top-flight prospect on defense under general manager Peter Chiarelli. Until now.

WHAT THEY’RE SAYING: “Boston’s tough blue line just got a whole lot more nasty! That trade with Toronto is paying serious benefits.” — TSN analyst Pierre McGuire

***

Alexander Khokhlachev

ROUND: 2nd OVERALL: 40

POSITION: Center/left winger

AGE: 17

HEIGHT: 5-10

WEIGHT: 183

SHOOTS: Left

LAST TEAM: Windsor Spitfires (Ontario Hockey League)

KEY 2010-11 STATS: 34 goals, 42 assists

WHY HE FITS WITH BRUINS: Has high skill level; works hard.

WHAT THEY’RE SAYING: “He’s a very driven kid for his age. At age 16 and 17, you have to crack the whip a bit and change the mood sometimes or the mentality, but that’s one thing he’s blessed with, his work ethic. It’s second to none.” — Windsor Spitfires coach Bob Jones to NHL.com

***

Anthony Camara

ROUND: 3rd OVERALL: 81

POSITION: Left winger

AGE: 17

HEIGHT: 6-0

WEIGHT: 194

SHOOTS: Left

LAST TEAM: Saginaw Spirit (Ontario Hockey League)

KEY 2010-11 STAT: 132 penalty minutes

WHY HE FITS WITH BRUINS: Plain and simple: He’s tough.

WHAT THEY’RE SAYING: “He’s not tall, but he’s thick and he’s fearless type of player. Kind of like Shawn Thornton.” — Bruins assistant general manager Jim Benning

***

Brian Ferlin

ROUND: 4th OVERALL: 121

POSITION: Right winger

AGE: 19

HEIGHT: 6-2

WEIGHT: 201

SHOOTS: Right

LAST TEAM: Indiana (USHL)

KEY 2010-11 STATS: 25-48-73 totals in 55 games

WHY HE FITS WITH BRUINS: The team can always use another power forward.

WHAT THEY’RE SAYING: “He does the things that we covet. He’s strong along the wall, he’s strong protecting the puck, he takes pucks to the net.” — Bruins assistant general manager Jim Benning

***

Rob O’Gara


POSITION: Defenseman

AGE: 17

HEIGHT: 6-3

WEIGHT: 185

SHOOTS: Left

LAST TEAM: Milton Academy

KEY 2010-11 STATS: 2-7-9 totals in 30 games

WHY HE FITS WITH BRUINS: Helps fulfill B’s need for more defensemen in the system.

WHAT THEY’RE SAYING: “With the way our winter went last year, I could say to anyone that today is going to be cold and snowy. And Rob O’Gara is going to be playing solid defense. He has that kind of consistency, and I suspect that’s one of the things the Bruins liked about him.” — Milton Academy coach Paul Cannata

***

Lars Volden


POSITION: Goalie

AGE: 18

HEIGHT: 6-3

WEIGHT: 198

CATCHES: Left

LAST TEAM: Blues Jr. (Finland)

KEY 2010-11 STATS: 2.76 GAA, .907 save percentage

WHY HE FITS WITH BRUINS: The team needs some organizational depth at the position.

WHAT THEY’RE SAYING: “He’s a typical butterfly goalie that’s come out of Finland. He’s big, he covers the net. We’ll keep monitoring him. It takes a long time for goalies to develop and there’s been a lot of good goalies to come out of Finland, so we’re excited.” — Bruins assistant general manager Jim Benning

Article URL: http://www.bostonherald.com/sports/hockey/bruins/view.bg?articleid=1347962

Boston Herald LOADED: 06.27.2011

573672 Buffalo Sabres

Pegula is making big impact on Sabres

Owners leads way in major moves

By John Vogl

If it wasn't clear before, it certainly is after this weekend. Terry Pegula gets what he wants.

The Buffalo Sabres had to be smiling, high-fiving and toasting each other on the way back from NHL draft weekend in Minnesota. The trip could not have gone any better from their perspective:

Their purchase of the Rochester Americans was approved.

They acquired the big, tough defenseman they needed, convincing Robyn Regehr that Western New York is the place he should be.

They drafted the forward the scouting department coveted, bringing in Finland's Joel Armia in the first round.

They created even bigger fans in West Seneca, drafting local product Alex Lepkowski.

Yeah, not a bad little weekend. The two biggest moves -- reuniting with the Amerks and trading for Regehr -- can be traced to the owner who just won't be denied.

Pegula targeted the Amerks when he began his purchase of the Sabres. The minor-league team wasn't for sale, and the Sabres already had a long-term agreement in place with Portland to be the American Hockey League affiliate.

It didn't matter.

Pegula reportedly bought out the folks in Maine, threw about $5 million at the boss in Rochester and rekindled what was previously a 29-year partnership.

"It means a lot," Sabres General Manager Darcy Regier said in Minnesota. "The biggest thing you can do in the game outside of the free agency aspect is the development. We've been big on development, but it's going to expand a lot.

"We're talking about a culture in our game that really works around a two-hour period of time in which these players are trained. This is going to open us up to four and five hours at that level, and when you can start to do the type of work that we'll be able to do, it will show in the results of the players that are able to play for our team."

Pegula followed the Rochester deal by influencing the Regehr trade. The defenseman had spent his entire 11-year career in Calgary, and he had a no-movement clause. He wanted a say in where he went. The Flames' best deal was with the Sabres, and Pegula helped show Regehr the best place for him was Buffalo.

With the deal complete, the billionaire grabbed his suitcase, wife Kim and coach Lindy Ruff and flew to Saskatchewan to welcome Regehr to the organization.

"Terry and Kim were outstanding," Regehr said. "They offered on a couple different occasions to come up and talk with us and just meet with us face-to-face. We held them off [while trying to make a trade decision], but [Saturday] morning they decided to fly up and visit us.

"I could just tell on the phone by talking to Terry he's just a very enthusiastic, committed owner. I could tell that by talking to the players, Jordan Leopold for example, how he came in there and with the type of things that are happening around the rink and the organization. He said they're for real and they want to win there in Buffalo and they're committed to Buffalo. I was really excited."

The folks in the Sabres' offices are, too. It's been four months since Pegula purchased the team, but the honeymoon hasn't come close to ending.

"Terry didn't hedge his bet at all when he bought the team," Regier said. "He said our goal is to win multiple Stanley Cups. He didn't say we were going to try our hardest. He said we're going to win multiple Stanley Cups. He has a philosophy on how that's done, based on what he did with his oil company, and this is an indication.

"He spoke with Robyn, said I'm going to come up and see you. I have not been a part of an ownership that takes that type of genuine interest in the players, in the relationship with them and the importance of it for him. ... He's very focused on making this family oriented, relationship based, and he believes that's what will drive our success."

The next chance for Pegula to show his magic touch is at hand. The free agent market opens at noon Friday. Regier said the Sabres might not be done with their blue line, and they definitely need a center, which is why the GM had talks with Tim Connolly's agent Saturday about re-signing the middle man.

It's a thin crop of available players this summer. Competition is expected to fierce for the high-end talent. So far, however, Pegula has been able to get what he wants.

"He's not focused on let's do our best," Regier said. "It's more than that, and it's real."

Buffalo News LOADED: 06.27.2011


Sabres select Finnish forward Armia with first pick

By John Vogl

ST. PAUL, Minn. -- English is definitely the second language for Joel Armia, but the Finnish right winger had no problem saying what he likes to do.

"Score goals," Armia said Friday night after the Buffalo Sabres made him their first-round selection in the 2011 NHL entry draft.

Armia, a 6-foot-3, 191-pounder who just turned 18 last month, became the first European selected by the Sabres since they picked defenseman Dennis Persson and goaltender Jhonas Enroth in 2006. Based on Armia's ranking, the Sabres had little choice.

NHL Central Scouting selected Armia as the fourth-ranked European skater in its final poll. He was second in the midterm rankings, a high number for a Buffalo team that picked 16th overall.

"He's big and tall but surprisingly mobile for a player of his size," said Goran Stubb, the NHL's director of European scouting. "He has a heavy wrist shot that he gets off quickly and is always looking for the empty spots on the ice. He's a sniper with a good selection of shots. You might have to look for him during some shifts, but then, suddenly, he scores the winner."

Folks in Buffalo who paid attention to the world junior championships might remember Armia. He played for Finland, recording one assist as the second-youngest player on the team.

"It was nice," Armia said. "I liked the place. I think I played good."

Armia plays in Finland's top professional league. He had 18 goals and 29 points in 48 games with Assat, a quality rookie season that went better than he expected.

"Playing with men, they know what they are doing. That helps a lot," Armia said.

"The thing I like about Joel is he's very humble," Assat coach Pekka Rautakallio said. "He wants to know what I expect, and he's willing and ready to execute it. That tells me he really wants to learn how to play, how to be a better hockey player." Armia has been compared to Finnish legend Teemu Selanne, though he's not as quick as the fellow sniper. Armia said he needs to improve his skating and get stronger.

He also said he had a feeling the Sabres might pick him after having a couple of chats with the team.

"They were nice people," he said.

Armia excelled during a tournament featuring players his own age. At the 2011 under-18 world championships, he led Finland and tied for third overall with 13 points, scoring four goals in six games.

It makes sense since, as he said, scoring is what he does best.

Buffalo News LOADED: 06.27.2011


Robyn Regehr brings grit to Buffalo Sabres

The Associated Press

ST. PAUL, Minn. — With one difficult decision, Robyn Regehr made two teams and one important All-Star player happy.

The Calgary Flames dealt the veteran defenseman Saturday to the Buffalo Sabres after he waived his no-trade clause, clearing space under the salary cap for the Flames to re-sign left wing Alex Tanguay to a five-year, $17.5 million contract.

Regehr has spent his entire 12-year NHL career with the Flames, serving as an alternate captain who doesn't do much offensively but brings plenty of grit to the blue line. Calgary general manager Jay Feaster said Regehr expressed a willingness to waive his no-trade clause during his exit interview after the season.

"He said, 'If you feel that I'm part of your solution here, that moving me out helps the organization, then I'm willing to work with you,'" Feaster said at the NHL draft in Minnesota. "Again, that just speaks to his character and his professionalism."

Feaster experienced the same situation with Brad Richards in Tampa Bay.

"When you have a warrior like Robyn is, a guy who has been there as long as he has been there, who has done as much for the franchise as he has, that's a very difficult phone call to make," Feaster said.

The Flames sent Regehr, right wing Ales Kotalik and their second-round draft pick in 2012 to the Sabres for defenseman Chris Butler and center Paul Byron. Perhaps the most excited person by the day's events was Flames captain Jarome Iginla, who lobbied his team hard to re-sign Tanguay.

"The chemistry between the two of them is pretty impressive," Feaster said.

The front office decided that the 32-year-old Tanguay — who has 686 points over 818 career NHL games — was a better option at his position than any of the available unrestricted free agents who will hit the market next week.

"We didn't see a player who was going to be as productive as he can and will be," Feaster said. "So it's good to have him back."

The Flames, now, can continue to be aggressive in free agency to fill Regehr's spot on the blue line.

On the other side, Sabres general manager Darcy Regier was equally pleased by Regehr's flexibility.

"My conversations with him were terrific. It was never about, 'I don't want to come to Buffalo,'" Regier said. "He said, 'Buffalo is an option.' He talked to a number of players: Jordan Leopold, who is in Buffalo, played in Calgary with him; Rhett Warrener, others. This is maybe the secret in Buffalo. From the outside, you may have one image. When players come there and play there, they love playing there. It's to get them there."

Regier has been given freedom to aggressively upgrade the roster, as much as he can under the cap, by new owner Terry Pegula.

The Pennsylvania billionaire, Regier said, was flying Saturday to meet with Regehr.

"He didn't hedge his bet at all when he bought the team. He said his goal is to win multiple Stanley Cups. He didn't say, 'We're going to try our hardest.' He said, 'We're going to win multiple Stanley Cups,'" Regier said.

Democrat and Chronicle LOADED: 06.27.2011


REUNITED: Sabres-Amerks deal benefits both teams

kevin oklobzija

"I think it's going to fill seats. It's nice to have these guys you watch grow with the team. Ryan Miller, (Jason) Pominville and (Derek) Roy all played in Rochester. I think the team is going to do well and is going to fill the seats this season."

Tim Regan, Irondequoit resident and Buffalo native

"It's nothing but a win-win situation for everyone. I think we're going to see us (Amerks) get back to the way it used to be. I think it's going to be great for the kids hockey, for the adult hockey ... for everyone. I think it's the best thing for Rochester and Buffalo."

Bruce Rizzo, owner of Lakeshore Hockey Arena and a Sabres season ticket holder. Rizzo once worked the War Memorial ice crew for Amerks games.

"Thank you Hockey Gods!!"

Torn apart three years ago by an ugly hockey divorce, the Rochester Americans and Buffalo Sabres are back together.

The American Hockey League's board of governors on Friday afternoon unanimously approved the sale of the Amerks to the Terry Pegula-owned Sabres.

That means Buffalo's prospects will again play in the red, white and blue sweaters of the Amerks, something legions of local hockey fans have longed for since the split.

"It's about time that the two teams got together again," said Clair Catillaz, a hockey mom from Pittsford. "It's like coming home again."

And so ends Curt Styres' three-year tenure as Amerks owner. Though selling the 55-year-old franchise wasn't necessarily his intention, the Sabres made an offer that was too good to refuse. It's believed to have been around $5 million.

"We never, ever hung out the 'For Sale' sign," Amerks president Lewis Staats said.

But when Pegula phoned some 90 days ago and asked if the team might be available, Styres was willing to meet and listen.

Styres was impressed by the man he met.

"Terry, he's an avid Sabres fan," Styres said on Friday evening. "The man would drive from Pennsylvania to Sabres games. When you have a passion for your team, for hockey, that means something.

"You don't want to sell something to someone who will like it when it's new and shiny but who will lose interest in it."

Their first official meeting was in Buffalo in April. An offer was made that day. A few weeks later Pegula came to Rochester. They ate lunch downtown at Dinosaur Bar-B-Que and dinner at Delmonico's Italian Steak House in Brighton.

"Nobody even recognized him," said Styres, who will maintain ownership of the National Lacrosse League's Rochester Knighthawks.

Over the past several weeks, the due-diligence process kicked into high gear. At the same time, Pegula needed to financially appease the Portland Pirates in order to be let out of the Sabres affiliation agreement in Maine. Three years remained on that deal.

The buyout amount hasn't been disclosed.

The Pirates also needed assurances that they would have a solid affiliate for next season. The Maine Hockey Journal reported that the Phoenix Coyotes could be leaving San Antonio for Portland.

Throughout it all, AHL president Dave Andrews played match-maker and broker.

Reuniting the Amerks and Sabres essentially had been a goal of the league ever since late October, when it became apparent Rochester management couldn't see eye-to-eye with the Florida Panthers.

"It was complicated contractually but it was obviously a desired result for the league," Andrews said.

One of the obstacles was the Sabres' contract with Portland, which was to run through the 2013-14 season. Except it didn't become a stumbling block because Pirates managing owner Brian Petrovek understood Buffalo was a better fit for Rochester.

"We had a long-term deal, but in the best interest of the Buffalo Sabres and their desire to develop their players differently, their desire to return to a Rochester market to have their player development only 70 miles down the road, and from our perspective as an independent owner to see the Rochester market become rejuvenated and revitalized under Sabres ownership it became very important for us," Petrovek told reporters in Portland on Friday afternoon. "It was the right thing to do."

Pegula's management team wants to enhance efforts to regionalize the Sabres' brand. By owning and stocking the Amerks, the Sabres name will be even more prominent in Rochester.

The Sabres were the Amerks' sole parent team from 1979-80 through the 2005-06 season, and shared the affiliation with the Panthers the next three seasons.

Pegula has said player development will be a priority for his organization in their mandated quest to win the first Stanley Cup in Sabres' history. He said back in February that while there is limit to how much money can be spent on player salaries in the NHL, there is no cap on development costs.

Once AHL owners approved the franchise transfer on Friday, the Sabres issued a statement confirming the purchase agreement but saying they would not have any further comment until next week. A news conference is planned for Tuesday or Wednesday at Blue Cross Arena at the Community War Memorial.

It will be the first official act as Amerks owner for Pegula, and the last for Styres.

"I have a lot of respect for what Curt Styres did for the Rochester Americans and hockey in Rochester over the past three years," Andrews said. "Without his investment and effort, this rebirth with the Sabres would not have happened."

Styres never made money in any season and surely lost several million dollars operating the team.

The Panthers had little, if any, drawing power as a parent team. This past season, the Amerks were about 1,600 fans short of their break-even mark of a 5,500 per-game average.

The sale "gives Curt an opportunity to recoup some of his investment," Staats said.

Styres learned that owning a minor-league hockey team is difficult and praised Steve Donner, the former majority owner who sold him the Amerks in June 2008.

"He was here, what, 15 years? I have a lot of respect for his ability to weather the storm," Styres said. "I've been here three years and it was tough. The stuff he went through, I can't imagine. When he left, he left with his hands in his pockets.

"He could have sold to anybody and he chose to sell them to me."

[email protected]


573676 Calgary Flames

Flames net much-needed salary cap relief

By sending Regehr, Kotalik to Buffalo, Feaster has more options

By Vicki Hall, Calgary HeraldJune 26, 2011

General manager Jay Feaster likens the salary cap predicament of the Calgary Flames to an unfortunate game of Monopoly.

On Friday, the Flames resided in the jail space on the bottom left corner of the board. A day later, Feaster shipped defenceman Robyn Regehr ($4.02 million), disgruntled winger Ales Kotalik ($3 million), and a second-round draft pick in 2012 to Buffalo for defenceman Chris Butler (a restricted free agent with a cap hit last season of $850,000) and speedy centre Paul Byron ($550,000).

Suddenly, the Flames can look at the cap charts without sobbing in agony over the absurdity of it all. Suddenly, they have $7.6 million in cap space with 19 players under contract for next season.

“We’ve been in salary cap jail for some time,” Feaster said Saturday afternoon via cellphone from the draft floor in St. Paul, Minn. “We’ve been so tight up against the cap.

“Where we are right now in the Monopoly game is we’re ‘just visiting.’ We’re not actually in jail anymore. We’re on the ‘just visiting’ part of the Monopoly board.”

Feaster certainly moved the pieces around the board over a productive 48 hours at Xcel Energy Center. He traded away one of his core players in Regehr. He sent Kotalik to Buffalo without the faltering forward collecting his $3 million (from the Flames.)

Perhaps most importantly, he locked down his top pending unrestricted free agent in Alex Tanguay (think Boardwalk or Park Place or, at the very least, Marvin Gardens on the open market) for five years with an annual cap hit of $3.5 million. Tanguay, 31, scored 22 goals and 69 points last season on the first line with Jarome Iginla.

“All things considered, we felt it was imperative that we get him,” Feaster said. “Alex was an important part of the puzzle. Not only did we want him back, but obviously Jarome real-ly wanted him back.

“As we looked around at the potential UFA market, we didn’t see anyone who was going to take his place. We thought it was important to get it done before July 1. With the cap going up as much as it has, a lot of teams are going to have to pay $20 to $30 million just to get to the floor. We didn’t want to take any chances.”

The Tanguay camp wanted an annual salary of $4 million. The Flames asked for a term of four years. In the end, the two sides met in the middle.

“The chemistry Jarome and Alex have established is incredible,” Feaster said. “We know Jarome likes playing with Alex and vice versa.

“He quarterbacks the point on the power play. That’s the other thing about it. If we don’t sign him, now we’re going to be in a situation where we have to find somebody who can quarterback our power play.”

In Regehr, Feaster realizes the Flames gave up a shutdown defencemen other teams simply hate to play against. He also surrendered his assistant captain and one of the heaviest hitters in the league.

“The first fan I’m going to have to explain this to is at home,” Feaster said.

“My 11-year-old son — and he’s a huge Monopoly fan — well, his Calgary Flames sweater bears the name, number and signature of Robyn Regehr.”

The explanation to young Ryan will likely include a basic life lesson: To get something of value, one must give something of value up in return.

“This was not a case of not wanting Robyn on the team,” Feaster said. “It’s simply a matter of knowing you’re going to have to give up a tremendous asset if you want to make changes and get assets back.”

Butler, 24, is a stay-at home blueliner with 155 games of NHL experience over three seasons in Buffalo.

Byron, 22, is an offensive centreman with speed and skill. The five-foot-nine, 170-pounder collected 99 points in 66 games in his final season with the Gatineau Olympiques of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League.

“Butler is a guy who we feel can come in and can play regular minutes on our hockey team,” Feaster said. “He certainly isn’t going to replace Robyn from a standpoint of hitting. But he is pretty solid defensively. Makes a good first pass.”

And Byron?

“He is a guy we don’t have in our organization,” Feaster said. “A a very highly skilled guy. He’s a good, fast, quick skater. He’s going to be with us for a long time.”

As the day drew to a close, the Flames still featured prominently in trade rumours involving Ryan Smyth of the Los Angeles Kings. A deal involving Gilbert Brule fell through with the Edmonton Oilers leaving the 35-year old left-winger still in play on Saturday evening.

Feaster declined to comment on the Smyth rumours, but he confirmed tendering contract offers to defencemen Adam Pardy and Anton Babchuk. The GM also strongly hinted at more moves to come.

“There are still going to be trades made after this draft,” he said. “There are going to be teams looking to do things.

“And now, because we have some free cap space, we can try to address some of our needs. We have options.”

In other words, Feaster has a get out of jail card.

Only it didn’t come free.

Calgary Herald: LOADED: 06.27.2011


Flames subtract another Sutter

Director of scouting Duane will not be back

By RANDY SPORTAK, QMI Agency

CALGARY - The Calgary Flames have more changes coming to their hockey operations department, adding a new director of player personnel to the mix after Duane Sutter was told he wouldn’t be brought back, according to a QMI Agency source.

Sutter was told the news Sunday after all the team’s braintrust returned from the NHL Entry Draft help this past weekend in Minnesota.

It’s yet another key position which Flames GM Jay Feaster will be filling over the next while, on top of dealing with the free-agency frenzy which will heat up Friday.

And according to Elliotte Friedman of Hockey Night in Canada Sunday night, Bruins scout John Weisbrod will be named the Flames' new assistant general manager. Weisbrod is a former Minnesota North Stars draft pick (1987) and played collegiate hockey at Harvard.

Weisbrod has also scouted for the New Jersey Devils and Dallas Stars, and served as GM of the IHL Orlando Solar Bears from 1997-2001, then worked for the NBA Orlando Magic, including a stint as GM in 2004-05.

Feaster is also on the hunt for a new head coach for the AHL Abbotsford Heat, the club’s top minor league affiliate.

There may also be changes in the scouting department, which often happens when a new regime takes over.

Duane Sutter joined the Flames organization as director of players personnel in the summer of 2008.

The four-time Stanley Cup winner came to the Flames after spending 11 seasons working for the Florida Panthers, five as that team’s director of player development. Along the way, he also served as the Panthers’ head coach, assistant coach and professional scout. He also spent two seasons as a scout for the Chicago Blackhawks and coached their minor league team for two full seasons.

The move continues major housecleaning throughout the organization after the Flames failed to make the playoffs.

At one time, four of the Sutter brothers were part of the Flames organization. Brent Sutter is heading into his third season as head coach, while Ron Sutter spent last year as the development coach after several seasons as a scout.

Calgary Sun: LOADED: 06.27.2011


Persistence sold Regehr on Sabres

By STEVE MACFARLANE, QMI Agency

Even before Robyn Regehr decided late Friday night to waive his no-movement clause to allow the trade to go through, the new Buffalo Sabres owners were offering to fly up to Cristopher Lake and make an in-person plea to the Calgary Flames defenceman they were attempting to acquire.

Instead, when Terry and Kim Pegula and head coach Lindy Ruff arrived at Regehr's summer home in northern Saskatchewan Saturday afternoon, it was to celebrate.

After initially refusing to allow the deal to go through Friday, more talks with his agent, wife and family and full disclosure from the Flames on what might be available, Regehr changed his mind.

The deal — sending the 31-year-old defenceman, winger Ales Kotalik and the Flames' 2012 second-round pick to Buffalo in return for defenceman Chris Butler and forward Paul Byron — was completed early Saturday morning.

"That was a big part of it," Regehr said of the persistence of the Sabres group, which clearly pegged Regehr as a key part of moving forward. "It's really flattering to anyone when someone is pursuing you like that.

"I warned them about northern Saskatchewan, the bugs and that. Terry said he had a place on the lake in the Adirondacks and the bugs are pretty bad, too.

"He seems to know what he's getting himself into."

And what he's getting in return with Regehr.

"We looked at him as a guy who can help do a lot for Tyler Myers," Sabres GM Darcy Regier said of their top young prospect — a Calgarian — on the blueline.

Although they gain youth in Butler and Byron, and shed around US$7 million on salary cap, the Flames also know what they gave up. Regehr was willing to move on after 11 seasons as a Flames cornerstone if it helped the team.

"He came to me at the exit meeting and said if moving me out helps the organization, I’m willing to work with you," Feaster said. "That speaks to his character and professionalism."

But that didn't make it any easier on the GM to ask Regehr to waive the no-movement clause during the draft.

"As I told him, it’s the toughest thing you do," Feaster said. "I went through it in Tampa with Brad Richards. There was a guy who won a Stanley Cup for us. When you have a warrior like Robyn was, a guy who’s been there for as long as he’s been there and done as much for the franchise as he has, that’s a very very difficult phone call to make.

"It wasn’t a case of going out and saying we had to move Robyn. It was a situation where Buffalo was prepared to pay a pretty significant price in order to get him.

"It caught him by surprise when I called him on Wednesday and asked if he’d go to Buffalo. He had been hoping that there might be other optins, but as I said to him, the Buffalo deal from our perspective was so significant, and they wanted him so much that really weren’t any other offers that were even close."

Regehr made the most of his time to determine it worked for him, too, calling former Sabres Rhett Warrener and Jordan Leopold to get their opinions on life in Buffalo.

He couldn't find anyone who had a bad thing to say about the city or franchise. And Saturday, Regehr said it just feels like the right move for all involved.

"Yeah, it does. There's lots of unknowns for us, new things, moving out east and living in the States," said Regehr, who will make the move with wife Kristina and their two-year-old son Wyatt this summer.

"We're really looking forward to having some of those new experiences. It's something where we weren't scared of change and living somewhere different. It's something we are really looking forward to and are excited about."

Calgary Sun: LOADED: 06.27.2011

573679 Carolina Hurricanes

Canes wrap up NHL draft

By CHIP ALEXANDER - Staff writer

RALEIGH -- What Carolina Hurricanes general manager Jim Rutherford was able to do away from the draft floor this weekend may be more important than anything he and the team did on it.

While the Hurricanes were selecting such young prospects as defenseman Ryan Murphy and forward Victor Rask in the 2011 NHL Entry Draft, Rutherford also found time to meet with the agents of defenseman Joni Pitkanen and forward Jussi Jokinen. Murphy and Rask may be enticing prospects, but the prospects of the Canes next season will be enhanced if Rutherford can re-sign those two veteran players.

In recent weeks, Rutherford said it appeared unlikely either Pitkanen or Jokinen would agree to terms and that both would become unrestricted free agents on July 1. He also talked of potential trades to fill the void.

But that all changed the past few days in St. Paul, Minn, where the draft was hosted by the Minnesota Wild and held at the Xcel Energy Center.

"I wasn't very hopeful and I really didn't think there was a lot of hope, based on what I was hearing," Rutherford said Saturday. "But to have face-to-face meetings here with their agents has worked out well, and I'm at the point now that I do have hope that we're going to be able to sign both players."

Rutherford said he may complete some of the deals by Monday. He said he has been hopeful all along the team would re-sign veteran forwards Erik Cole and Chad LaRose, who also are due to be unrestricted free agents July 1.

"I thought we had a better chance of signing those guys than the first two," Rutherford said. "I don't have a final position on them yet but that's supposed to come on Monday also."

As for the draft, the Hurricanes made Murphy their first-round draft choice Friday night, picking up a speedy but small defenseman from the Kitchener Rangers who may be the best offensive blueliner in the draft. On Saturday, with their second-round pick, the Canes took Rask, a 6-foot-1, 189-pound Swede who was rated the 12th-best European skater by NHL Central Scouting.

The Hurricanes' third-round choice was interesting: defenseman Keegan Lowe. He's the son of Edmonton Oilers executive Kevin Lowe and played for the Edmonton Oil Kings in the Western Hockey League, but urged his father that the Oilers not draft him.

"He wanted to go his own way," Kevin Lowe said.

With its last three draft picks - the Canes did not have a fifth-round choice this year - Carolina took Swiss forward Gregory Hofmann in the fourth round, goaltender Matt Mahalak of the Plymouth Whalers in the sixth round and closed it out by taking forward Brody Sutter in the seventh.

Yes, another Sutter. That's now three for the Canes - Brandon, Brett and Brody. Brett played for the Charlotte Checkers last season and Brody was with the Lethbridge Hurricanes of the WHL.

In summing up the Hurricanes' draft picks, Rutherford said, "They fell very nicely for us this year, especially in the first three rounds."

Rutherford said the Canes had Murphy slotted among the top six entering the draft and were pleasantly surprised the Kitchener Rangers standout was still on the board when Carolina's No. 12 pick came up. The Canes had targeted a forward they would have been taken ahead of Murphy, Rutherford said, but the forward had been drafted.

"That was unexpected, and then Rask in the second round," Rutherford said. "At one point in time his projection was in the first half of the first round, and then there were a couple of little issues that got him knocked down into the second round."

Some draft analysts believed Rask displayed some attitude issues last season. Rutherford said it was more about Rask being uncomfortable playing for Leksand in the Swedish League while noting Rask had a strong showing in the 2011 Under-18 World Junior Championships.

Rask had 11 points in 37 games for Leksand, but had 12 points in 13 games after he asked to be demoted to Leksand's junior team.

Rask said Saturday he expected to play in Sweden again next season, but Rutherford said Rask may play junior hockey in the Ontario Hockey League. Another option, he said, would be Rask going to the Checkers, Carolina's American Hockey League affiliate.

Rutherford expects to have a busy week ahead leading up to July 1.

And the Canes, he said, may look at free agency to sign a backup goalie and fourth-line center.

While a team budget has not been set for next season, Rutherford said, the NHL salary floor will be $48.3 million. Rutherford said the Canes could spend a "couple of million dollars" more than that total.

"We're getting that payroll to a point it makes it harder to make our business work the way it should," Rutherford said.

News Observer LOADED: 06.27.2011

573680 Chicago Blackhawks

Campbell trade should help Hawks keep Sharp

By Tim Sassone

One of the trickle-down effects from the trading of Brian Campbell for Blackhawks general manager Stan Bowman is there now is plenty of money looking down the road to sign Patrick Sharp before the team’s leading goal scorer becomes an unrestricted free agent a year from now.

As soon as this free-agency period is over in a few weeks, Bowman will turn his attention to Sharp, who enters the 2011-12 season on the final year of his contract.

Sharp’s cap hit is a reasonable $3.9 million, but that number likely would go well past $5 million, perhaps approaching $6 million, should he reach the open market in 2012.

“I’ve said it over and over that he’s a core player for us,” Bowman told reporters at the draft. “I expect to get him signed. I don’t expect this thing to go to next June.

“It’s pretty apparent he’s a big part of our team. He’s a player that has been very valuable to the Blackhawks and we want to keep him.”

Sharp has expressed no desire to leave Chicago as well.

The final cap number for Sharp when he does sign should fall at or just below the $6.3 million hits for Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane.

Upon further review:

The Hawks left the draft ecstatic over the 11 prospects they selected over the two days in Minnesota, especially Mark McNeill and Phillip Danault, the two centers taken in the first round, and their two second-round picks, defenseman Adam Clendening and left wing Brandon Saad.

“I was very happy with our mix of players,” Stan Bowman said. “It was a great draft.”

While it’s always a longshot for any 18-year-old to make the team out of training camp, it happens all over the NHL every fall. McNeill, the 6-foot-2, 211-pound center from Prince Albert, might be the closest to being NHL ready.

“He’s a big kid who still has a lot of maturing to do physically,” said Hawks director of scouting Mark Kelley. “You don’t expect (him to make the team), but that’s what prospects camp and training camp is for, to show they do belong.”

Bowman said Boston University’s Clendening was a player he had been following for some time.

“He’s a really likable player and a guy we wanted,” Bowman said.

Russian forward Maxim Shalunov was an interesting pick at 109.

“He’s 6-3 and has a great skill set,” Bowman said. “If he was from North America he would have been first-round talent.”

Fresh start:

Brian Campbell told the Miami Herald that he agreed to waive his no-trade clause with the Hawks and a deal to the Panthers for the opportunity it presented.

“It wasn’t easy to leave Chicago,” Campbell said. “I enjoyed my time there, but this is an opportunity. This is going to be better for my career, going to Florida and playing a bigger role than I was in Chicago.”

Panthers GM Dale Tallon, who successfully sold Campbell on Florida, called the defenseman a big piece to the rebuilding puzzle in South Florida.

The Panthers are expecting Campbell to quarterback their power play that ranked last in the NHL.

Next up:

With free agency set to begin Friday, the Hawks have yet to announced if they have made qualifying contract offers to restricted free agents Michael Frolik, Chris Campoli, Viktor Stalberg and Jake Dowell.

Some clubs announce their intentions and some don’t. The Hawks in recent years have not before the NHL does ahead of July 1.

It’s believed Stan Bowman has every intention of trying to re-sign Frolik and Campoli before Friday.

Daily Herald Times LOADED: 06.27.2011

573681 Chicago Blackhawks

Leddy preparing for more prominent role

By Tracey Myers

ST. PAUL, Minn. – Nick Leddy stood in the stands of the Xcel Energy Center in support of a friend and potential draftee at the NHL Entry Draft.

“My really good friend, his brother is getting drafted this year. We’ll see where he goes and it’ll be exciting,” said Leddy of Mike Reilly, who was selected by the Columbus Blue Jackets. “The draft is big deal and at the end of the day anything can happen. Players can come out of nowhere.”

In a way, Leddy came out of nowhere last season. The Minnesota Wild draftee who was later traded to the Blackhawks wasn’t guaranteed a roster spot when he first entered last fall’s training camp. But one season later, after a whirlwind and successful first year, the Blackhawks see Leddy taking on an even bigger role.

Leddy had a memorable rookie season with the Blackhawks, going from another guy at training camp to making the team, to serving some valuable stints in Rockford and then finishing the season back in Chicago. He played a lot and learned a lot, especially when he was paired with various Blackhawks defensemen throughout the season.

It was quite a lot for the then teenager to take on, but he took it all in stride.

“It was a little nerve wracking but a great experience for me,” he said. “Rockford helped me out a ton. I got the playing time and a lot more conditioning and built up.”

Now, general manager Stan Bowman said Leddy will play a bigger role with the Blackhawks’ defense.

“He’s ready for that,” Bowman said. “When he came up in January, by the playoffs he was probably deserving of even more ice time. He’s past that hurdle of being nervous. He’s been through a playoff push and some intense playoff games.”

The intensity could be strong early this season, too, as the Blackhawks must fill the void by the just-traded Brian Campbell. The veteran was known as a puck-moving defenseman and the Blackhawks will need that again. Chris Campoli, who’s likely re-signed soon, has that ability. Bowman said Leddy will also get his shot at that.

“The good news is we think he’s able to take up some of the role that Brian had in terms of being an offensive-type defenseman,” Bowman said. “Those (elements) were going to work into his game anyway. Now there’s a need for it. He’ll certainly get an opportunity.”

Leddy took some time off immediately after the season ended, but he’s back training for 2011-12. He said he’s “doing the little things” to hone his game.

“Shooting pucks, stick-handling,” he said. “I’m just trying to get stronger and feel more comfortable out there.”

From his own draft day to his first NHL season, Leddy’s been on the fast track and has handled all the emotions and new experiences. The Blackhawks want more of him this season. He’s preparing to give it.

“Everybody likes a bigger role and I’m excited about it,” he said. “I just have to keep working.”

Comcast SportsNet.com LOADED: 06.27.2011

573682 Columbus Blue Jackets

Blue Jackets turn their attention to defense

By Aaron Portzline

MINNEAPOLIS - With the acquisition of first-line center Jeff Carter, the Blue Jackets can scratch fixing that position off general manager Scott Howson's summer to-do list. With Carter's name on the roster, the Jackets have never been deeper at center ice.

Now onto item No. 2 on the agenda: infusing skill on the blue line.

The next two or three days should begin to show Howson's plans heading into the start of free agency on Friday.

"There are a number of different options in front of us," Howson said.

Contract talks with unrestricted free agent Jan Hejda are expected to heat up in the next few days. Hejda, perhaps the most solid defenseman the franchise has had, has stated his desire to remain in Columbus, and the Blue Jackets have hinted in recent weeks that the feeling is mutual.

Now comes the sticky part: determining Hejda's worth over the course of a three- or four-year contract.

If Hejda is allowed to test the market, the Blue Jackets will head into free agency looking to add two defensemen - a stay-at-home type to replace Hejda, along with a player skilled enough to run a power play - preferably one who can play on the right side.

That could be a $9 million to $10 million expenditure per season to sign both players.

"Free agency is about overpaying in terms and in dollars," Howson said. "And it's not going to change this year. We would like to be active (on Friday). It depends on who's available."

There will likely be a handful of signings this week, but as of now, Vancouver's Christian Ehrhoff and Kevin Bieksa, Carolina's Joni Pitkanen, Montreal's James Wisniewski, Boston's Tomas Kaberle and San Jose's Ian White all have expiring contracts and will be unrestricted.

Wisniewski and White were both available in trade last season. The Blue Jackets weren't interested, but that could change.

The Blue Jackets also have decisions to make with their restricted free agents on defense - Sami Lepisto and Anton Stralman.

By 5 p.m. today, both players will need qualifying offers if the Blue Jackets want to retain their rights. Another restricted free-agent defenseman, Marc Methot, received his qualifying offer in April.

Stralman tailed off badly last season, partly because of injuries. He had one goal, 17 assists and a minus-11 rating.

Lepisto, who joined the Blue Jackets at the trade deadline, had no goals, five assists and a plus-3 rating in 19 games.

Neither player would seem to be a power-play remedy.

The most likely event during the next couple of days should be the buyout of the remaining two years on Mike Commodore's contract.

The buyout deadline is Thursday. A player must clear waivers before his contract can be bought out, so look for Commodore to hit the waiver wire in the next few days.

He was part of Howson's summer rebuild in 2008. Three years later, he's being shown the door to facilitate more big moves.

[email protected]

Columbus Dispatch LOADED: 06.27.2011


Bob Hunter commentary: Jackets need Carter to get onboard

By Bob Hunter

More than one fan at the Blue Jackets draft party on Friday night used a profanity when asked about the team's trade for Philadelphia Flyers center Jeff Carter.

"I was excited because he seems like a great player," Keith Hughes said. "I just hope he can embrace the change. I think that's what we've seen in the past with players like Foote "

Adam Foote? Wow. Did he just say that in public?

Hughes seems like a great guy, but here's hoping he ran home and washed his mouth out with soap as quickly as possible. If he keeps using language like that around here, somebody might be tempted to rip that "World's Coolest Dad" T-shirt off his chest and send his three kids into foster care. A good parent probably can get away with saying "darn" or "heck" in front of his family, but using the name of the traitorous former Blue Jackets captain, who bailed on his team and forced a trade back to Colorado when it was still in the playoff race, is borderline child abuse.

OK, I'm joking. But Hughes wasn't. The only thing standing between some Jackets fans and a parade down Nationwide Boulevard over the deal, which finally brings a first-line center to Columbus, was the fact that it was obvious by Carter's actions - he wasn't talking to Blue Jackets officials, reporters or just about anybody, apparently - that he was angry over being dealt by the Flyers.

"I hope he's not just another high-priced acquisition who is just looking for his next trade somewhere else," Hughes said.

That's a common fear among hockey fans in these parts, and it's not without substance. It's no secret the Blue Jackets aren't the free-agent destination of choice for most of the best players, and there's no reason for it to be. The Jackets are a small-market team with a history of losing in a non-traditional hockey market that doesn't offer the bright lights of New York, Chicago or Los Angeles, or beaches or mountains or year-round sun.

A lot of players are thrilled with the city once they get here and find out what a great place it is - let's hope Carter will do that himself - but the organization is a much harder sell.

General manager Scott Howson adamantly denied reports that the Jackets had a deal with the Chicago Blackhawks for defenseman Brian Campbell this past weekend but Campbell wouldn't waive his no-trade clause - shortly before he accepted a trade to the Florida Panthers, a franchise that has had even more problems than the Blue Jackets.

At this point, it doesn't even matter if it's true. Fans haven't forgotten that Guy Boucher turned down the Jackets last summer and took the Tampa Bay coaching job, or that the Lightning made it to the Eastern Conference finals under him. The perception that was reinforced this past weekend is that players want to be somewhere, or in Campbell's case, anywhere else.

Carter could help reverse the trend by simply doing what most traded players do in these situations - act like a grown-up. It's easy to understand why he is ticked at the Flyers; he signed an 11-year contract with the team because he wanted to be in Philadelphia, and had been told that the trade rumors were only that: rumors. But Carter's petulance is undermining Howson's efforts to improve the team that he is going to play for and if he doesn't at least act like he wants to be here, Carter might even doom it to more losing.

Early in the franchise's history, Columbus was actually a destination for some players. Many saw a bright hockey future in a clean, livable city with an underrated night life and a great family atmosphere. The city hasn't changed, but poor draft picks, bad decisions and a history of losing have made the franchise harder and harder to sell.

The Carter deal should help the team tremendously, but it only added to the team's perception problem. As unfair as it must seem to Howson, he is back at the plate with the game on the line again.

He has no choice but to swing for the fences when the free-agent market opens on Friday.

Bob Hunter is a sports columnist for The Dispatch.



Blue Jackets draft selections

The Columbus Dispatch

BOONE JENNER

Pick: No. 37 (second round)

Position: C

Born: June 15, 1993 (Dorchester, Ontario)

Height/weight: 6-1, 196

Last season: 25 goals, 41 assists and 57 penalty minutes in 63 games with Oshawa of the Ontario Hockey League

Scouting report: Raised on a farm and possesses such a work ethic. A touch of skill, but gets by on size and hard work. Many expected him to be drafted in the first round. Projects as a second- or third-line center.

T.J. TYNAN

Pick: No. 66 (third)

Position: C

Born: Feb. 25, 1992 (Orland Park, Ill.)


Last season: 23 goals, 31 assists and 28 penalty minutes in 44 games with Notre Dame of the Central Collegiate Hockey Association

Scouting report: Wowed many by scoring 45 points as a freshman. Big question is whether he can overcome his size. Projects as a skilled center.

MIKE REILLY

Pick: No. 98 (fourth)

Position: D

Born: July 13, 1993 (Chicago)


Last season: 13 goals, 30 assists and 26 penalty minutes in 48 games for Shattuck St. Mary's High School (Faribault, Minn.)

Scouting report: A highly skilled defenseman, but will spend the next three or four seasons at the University of Minnesota filling out his frame. Projects as a power-play defenseman.

SETH AMBROZ

Pick: No. 128 (fifth)

Position: RW

Born: April 3, 1993 (New Prague, Minn.)


Last season: 24 goals, 22 assists and 89 penalty minutes in 56 games with Omaha of the United States Hockey League

Scouting report: A projected second-round pick by many. Plays with passion and toughness. Tends to score ugly goals by crashing the net. Projects as a third- or fourth-line tough guy.

LUKAS SEDLAK

Pick: No. 158 (sixth)

Position: C

Born: Feb. 25, 1993 (Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic)


Last season: 14 goals, 13 assists and 65 penalty minutes in 45 games with Ceske Budejovice Juniors

Scouting report: Was captain of the Czech Republic national 18-under club last season. Lots of skill and raw talent, but probably a year away from getting a full taste of the Czech Elite League. Projects as a skilled center.

ANTON FORSBERG

Pick: No. 188 (seventh)

Position: G

Born: Nov. 27, 1992 (unknown)


Last season: 2.90 goals-against average and .907 save percentage, three shutouts in 33 games with Modo in Swedish Junior League

Scouting report: New Blue Jackets goaltending coach Ian Clark highly recommended him as a late-round pick. Could get a shot in the Swedish Elite League in the coming season.



Jackets use draft picks to load up on centers

By Tom Reed

ST. PAUL, Minn - The Blue Jackets traded for an All-Star center on the eve of the NHL entry draft.

The acquisition of Jeff Carter, however, didn't stop general manager Scott Howson from fortifying the position at the bottom of the organizational depth chart.

The Jackets selected three centers yesterday on the second day of the draft. They chose Boone Jenner in the second round (No. 37 overall), T.J. Tynan in the third round (66) and Lukas Sedlak in the sixth round (158).

The moves come a year after the Jackets used the fourth overall pick to take Ryan Johansen. A franchise that has lacked natural centers is suddenly flush with them.

"The thinking is it's the hardest forward position to play and it comes with the most responsibility," Howson said. "You can always move a center to a wing, but you can very rarely move a wing to center.

"We have struggled with that, and you have seen us struggle at that."

The Jackets will head to training camp with six centers on their NHL roster assuming Johansen, 18, is in the mix. That doesn't mean they are ready to match Detroit, Chicago or Vancouver down the middle, but the depth and options are vastly improved.

In the pipeline, the Jackets also have Michael Chaput and Kevin Lynch, a 2009 draft pick who's moving from wing to center this season at the University of Michigan.

The players drafted yesterday are at least several seasons from legitimately competing for roster spots in Columbus. Jenner is probably the most intriguing of the lot. Projected by some draftniks as a late first-rounder, the 6-foot-1, 196-pound forward fell to the Jackets early in the second round.

The Dorchester, Ontario, native is considered a two-way center who excels at faceoffs and will stand up for teammates. Jenner collected 25 goals and 41 assists in 63 games last season for the Oshawa Generals of the Ontario Hockey League.

"He's my favorite guy in the whole draft," NHL Central Scouting's Chris Edwards told NHL.com. "He's the best competitor in this entire draft, bar none. (He's) just fierce. ... He's going to need to improve somewhat on his foot speed, but I'm sure that will come. That won't be what keeps him out of the (NHL)."

Jenner, 18, and Tynan, 19, offer quite the contrast.

Tynan, an Orland Park, Ill., native stands 5-7 and weighs 165 pounds. The freckle-faced freshman registered 18 goals and 27 assists in 37 games for Notre Dame.

He has spent much of his youth proving his lack of size was not an issue.

"It's been work ethic, never quitting and always being relentless," Tynan said. "Being smaller, you have to work harder than the bigger guys.

"There are other small guys in the NHL, and there's no reason I can't do the same. I've just got to work at it. and hopefully I will be there someday."



Jackets' top pick had to watch, wait

By Tom Reed

ST. PAUL, Minn. - Boone Jenner, the 18-year-old farm boy from southern Ontario, sat in the lower bowl of Xcel Energy Center on Friday night, wearing his best suit and bravest face.

He is a hockey player, and hockey players never want anyone to know they're hurting. It's why the rugged center - projected as a first-rounder in some mock drafts - tried masking his disappointment as NHL commissioner Gary Bettman read off the names.

"With the eighth pick in the 2011 NHL draft, the Philadelphia Flyers select . . ."

Jenner was surrounded by his parents, brothers, grandparents, uncles and aunts, friends and neighbors. Anxiety grew with every shout of joy from the families of fellow prospects.

"With the 23rd pick in the 2011 NHL draft . . ."

The parade to the stage continued. Draftees slipped jerseys over starched dress shirts. Television analysts lauded some selections and wondered why the stock of other players had fallen.

" With the 30th pick in the 2011 NHL draft . . ."

And then it was over, more than four hours after it started. Jenner and his party returned to their hotel, gratification delayed for another day.

"It was a goal for me to go first round, but sometimes things don't go your way and you have no control over it," Jenner said.

The NHL draft is two days of raw emotion. It can make or dash a dream, even though the real measure of a player's worth is weeks, sometimes months away.

Yesterday morning, the Blue Jackets selected the strapping 6-foot-1 Jenner in the second round with the 37th overall pick. As Jenner celebrated, news came that the Jackets had traded Nikita Filatov for a third-rounder.

Two years ago, Filatov was the game's top-ranked prospect, according to The Hockey News' Future Watch. Yesterday, the sixth overall pick in the 2008 draft was shipped to Ottawa for the No. 66 selection.

Such are the vagaries of drafting teenagers.

"There are seven rounds, all those guys go to camp and now it's whoever wants it more," Jenner said, peering out from under a Blue Jackets cap. "No matter where you are drafted, you have to prove yourself."

That's what prospects like Jenner and Seth Ambroz - a Jackets pick who tumbled to the fifth round - remind themselves. They all know the success stories, the players who have defied the scouting reports.

Detroit Red Wings drafted center Pavel Datsyuk with the 171st pick in 1998. He's a three-time NHL all-star and future Hall of Famer.

In many ways, the draft has changed, expanded and mutated over the past three decades. Before 1980, the event was conducted in a Montreal hotel ballroom, far from the public eye. It wouldn't be televised for four more years.

Jackets development coach Tyler Wright said the cameras and hype have added to the stress for prospects choosing to attend. In 1991, Wright arrived at the draft in Buffalo rated higher than a Swedish teen named Peter Forsberg, a future MVP who would help lead the Colorado Avalanche to two Stanley Cup titles

As the Flyers prepared to make the No. 6 overall selection, the cameras panned to a section where Wright and Forsberg were seated.

"I'm thinking for a moment, 'I'm rated higher than Forsberg. I didn't realize the Flyers had that much interest in me,' " said Wright, who was taken six slots later by Edmonton.

Wright knows how easily a prospect can plummet on the draft board. Trades and unexpected picks can alter and affect a player's status.

Jenner's agent, Joe Resnick, who also represents Rick Nash, said his client spoke to 26 teams at the draft combine. He hasn't had any other player in the past five years draw as much interest, Resnick said.

But the Jenners weren't able to celebrate until yesterday morning. Jackets general manager Scott Howson couldn't believe that Jenner was still available at No. 37.

The club had planned to trade down unless Jenner fell to it.

"He was certainly a mid-first-rounder in our books, but it happens every draft," Howson said. "He has character and hockey sense in spades."

The wait was much longer for Ambroz, ranked No. 31 among North American skaters by NHL Central Scouting.

His mother, Sue, hugged him as the Jackets made him the 128th overall pick.

As Ambroz made his way toward the arena floor, she stopped him for another embrace.

"She was a nervous wreck," Ambroz said. "It got really long and drawn out, and at one point I was pretty frustrated."

Ambroz, raised in nearby New Prague, Minn., was squired to an interview room where reporters asked him several times to gauge his level of disappointment. He patiently answered every question.

Finally, someone wondered if he had any words for Blue Jackets fans. Ambroz smiled broadly.

"Hopefully, you guys got a steal."

[email protected]



Blue Jackets notebook: Draft pick used to watch sister play for OSU

By Aaron Portzline

ST. PAUL, Minn. - If Mike Reilly ever plays his way to the NHL with the Blue Jackets, he'll be at least mildly familiar with Nationwide Arena and Columbus.

"I've been there probably four times the last few years," said Reilly, a fourth-round pick (No. 98 overall) of the Blue Jackets in yesterday's NHL draft in the Xcel Energy Center.

Reilly is a slight, skilled defenseman who probably is three or four years away from turning pro.

Apparently, hockey runs in the family.

His sister, Shannon, just wrapped up a four-year career on the Ohio State women's team. She's off to play a year of pro hockey in Switzerland and plans to get a degree in communications after she returns.

Mike Reilly timed his trips to Columbus in such a way that he could watch his sister play one day and the Blue Jackets play the next.

"It seems like a fun town," he said. "Nationwide is a great building. Obviously, it would be a thrill to play there someday."

Wait for 'D'

Blue Jackets general manager Scott Howson hopes to acquire a puck-moving defenseman this offseason. It didn't come close to happening at the draft.

"We pursued two or three," he said. "Nothing got serious.

"Once we made the Carter deal, we wanted to sit back and analyze over the weekend. There was no rush to try and do something. We'll continue to get on that this week. I don't have anything imminent."

The best bet now is to land a defenseman during free agency.

Howson dismissed rumors that Chicago Blackhawks defenseman Brian Campbell declined to waive his no-trade clause to go to Columbus.

"Completely false," he said. "I never talked to the Chicago Blackhawks once about Brian Campbell."

Campbell was dealt to the Florida Panthers on Friday.

Realignment plans

Howson said the Blue Jackets will spend part of the summer working on a realignment proposal, one that would move the Jackets to the Eastern Conference. It could be presented at a NHL Board of Governors meeting in September or December.

"I'm in favor of anything that puts us in the East," Howson said.

Many expect the NHL to undergo a massive realignment next summer after the future of the Phoenix Coyotes is decided.

Tough call

Dublin native Sean Kuraly was a tempting option for the Blue Jackets with their fifth-round pick, No.128.

"We had a long discussion," Howson said. "We would have loved to take him because of the hometown factor, but you have to trust your scouts."

Instead, the Blue Jackets took winger Seth Ambroz, who had been projected by many to go in the second round.

"(Our scouts) felt that Seth projects better," Howson said. "We'll find out."

Kuraly, a forward, was selected by the San Jose Sharks with the 133rd pick.

Slap shots

Three players committed to Ohio State were drafted: Sam Jardine (No. 169, by Chicago), Max McCormick (No. 171, by Ottawa) and Ryan Dzingel (No.

204, by Ottawa). Blue Jackets development camp begins on Tuesday and runs through Saturday in the Dispatch Ice Haus, attached to Nationwide Arena. All of this year's draft picks except Lukas Sedlak and Anton Forsberg are expected to attend, along with 26 other players, including last year's first-round draft pick, Ryan Johansen.

[email protected]



Blue Jackets: Filatov traded for draft pick

By Aaron Portzline

ST. PAUL, Minn. - The Blue Jackets' inability to land many elite players with their first-round draft picks has crippled the organization in its first decade. One hole was patched, the Jackets hope, by Thursday's trade for center Jeff Carter from Philadelphia.

But the club's draft woes were illustrated again yesterday during the second day of the NHL draft in the Xcel Energy Center.

Left winger Nikita Filatov, the No.6 overall selection in 2008, was traded to the Ottawa Senators for a third-round pick (No.66).

Filatov had requested a trade 10 days ago, Blue Jackets general manager Scott Howson said, but he could have saved his agent the phone call - Howson said he planned to trade him anyway.

"It was just time for everybody to move on," he said. "I wish him the best."

Neither Filatov nor his agent, Don Meehan, responded to requests from The Dispatch seeking comment.

Filatov joins a long list of Jackets players who have fallen short of expectations or flamed out way too quickly.

Of the Blue Jackets' nine first-round picks from 2000 to '08, only two - Rick Nash and Derick Brassard - are still with the organization. None of them came and went quicker than Filatov.

In a three-day span, Howson has traded three first-round draft picks - Jakub Voracek and this year's pick (sent to Philly for Carter), and now Filatov.

"It's not a great move," Howson said of the Filatov deal. "It's not something you want to do. But I'm also a believer that we all make mistakes in this business. We move on from our mistakes. I'm not in any way saying Nikita is not going to play in the NHL. It just didn't work for Columbus."

Filatov, 21, has faced an uncertain future since he was sent to the minor leagues last November. His tenuous standing in the organization needed a remedy before next season.

Filatov's play under coach Scott Arniel last season - 23 games, zero goals - was the latest proof that he wasn't ready to play in the NHL. His half-hearted play and prima-donna attitude had those in minor-league Springfield begging to never see him in a Falcons sweater again.

Howson said Filatov would have played in Russia next season with his old club, CSKA-Moscow, had a trade not been negotiated. The only club that inquired about Filatov was Ottawa, Howson said.

"You won't find many more talented players," he said. "He has to sort some things out.

"But you know what? That happens sometimes when you go through changes. This league is full of players who had to go through two or three teams to become good players."

Filatov showed signs of being as good as advertised during his rookie season. On Jan. 10, 2009, he scored the first rookie hat trick in franchise history against Minnesota.

But the next two seasons - in 2009-10 under then-coach Ken Hitchcock and last season under Arniel - were a struggle simply to be competitive.

It's still a fairly low-risk move for the Senators. They are desperate for top-six wingers, and Filatov was named by The Hockey News as the top prospect outside the NHL in 2009.

"It's a third-round pick to take a shot at a guy who was No.6 overall," Ottawa general manager Bryan Murray said. "It's a no-lose for us. It's an absolute steal if he plays in the top six.

"Why is it a gamble? He's a great kid. He's a guy who has high-end skill who wants to be an NHL player."

With the pick the Blue Jackets received in return, they selected center T.J. Tynan, who was named College Hockey News' rookie of the year after scoring 23 goals and 31 assists as a freshman at Notre Dame.


573689 Dallas Stars

Salary cap floor is changing the way the NHL does business

Mike Heika / Reporter

A couple of years ago, the NHL started handing out 8-, 9-, 10-year deals, and critics said those contracts would be `ùntradeable.'' But we are quickly finding out that the new salary floor of $48.3 million means that almost nobody is `ùntradeable'' in today's NHL.

First, a little history.

When the NHL shut down for a year in 2004, it wanted to get a system that would allow control on spending for salary cap teams that were going crazy. So it came up with a salary cap of $39 million. To get that, though, it had to toss a bone to the players and also give them a salary floor _ a quite reasonable $23 million at the time. The problem was that the new formula to determine these numbers included a gap of $16 million between cap and floor. At $39 million, that floor is 41 percent lower than the cap. At $64.3 million (as the cap will be next season), that floor is only 24.8 percent lower than the cap.

And that is a huge difference for teams that don't want to spend a lot of money.

So, the trickle down effect that we are now seeing is that teams have to spend money this summer. Florida has to spend money, so it decided to go out and get a pretty solid puck-moving defenseman in Brian Campbell in a trade with Chicago and take on a contract that will pay him five more years at an average of $7.1 million. That contract is ridiculous...unless...unless you have to spend $48.3 million. New Panthers GM Dale Tallon used to be the GM in Chicago and signed Campbell to that contract, so he believes in the player. If you have to spend the money, why not invest in someone you believe in. In addition, he was unable to unload a significant contract in Rostislav Olesz going the other way, so the additional cost is more manageable.

First an aside, because it is the elephant in the room. The Florida Panthers will probably not make money with a payroll of $48.3 million, and it's never a good idea to pay a player a lot more than he appears to be worth. Because of that, you can almost guarantee that the NHL is going to have some labor strife when the current CBA expires after next season. Insiders say the Stars lost $15 million last season while spending about $47 million on payroll. That's just too much of a burden for teams that are struggling.

Now, on to why this is important right now.

The spending landscape of the NHL is changing. Not only are the big guys spending money, everyone is. That means that Columbus will take on a huge contract for Philadelphia center Jeff Carter, that Florida will take on Brian Campbell, that teams like Dallas, Phoenix, Carolina, the Islanders, Nashville, St. Louis and Winnipeg have to spend money. You wonder why Pat Morris wanted an auction for Brad Richards? Because there could be 15 teams involved, that's why.

So what does that mean for the Stars? Well, for one thing, Joe Nieuwendyk's strategy that you can build through trades holds water. If you are willing to take on a heavy contract, you can make a good trade. Now, the size of the contract makes a big difference. The Panthers unloaded a player they didn't want to get Campbell's heavy burden. The San Jose Sharks had to give up a ton (Devin Setoguchi, prospect Charlie Coyle and first round pick in 2011) to get one year (and presumably the first crack at re-signing) 26-year-old defenseman Brent Burns, as well as a second round draft pick.

Were the Stars in on Burns or Campbell (or John-Michael Liles to Toronto...or Mike Richards to LA or Jeff Carter to Columbus)? Nieuwendyk wouldn't say yes or no.

`Ì was aware of some of the talks, and I knew some of the activities,'' he said. ``We keep our eyes open, and if we can get in on some of that, we certainly will if it improves our hockey club.''

Nieuwendyk said the team has to be open to trades or free agency and has to be smart about what it does. Yes, it has to spend about $10 million more just to get to the floor, but it doesn't want to give up too many good assets or take on too much future contract.

My fear, however, is that's exactly what NHL teams have to do right now. The big push up in the cap and floor is forcing teams to make drastic decisions. The teams that make them are getting the players. The teams that are safe could be left picking scraps at the end. Free agency still could provide a great defenseman or two. Maybe the Stars are in on Kevin Bieksa, Christian Ehrhoff or Jonathan Ericsson. There might be a surprise or two in the trade market where Nieuwendyk can get a high-priced player and not give up too much (sort of like they did when they got Brad Richards)

It's still early in the process.

But teams are changing. You can make the argument that Los Angeles is much better with Mike Richards, Columbus is much better with Jeff Carter and San Jose is much better with Brent Burns...and that makes it all the more difficult to get one of those eight playoff spots in the West.

Dallas Morning News LOADED: 06.27.2011

573690 Detroit Red Wings

Red Wings close to deal with defenseman Jonathan Ericsson

By HELENE ST. JAMES

ST. PAUL, Minn. -- The Red Wings are closing in on a deal for defenseman Jonathan Ericsson, with only some details left to discuss.

General manager Ken Holland met with Ericsson's agent during the NHL draft at Xcel Energy Center, and said Saturday the two are planning to talk again Monday.

"A little bit of the conversation that's going on with Ericsson's camp is where we see him fitting in," Holland said.

The Wings have three top-four defensemen signed in Nicklas Lidstrom, Niklas Kronwall and Brad Stuart. They're going to use free agency -- which starts Friday -- to fill the fourth spot. Ericsson is penciled into the fifth slot, but Brendan Smith is going to get a chance to make the team, and Jakub Kindl, who really impressed with a strong second half, is a candidate for the third pairing, too.

Ericsson, 27, is eligible to become an unrestricted free agent, but he has said all along he'd prefer to stay with the Wings, who selected him with the very last pick, No. 291, in 2002.

Detroit Free Press LOADED: 06.27.2011

573691 Detroit Red Wings

Final answers coming soon for Wings veterans

Ted Kulfan/ The Detroit News

Detroit— The 2011-12 Red Wings roster has been a hot topic since last season ended.

While some questions have been answered — the return of Nicklas Lidstrom and the retirement of Brian Rafalski — others still remain.

This week, however, some of those questions will be answered.

The reason?

Free agency begins Friday.

Teams will keep the players they want, and let others leave.

Red Wings general manager Ken Holland left last weekend's draft without making any trades.

So any changes to the roster will come through free agency.

Holland said he'd like to add a top-four-caliber defenseman and will explore possibilities in the backup goaltending market.

And then there's the saga of Jaromir Jagr.

The former scoring champion wants to return to the NHL, and the Red Wings and Penguins (where Jagr began his career) are Jagr's preferred destinations.

But neither team seems willing to commit a huge salary for Jagr, 39, who spent the last three seasons in Russia and can make close to $6 million if he chooses to return to Russia.

While Holland waits on a decision from Jagr, he has three key unrestricted free agents to deal with before Friday — defenseman Jonathan Ericsson and forwards Patrick Eaves and Drew Miller.

Holland said the Red Wings and Ericsson's agent were inching toward a deal — "We had a good talk" — and the sides were "in the same ballpark."

Negotiations with Eaves and Miller, however, seem to be a bit more stuck.

And, the futures of forward Kris Draper and goaltender Chris Osgood likely are tied to what transpires in free agency.

If Eaves and/or Miller leave, it may open a spot for Draper.

And, Osgood's future likely is tied to whether Holland is able to land a backup in free agency.

First pick

Teams often will say how surprised they are to have a particular draft pick fall into their laps.

But when the Red Wings say that about forward Tomas Jurco (35th overall, second round), believe them.

Jurco was rated 20th among North American skaters by the Central Scouting Bureau and numerous mock drafts had Jurco being selected in the first round.

"He's a highly skilled player," said Jim Nill , assistant general manager for the Red Wings. "He has as much pure skill as any player in this draft."

Gerard Gallant , the former Red Wings forward who is a candidate for an assistant coaching job, echoed Nill's assessment of his former player.

"Gerard felt we may have gotten a bit of a steal," Holland said.

Ice chips

Most of last weekend's picks will get their first taste of being Red Wings at the annual development camp, July 7-13.

The camp has moved from Joe Louis Arena to Traverse City's Centre ICE.

Getting to know … the new Red Wings

A look at the drafted players:

Tomas Jurco

Selected: 35th (2nd round)

Position: Right wing

Ht./Wt.: 6-2/193

2010-11: 60 games, 31 goals, 25 assists (Saint John, Quebec League)

Scouting report: A Slovakian-born forward with dazzling offensive moves, great hands and the ability to put the puck in the net.

Xavier Ouellet

Selected: 48th (2nd)

Position: Defenseman

Ht./Wt.: 6-0/182

2010-11: 67 games, 8 goals, 35 assists (Montreal, Quebec League)

Scouting report: Needs to build strength, but scouts like what this offensive defenseman can do.

Ryan Sproul

Selected: 55th (2nd)


Ht./Wt.: 6-3/185

2010-11: 61 games, 14 goals, 19 assists (Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario Hockey League)

Scouting report: Grew four inches since starting his junior career and his size, along with his offensive ability, put Sproul on the radar. A late bloomer.

Alan Quine

Selected: 85th (3rd)

Position: Center

Ht./Wt.: 5-11/178

2010-11: 69 games, 26 goals, 27 assists (Peterborough, Ontario Hockey League)

Scouting report: Small, but fast and shifty. Quine has great skills.

Marek Tvrdon

Selected: 115th (4th)


Ht./Wt.: 6-2/210

2010-11: 12 games, 6 goals, 5 assists (Vancouver, Western Hockey League)

Scouting report: A shoulder separation ended his season early. If he hadn't gotten hurt, some scouts felt Tvrdon could have snuck into the first or second round. A sleeper.

Philippe Hudon


Position: Center

Ht./Wt.: 6-0/197

2010-11: 22 games, 10 goals, 10 assists (Choate-Rosemary, Ct., High)

Scouting report: A Montreal native, Hudon will play at Cornell this season.

Mattias Backman



Ht./Wt.: 6-2/169

2010-11: 27 games, 2 goals, 18 assists (Sinkoping Jr., Sweden)

Scouting report: Not a big kid, but a responsible two-way defenseman who doesn't make mistakes in his end. Needs to get bigger.

Richard Medomlel



Ht./Wt.: 6-4/204

2010-11: 66 games, 10 assists (Swift Current, Western Hockey League)

Scouting report: A physical presence who isn't afraid to play the enforcer role. Good size, and is responsible in his own end.

Alexei Marchenko


Position: Defense

Ht./Wt.: 6-2/183

2010-11: 23 games, 2 assists (CKSA, Russia)

Scouting report: Considered a fine two-way defenseman who has flown under the radar because he hasn't played on many international teams. Coachable and gritty.

Detroit News LOADED: 06.27.2011

573692 Edmonton Oilers

Oilers trade for Smyth

By Joanne Ireland

EDMONTON - Leaving was the hard part, and waiting to see if the Oilers and Los Angeles Kings were ever going to work out a deal wasn't so easy either, but Ryan Smyth has found his way back to Edmonton.

"I never really wanted to leave in the first place," said Smyth after the Oilers sent Colin Fraser and a seventh-round 2012 draft selection to the Los Angeles Kings, ending the on-again, off-again trade talks.

This trade was one that Smyth requested. The father of three, and his wife, Stacey, wanted to return to Edmonton.

"He bleeds Oiler blue and I think everyone knew that at some point, he was going to want to try and come back and play," said Oilers captain Shawn Horcoff. "I'm real excited to have him - for a lot of reasons. He's a great pro. He fills a lot of holes for us.

"We need more experience to help the young guys and he is still a great player, so I think it's going to be real good."

Smyth had bid a tearful adieu to the city and team in March 2007 after contract negotiations reached an impasse and he was dealt to the New York Islanders for Robert Nilsson and Ryan O'Marra.

He returns with one year remaining on the five-year $31.2-million contract he signed with the Colorado Avalanche after his brief stay with the Islanders. He became one of the Kings' men on July 3, 2009, when the Avs traded him to L.A.

Much has changed in Edmonton since he left. The only holdovers from 2006-07 are Horcoff, Ales Hemsky, Ladislav Smid, Tom Gilbert and J.F. Jacques.

Even the training staff was changed in the course of the rebuilding project that was started by general manager Steve Tambellini, who unleashed rookies Taylor Hall, Jordan Eberle and Magnus Paajarvi last season. This was to be their team. Their time.

"I don't think this changes the philosophy at all," said Horcoff. "Our philosophy is to bring these young guys along, but in order to do that, you need some experience. You need good professionals and you need experience.

"(Smyth) is such a battler, such a warrior. There's not many guys in the NHL that give more, night in and night out, than Ryan Smyth. He's going to be a real good example of how to play the game the right way."

"You can never ever have a enough leadership in your locker-room and I know Ryan will be a huge part of that," said Tambellini.

Smyth, 35, will count as a $6.25-million US salary-cap hit, but will cost the Oilers $4.5-million in real dollars. Tambellini said they have not discussed an extension.

"I'm not worried about where he plays in the lineup - up or down - I'm just really excited about the fact that we have that component, that player who cares about Edmonton, that person who is going to be so excited to put on an Oilers jersey and to match up with the young people, who are establishing a new culture here of expectation and winning ways," Tambellini continued. "That's important."

Initially, the Oilers were going to move Gilbert Brule and a fourth-round pick after which Kings general manager Dean Lombardi intended to buy out the winger. Fraser, who has one year left at $825,000, could now end up a free agent on July 1 if the Kings elect to buy him out.

Fraser had been in an Oilers uniform for one season after the Oilers relinquished a sixth-round pick to the Chicago Blackhawks to acquire the centre on June 24, 2010. He registered five points in 67 games.

Smyth scored 47 points in 82 games with the Kings this past season. In 1,069 regular-season games, he has put away 355 goals and assisted on 405 others - and the bulk of his goals came from within five feet of the net.

"I know that I'm older, but I still have a lot to offer," he said. "I felt great last year - I felt like I was a little kid again.

"Being around the young guys will push me and make me better. I want to be a good teammate and let my experience rub off.

"But I have to say I'm pretty exhausted and tired because of the events that went on leading up to all this. It was like going through a boxing match."

Edmonton Journal: LOADED: 06.27.2011


John MacKinnon: Ultimate Edmonton Oiler happy to be coming home

By John MacKinnon

EDMONTON - Ryan Smyth, the Oilers' ultimate heart-and-soul player, is returning to the city his heart never left.

To Edmonton fans, starved of victories while they wait fretfully for the club's young and gifted nucleus to mature, Smyth is the very image of an Oiler: an unassuming, blue-collar player, who delivers an honest night's work, game-in, game-out.

There may be other, younger, cheaper wingers out there the Oilers could have signed or traded for to provide some grit, physical presence and goals, but repatriating the much beloved Smyth became a civic imperative from the instant his trade request became public a week ago.

Smyth is a comfortable, reliable chunk of the past being grafted onto what management hopes will be a culture of excellence, even though Smyth has never won an NHL championship.

Smyth told a conference call he is overwhelmed and thrilled to return to the Oilers, who drafted him sixth overall in 1994, and for whom he played nearly 12 productive seasons.

"I felt great last year," said the 35-year-old Smyth, who played all 82 regular games for the Los Angeles Kings. "I felt like a little kid again.

"I stayed healthy, which was the No. 1 thing. I just want to bring my leadership and hopefully wherever Tom and the coaching staff wants me to play, I'll play."

Sent to the New York Islanders in February 2007 when deadline contract brinksmanship went badly for the player and the Oilers, Smyth's "journey" has taken him to Colorado and Los Angeles since then. But, as he tearfully asserted at that memorable airport news conference in 2007, he now is back in the place where his heart always remained.

Smyth unabashedly loves Edmonton, but does he really know how powerfully the city loves him right back?

"I guess I won't until I get to the city," Smyth said, during a conference call. "Every time I go there, though, I get a warm welcome from the fans and a lot of friends there that we have.

"We're really extremely excited (and) I honestly have to say, pretty exhausted and tired because of the event that went on, leading up to all this.

"It was a pretty emotional ride, but in the end, I really believe that this is where God wanted us to be."

It's doubtful God had anything to do with it, actually.

Smyth's homecoming was as sloppy as his leave-taking because of earthbound negotiations involving his agent, Don Meehan, GMs Dean Lombardi of the Los Angeles Kings and Steve Tambellini of the Oilers, and Smyth himself.

Smyth, his wife Stacey, and their kids Isabella, Elizabeth and Alexander, all want to return to Edmonton, he said, not because of any family crisis or illness, just because it's home.

His agent, Don Meehan, started this herky-jerky process about six weeks ago, asking Lombardi for a trade back to Edmonton. Last Monday, Smyth's trade request was reported by TSN's Bob McKenzie, a preference Smyth strangely distanced himself from the very next day in an interview with The Journal's Jim Matheson.

"The stuff up in Edmonton was, uh, misquoted," Smyth said Sunday. "Or, I really didn't feel that, uh, I didn't want everything to explode to the level that it did, obviously."

Apparently some things are best left to agents, after all, whether it's being more flexible about taking a "hometown discount," or managing the message during a trade request.

Things were nearly derailed on Friday night when the Kings balked at taking centre Gilbert Brule, technically an injured player, preventing the Kings from buying out his $1.85 million contract for next season. Brule missed 41 games last season with a variety of ailments, including concussion symptoms.

Tambellini said Sunday that Brule is "100 per cent healthy" right now, but it clearly was a sticking point in the trade talks.

In the end, the Kings accepted winger Colin Fraser and a seventh-round draft choice in 2012.

So, everybody's happy, including, presumably, Oilers president Kevin Lowe, who publicly expressed regret, after the fact, the club could not re-sign Smyth in '07. It also has to include Tambellini, who would have faced a seriously cranky fan base had the Smyth trade talk led to nothing.

"To me, you can never, ever have enough of a sense of leadership in your dressing room," Tambellini said. "You can have the mentorship as a management team, as a coaching staff, but the real significance, the real strength is the mentorship from within a dressing room.

"I know Ryan will be a huge part of that."

No doubt he will, although Taylor Hall, Jordan Eberle, Magnus Paajarvi and No. 1 draft pick, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, when he's ready for the NHL, have games based on speed, skill and creative vision that a nuts-and-bolts player like Smyth could not conjure in his most vivid dreams at night.

The youngsters may need lessons in how to be more consistent over the grind of an NHL season, how to be effective when they're hurting.

Mostly, what Smyth will provide is the sort of gritty 'net presence' missing from last year's lineup, which did not physically challenge the opponent on too many nights.

As to where Smyth will fit into a young lineup lousy with wingers, but thin at centre, Tambellini said he's unconcerned.

"His play will dictate . .whether he's playing on a third line or second line, left or right wing, whatever," Tambellini said. "We need solid, experienced, passionate people about this team in order to help the momentum of this thing (get) better every time that we get together."

In the short term, why not, indeed? Smyth produced 47 points last season, including 23 goals, for the Kings. He has one year left on a contract that pays him $4.5 million, but he fervently hopes this is not a one-and-done exercise.

"I've got many years left in me," Smyth said. "I know that I'm older, but I've still got lots left in me.

"I feel like I played some of my best hockey within the last few years. I felt excellent just this past season, so being around some young guys is going to push me and make me better.

"I've got this last year (contractually) and hopefully the organization can see that I'd like to extend my deal and go from there."

That could entail a significant pay cut for Smyth, whose salary cap hit of $6.25 million is the highest on the current roster. Leadership and mentorship come at a premium, it seems, but that next negotiation will bear watching.

History has demonstrated it can be complicated keeping the hometown boy in Edmonton, even when he never wanted to leave in the first place.



Tambellini expects Smyth to lead by example

Hard-nosed winger counted on to mentor Oilers' young players

By Joanne Ireland

EDMONTON - One of the items on the off-season to-do list of Edmonton Oilers general manager Steve Tambellini was to find another transitional player.

Now he has a player who can provide some leadership on and off the ice, plus he has acquired that consistent presence in front of the net that has been lacking since Ryan Smyth left the Oilers.

Dustin Penner eventually found his way to the crease, but has since been traded to the Anaheim Ducks. Rookie Teemu Hartikainen also showed he was willing to chase down some rebounds and deflections, but now Smyth himself will back in his old office.

He returns to Edmonton after the Los Angeles Kings agreed to take Colin Fraser and a seventh-round draft pick.

"There's not a lot of guys in the league that can play like that," said Oilers captain Shawn Horcoff.

"When (Penner) was here, I thought he did a good job. He scored lots of goals for us there, but we don't have Pens anymore either."

Tambellini will also be counting on Smyth to assist the leadership group.

"We knew whether it happened through free agency or a trade, that by the time we got to training camp we wanted to make sure we had that component," Tambellini said.

"I don't have to wonder now whether or not this is going to happen."

Tambellini said the scouts and the coaches will meet this week to finalize their game plan for free agency, which starts on Friday.

Both veteran defenceman Jim Vandermeer and Jason Strudwick are set to become free agents, so the blue-line will need some attention.

As for Smyth, Tambellini said his play will dictate where he is used - be it on the second line or third, the left wing or the right - but that he'll definitely be a mentor.

"I can't see any reason why Ryan won't be a huge part of that. He's experienced. He understands this community. He understands where we are as an organization right now," Tambellini said.

"We talked about keeping up with the tempo of these kids with the way that they play ... but he liked the fact he could be a part of that and that he could be pushed.

"I also know how competitive Ryan is and he'll scratch and claw for every bit of ice time he gets. That's exactly what I want. I want people pushing these young kids to be something better."



Fraser hits road after brief stay with Oilers

Centre heads to Los Angeles as part of Smyth deal

By Joanne Ireland

EDMONTON - No one expected Colin Fraser to be on the move again - least of all Fraser - but after one season in an Edmonton Oilers uniform, the centre is now property of the Los Angeles Kings.

"I didn't see it coming," he said Sunday, a few hours after he was flipped to the Kings, along with a seventh-round pick in the 2012 NHL entry draft, for veteran Ryan Smyth.

"I was surprised, especially since the draft was over. I thought it was all done with."

And especially because it was Gilbert Brule who was reportedly the player destined for the Kings. Instead it is Fraser who is on the move again.

"I spoke to Gilbert (Sunday morning) and assured him he was not a part of anything that had happened and I expect a great summer of training and for him to be ready," said Oilers general manager Steve Tambellini.

"(Fraser) was a tough one for me. The reason we acquired him was because of character. He's always had that reputation of being a great teammate. He missed part of the year because of a broken foot ... but in order to make a deal, sometimes you have to give something up."

The 26-year-old from Sicamous, B.C. was traded from the rebuilding Chicago Blackhawks to the Oilers on June 24 in exchange for a sixth-round pick at the 2010 draft.

He played 67 games for Edmonton, mostly on the fourth line, and registered five points.

"I got traded from Chicago because of money issues. With Edmonton it wasn't my best year," Fraser said. "I do feel like I have more to offer. I know I have more to offer.

"It certainly didn't go the way I expected, and I'm sure it didn't go the way the Oilers expected either, but I wanted to play in Edmonton. I really enjoyed my team there."

Fraser got word Sunday morning that he had been dealt but he has not been told what the Kings' next move will be. Los Angeles GM Dean Lombardi was reportedly going to buy out Brule's contract to clear up even more cap room.

"It could happen to me," said Fraser. "I guess time will tell."



Smyth repatriated with Oilers

By TERRY JONES, QMI Agency

EDMONTON - First and foremost, it's a love story. It always was with Ryan Smyth.

"I didn't ever want to leave in the first place," said the repatriated Edmonton Oiler.

"I feel like Edmonton is home."

Finally it became official Sunday. Captain Canada is coming home.

"We wanted to come back to Canada. Our kids are starting out in school. Two of our three kids were born in Edmonton."

That's it. No seriously ill parents or grandparents. The end of the big homesick.

It was Smyth, saying Los Angeles and his previous stops in Long Island and Denver "were different lifestyles for my wife and family to live in".

On the media conference call, he first of all thanked the Los Angeles Kings "for accepting my wish to come back and be an Oiler where I first started my career. I'm thrilled and overwhelmed being an Oiler again.

"Everything I went through for the last six weeks was tough and emotional for my wife and I and I'm extremely thrilled to come back to Edmonton," he said of son Alexander who turned three Sunday and daughters Isabella, 8, and Elizabeth, 6.

Because he was in the interior of B.C., it was clear Smyth had no clue of the overwhelming extent of the out-pouring of love in his direction from fans in Edmonton, fans who were clearly outraged at the idea of him wearing No. 94 for the Calgary Flames as it looked like for a few hours Friday.

"I guess I won't know until I get to the city. It's really been pretty exhausting and tiring with everything that went on. It was a pretty emotional ride."

Both ways.

A town which had the heart and soul of its team torn away when Ryan Smyth was sent away over a dispute over $100,000 with then GM Kevin Lowe on the day of Mark Messier's banner raising, showed the love and maybe even forced Steve Tambellini to do a deal he didn't necessarily want to do.

Smyth, in the end, thanked Calgary.

"Hats off to the Flames. They were ready to do it ASAP. They were willing and excited and I thank them for that," he said of Jay Feaster not being at all tentative.

"It would have been really tough with the Edmonton blood that's in me," said Smyth.

In the end the deal was a no-brainer.

No future was sacrificed here. Colin Fraser and a seventh-round draft choice? For Ryan Smyth? Hell yes.

It was a deal which, if Tambellini didn't do, he'd be facing a furious fan base. These fans suffered through two 30th-place seasons. The least he could give them was the old warrior who wanted to play in Edmonton again at a time when there's been a severe shortage of veteran NHLers who want to winter here.

As a rule these return-to-complete-your-career-where-it-began stories don't have happy endings.

The mullet man who has one year left on his contract at $4.5 Million ($6.25 cap hit), has played 16 hard seasons of going into corners, working against the boards and taking all sorts of abuse in his office in front of the net. He went on a 24-game span at the end of the season where he didn't score a goal and some saw evidence that the end was near.

On the other hand he scored two classic Smytty goals in the playoffs and played well. It should also be pointed out that Smyth produced more points than any Oiler last year.

No. 94 was adamant he isn't coming home to mop up his career here.

"That's way far fetched. I got many years left in me. I know I'm older but I'm playing some of my best hockey the last few years. I still have lots to offer. I felt like I was a kid again last year," he said of playing all 82 games plus playoffs.

"Being around all the young talent in Edmonton is going to push me and make me better. I'm hoping the organization is going to see I want to play there into the future"

With Taylor Hall the No. 1 left winger and Magnus Paajarvi No. 2 for the future and Linus Omark in the picture there as well, it's the one position where the Oilers have depth.

But pay-the-price veteran, knock-my-teeth-out-and-get-stitched-up-behind-the-bench leadership may be priceless. And Ales Hemsky, Shawn Horcoff and Ryan Smyth riding together again does have possibilities.

So, coach, how you going to work your lines?

"I have no idea," said Tom Renney.

Renney is definitely happy to have Ryan Smyth to add to the mix.

"Ryan brings a look to our team that's been missing in the corners and in front of the net. And he'll certainly be able to share the workload in terms of leadership and show them not only how to be an Oiler but how to be a pro."

Smyth said he's a team guy.

"Wherever Tom Renney wants me, I'll play."

Edmonton Sun: LOADED: 06.27.2011


Fraser 'surprised' by trade to LA

By DEREK VAN DIEST, QMI Agency

EDMONTON - Like most of the Edmonton Oilers fans in the city, Colin Fraser was paying close attention to the Ryan Smyth saga at the NHL Entry Draft.

Little did the Oilers forward know that he would eventually become part of it.

On Sunday, Fraser was traded to the Los Angeles Kings along with a seventh-round draft pick for Smyth.

Originally the deal was said to involve Gilbert Brule and a fourth-round draft pick.

"It took me by surprise," said Fraser. "When it did happen at the draft I figured the deal was off. I was surprised when (Oilers GM) Steve Tambellini called me and told me I had been traded for Smyth."

"Colin Fraser was a tough one," said Tambellini. "The reason we acquired him was because of character. He's always had the reputation of being a great teammate. He missed part of the year with a broken foot, because he was sacrificing for his teammates and blocked a shot.

"Unfortunately, in order to make a deal, sometimes you have to give something up. I appreciate Colin as much as a person, as I do as a hockey player."

Fraser, 26, was originally selected by the Philadelphia Flyers in the third round of the 2003 NHL Entry Draft.

He was acquired by the Oilers in a trade with the Chicago Blackhawks and went on to score three goals and added a pair of assists in 67 games.

The Kings will be Fraser's fourth NHL organization.

"I was looking forward to coming back to Edmonton, because I felt I didn't have a great season last year and wanted to have a better year," Fraser said. "But I'm looking at this as a fresh start and hopefully things go well for me in Los Angeles."



Oilers finalize trade for Smyth

By DEREK VAN DIEST, QMI Agency

EDMONTON - When the opportunity presented itself, Edmonton Oilers general manager Steve Tambellini thought getting Ryan Smyth back would be good for his young hockey club.

Actually getting the deal done, however, proved to be a different matter altogether.

"It's a different negotiation every time you're trying to make a deal, especially in the modern day National Hockey League," said Tambellini. "It could make sense to us, but perhaps it didn't make sense for the L.A. Kings, so you have to switch things and eventually you get to somewhere where both are satisfied for what their goals are.

"It just has to match up, it takes time and at times it can be frustrating. I know I was getting a lot of questions whether the deal was done, and I would have loved to have an answer for people earlier if I could have. But you have to go through the process. As painstaking as it can be at times, you have to stick with it."

Smyth was eventually acquired by the Oilers on Sunday for forward Colin Fraser and a seventh-round draft pick in next summer's NHL Entry Draft.

Originally, it was reported the Oilers acquired Smyth for centre Gilbert Brule and a fourth-round pick.

However, question arose over Brule's health and the Kings backed away from that particular deal.

Tambellini said the Oilers do not have any concerns with Brule's health and expect him to be ready for training camp.

"At the end of the day we were very clear when we had the opportunity to bring in someone like Ryan," Tambellini said. "Especially with the change that has happened here over the last year, and with the type of young players that are so eager and hungry to be part of something that is special in the NHL, you need that component of leadership."

Smyth, 35, is in the final year of his contract that will pay him $4.5-million this season. His salary-cap hit, however is $6.25-million.

The Banff native had 23 goals and 24 assists in 82 games last season with the Kings. He added another two goals and three assists in the playoffs.

Following the season, Smyth and his agent Don Meehan, approached Kings general manager Dean Lombardi about a possible trade back to Edmonton due to family reasons.

"It was initiated from the Kings and Ryan's agent that there was a desire to come back to Edmonton and be part of the Oilers," said Tambellini. "When someone has contributed to the culture and growth of an organization with the team, and has represented his country in so many situations, where I've had a chance to work with him as a manager, you want to make that happen.

"You can never have enough of a sense of leadership in your dressing room. The real strength comes from mentorship within a dressing room."

Smyth was originally selected by the Oilers, sixth overall in the 1994 draft. He spent 12 seasons with the club before being dealt to the New York Islanders in 2007, moments before the NHL trade deadline.

Set to become a restricted free agent at the end of that season, then GM Kevin Lowe did not want to risk losing Smyth without any form of compensation. So when the two sides were unable to come to terms on a contract extension, Lowe traded away the team's most popular player.

Following stops with the Colorado Avalanche and Kings, the Oilers jumped at the opportunity to bring Smyth back.

"I'm excited that we have that component of a person that cares about Edmonton," said Tambellini. "A person that is going to be so excited to put on an Oilers jersey and to match up with the young people that are going to

be part of a new Oilers culture here of expectation and winning ways, that's important.

"We need solid, passionate people about this team, in order to help with the momentum of this thing getting better any time we get together. I can't see any reason why Ryan wouldn't be a huge part of that."


573699 Florida Panthers

Campbell happy to be reunited with Florida Panthers GM Tallon

By George Richards

[email protected]

The Florida Panthers Executive Vice President and General Manager Dale Tallon announces that Kevin Dineen has been named the 11th head coach in the club's history on June 1st,2011 at the Bank Atlantic Center In Sunrise.

Joe Rimkus Jr. / Staff The Florida Panthers Executive Vice President and General Manager Dale Tallon announces that Kevin Dineen has been named the 11th head coach in the club's history on June 1st,2011 at the Bank Atlantic Center In Sunrise.

Brian Campbell didn’t decide to come to Florida on a whim.

After being asked by the Chicago Blackhawks to waive his no-trade agreement, Campbell took a few days to mull things over. It has been reported that he declined to go to the Columbus Blue Jackets.

It’s not easy going from a Stanley Cup contender to a team undergoing yet another rebuilding job.

Yet late Friday, Campbell gave the Blackhawks the green light to ship him to the Panthers.

On Saturday morning, Campbell seemed happy to start fresh with a team all but starting from the ground up.

The Panthers gave up Rostislav Olesz in return for Campbell in a trade that wasn’t made official until after midnight Friday.

“I’ve had a lot of things to think about the past couple of days. I’m happy about it,’’ Campbell said. “It wasn’t easy to leave Chicago; I enjoyed my time there and my fiancée is from there. But this is an opportunity. Obviously, I’ve talked to [Panthers GM] Dale Tallon; I know what they’re doing there. This is going to be better for my career, going to Florida, playing a bigger role than I was in Chicago. I’m looking for a lot of opportunity.”

Tallon brought Campbell to Chicago in the summer of 2008.

At the time, the Blackhawks were on their way up. They were close, yet not quite there. Chicago finished two spots out of the playoffs in 2007-08. After signing Campbell to an eight-year contract worth more than $57 million, and adding other players, the Blackhawks quickly turned the corner and advanced to the Western Conference finals.

In 2010, Campbell and the Blackhawks were Stanley Cup champions.

The Panthers hope the addition of Campbell will kick-start their rebuilding process.

“Like in Chicago, he gives us credibility,” Tallon said. “He had eight teams he could have gone to, and we weren’t one of those teams. But he did choose us, he made a commitment to come to Florida.

“That says a lot and means a lot to us to have a player of his stature add us to the list.”

Passionate player

Although many have questioned the large contract Campbell signed, few question what Campbell brings to the game. A strong skater, Campbell “plays with passion like few I’ve seen,” Panthers coach Kevin Dineen said. “He has found a way to be a extraordinary talent.

“His skating really separates him from the pack. I told him I expect him to be a big piece of the puzzle. He’ll be a big part of the puzzle.”

Campbell will make $7.14 million in each of the next five seasons. That makes him one of the highest-paid professional athletes in South Florida, only behind the Heat’s LeBron James, Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade, the Marlins’ Hanley Ramirez, the Dolphins’ Jake Long and the Marlins’ Josh Johnson.

“He wants to play for the Panthers and that means a heck of a lot to me and our organization,” Tallon said. “I brought Soupy into Chicago, and he’s willing to come down and turn this franchise around. That speaks volumes.”

Good spot to play

With Tallon at the helm of the Panthers, Campbell said more magic is in store. Campbell added that talking with Dineen helped him realize that Florida was a good spot for him.

“[Tallon] did a lot of good things in Chicago,” Campbell said. “I’ve already talked to a lot of ex-teammates who have said, ‘Get me there. I want to be there, too.’ Dale will make this a very attractive place to play. We’ll get this organization going in the right direction, get the fans back.”

The signing of Campbell also solidifies Florida’s defensive unit. The Panthers now have five defensemen with one-way deals under contract.

Campbell is expected to run Florida’s top power-play unit — last season, the Panthers had the fewest power-play goals in their history for a full season.

“We had the 29th-ranked power play in the league last year and just picked up a premier power-play quarterback,” Panthers assistant general manager Mike Santos said.

“There’s no doubt we lacked offense from the back line and had nothing coming up immediately. He’s also a Stanley Cup champion. The more of those you can put in your room, the better.’’

Miami Herald LOADED: 06.27.2011

573700 Florida Panthers

Panthers ready to trade and add free agents this week

With the draft behind them, Tallon and Santos are ready to reshape roster

By Harvey Fialkov, Staff Writer

While the Panthers' front-office honchos flew home Sunday morning feeling content after adding 10 building blocks, there is still more work to do.

With just 10 signed players on the active roster and the free-agency period starting Friday, the Panthers, who have about $26 million to shop for nine players, are trying to make some early-week trades with cash-strapped teams looking to shed payroll.

In addition to their 10 teenage draft picks, the Panthers already made a huge move that should pay immediate dividends by persuading 32-year-old defenseman Brian Campbell to waive his no-trade clause with the Blackhawks on Friday night to join a franchise in flux.

"This is a very important week for us,'' Panthers General Manager Dale Tallon said. "[We went through] a lot of pain last year to get ourselves in this position. We earned the right now to do what we need to do to get this franchise turned around.

"These moves we're doing now will help us sell guys to come on July 1.''

Assistant GM Mike Santos echoes Tallon's notion that Campbell's decision to come to Florida with his $35.7 million price tag could turn the two-time All-Star into a Pied Piper for other coveted free agents.

"What's really important in this whole thing is you now see players want to play for the Panthers,'' Santos said. "It started to happen last year; we're seeing it here at the draft that Florida has become a destination not only because [of the sunshine], but because they think we can win.''

Because of the anticipated re-signing of Panthers restricted free-agent forwards Mike Santorelli and Shawn Matthias, they'll be looking to add four forwards, two defensemen and a goalie, unless they re-sign Tomas Vokoun this week. Tallon said that talking to the free-agent goalie is on his priority list.

"I think now getting more pieces might put us in a better position for all of us,'' Tallon said.

The Panthers may re-sign overachieving center Marty Reasoner, 33, and left wing Sergei Samsonov, 31; however, it's believed they'll seek younger, quicker, less expensive players.

Dallas center Brad Richards is the cream of the free-agent crop, but would chew up too much of Florida's cap space. More likely potential Panthers targets are Penguins center Max Talbot, 6-5 Capitals center Jason Arnott and Canadiens defenseman James Wisniewski, who would be a perfect power-play complement to Campbell.

Tallon's sense of urgency is predicated on too few quality free agents being available to 30 teams.

"A lot of teams are looking for the same types of players, so I'd rather make sure we have some things done before we get to July 1,'' he said.

Drafts and deals

Plantation native Colin Suellentrop, who grew up playing for the Florida Junior Panthers in Coral Springs, was taken by the Flyers in the fourth round (116th overall). …

Panthers coach Kevin Dineen indicated that he'd like his bosses to re-sign restricted free-agent forward Tim Kennedy, who played for him with the AHL Portland Pirates for nearly two seasons. …

The Panthers made a qualifying offer to restricted free-agent goalie Tyler Plante, who played for Rochester this season.

Sun Sentinel LOADED: 06.27.2011

573701 Los Angeles Kings

Kings trade Ryan Smyth to Edmonton for Colin Fraser, seventh-round draft pick

The Kings make the deal after the Oilers remove oft-injured Gilbert Brule from consideration. Fraser, a center, was a member of the Chicago Blackhawks' 2010 Stanley Cup team and has an $825,000 cap hit.

By Helene Elliott

8:25 PM PDT, June 26, 2011

After contentious negotiations, the Kings on Sunday traded Ryan Smyth to Edmonton for center Colin Fraser and a seventh-round pick in the 2012 entry draft, making the deal only after the Oilers removed oft-injured forward Gilbert Brule from consideration.

Fraser, a member of the Chicago Blackhawks' 2010 Stanley Cup team, has a manageable $825,000 cap hit and will get a chance to win a job in training camp. The Kings planned to waive or buy out Brule, who hasn't been procedurally cleared to play after suffering a concussion. Brule's cap hit is $1.85 million.

"Fraser is a real hard-nosed player," Kings General Manager Dean Lombardi said. "He brings character to your room and his price in terms of salary is certainly not prohibitive, so it's very different than the player they were talking about the day before in terms of allowing us to fill Smitty's hole.

"He doesn't fill Smitty's hole, but it's a serviceable player who doesn't command anywhere near what the other guy did."

Smyth, 35, scored 23 goals last season and has one season left with a cap hit of $6.25 million. His departure gives the Kings cap space to acquire a premier player through trade or free agency, but Lombardi said he's looking for "a mid-range guy" at the moment.

Smyth, who began his career in Edmonton and is a cult hero there, said he wanted to go home for lifestyle reasons. He said he was misquoted in a June 20 Edmonton Journal story in which he denied asking for a trade.

"I didn't want everything to explode to the level it did six weeks before the actual trade," he said. "I did request this for family reasons. I thoroughly enjoyed every moment down there. It's a different lifestyle. I hope for nothing but the best for the Kings. The fans supported me well."

Fraser, 26, had only three goals and five points in 67 games last season. He said the Kings will be "a tough team to make," but he's eager to join players such as newly acquired Mike Richards.

"The first thing I thought of is how good the team is. It's a young team and knocking on the door to be one of the best teams in the league, if not the best," Fraser said.

Lombardi also said he plans to talk again this week with Don Meehan, the agent for restricted free-agent defenseman Drew Doughty. The NHL's free agency period begins Friday.

"It's safe to say at this stage at least now there's parameters in terms of numbers," Lombardi said.

LA Times: LOADED: 06.27.2011


Ryan Smyth finds his way home, as Kings finalize deal with Edmonton

By J.P. Hoornstra Staff Writer

Posted: 06/26/2011 10:18:25 PM PDT

NHL: L.A. completes deal to send veteran to Edmonton, where forward started career.

There was no way Ryan Smyth could return to the Kings after asking to be traded.

It seemed like there was no way he was going to Edmonton, either, after the teams nixed a proposed deal Friday that would send injured forward Gilbert Brule to the Kings.

That changed Sunday when the Kings traded Smyth to the Oilers in exchange for Colin Fraser and a 2012 seventh- round draft pick. Smyth returns to the city where he began his NHL career in 1994 and became a folk hero over the next 13 years.

"I didn't ever want to leave in the first place," said Smyth, who was traded by the Oilers to the New York Islanders in 2007. "Along the journey, you experience something. I think it was the right thing to do - there was a time at that point to carry on and you see the other side, and you experience it, and you learn lots. I'm just overly thrilled to be back."

In Fraser, the Kings receive a penalty-killing, energy-line forward who topped out with seven goals and 19 points in 2009-10 for the Stanley Cup-winning Chicago Blackhawks. The 26-year-old dipped to three goals and five points in 67 games for the Oilers last season, his third in the NHL. In 224 career games he has 16 goals, 41 points and 168 penalty minutes.

Primarily a center, Fraser won 44.6 percent of his faceoffs last season.

Kings general manager Dean Lombardi said Fraser has a

chance to remain on the team going into training camp and beyond. A day earlier Lombardi intimated Brule's contract would have been bought out had that trade gone through. Fraser, however, earns $825,000 in the final year of his contract - more than $1 million less than Brule - and would be an easier fit for the Kings' finances.

Both Lombardi and Smyth sounded relieved at the end of a long week for both parties.

"It was certainly a unique situation where a player asked to go to a specific team that I had no intention trading him to," Lombardi said. "I would have liked to honor his no-trade clause."

Smyth reiterated his request to be traded was a family decision.

"My wife and I discussed for a little while that we wanted to come back to Canada, just for personal reasons," he said. "We felt that we wanted to be back in Canada. That's where home is for us. The kids are starting out in school, starting to get into the school situations. We just felt it would be best to come back."

Smyth said he was "misquoted" in a report out of Edmonton on Monday that he had not requested a trade.

"I didn't want everything to explode to the level it did," he said. "I thoroughly enjoyed every moment down there. It was just a different lifestyle for my wife, my family and I to live in. I wish nothing but the best for the organization, the Kings. They well supported me the last two years."

The Alberta native scored 23 goals last season, third-most on the team. His anticipated departure gives the Kings their most pressing need to fill when free agency begins Friday, along with re-signing restricted free agent defenseman Drew Doughty.

LA Daily News: LOADED: 06.27.2011


Smyth talks about trade to Oilers

Posted by Rich Hammond on 26 June 2011, 4:16 pm

Ryan Smyth has a conference call going on now to talk about his move back to Edmonton. Smyth made an opening statement, in which he offered thanks to the Kings organization — specifically Tim Leiweke, Philip Anschutz, Dean Lombardi and Ron Hextall — and thanked Lombardi for “accepting my wish to come back to the Oilers’ organization.” Smyth confirmed that he had requested a trade, in contrast to comments earlier in the week, when he claimed to have no knowledge of the trade discussions or their origin. Smyth said that there were no illnesses or health concerns in his family.

In explaining further, Smyth said, “My wife and I discussed it for a while, that we wanted to come back to Canada, just for personal reasons. The kids are starting school situations, so we thought it was best to come back. … My wife and I discussed it just after the end of the season. I didn’t want (media reports) to explode to the level that it did. So yes, I did request (a trade) for family reasons. I thoroughly enjoyed every moment of my time down there (in Los Angeles). It was just a different lifestyle for me and my wife to live in.”

LA Kings Insider: LOADED: 06.27.2011


Lombardi: Smyth trade `probably harder than making the Gretzky deal’

Posted by Rich Hammond on 26 June 2011, 1:00 pm

Today’s interview with Dean Lombardi started with this gem: “Making the Ryan Smyth deal was probably harder than making the Gretzky deal.” A joke but, in reality, probably not that far off-base. Here’s what Lombardi said today about (finally) completing the Smyth trade, about the potential of keeping Colin Fraser, about contract talks with Drew Doughty’s agent and about his rough plan for replacing Smyth…

Question: You made the move today with Smyth and Fraser. Did it become clear that the deal you had in place before couldn’t be revived?

LOMBARDI: “Like I said (at the draft), that deal would not work for us if we had to take a guy who is not healthy, particularly if he’s got that type of (salary-cap) number. When it broke apart on the first day of the draft, we were there with the league lawyers until midnight. There was clearly an issue in terms of his health, and we couldn’t find a way to piece it back together. We could not do that. We were willing to assume some risk, but not that amount of money and not have the flexibility that having a healthy player would allow us.”

Question: Was there some type of dispute there? (Edmonton GM) Steve Tambellini was telling reporters at the draft that there was no health issue.

LOMBARDI: “Well, it’s fair to say that we had four league lawyers in there who worked their butts off. I give the league a lot of credit. Those four people stayed there after a long day. It’s not butt-kissing. When they do a good job, I’ll tell them. Four of the league’s lawyers stayed there, well into the post-draft period, trying to find a solution. It was very clear, in discussing with them, that this player would not qualify as being healthy. We tried to find a solution. It was David Zimmerman, Julie Grand, Jessica Berman and Daniel Ages. We said, `We want this deal to happen.’ They said, `Dean, there’s no way.’ Those people tried everything. They looked at the documentation and this was something that could not happen. There was no solution, given the documents and everything that were in front of them. So I’ll leave it at that.”

Question: You talked yesterday about needing flexibility in terms of what you got back for Smyth. Do you intend to keep Fraser?

LOMBARDI: “Obviously the contract is very different (than Brule). It’s a lot less money, so that certainly works. We had this kid in Philly. He’s a hard-working, honest player. He has a chance.”

Question: Any updates on the Drew Doughty contract talks?

LOMBARDI: “We met there on Tuesday, and basically we agreed to meet again. At least now, I think it’s fair to say the first couple meetings — I don’t know if you’d say it was a feeling-out process — it was more broad discussion. It was more about getting a feel for what’s important to each other, to make a deal. I think it’s fair to say, though, that on Tuesday we got closer to establishing the parameters, meaning, ÒK, given your interests and our interests, here’s how we see it and here’s how you see it.’ So it’s fair to say that the numbers parameters are kind of in place. That doesn’t mean it can’t go in another direction. Because remember, one of the things that allows for flexibility is the term. One of the things that can happen, that can make negotiations tougher, is if you get locked into a certain term, and then it just becomes a numbers issue. At least, in this case — and given the quality of the player — you have more flexibility as far as term. At this stage, it’s fair to say we’ve exchanged numbers, and that we’ve agreed to meet again. The first two meetings were kind of about establishing parameters, what was important to them, what was important to us.”

Question: How important — or substitute any word there that works better — is it to get that done before July 1?

LOMBARDI: “Well, I said this before and I believe this. The most important thing for me, in terms of it getting done, is that it allows a young player to focus on competing in the offseason, with himself, so that he can compete in training camp, in terms of going to another level. My experience in this is what Nabokov, Marleau and Stuart, when they held out on me in San Jose. What happens is, a young player inevitably loses his focus because he’s uncertain. It’s hard for them, because there’s still that element of uncertainty that doesn’t lend itself to a young player pushing himself in the offseason, to

be the best he can be. As it drags on, and as the uncertainty continues, there’s kind of that disincentive to push yourself that extra mile, to make sure you’re going to another level in terms of your conditioning. I think it’s particularly the case with young players. I’ve experienced this in San Jose. I saw what happened with those three kids. It just caused so much uncertainty, for themselves as well as the team.

“So if you ask me why it’s important, that’s what is critical. Now, you’ve got your ancillary issues. Would it be nice to get it done so that you can plan the rest of your team? Absolutely. But I put that second. The most important thing is for this player — given how important he is to this whole model — to be able to rise up like that, that emotional thing. I’d say that’s the most important thing. Secondly, yeah, it would certainly be nice to have it done, to plan the rest of our team. That’s what is funny. Most people talk about July 1, getting it done, offer sheet. No. That’s not what I fear the most.”

Question: Back to Smyth, you talked about needing to find a replacement for him. What type of player, or salary, would you look to take on?

LOMBARDI: “It’s safe to say that there’s a potential for a mid-range move.”



Smyth traded to Oilers. Yes, really.

Posted by Rich Hammond on 26 June 2011, 9:00 am

The Kings have finally completed a trade with the Edmonton Oilers. They will sent Ryan Smyth to Edmonton in exchange for forward Colin Fraser and a seventh-round pick in 2012.

Fraser is a essentially a depth forward, a 26-year-old center who totaled three goals and two assists in 67 games last season and has 41 points in 224 career NHL games. He is under contract for one more season, at $825,000. Last summer, Fraser was traded from Chicago to Edmonton for a sixth-round draft pick.

More importantly for the Kings, of course, it allows them the flexibility to pursue a player to replace Smyth. More importantly for all of us, this is over.


573706 Minnesota Wild

Two days of hockey heaven in St. Paul

Article by: KELLY SMITH , Star Tribune

The drama of the NHL draft is only part of the appeal for Lou Grillo.

The Rochester, N.Y., native, who's rarely missed a draft in 20 years, trekked to St. Paul this weekend for a rarity of its own: Minnesota hosting the draft for only the second time in its history.

For the players, it was a tension filled, career-making event. For the fans, it was pure sports entertainment, an unofficial convention of diehards from across the country but united by their passion.

"I love it," Grillo said, clutching binoculars to see the action from his general admission seats at the Xcel Energy Center on Saturday. "There's a lot of human drama in this. And it's an excuse to come here."

Sporting a Rochester Americans jersey and hat, the retiree analyzed the picks with friend and fellow New Yorker George Konz while their wives shopped at the Mall of America. They planned to meet Sunday with four Minnesotans whom Grillo has traded sports team schedules with for years and eat at local restaurants highlighted on cable TV. At the end of the visit, Grillo will have checked off his 17th draft and 39th state to visit.

It was also a landmark weekend for Minnesota, which last played host to the NHL draft in 1989. The "State of Hockey" got to prove it again, hosting teams from all over the country and uniting adoring fans with hockey's future stars.

Eighteen-year-old Jodi Taylor of Tampa, Fla., flew to St. Paul using recently earned graduation money to rendezvous with two young female hockey fans she's chatted with online at fan sites for more than a year. It was the first time she had met 24-year-old Dakota Saukel of Spearfish, S.D., and 19-year-old Ari Yanover of Calgary, Alberta.

"It will be hard to stay away," she said of future drafts.

Brian Arvin didn't have to travel far from his St. Paul home, but he wasn't going to miss the rarity of an NHL draft in Minnesota.

"'Cuz it's hockey; you're in Minnesota," he said as he browsed player profiles on his iPad. "I've always wanted to go. How many times can it come back here? Once every 30 years?"

Next to him, Tara and Brad Hall of Cottage Grove wanted to see the selection of top high school talent in person after watching the draft on TV each year.

"It gives you a connection to the players that are up and coming," Brad said. "You'll follow them along in college."

Meanwhile, Griffin Witta, 8, was just soaking up the celebrity. He scurried around the club area of the arena with his twin brother, Brooks, ducking between the towering figures of newly drafted young men, soliciting them to sign a Wild helmet and Carolina Hurricanes hat.

"It's just fun," Witta said before beckoning to his brother as another tall hockey player appeared. "Ooh! Is that him?"

While it was all spectacle for most of the couple hundred fans sprinkled throughout the seats Saturday, it was a monumental, anxiety-ridden day for the Reilly family of Chanhassen.

Seventeen-year-old prospect Michael Reilly was waiting for his name to be called with his hockey-crazed family. His dad, Mike, played for the U and was drafted by Montreal in the 1970s. His twin brothers play for the Sioux Falls Stampede and have both committed to the Gophers, and his sister played for Ohio State and will now play in Switzerland.

"As time went on, it was like, 'Am I going to get drafted?'" Reilly's father said later.

He did. Sporting a Columbus Blue Jackets jersey over his shirt and tie, Reilly said afterward that he was relieved and excited. He has played hockey since he was 3 and will now play in Vancouver for a year with his brothers.

"For all he's put into the game, this is a day he can sit back and say, 'This is great,'" his father said. "We're happy for him."

Joyous moments like theirs, witnessed on the giant TV screen, drew admiration from such fans as Grillo.

"It's like a convention," Konz said. "This is the future of hockey; they're the guys who will carry the load for the future generations."

Star Tribune LOADED: 06.27.2011

573707 Minnesota Wild

Minnesota Wild turn attention to free agency market, which opens Friday

By Bruce Brothers

[email protected]

Updated: 06/26/2011 11:32:53 PM CDT

There was a telling moment during the NHL draft over the weekend when Wild general manager Chuck Fletcher, explaining his deal that sent Brent Burns to the San Jose Sharks for Devin Setoguchi and a prospect, noted that the Sharks made the move because "they're trying to win the Stanley Cup next year."

Fletcher needed about one millisecond to recognize a little perspective was required.

"Not that we're not," he noted, "but we need assets to compete with these teams."

Although Wild personnel say they had a marvelous draft for "trying to stock the cupboards," in the words of assistant general manager Brent Flahr, they must quickly turn their attention to impending NHL free agency.

The Wild have six players who will become free agents Friday: Andrew Brunette, Antti Miettinen, John Madden, Chuck Kobasew, Jose Theodore and Josh Harding.

Adding Setoguchi up front, along with the expected return of Guillaume Latendresse from surgery that sidelined him nearly all of last season, should give the forward lines a strong core to work with. Already, coach Mike Yeo is considering pairing Setoguchi with Pierre-Marc Bouchard on a line that might be centered by Mikko Koivu.

Add Martin Havlat, Cal Clutterbuck and Matt Cullen into the mix, and it appears the Wild won't be looking for a high-end, high-cost forward beginning Friday.

They'll need a goalie, unless they grab Theodore or Harding. Philadelphia's Brian Boucher is available, too.

The defense, of course,

will miss Burns, although some fans wonder if the Sharks will see the Burns who played his way into an all-star berth in the first half of last season or the one who played into the hands of opposing teams' offensive rushes during the second half.

Fletcher said he's comfortable with the returning group of defensemen and singled out Czech Republic Olympian Marek Zidlicky as the type of puck-carrying offensive threat who could pick up the slack from the missing Burns.

Zidlicky, hampered by shoulder and groin injuries, played just 46 games for Minnesota last season.

Yes, the Wild might look to free agency for defensive strength, Fletcher said, but added, "We have some pretty good defensemen, still."

Fletcher then ticked off nearly every name in the organization except Cam Barker, who was acquired in a deal for former first-round draft pick Nick Leddy, signaling that Fletcher likely is looking to move Barker.

That likely means the Wild will enter the market looking for some help on the blue line.

The Wild mantra throughout the draft was youth, a fact that makes re-signing Brunette, Madden or Miettinen seem unlikely and that signals that adding a veteran defenseman likely would be for only a year or two.

Fletcher expects blue-line help from Houston Aeros regulars Justin Falk, Marco Scandella, Nate Prosser and Tyler Cuma, along with Jared Spurgeon, who was a regular for the Wild for half of last season.

The Wild won't likely be shelling out big bucks for the likes of Vancouver's Sami Salo, Christian Ehrhoff or Kevin Bieksa, but another Canucks free agent is Minneapolis native Andrew Alberts.

Ottawa's David Hale will be a free agent, as will former Wild defenseman Marc-Andre Bergeron of Tampa Bay.

But, in the middle of a youth movement, how much will Fletcher want to spend?

Young players such as Colton Gillies, Casey Wellman, Cody Almond, Carson McMillan, Matt Kassian and a few others seem to have a shot at regular forward roles behind Kyle Brodziak, Eric Nystrom and Brad Staubitz.

Although the NHL salary cap is jumping more than $5 million to $64.3 million this season, it's unlikely Minnesota will dispense the cash for a top veteran.

Draft picks from a year ago such as Mikael Granlund, Brett Bulmer, Johan Larsson and Jason Zucker are considered forward prospects for no earlier than 2012, as is Charlie Coyle, who came to Minnesota in the Burns deal.

Fletcher said the Burns deal would not have been made without Coyle, whom he called "one of the top young power forwards in the game."

However, Fletcher was quick to remind listeners that he prefers to allow young players to develop, and that with Coyle entering his sophomore season at Boston University, that might be the best place for him for another year.

"I'd like everybody to be able to play tomorrow, believe me," Fletcher added, "but I feel very, very good about our path and our direction."

Pioneer Press LOADED: 06.27.2011

573708 Montreal Canadiens

Will anyone take Scott Gomez off Habs' hands?

Veteran centre coming off worst season of career

By Pat Hickey, The Gazette June 26, 2011

MONTREAL - Scott Gomez was in the untradeable category last week.

But a sharp rise in the salary cap had led to speculation that the Montreal Canadiens' underachieving centre could be attractive to a team struggling to reach the new cap floor of $48.3 million.

Canadiens general manager Pierre Gauthier is close-mouthed about any roster changes, although he has said that all options are open and a team's salary cap is fluid and can change quickly.

Florida general manager Dale Tallon told TSN he felt like he was running Team Waste Management, with teams trying to dump players like Gomez on him.

Florida, which is one six teams with a payroll under $48 million last season, did take Brian Campbell's annual $7.14-million cap hit off Chicago's books, but Tallon insisted it wasn't a cap deal and it should be noted that he gave Campbell the current deal, which runs through 2016.

Why would any team want a player who is coming off the worst season his career with seven goals, 31 assists and a minus-15 rating?

The answer lies in the math. Gomez is scheduled to be paid $7.5 million next season with payments of $5.5 million and $4.5 million in the final two years of the contract for a total of $17.5 million. His salary cap hit is $7,357,143 for each of those seasons, which adds up to more than $22 million.

That means a team that is willing to take Gomez off the Canadiens' hands - Colorado and Phoenix are possible destinations - is $4.5 million ahead of the game.

Gomez has a limited no-trade clause. He can designate three teams he will not accept a trade to, which means he's not likely to go to Winnipeg or Edmonton.

If the Canadiens do unload Gomez, it will give the team an extra $7 million in cap space, which should be more than enough to find a replacement although it would have to be from a trade because the free-agency market is thin after Brad Richards.

Gauthier has several decisions to make between now and the start of free agency on July 1. Monday is the deadline for qualifying offers to the team's restricted free agents and it will be interesting to see if Benoit Pouliot is qualified after coach Jacques Martin basically gave up on him in the playoffs.

Josh Gorges will be qualified, but that's a mere formality because he's due a significant raise from the $1.3 million he made last season. The one major issue in the negotiations with Gorges will be length of his contract.

The Canadiens have a number of potential unrestricted free agents on defence. There's room to retain James Wisniewski or Roman Hamrlik, but the team may decide it's set with newcomer Alexei Yemelin.

Martin also has to fill a vacancy on his coaching because Kirk Muller is expected to be named head coach of the AHL Milwaukee Admirals Monday. Martin likes to work with people he knows and that means Hamilton coach Randy Cunneyworth is in the mix but so is former Florida Panthers head coach Peter DeBoer. Martin was the GM in Florida when he hired DeBoer.

The Canadiens went heavy on defencemen in the National Hockey League entry draft, which ended Saturday in St. Paul. Five of the Canadiens' seven picks are defencemen with first-rounder Nathan Beaulieu heading the list. The 17th overall pick helped the Saint John Sea Dogs win the Memorial Cup.

Here's a capsule look at the other picks:

Josiah Didier (fourth round, 97th overall) is a 6-foot-2, 199-pound defenceman from Cedar Rapids of the United States Hockey League. The Littletton, Colo., native is headed to Denver University.

Olivier Archambault (fourth round, 108th overall) is another small winger at 5-foot-10 and 176 pounds. He was the first overall pick in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League and is regarded for his skills. He says he needs to work on his defensive play if he hopes to make it in the NHL.

Magnus Nygren (fourth round, 113th overall) is a 21-year-old from Farjestad in the Swedish League. The 6-foot-1, 190-pounder will probably spend another season or two in Sweden, but the Canadiens' scouts feel he'll make a quick adjustment to the North American game.

Darren Dietz (fifth round, 138th overall) is a 6-foot-1, 191-pound defenceman from the Saskatoon Blades of the Western Hockey League. He impressed the Canadiens by grabbing a spot on the team's first power-play unit in his first season of major junior.

Daniel Pribyl (sixth round, 168th overall) is, surprise, a big centre at 6-foot-3 and 189 pounds. He had 27 goals and 31 assists in 41 games in the Czech Junior League and there's a chance he'll get a jump on adjusting to North America by playing in Shawinigan next season.

Colin Sullivan (seventh round, 198th overall) is a 6-foot, 190-pounder defenceman from Avon Old Farms prep school in Connecticut. He's a long-range prospect who won't start his college career at Yale until 2012.

Montreal Gazette LOADED: 06.27.2011

573709 New York Rangers

Rangers' Drury may take buyout

By LARRY BROOKS

Last Updated: 9:56 AM, June 26, 2011

Posted: 12:17 AM, June 26, 2011

ST. PAUL, Minn. -- The twists and turns over the couple of weeks since general manager Glen Sather first notified Chris Drury that the Rangers were preparing to buy out the final season of the captain's contract apparently are yet over, The Post has learned.

For after Drury suggested a week ago that he was going to apply for a designation of being medically unable to play next season because of a degenerative condition in his left knee, the captain is now leaning toward accepting a buyout, according to individuals familiar with the situation.

The deadline for buyouts is Thursday, but procedure dictates a player must be placed on, and go through, unconditional waivers after official notification of the intent to buy out. The Rangers would have to place Drury on waivers no later than Tuesday in order to comply with procedures.

2011-12 SCHEDULE

If Drury does indeed accept the buyout rather than file for the medical exception, the Rangers would carry approximately $3.717 million of dead cap space on his deal through the summer and next season, a saving of approximately $3.333 million.

The club also would face a charge of approximately $1.667 million for 2012-13, pending a new CBA that could erase that obligation.

Sather would not directly address the Drury situation yesterday following the draft, though the GM did reveal the team did not extend a qualifying offer to defenseman Matt Gilroy, who will thus become an unrestricted free agent Friday after rejecting an alternate offer from the Rangers.

"I'm not going to tell you anything about [a buyout] until the time comes," Sather said. "I haven't talked to Chris recently; I assume he's feeling fine."

Sather said that the club did extend qualifying offers to right wing Ryan Callahan, centers Brandon Dubinsky, Brian Boyle, Artem Anisimov and defenseman Michael Sauer, the five restricted free agents other than Gilroy on last year's roster.

It is unlikely any will come to an agreement before the market opens as the Blueshirts will retain as much maneuverability as possible under the $70.73 million summer cap to sign unrestricted free agents.

Gilroy, who would have been owed a qualifier of $2.1 million, opted to take a shot at the open market after a pair of disappointing seasons in New York after signing a free agent contract out of Boston University.

"I like him; I think he played well in the playoffs but I think the deal for [defenseman Tim] Erixon left him skeptical where he sees himself on the team," Sather said. "But it doesn't matter who is on the roster, you have to make the team."

Evgeny Grachev, once regarded as a top prospect, will not be in position to make the team, traded to St. Louis yesterday for the 72nd overall pick in the draft the club used on Edina (Minn.) High School center Steven Fogarty.

"He felt he wasn't a fit in our system [and asked for a trade]," Sather said of the 21-year-old winger who struggled badly through eight scoreless games with the Rangers last year. "I'd been shopping him around for a year now, and the only team that was interested was St. Louis.

"He may still turn out with a fresh start."

*

Assistant GM Cam Hope is leaving the organization, The Post has learned . . . Sather revealed the Rangers will open the next three seasons in Europe . . . The Blueshirts drafted Edmonton center Michael St. Croix 106th overall,

Kelowna right wing Shane McColgan 134th, Baie-Comeau defenseman Samuel Noreau 136th and Slovakian defenseman Peter Ceresnak 172nd.

New York Post LOADED: 06.27.2011

573710 NHL

Ottawa Senators draft Spencerport's Shane Prince

Kevin Oklobzija

When the Ottawa Senators called out Shane Prince's name from the floor of the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minn., he never even heard it.

The Prince entourage was making too much noise.

The moment his family and friends heard "With the 61st pick, from the Ottawa 67's," the boisterous cheering began in Section 102.

"They could have called someone else's name and I wouldn't have even known," Prince said.

Exit anxiety, enter elation.

Prince, a lifelong Spencerport resident, was chosen by the Senators with the final pick of the second round in Saturday's NHL draft. He was the 60th player taken.

Having set his sights years ago on playing professional hockey, Prince on Saturday joined the Senators organization.

"I don't think I could be happier than I am right now," the 18-year-old left winger said.

Prince is a speedy forward who has dynamic playmaking ability. He isn't big by NHL standards (5-10 to 5-11, 185 pounds) but has excelled at every level.

This past season, with the 67's in the Ontario Hockey League, he scored 25 goals, 63 assists and 88 points in 59 games.

"Shane is a highly skilled forward that was a key component in the Ottawa 67's success this season," Senators' director of player personnel Pierre Dorion said. "He is playmaker with high offensive upside"

Prince won't even leave town to turn pro. He will play for the 67's again this season and could be ready to turn pro for the 2012-13 season. The Binghamton Senators are Ottawa's American Hockey League affiliate.

"I'm really excited to be going to Ottawa," Prince said.

The color certainly works. Red and black are about all he's ever worn.

"He's always done well in black and red — the Syracuse Stars (from PeeWee through midget) to the Ottawa 67's and now to the Senators," his father, Dan, said. "We hope the black-and-red trend continues."

When Prince arrived on stage, the Senators presented a sweater with his name on the back.

"That Ottawa had a jersey with Shane's name on it was cool. At least they had him targeted," Dan Prince said.

There were anxious moments as the day began, though.

Prince was projected to go in the upper third to upper half of the second round.

But as teams called out their selections and the round neared the end, he was still sitting in the stands.

"We had heard Boston (at No. 40) was a team of interest and my heart was racing when they got there," Prince said. "You just have to sit back and take a deep breath. Everything happens for a reason."

Considering Ottawa is his junior city, the Senators are a perfect fit.

"It's the best city I've ever been in," he said.


573711 NHL

Spencerport’s Prince drafted on 2nd round by Ottawa

Posted by Kevin Oklobzija

Shane Prince of Spencerport was selected about 2 minutes ago by the Ottawa Senators with the final pick of the second round of the NHL draft (61st overall).

The Senators certainly should have been well aware of Prince’s talents since he played junior hockey for the Ontario Hockey League’s Ottawa 67’s.

We’ll have reaction from Prince in a bit, after he is welcomed into the Senators’ family by team personnel.

The west-side Rochester hockey tradition continues. A trio of Greece natives started the parade: Jason Bonsignore (4th overall, 1994, by Edmonton), Brian Gionta (81st overall, 3rd round, in 1998 by New Jersey), and Ryan Callahan (127th overall, 4th round, in 2004 by the New York Rangers).

Prince scored 25 goals, 63 assists and 88 points in 59 games this past season for the 67’s. He was projected by many to go a little higher. NHL Central Scouting ranked him 26th among North America forwards and The Hockey News rated him 52nd overall.

Prince, 18, was targeted by Princeton University when he was only 15, but decided the OHL was the best route to the NHL. He had dreamed of playing in the NHL since he was a youngster.

Prince gives a lot of credit for his development to Scott Montagna, his coach in the Syracuse Stars program, and to the folks at Maksymum Hockey at the Sports Centre at MCC.

His drive to be better — or the best — is a big reason for his success. “He is always measuring himself against someone who everyone else thinks is better,” Montagna says. “I think he’s just scratching the surface of what he’s going to do.”

As the day goes along (there are seven rounds), there is some chance that Cole Bardreau of Fairport could be selected.

He played for the U.S. National Team Development Program the past two years and was a member of Team USA’s gold-medal winning team at the IIHF’s Under-18 world tournament. Bardreau is headed to Cornell University.


573712 NHL

Report: NHL considering 'dramatic' realignment for 2012-13

By KIRKLAND CRAWFORD

The NHL is welcoming back the Winnipeg Jets. But that leaves an interesting problem.

This upcoming season, the Jets will play in the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference, the same spot the Atlanta Thrashers, which moved to Manitoba, played in.

According to the Sporting News' Craig Custance, major realignment is on the horizon for the 2012-13 season.

“There will be. I can guarantee you. It will be more dramatic,” an NHL executive told Sporting News on Saturday. “It will be realignment of the whole league. It will be a different format. I think it’ll please a lot of people.”

This could be great news for the Red Wings and their fans, who have to endure several West coast road trips and, often times during the playoffs, midweek game that begin at 10 p.m. local time.

But just sliding Detroit, Columbus or Nashville into the East isn't as easy as one would think. So it sounds as if the NHL is will to shake everything up.

“The fact remains that there are three teams that should be in the East that are in the West,” the executive said. “The only way you can make everybody happy is by restructuring the whole thing. That’s what they’re working on.”

Perhaps the only people not happy about this around these parts: coffee shop owners.

Detroit Free Press LOADED: 06.27.2011

573713 NHL

Big salaries no longer scaring NHL teams

High-priced players being traded freely

By: Chris Johnston

ST. PAUL, Minn. -- Change is clearly afoot in the NHL.

It was only a year ago that the salary cap appeared to have killed the trade market. Impact players were available during the off-season, but there simply weren't any teams willing or able to take on the contracts.

That ceased being the case during an interesting few days at the NHL draft.

With the 2011-12 salary cap getting bumped by another US$5 million -- bringing the floor up along with it -- the trade market came alive and saw players once thought to be unmovable getting shipped around. It could also have an affect on how free agency plays out this week.

"It's an unusual landscape right now," Phoenix Coyotes GM Don Maloney said Saturday at Xcel Energy Center. "Quite frankly, I'm not sure what's going to happen July 1. It might just go berserk and the people who have money just blow their brains out."

The spenders this off-season aren't only limited to the teams traditionally right at the top of the cap.

Florida still needs to add in the neighbourhood of $25 million to reach the $48.3-million salary floor -- even after acquiring Brian Campbell and his $7.142-million annual salary from Chicago. Panthers GM Dale Tallon signed the defenceman to that massive contract while working for the Blackhawks and believes the addition will make his team better.

Interestingly, he doesn't think that will be the case for all the moves he'll have to make this summer.

"The floor is going to get in the way of us trying to become a good team," said Tallon. "The focus is not the floor, the focus is to become a really good team as quickly as possible without jeopardizing our future. The floor is going to accidentally get in the way.

"That's the way I'm looking at it -- I'm not doing this (Campbell trade) to get to the floor, I'm doing this to become a good team. Period."

There are 18 teams currently sitting below the cap floor, according to capgeek.com, although a number of them will move above it once they sign the restricted free agents on their roster.

Even still, there is clearly the need for some to take on payroll. Campbell's deal still has five years remaining on it and would have been virtually untradeable prior to now. With the market shifting, could the likes of Wade Redden, Jeff Finger or Sheldon Souray find NHL homes after being buried in the minors?

It's not unthinkable.

After a couple seasons where trades seemed near impossible to make because of salary cap constraints, teams seem to be finding more common ground. Enough are looking to gain flexibility by unloading big-ticket assets (Calgary, Chicago) while others are more than willing to take on the talent.

That's the case even when the talent comes with serious commitment, as evidenced by the Kings acquisition of Mike Richards (owed $51.6 million over nine years) and the Blue Jackets acquisition of Jeff Carter (owed $58 million over 11 years).

Both came from Philadelphia -- where GM Paul Holmgren is trying to shake up his team -- and figured to be Flyers for life with no-trade clauses set to kick in next summer. Clearly, pricey long-term deals aren't as scary as they once were.

"Other teams know what they're getting," said Pittsburgh Penguins player development coach Bill Guerin. "They know what they're getting not in just the player, but they're signed. They're not going to have to deal with a UFA, it's right there in front of him.

"L.A. knows that Mike Richards has nine years left on this (deal) -- they want him and they're happy to pay him that."

Even a no-trade clause doesn't stand as a barrier to a move. Two of the players dealt in recent days had to sign off on a trade that they didn't necessarily want to be part of.

In Robyn Regehr's case, he originally declined a move from Calgary to Buffalo before reconsidering. He spoke with Sabres owner Terry Pegula and was convinced to waive his no-trade. Pegula even went so far as to personally visit Regehr in Prince Albert, Sask.

The Flames were so desperate to gain flexibility that they were willing to part with a player who appeared in 827 games for them.

"It's the toughest thing that you do," Calgary GM Jay Feaster said of asking Regehr to waive his no-trade clause. "I went through it in Tampa with Brad Richards and I mean there was a guy that won a Stanley Cup for us."

Winnipeg Free Press LOADED: 06.27.2011

573714 Ottawa Senators

Senators should target Konopka

By TIM BAINES, QMI Agency

OTTAWA - Before Bryan Murray decides to go on a Canada Day spending spree, he'd better pull out a shortlist of recent Senators free-agent signings and wash down a couple of Tylenols with water.

Alex Kovalev. Sergei Gonchar.

Ouch! Painful to Eugene Melnyk's wallet. And painful to Senators' fans, who may have to take the patient approach rather than putting a Band-aid on a team that likely needs a couple of years to recharge and rebuild.

There certainly doesn't appear to be a quick free-agent fix. Mediocrity will be made into millionaires as some NHL owners seek a missing piece of the puzzle and others look to get to the $48-million salary-cap basement level come July 1.

The Senators have $20 million or so to spare under the $64-million cap, but Melnyk won't be looking to give a big chunk of that out to a guy like Brad Richards, who some team will give $50-55 million or so for seven or eight years.

Nor are the Senators likely to crack the piggybank for a stud defenceman like Kevin Bieksa or a proven veteran goalie like Dwayne Roloson.

While the Senators need scoring support everywhere, there is a guy available, a former Ottawa 67's star, who would provide a big boost. Zenon Konopka. The guy can fight. He can hit. He can win faceoffs. He's a leader. He's a good guy on and off the ice.

He'd be a third- or fourth-line centre here. It seems like a no-brainer, assuming the price is right.

Long-ago Senator Brooks Laich (dealt away for Peter Bondra) would be a good fit. But if he's fetching four or five years at $3.5 million per season, it's too pricey.

Does Ottawa take a chance on injury-prone Tim Connolly? Or maybe a once-good Simon Gagne? Or inconsistent Michael Ryder? Maybe Ville Leino or Tomas Kopecky?

I love the deal for Nikita Filatov, one of those unfulfilled potential guys, who could fit into a top-six forward spot. Don't expect much from the Senators on July 1. Just sit back and watch other NHL teams get stupid. It's good entertainment anyway.

Ottawa Sun LOADED: 06.27.2011

573715 Philadelphia Flyers

Flyers stuck to plan of choosing best available player in draft

By FRANK SERAVALLI

ST. PAUL, Minn. - Thinking of an aging Chris Pronger and Kimmo Timonen, Paul Holmgren went into the draft with one position in mind - to start to restock the Flyers' depth on defense.

Instead, the Flyers left the Xcel Energy Center with six gleaming new prospects . . . Five of them were forwards.

It's hard to argue with Holmgren's tried-and-true draft theory, which had singlehandedly built the Flyers' farm system into one of the league's best under Bob Clarke. Simply put, the Flyers seemed to find players higher on their list who weren't snapped up by other teams.

"It's the way the cards fell," Holmgren said on Saturday, recapping the Flyers' draft. "You don't draft by need. Not very often can you go out of order, at least that's how I see it.

"Would we like to have drafted more defensemen? Yes, I guess we probably would have. But I don't know that it's a big deal. You can't go out of order. We don't veer from our list very often, if ever. That's just the way we've always acted."

By all accounts, that's what happened with their No. 8 overall pick on Friday night when they selected center Sean Couturier just 24 hours after trading away Jeff Carter and Mike Richards because of an overload at the position.

The Flyers never thought Couturier - who was at one point ranked the No. 1 overall prospect by scouts and many assumed would at least go in the top five - would still be on the board.

"We got a big center in the first round that we all really liked," Holmgren said. "The guys we drafted from the third through the seventh round, we got bigger. I think we've added skill and competitiveness."

The same theory applied for fourth-round pick Marcel Noebels from Germany. He finished ranked 49th among skaters in the final rankings but fell to the Flyers at No. 118 overall.

Other picks, like Czech forward Petr Placek - out of the Hotchkiss School in Connecticut - are more of a projection. Placek, 18, is set to attend Harvard this fall and the Flyers will have all 4 years to watch him develop. The pick spent on Placek may or may not play out in the team's favor but they will have more time to watch him than almost any other player they have picked because his draft status, unlike junior players, doesn't expire because of the NCAA.

It's one of the reasons that Holmgren says the draft is as big a "crap shoot" as there is in sports. Teams spend the entire season guessing what one particular player may look like 3 or 4 years down the road.

After all, Holmgren himself was a sixth-round pick. Timonen was drafted in the 10th round.

"We're talking about 17- and 18-year-old kids that aren't fully developed and something in their game needs to be improved," Holmgren said. "Whether it's their skating or their physical structure, you know they are going to get older and you believe they are going to get stronger, something needs to improve."

Holmgren said before the draft that the Flyers would draft the best player available regardless of position. It looks like they stuck to it. While they don't have an NHL-ready defenseman waiting in the wings, it's not as if there is a forward in AHL Adirondack waiting to knock the door down, either.

"We probably need to strengthen all areas," Holmgren said. "If you look at our reserve list, we could probably add something in every category."

They may have struck gold with Couturier at No. 8. It's hard to believe that Jeff Skinner, who collected 62 points and the Calder Trophy as rookie of the year for Carolina last season, was the No. 7 pick last summer. And with the Flyers' holes up front now, it's not out of the question that Couturier could make things interesting in training camp in September.

"I don't think anyone would have said Jeff Skinner was ready to play in the NHL," Holmgren said. "They put him in and he makes their team and has a tremendous year. You just never know."

Now, even after one of the busiest weeks in team history, Holmgren won't even get a chance to exhale this week. The Flyers' pro scouting department will gather tomorrw and Wednesday to come up with a game plan for free agency.

Holmgren will resume negotiations with unrestricted free agent Ville Leino and shift priority to restricted free agents Dan Carcillo, Darroll Powe and Andreas Nodl.

"Just because of the draft, and everything that went on this week, we haven't really had time to sit down as a staff and talk about that stuff," Holmgren said. "We'll spend some time talking about what we need and we'll get the coaching staff involved, too. It's a big week."

Local watch

John Gaudreau, from Salem, N.J., and a product of Team Comcast, was picked by Calgary in the fourth round. Gaudreau, just 5-6 and 137 pounds, led the USHL in scoring last season for Dubuque, Iowa. He played 3 years of high school hockey at Gloucester Catholic . . . Troy Vance from Colmar, Pa., in Montgomery County was selected by Dallas in the fifth round.

Philadelphia Inquirer / Daily News LOADED: 06.27.2011


FLYERS' DRAFT PICKS CAPSULES

NICK COUSINS

Round: 3 (68th overall)

Flyers' 2011 draft picks

Meet the new Flyers

2010-2011 Flyers fights

Position: Center

Age: 17 (July 20, 1993)

Height: 5-11

Weight: 170 pounds

Hometown: Belleville, Ontario, Canada

The scoop: Cousins is a smallish but scrappy forward who really developed into a solid scorer in the OHL with Sault Ste. Marie last season, jumping from 32 points in 2009-10 to 68 last season in the same amount of games.

Outlook: Not even 18 years old yet, Cousins will spend at least another year or 2 in the OHL. He could turn out to be a Mark Recchi-type player.

The kid says: "I'm thrilled to be part of the Flyers organization," Cousins said. "I think I bring a lot of grit to my game as well, which suits their game. But I think I have some skill, too. I think I have a playmaking ability and an offensive upside that not many people may have. I think it's a good fit. I just can't wait to get started."

The GM says: "Energy player, good skills, speed. Highly competitive kid," GM Paul Holmgren said. "One of those guys that gets under the other team's skin, too. I don't know if he's as skilled as Steve Downie, maybe Dan Carcillo, but he's an agitating kind of guy."

COLIN SUELLENTROP


Position: Defense

Age: 18 (June 10, 1993)

Height: 6-1

Weight: 190 pounds

Hometown: Plantation, Fla.

The scoop: Suellentrop is a classic stay-at-home defenseman. His numbers - 14 points last year with the Oshawa Generals (OHL) - may not jump off the page but they don't tell the whole story.

Outlook: Suellentrop has some work to do but could turn out to be a solid defenseman in the mold of New Jersey's Colin White.

The scouts say: "While Suellentrop certainly profiles as a physical, shut-down type, he will need to become a bit meaner and use his size in front of the net. He also will need to improve his positional defense, as at times he can get caught flat-footed by forwards attacking off the rush. But on the plus side, his offensive game started to make strides later in the year and he even began to use that mobility by skating the puck out of his own zone, instead of making simple chip plays. He'll likely have to play on Oshawa's top pairing next year [because of graduations] so that makes him a likely breakout candidate given the improvements he made this year."- From the OHL Prospect Blog, which ranked him 50th among Top 50 OHL Prospects.

The GM says: "He's a stay-at-home defenseman. He's aggressive, not fighting tough, but aggressive tough," Holmgren said. "He's OK with the puck. A good skater. Big body. And a right shot, which we haven't had for a while."

MARCEL NOEBELS


Position: Forward

Age: 19 (March 14,1 992)

Height: 6-2

Weight: 205 pounds

Hometown: Toenisvorst, Germany

The scoop: One of the best import players in Seattle Thunderbirds (WHL) history. Racked up 54 points in 66 games. Finished ranked as 49th best European skater in the Central Scouting rankings. Noebels was the second German picked in the draft, just four pucks behind countryman Tobias Rieder.

Outlook: Noebels isn't a very flashy player but he is a power forward in the making.

The kid says: "I actually had the most contact with the Flyers. I was thinking I might get picked by Philadelphia. We had a good talk at the Combine," Noebels said. "I think I learned a lot [in the WHL], I think it was the right decision to come over here [to North America], it was to get drafted higher. I think I had a good year. It was hard. I missed my family and my friends sometimes, but I went this way to play in the NHL. I'd say I'm a power forward who goes to the net hard, plays hard every game. I think that's what the Flyers are looking for."

The GM says: "Very big kid. Good hands. Played for the Germany World Junior team," Holmgren said. "He actually had a pretty good year in Seattle, numbers-wise. I think he's still filling out and growing into his body. I think his foot speed needs to pick up a little bit. But he wants to play in the NHL. He's a nice kid, with lots of life. I know he's been telling a lot of people he wants to be a Flyer, so that's good."

PETR PLACEK


Position: Forward

Age: 19 (Dec. 28, 1992)

Height: 6-4

Weight: 200

Hometown: Rakovnik, Czech Republic

The scoop: Placek, a natvive of the Czech Republic, is a bit of a sleeper out of the Hotchkiss School in Connecticut. He is a big winger who chipped in with 16 goals in 24 games for Hotchkiss in an elite prep school league. Placek is not known for his speed but is raved about for his hockey smarts and big-game presence.

Outlook: Placek will enroll at Harvard this fall to play for Ted Donato.

The GM says: "[The pick] is more of a projection on him. He's another big kid with skill and good hands. He's a decent skater right now. Who knows. When you have a guy that's going to college, you basically get all of those years to watch him. Harvard's a pretty good program."

DEREK MATHERS



Age: 18 (Aug. 4, 1993)

Height: 6-3

Weight: 230 pounds

Hometown: Strathroy, Ontario, Canada

The scoop: Mathers posted just five points in 55 games last season for Peterborough (OHL), but he has an edge in his game by racking up 171 penalty minutes. He was one of the premier heavyweights in the OHL last season, dropping the mitts 27 different times.

Outlook: An enforcer type player who could make a living in the NHL on a fourth line.

Philadelphia Inquirer / Daily News LOADED: 06.27.2011


Placek latest in Flyers’ 6th-round magic

By Jay Greenberg

CSNPhilly.com Contributor

In November, Petr Placek was the 54th-ranked prospect by NHL Central Scouting for the 2011 draft. Then, he needed knee surgery, came back too soon, suffered a high ankle sprain, played only eight games all season and was thrilled to go 176th on Saturday.

“I got picked by Philadelphia and am very happy about it,” Placek said. “I had friends there, saw a Flyers game there a year ago, loved the city, loved the cheesesteaks. Big difference in the ones there than at school.

“In the end, it doesn’t really matter that much, the difference between a second-round pick and a sixth-round pick. If you got drafted at all, that means you should have the skills and now it’s what I do with the opportunity.”

Four years ago, Damon White, the coach at The Hotchkiss School in Lakeville, Conn. received an email out of the blue and out of Rakovnik, Czech Republic from a 15-year old son of (shoe) shopkeepers. The kid had determined largely out of his own research that Hotchkiss had the best combination of academics and athletics. So could he come to study and play hockey there please?

“He was 6-3, about 185 pounds then and had good SATs,” White said. “We took him.”

Now Placek is on his way to Harvard, and eventually, White is convinced, to the Flyers.

“A power forward with a great shot, good speed, has grown to 6-4, 210 and has learned to play a physical game,” White said. “Needs to work on his flexibility and get bigger and stronger and learn to play defense, which he will at Harvard.

“He’s very bright, incredibly motivated. The Flyers got an absolute gem in the sixth round,”

Placek wouldn’t be the first. In fact, to the Rangers, Penguins, and all Flyer haters everywhere who suffered Paul Holmgren, Rick Tocchet and Ron Hextall, No. 6 has proved satanic.

Nevermind how lucky they were. The Flyers drafted Jerome Carrier fifth ahead of Tocchet, Gary Morrison fifth ahead of Holmgren, and Todd Bergen fifth before Hextall. In the sixth round they chose three future All-Stars, who became among the most beloved players in franchise history.

Holmgren lasted that long in 1975 because he was already playing for his hometown team in the WHA, the Minnesota Fighting Saints, who folded, freeing him up for the Flyers to sign. Tocchet (1983) had a perceived skating liability and Hextall (1982) was just plain nuts, as anxious to go upside shooters heads with his blocker as use it to stop the puck.

The late, great Jerry Melnyk, the scout whose draft table apoplexy saved the Flyers from passing over a diabetic named Bobby Clarke for a second time in the 1969, loved guys who hated to lose. In two different eras, Holmgren, then Tocchet and Hextall became trademark Flyers on teams that reached Stanley Cup finals.

And they haven’t been the total of the franchise’s sixth-round successes either. Don Saleski, taken sixth on the next pick after Dave Schultz in the watershed Clarke draft, was overrated as a Bully, but developed into a very reliable three time, 20-plus goal scorer on a good third line with Orest Kindrachuk and Schultz on the Cup teams.

Antero Niittymaki (1998) has played 234 NHL games; Dmitri Yushkevich (1991) was a regular on the defense of the emergent 1994-95 semifinalists that brought the franchise out of its only sustained dark era. Dennis Seidenberg (2001) traded to Phoenix for … yeeeech, an over-the-hill Petr Nedved, wound up a first-pair defenseman on the Stanley Cup champion Bruins.

Mark Taylor (1978) had a cup of coffee and was bait to re-unite the Sutter twins in a trade with Pittsburgh. Vyacheslav Butsayev (1990) may never have fulfilled Russ Farwell’s ambitions for the big Russian center while the Flyers were missing the playoffs but nevertheless played 132 NHL games.

When the draft lasted 10 rounds instead of the current seven, the franchise had a history of going even deeper. For a ninth-round pick, Gord Murphy (1985), played an astounding 16 years in the league, Pelle Eklund, who was a No. 8, in 1983, lasted an amazing 11.

Norm Barnes (No. 8, 1993) was a mainstay on the defense of the 35-game unbeaten streak team of 1979-80. Andy Brickley, (No. 10, 1980, the very last player taken in that draft), played 10 years. Todd Fedoruk, (No. 7, 1997) appeared in 545 NHL games, Tommy Soderstrom (No. 11, 1990) played 156 and Bruno St. Jacques (No. 9, 1998,) had enough caffeine in a cup of coffee with the Flyers to help bring back Sami Kapanen, one of the heroes of the 2004 semifinal run, in a trade.

Since St. Jacques, the diamonds from the coal mine have seemed exhausted. But that hasn’t been a reflection of poorer picking. Since Holmgren took over as Director of Player Personnel and draft overseer in 1997 there have been no totally blown No. 1 picks like Ryan Sittler, Mark Suzor and Darren Rumble – but more a manifestation of a 30-team league. Holmgren was the 108th player taken in 1975, yesterday Placek was the 176th, cutting down the odds of, particularly in an era where Central Scouting makes virtually certain there are no deep, dark draft secrets.

So everybody knew the name Petr Placek. That said, while you can impress the obviously not-easily-impressionable Harvard admissions office in a shirt and khakis, Placek couldn’t excite NHL scouts when he was off skates virtually an entire senior season.

“That’s OK, you learn to appreciate the little things,” he said. “I love to play hockey, but I need academics if it doesn’t work out.

“When l left Rakovnik for Kladno (at 15) I had to miss 200 classes that year travelling for hockey. So when my Dad read an article that were such things in the U.S. as boarding prep schools it seemed like a no-brainer.”

There are very few in any draft, but in this one, the Flyers got a sleeper who his coach at least can guarantee will never fall asleep in class.

“I contend when hockey is done Petr will be Prime Minister of the Czech Republic,” White said.

Hey, did we tell you the Flyers can pick ‘em in the late rounds?

Comcast SportsNet.com LOADED: 06.27.2011

573718 Pittsburgh Penguins

Planning Pens' power surge

By Dejan Kovacevic, PITTSBURGH TRIBUNE-REVIEW

ST. PAUL, Minn. — The Penguins' many issues this summer include pending free agents, possible trades and now the pursuit of Jaromir Jagr. But most pressing, in my view, will be fixing the embarrassing power play.

So, let me be the first to applaud Dan Bylsma for having begun that process.

The head coach told me at the NHL Entry Draft over the weekend that he and his assistants met recently on that matter, and they not only are revamping their approach but also aim to have so many strategies that they can change game to game, even shift to shift.

"We need to have different sets," Bylsma said. "We're not effective when we become stationary and predictable, and that's a fault of ours. We're going to have four forwards out there a lot. We're going to have a point guy in the middle at times. We'll have different things for teams to worry about."

That's welcome, but what took so long?

The power-play strategy last season appeared complacent bordering on nonexistent, never more than in the playoff loss to Tampa Bay: The Penguins maddeningly dispatched the same players in the same spots to produce the same results in going 1 for 35 with the man-advantage.

Sure, Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin were missing. But that didn't excuse, for example, using three left-handed forwards and all but advertising that no back-door play was coming. That allowed the Lightning penalty-killers to load up to one side and routinely steal the puck.

The Penguins' power play for the season succeeded just 15.8 percent of the time, 25th in the 30-team NHL. Bylsma was fair to point out that it was a respectable 20.5 percent before Crosby and Malkin were hurt, but he correctly added, "Even then, we didn't have a great look."

As Bylsma indicated, there soon will be many looks. There also could be roster changes, not the least of which would be adding Jagr as power-play quarterback.

For fun, though, let's make a power-play formation using the current roster as well as Bylsma's new plan for four forwards and a lot of movement. Let's also go with an umbrella formation -- one defenseman at center point, which Bylsma acknowledged will be an option.

The key to the umbrella is a gifted, mobile defenseman capable of covering up mistakes, and few players anywhere meet those criteria better than Kris Letang. Besides, being at center point could help cut down on Letang's many misfires. That's a win-win.

To his right is Malkin, owner of one of the game's most powerful one-timers. Malkin also can use this position to carry the puck into the slot if there's an opening, a wild card most power plays don't have.

Also on the right but down by the goal line is Crosby. He always has been most effective there, making passes, collecting loose pucks behind the net, stuffing in surprise shots and, as of last season, deflecting point shots like a wizard. Beyond all that, it never hurts to have the best player close to the net.

Finding players for the left side is not nearly as easy.

My tentative choice for the flank to Letang's left is Tyler Kennedy. He is a rare right-handed shot among the forwards, he loves shooting from the left circle and he can adjust and crash the net as needed. I have concerns about his ability to make passes and maintain possession, but Bylsma feels Kennedy has improved in those areas over the past year.

My guy in front of the net is Chris Kunitz. Yeah, all 6-foot, 193 pounds of him. He's no John LeClair, but he is the only remaining forward with proven ability to score from tight range. He also fits Bylsma's wish for movement because of his puck retrieval and, of course, he has a knack for finding Crosby.

My second choice for the front of the net, which will surprise some, is Mike Rupp. Jordan Staal lacks the hands, James Neal clearly prefers the perimeter and Eric Tangradi isn't ready.

Of course, I'd scrap all this in a Manitoba minute if Jagr could be added to the power play. And it sounds like Bylsma would embrace that, too.

"You do have to consider how good it could be with him," Bylsma said, "in addition to all the great players we already have."

Good luck to the Lightning -- or anyone else -- defending a power play with three NHL scoring champions up front.

Tribune Review LOADED: 06.27.2011

573719 Pittsburgh Penguins

All quiet on the Penguins' front

By Josh Yohe, PITTSBURGH TRIBUNE-REVIEW

ST. PAUL, Minn. -- Like any general manager, Ray Shero isn't big on divulging his intentions. Even if he knows something that isn't common knowledge, he isn't likely to share his secrets -- especially with free agency set to open this week.

Still, there was a sense of utter honesty when he was asked on three occasions during NHL Entry Draft weekend about the Penguins' free agency situation. Each time, he gave the identical answer: "There is nothing to report."

That could be a problem. With unrestricted free agents free to sign anywhere beginning Friday, the Penguins are running out of time to retain some valuable role players. The problem is, some of them are playing hardball.

"This is obviously going to go into the week," Shero said. "We were more worried about the draft during the weekend."

Right wing Craig Adams is the only unrestricted free agent to have re-signed with the Penguins. As for everyone else ...

"There isn't much going on," said Shero, shrugging.

Center Max Talbot wants a five-year deal from the Penguins, which isn't likely to happen. Left wing Mike Rupp and right wing Pascal Dupuis want significant raises, but the Penguins might only be willing to offer minor increases. Negotiations don't appear close to a resolution for any of these players, though the Penguins do seem more likely to sign Rupp and Dupuis than Talbot, who last week turned down a three-year offer.

Agent Allan Walsh, who represents Rupp and Dupuis, was unable to shed any light when reached last week.

"It is not appropriate for me to comment on the status of negotiations at this time," he said.

Perhaps the biggest names for the Penguins this free-agent season are right wings Jaromir Jagr and Tyler Kennedy. Jagr's status remains unresolved -- Shero likely will speak today with his agent, former NHLer Petr Svoboda -- but the Penguins sound intent on retaining Kennedy, a restricted free agent.

Coach Dan Bylsma showered Kennedy with praise over the weekend, suggesting the right wing has evolved into a top-six forward. Kennedy scored a career-high 21 goals last season.

"I think we saw more of that (top-six ability) last season, especially after (Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin) were out," Bylsma said. "He started showing more of that type of game and more of what you want to see on the power play, too."

The Penguins are somewhere between $8 million and $9 million under the salary cap, receiving extra flexibility when the ceiling soared to $64.3 million last week. They must give Kennedy a qualifying offer by today, which requires the team to offer at least 105 percent of last season's salary -- Kennedy earned $725,000 -- to retain negotiating rights.

Kennedy is believed to be seeking at least $2 million per season.

"Talks are ongoing," said Steve Bartlett, Kennedy's agent. "We will continue to try and find a solution, but there are still some issues to resolve."

Tribune Review LOADED: 06.27.2011

573720 St Louis Blues

Hockey Guy: Blues place upside bets in second round

By JEFF GORDON | Posted: Sunday, June 26, 2011 8:29 am

The Blues didn’t do anything of the ordinary with their first three draft picks Saturday.

They drafted a highly skilled forward lacking size, a European forward who might (or might not) be worth importing in a few years and a tall Western Hockey League defenseman who needs to fill out his frame and polish his game.

ESPN.com expert Gare Joyce gave the Blues an overall C+ grade. He wrote:

“No firsts and three seconds, all with question marks attached. Portland winger Ty Rattie at No. 32: Skilled but too small? Dmitri Jaskin at No. 41: Skilled but inconsistent? Moose Jaw defenseman Joel Edmundson No. 46: Big but too raw? If the Blues cash in with one they'll have done well and if it's two then the mark jumps a full grade.”

The analysis from Sonier's Prime Picks seemed more encouraging:

“Surprising to many that Rattie slides to the second round. This small, skilled forward has a history of scoring and playing with solid intensity. He's a contagious player, as he brings energy shift in and shift out. Jaskin, a Russian-born Czech has loads of talent and offensive upside with sweet hands and a very good shot. When his skating improves he may surprise many. Ryan Tesink slides all the way to the sixth round and is a good value pick. This kid has no quit in his game and is still growing, which will help over come his small stature."

ERIC BREWER CASHES IN

Blues fans celebrated when Eric Brewer departed for Tampa Bay in a late-season trade. So they have been surprised by the size of Brewer’s new deal with the Lightning: Nearly $16 million over four years.

“We are very pleased to get Eric re-signed today,” GM Steve Yzerman said in a statement. “He was an important part of our team after being acquired at last year's deadline and he played a key role in the playoffs both on and off the ice.”

Consider that a extremely soft landing for Brewer.

RECRUITING BRIAN CAMPBELL

Panthers GM Dale Tallon convinced Blackhawks defenseman Brian Campbell to waive his no-trade protection and accept a deal to Florida. Now he hopes Campbell’s presence will convince other players to give the Panthers similar consideration.

“It's going to be a destination for players,” Tallon said. “That's the goal.”

There are worse places live. If Tallon can make the Panthers competitive again, he’ll get agents to return his call.

“Dale did some great things in Chicago for a lot of guys and I've talked to a lot of my ex-teammates who are saying to me, 'Get me there,'” Campbell told the South Florida Sun-Sentinel. “Dale will make this place very attractive for players to want to come and play there. We'll get this organization going in the right direction and make the fans want to come back and support a great team.”

THE TROUBLE WITH RUSSIANS

With the KHL beckoning them home, young Russian players can be a pretty impatient bunch. If they don’t advance quickly in the NHL and settle in comfortably, they can head back to Russia and play for good money.

Evgeny Grachev played this card with the Rangers, prompting his trade to the Blues. Rangers GM Glen Sather fetched a third-round pick for him.

“He felt he wasn't a fit in our system ,” Sather told the New York Post. “I'd been shopping him around for a year now, and the only team that was interested was St. Louis. He may still turn out with a fresh start.”

Similarly, Ottawa Senators GM Bryan Murray spent a third-round pick to rescue Nikita Filatov from the Blue Jackets. The former sixth overall pick never clicked with coaches or teammates in Columbus.

“It's not a great move and it is not something that you want to do, but I believe we all make mistakes in this business and you have to move on from the mistakes,” Blue Jackets GM Scott Howson told reporters. “It had just gotten to the point where Nikita requested a change. We were either going to get this level of asset -- which was a third-round pick -- or we were going to let him stay in Russia again. It was just time for everyone to move on. I wish him all the best.

“You won't find many more talented players. He's got to sort some things out himself and that happens sometime. This League is full of players that have had to go through two or three teams to become good players.”

AROUND THE RINKS: Center Jeff Carter is none too pleased with the trade that sent him from Philadelphia to Columbus. He expected to be a Flyer for life after signing his massive contract extension. Howson wasn’t peeved when Carter refused to return his calls. “The Flyers do a great job of attaching people to their organization,” Howson said. “It's a great place to play, and it is a great city. He made a long-term commitment to Philadelphia and now this surprised him.” . . . The Rangers declined to make a qualifying offer to defenseman Matt Gilroy, sending him into free agency . . . Center Maxime Talbot appears to be in the same scenario with the Penguins . . . The Avalanche downplay speculation that pricey center Paul Stastny could be moved for a cornerstone goaltender . . . The Coyotes will not try to keep Eric Belanger out of free agency. He is a solid third-liner who should attract some offers. The Blues are looking are looking to add such a veteran to their supporting cast . . . The Oilers had a deal to bring Ryan Smyth home from Los Angeles. But the Kings are concerned about the health of the player coming froom Edmonton in the deal, Gilbert Brule . . . Teams are eyeballing Canadiens center Scott Gomez, whose salary declines from $7.5 million to $5.5 million and $4.5 million over the next three years. But his carries a salary cap hit that not many teams can shoulder.

St Louis Post Dispatch LOADED: 06.27.2011

573721 Tampa Bay Lightning

Lots on to-do list for Lightning

By ERIK ERLENDSSON | The Tampa Tribune

TAMPA A weekend concentrating on the distant future transitions to one focused on the immediate future of the Lightning.

With the 2011 NHL Entry Draft now in the rear view mirror, Tampa Bay general manager Steve Yzerman will give his undivided attention to dealing with the team's pending free agents as well as getting prepared for the start of the free agency period, which kicks off on Friday.

All in all, Yzerman along with assistant general manager Julien BriseBois will have plenty on their plate over the next few days.

"I hope we are really busy, it means we are talking and hopefully getting some contracts signed,'' Yzerman said.

The priority at the top of that list continues to be the status of 21-year-old All-Star center Steven Stamkos, who will become a restricted free agent on Friday unless a new deal is reached before then. And the longer Stamkos remains unsigned, the more speculation will brew that he might not be back in a Lightning uniform, although that remains an unlikely scenario.

As a restricted free agent, any team is free to sign Stamkos – who has more goals the past two seasons than any other player in the league – to a contract offer sheet. Should that scenario unfold, Tampa Bay has the right to match or receive compensation in the form of four first round draft pick.

Yzerman met with the agent for Stamkos, Don Meehan and Mark Guy, while in Minnesota and discussions will continue to be held this week. The same will be done regarding the team's other pending free agents, including goaltender Dwayne Roloson.

"I've been in touch with virtually everybody's agent, everybody will travel (Sunday) and get settled in to their offices and we'll get back on the phone this week,'' Yzerman said. "I'm optimistic, I believe that we will get things accomplished. We were able to get Eric (Brewer's) done this week and we'll chip away at our restricted guys and go from there.''

The first order of business will be submitting qualifying offers to the team's group of restricted free agents, which must by done by Monday. The Lightning have 14 players which must receive those offers by the deadline or they become unrestricted free agents which includes: Teddy Purcell, Stamkos, Mike Lundin, Matt Smaby and recently acquired defenseman Bruno Gervais.

Beyond the team's own free agents, the Lightning must also prepare for the start of free agency on Friday by assessing what holes need to be addressed and whom they might pursue as fill those areas.

Should Roloson not be signed before Friday, goaltending will be the biggest area to address with Tomas Vokoun the biggest name available. With the expected loss of Sean Bergenheim and unlikely return of Simon Gagne or Adam Hall, the Lightning might also be on the lookout for a top-six forward and could pursue former Conn Smythe Trophy winner Brad Richards.

Tampa Tribune LOADED: 06.27.2011

573722 Tampa Bay Lightning

Return to Tampa Bay Lightning for less pay? Brad Richards says he will be flexible in free agency

By Damian Cristodero, Times Staff Writer

ST. PAUL, Minn. — When it comes to his impending free agency, Brad Richards said he wants to be flexible.

That is why he will not waive his no-trade clause with the Stars — "The more I think about it, the more I want to see all my opportunities," he said — and why, when it comes to a potential return to the Lightning, he did not shoot down a suggestion he might be willing to take less salary than he could get elsewhere.

To be fair, Richards framed his reasoning in a broader context, saying every team's financial situation is different.

Still, that Richards, the MVP of Tampa Bay's 2004 Stanley Cup run, left that door open a crack is sure to stoke the imaginations of Lightning fans when free agency opens Friday.

"If you say only one thing, you're not going to give yourself any options," Richards told the St. Petersburg Times by phone from his Prince Edward Island home. "There's different ways to do things. … That's why it's important to have an open mind. I want to see that if a team is looking at me, I can make the right call."

The Richards drama is just part of what will be a busy week for Tampa Bay general manager Steve Yzerman and what could be a defining one as well.

Center Steven Stamkos has said he is "close" to a new contract. And Yzerman on Sunday, after the draft at the Xcel Energy Center, reiterated he is "optimistic" something will get done.

But if Stamkos, who has a league-best 96 goals the past two seasons, is not signed by Friday, he becomes a restricted free agent open to offers from other teams. Yzerman has indicated he will match them, but that undoubtedly would jack up Stamkos' salary further than the $7 million a season most expect.

Yzerman also is negotiating with goalies Dwayne Roloson and Mike Smith, both of whom can be unrestricted free agents. Qualifying offers go out today to maintain negotiating rights with restricted free agents, of which Teddy Purcell is one. It already seems Sean Bergenheim is headed for the open market.

"We've got lots of work to do this week," Yzerman said. "I hope I'm really busy. It means we're talking and getting some contracts signed. I've been in touch with everybody's agent. We'll get back on the phones this week."

So much of this is intertwined that it is difficult to predict what Yzerman will be willing to spend, or need to, on available free agents. That is why what Richards, 31, said about flexibility is so intriguing.

"I know what's going on around the league; it's not just the Lightning," said the center, who in February 2008 was dealt to the Stars in the Smith deal. "You look at any team, the salary cap, there are different structures with different teams. So, as a player you'd be stupid not to be open-minded and flexible because you want to see what all your options are."

Not negotiable is going to a franchise with stable ownership.

"That's huge," Richards said. "After what I've gone through with Tampa (in the transition to Oren Koules and Len Barrie) and what I've gone through in Dallas, I'm sick of it."

He also wants a long-term deal "to get some security and settle into a place I want to go."

Certainly Tampa Bay, which in the summer of 2006 signed Richards to the five-year, $39 million contract that is expiring, is on that list, though the Rangers and Maple Leafs are expected to make a run.

"If the Lightning is going to talk to me, I'm going to listen, for sure," Richards said. "I'm not going to waste their time, but if they want to talk to me and be serious, it's going to be a team that catches my attention."

Around the league

Trade: The Kings sent wing Ryan Smyth to the Oilers for forward Colin Fraser and a seventh-round pick in the 2012 draft. Smyth, 35, who had 23 goals and 24 assists in 82 games last season, started his career with the Oilers in 1994.

St. Petersburg Times LOADED: 06.27.2011

573723 Toronto Maple Leafs

Leafs keep quiet on Richards sweepstakes

By Rob Longley ,Toronto Sun

Will the Maple Leafs be in on the Brad Richards sweepstakes? Should they be?

It is a complicated scenario made even more vague by the fact that for all sorts of reasons, Toronto general manager Brian Burke and his management team have no interest in discussing the matter publicly in advance of the July 1 free-agency period.

The Leafs got burned, you will remember, on the foiled pursuit of the Sedin twins a couple of years ago and, to add to that frustration, were charged by the NHL with tampering because of seemingly innocent comments made by coach Ron Wilson while the Sedins were still under contract with the Canucks.

Given the fact that Richards is the standalone big-name in this year's pool and the list of suitors has some heavy hitters, nothing can be gained by Burke tipping his hand.

This much would appear as a consensus opinion on draft weekend, however.

The New York Rangers and the Philadelphia Flyers are each expected to give Richards a long, hard look and like the Leafs, both could use the established superstar centre.

Not long after the season, the soon-to-be former Dallas Star suggested he would take a discount to return to the Tampa Bay Lightning, though that would seem like a stretch.

And let's add Toronto to the list, with conditions.

Richards is likely looking for a big deal that would send him toward retirement, probably in the eight-year range at close to $7 million a season. That would seem a little north of where Burke generally likes to go, so it will depend on how desperate he feels.

Desperation isn't something we generally see in the Leafs GM, however. He doesn't mind spending money and he has the cap room to do so, but Burke is loathe to overspend, especially when free agency turns to frenzy.

There may appear to be more heat on Burke because of the team's glaring need at centre and all involved must dread heading into another season without a legitimate top liner.

Losing out on a deal with the Flyers on Mike Richards (which we are led to believe the Leafs were in on) also doesn't help nor did the fact that trade talk at the draft was generally tepid.

FRATT-BOY NO MORE?

While the immediate NHL possibility for any of the nine players the Leafs selected on Friday and Saturday are at least a couple of years away, Burke had some big talk about another player in the system.

The GM believes that Matt Frattin, a winger the Leafs drafted in 2007 and was the NCAA's leading scorer last season, will have a big shot at cracking the starting lineup in training camp.

"I believe players benefit from spending time in the American Hockey League. If you look at my track record, I had all kinds of guys (who went that route)," Burke said. "This might be one of those guys that can skip that stage."

Burke was particularly impressed with Frattin's one-game cameo with the Leafs at the end of last season. A dead-tired Frattin made it to town the day of the game and made sure everyone in the Air Canada Centre noticed he was there.

"He played one game with us and he had seven shots on net and he speed-bumped a guy," Burke said. "Just totally pancaked a guy with that hit. He might skip (the AHL step) and that's very rare for me to talk about doing something like that."

PURSUING PERCY

Like many scouts, the Leafs head man, Dave Morrison, spends as much time as he can talking to the coaches of players he has on the team's radar. Such was the case with Stuart Percy, the defenceman they selected with their second first-round pick, 25th overall.

"He's got as much upside as anybody in this draft, I think," Morrison said of Percy. "We just feel his potential is really untapped. His name came up with me first in the fall when his coach said, 'Keep an eye on this kid.'"

The Leafs did just that and after being impressed with the former St. Mike's Major at the combine, invited him for a follow-up workout the next day.

"We put him on the ice after the combine and our skating coach was really excited about him," Morrison said. "He's not a pretty skater but a very efficient skater."

Percy, meanwhile, attributes a talk he had with then-St. Mike's coach Dan Cameron prior to the post-season as a major motivator.

"Going into the OHL playoffs, I had a meeting with Dave Cameron and he said, 'Every scouting thing is erased when the playoffs start. So just go out there and play your hardest.'"

QUICK HITS

All the players selected, plus several prospects, will be invited to an evaluation camp at the MasterCard Centre beginning Sunday ... Morrison on goaltender Garret Sparks, a late-round pick from the Guelph Storm: "We think he's got the Francois Allaire-like style and qualities." ... Burke on the number of Swedish picks at the draft: "I think this draft will be remembered for the resurgence of Swedish hockey. These things are all cyclical. I remember five years ago everyone was saying 'What happened with the great Swedish players?'. Now you have a whole slew of them."

Toronto Sun LOADED: 06.27.2011

573724 Vancouver Canucks

Canucks get bigger at draft; time will tell if they got better

By Vancouver Sun

ST. PAUL, Minn. - A year ago, Mike Gillis made a big trade to get one player. Today, he made a small trade for two as the Vancouver Canucks' bulked up at the National Hockey League entry draft.

Gillis traded his second round pick, 60th overall, to the Minnesota Wild for third- and fourth-round selections, then selected big, fleet forwards Alex Grenier of Laval, Que., and Joseph Labate from Eagan, Minn. With his extra third-round pick, Gillis chose Czech goalie David Honzik.

Including Friday night's first-round pick, Danish winger Nicklas Jensen, the Canucks suddenly have a lot more size and power in their organization.

This was Gillis' fourth draft, and in the first three the Canucks' leaned towards smaller, skilled players like former first-rounders Cody Hodgson and Jordan Schroeder. Vancouver traded it's top pick last year to acquire Keith Ballard from the Florida Panthers, which is why Gillis was happy today to leave Minnesota with eight new prospects from a seven-round draft.

"What happens at the draft is you think a player may be there but you're unsure, so you take the best player that's available," Gillis said, explaining the size factor. "Sometimes, the way it falls, you end up with a certain profile of player. This year, we wanted to try to change that profile for us.

"So we were really pleased when Jensen was available with the 29th pick because he's big and skates really well and he has tremendous upside. And the other two guys we targeted, we were fortunate where they fell. We were looking to try to add some size and speed and when you can add eight players in the last two days, it's pretty good."

Gillis was able to trade down to collect an extra pick because the Canucks were confident Honzik would still be available to them in the third round. The six-foot-three Czech was ranked 13th among goalies by NHL Central Scouting, but he was the fifth netminder chosen.

The 18-year-old moved to Canada to play junior hockey this season, and the Canucks feel his unspectacular statistics (3.54 goals-against average and .884 save rate) reflect a difficult transition initially to North America.

But Gillis said Honzik was much better in the second half of the season and had a good Quebec League playoff with the Victoriaville Tigres. The Canucks badly needed another goalie in their system because Canuck backup Cory Schneider is expected to be traded in the next year and the organization's No. 3 netminder, Eddie Lack, was a rookie in the American League this past season.

Grenier is even more intriguing as a prospect. The 19-year-old, bypassed in last year's draft, was playing Tier-2 hockey until Quebec Remparts' boss Patrick Roy called him up halfway though this season. The 6-5 winger had 24 points in 31 regular-season games, then exploded in the playoffs with 16 points in 15 games. But Grenier had only 10 penalty minutes in total.

There is no question about the aggression of fourth-round pick Joseph Labate, a 6-4 centre who was a finalist for Minnesota high schools' prestigious Mr. Hockey Award. Playing for Holy Angels Academy, Labate had 49 points and 42 penalty minutes in 25 games. His numbers - and draft position - probably would have been higher had he not missed three weeks with a broken foot.

Ironically, he was a popular draft choice in Minnesota by the most unpopular team here. The Canucks were jeered by fans each time they picked, finally prompting Vancouver assistant general manager Laurence Gilman to announce in the seventh round: "The Vancouver Canucks would like to thank the great fans of the State of Hockey for the warm reception we received throughout the week."

Size remained the Canucks' theme through the bottom half of the draft.

With their fifth pick - in the fourth round - Vancouver chose 6-1 winger Ludwig Blomstrand from Djurgarden of the Swedish junior league.

In the fifth round, the Canucks claimed Sudbury defenceman Frank Corrado, who with 30 points and 94 penalty minutes, plays bigger than his 6-0 frame.

Vancouver's sixth-round pick was skilled Swedish junior Pathrik Westerholm, a 5-11 centre who had 21 points in 34 games for Malmo. And their seven-round choice was Henrik Tommernes, a 6-1 20-year-old defenceman with Frolunda whom the Canucks feel will play in the AHL next season.

Vancouver Sun: LOADED: 06.27.2011


Canucks' draft performance needs improvement

By Iain MacIntyre

ST. PAUL, Minnesota - The Vancouver Canucks couldn't get any love at the National Hockey League draft. The fans who bothered to show up for the two-day event shouted abuse each time it was the Canucks' turn to select a player at the Xcel Energy Centre.

Before the Canucks' first pick Friday night, assistant manager Laurence Gilman thanked Minnesota for its hospitality, and graciously congratulated the Boston Bruins on their Stanley Cup.

On Saturday, Vancouver GM Mike Gillis worked a trade with the Minnesota Wild so the host team could draft a local kid.

The Canucks even picked Minnesota high school star Joseph LaBate in the fourth round.

Nothing worked.

The few fans still around for last call Saturday afternoon seemed there for the chance to boo Vancouver one more time.

No one on the Canucks was much bothered by the jeering. After all, it probably wasn't personal.

Anyone who picked up the draft guide saw that in the last 10 years, only Tampa Bay Lightning draft picks have played fewer NHL games than players chosen by the Canucks. Vancouver's poor draft record spans three general managers. In the last three years, which admittedly is an extremely small window, Gillis' picks have played only 13 games for the Canucks. Since 1999, Vancouver's total of 2,627 games is barely half the NHL average.

Mitigating factors include the consistent strength of the Canucks lineup and generally low draft positions, a shortage of picks some years, the tragic death of 2005 top pick Luc Bourdon and serious injuries to 2008 first-rounder Cody Hodgson, and Vancouver's success at signing undrafted free agents to compete for jobs.

Still, Vancouver draft picks are nearly 700 games behind the 28th-ranked team, the Carolina Hurricanes.

The Canucks need to do better. It appears this weekend they did.

The team left Minnesota with eight new prospects, three more than a year ago when Gillis' trades left the Canucks without a pick in the top 100.

Most of the new recruits have the advantage of size. Going 29th, six-foot-two power forward Nicklas Jensen was a good first-round choice. Son of a Canadian father and Danish mother, Jensen demonstrated in his first season in North America that he could skate and score with the Oshawa Generals.

Gillis' key move may have been a little trade Saturday morning, when he gave Wild general manager Chuck Fletcher Vancouver's late second-round pick in exchange for Minnesota's high third- and fourth-round selections.

In a span of 30 picks, starting at No. 71, the Canucks chose Czech goalie David Honzik, six-foot-five winger Alexandre Grenier from Laval, Que., and six-foot-four centre Joseph LaBate from Burnsville, Minn.

"Without a doubt we helped ourselves," Gilman said. "Young players are the lifeline of an organization. You need to have a constant supply coming through at various levels. We've been able to supplement some of the lack of picks we've had by signing players. But we certainly felt good about the fact we came to this draft with all our picks.

"You're building assets, and the more assets you have the better chance you have to build a strong base of players."

LaBate not only has the size and skill to become a player, he has the aura of one.

The Minnesota high school player-of-the-year finalist amassed 49 points in 25 games for Holy Angels Academy, and he confidently predicts he'll be ready for the NHL in three years.

He's off next season to a very good college program at the University of Wisconsin.

Honzik and Grenier are even more intriguing picks - risk/reward choices with big upsides who were targeted by the Canucks.

Grenier started last season playing tier-2 hockey in Quebec, but was called up halfway through the season by Quebec Remparts boss Patrick Roy. Grenier had 24 points in 31 games, then got better in the playoffs with 16 points in 15 games.

Honzik moved from the Czech Republic to play in Victoriaville, Que. Gillis said the six-foot-three goaltender's statistics (3.54 goals-against average, .884 save rate) were skewed lower by a poor first half, but he was strong down the stretch and has been invited to the Czech world junior team for next season.

Honzik was ranked only 13th by NHL Central Scouting among goalies, but the Canucks made him the fifth netminder chosen on Saturday.

Vancouver needed another goalie in its system, as NHL backup Cory Schneider may be traded in the next year and third-stringer Eddie Lack has had only one season in the American Hockey League.

After drafting a lot of smaller, offensive players the last three years, Gillis admitted he wanted more size in the organization.

"What happens at the draft is you think a player may be there but you're unsure, so you take the best player that's available," Gillis said, explaining the size factor. "Sometimes, the way it falls, you end up with a certain profile of player. This year, we wanted to try to change that profile for us.

"We were looking to try to add some size and speed and when you can add eight players in two days, it's pretty good. You expect a few of them to emerge and become good players. You don't know which ones at this point; there's a lot of development left. But when you can get eight picks and keep them all, you're just broadening your talent pool."

Out of 211 players, there wasn't one bad draft pick on the weekend. Every team went home happy, elated that this player or that player was still available when it was their turn to choose. It will be four years before we know how well the Canucks really did. But for two days, they were much better than a year ago.

Vancouver Sun: LOADED: 06.27.2011


Monday musings on all things NHL

By Ed Willes, The Province June 26, 2011

Nick Lidstrom finished the regular season at minus-two and still won the Norris Trophy. While you're trying to figure that one out, here's something equally incomprehensible, the Monday morning musings and meditations on the world of sports.

Picked up Sports Illustrated while leaving Las Vegas and the NHL awards last week and it was like entering a time machine.

Because Game 7 of the Stanley Cup final fell on a Wednesday, the hockey coverage was a week behind. That meant it focused on the first two games of the final which, if you have a keen memory, were a tad different from Games 3 through 7.

The story, in fact, focused on the Canucks' skill, grit and resourcefulness in winning the first two games of the final. It also called into question Tim Thomas's goaltending while noting the Canucks had won the physical battle in Game 1 and 2.

Really, it did.

Now, we don't mention this to pour salt into an open wound. But, once you get past the pain, it does make you stop to consider the epic nature of the Canucks' journey to Game 7 of the final.

Think back, for example, to the incredible series with Chicago. Then think about Ryan Kesler's performance against Nashville. And think of the Game 3 win in San Jose followed by Kevin Bieksa's holy roller in Game 5 which sent the Canucks to the final.

Now think of all the storylines - Is Henrik injured? Is Luongo a hero or a goat? - which consumed this city and were framed by one eternal question: Is this the Canucks' season.

OK, they didn't get the end to the story quite right, but it was still a great story and one that will be told in this city for generations to come.

Maybe we didn't get the Cup but we can't say we didn't get our money's worth this spring.

The winners and losers from a fairly eventful NHL draft weekend.

WINNERS

Edmonton: Here's the best part about the Oilers' draft. They added a potential superstar in Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and filled a need on the bluelline with first-rounder Oskar Klefbom and second-rounder David Musil from the Giants. But those players are still a couple of years away from making an impact which means the Oilers could be picking in the top-five again next season. All things being equal, they'll be competing for the Stanley Cup by 2015.

Philadelphia: Stunning couple of trades, but the Flyers addressed their two biggest issues - goaltending and chemistry - in the space of a week. They gave up a lot of firepower in Mike Richards and Jeff Carter, but they still have an offence built around Daniel Briere, Claude Giroux and James van Riemsdyk, and they added grit, youth, skill and Ilya Bryzgalov.

Boston: The champs didn't need a lot of help but added two-way defenceman Dougie Hamilton with the ninth pick courtesy of the Phil Kessel deal, the trade that keeps on giving for the Bruins.

LOSERS

Minnesota: Wild picked up some assets for Brent Burns, but their top four heading into next season will be Marek Zidlicky, Nick Schultz, Clayton Stoner and Greg Zanon. Yikes.

Los Angeles: The Kings are close and maybe Richards is the missing piece, but he was a problem on and off the ice in Philly. Let's just say we're dubious.

Columbus: They added Carter, who'll help keep Rick Nash interested, but lost in the shuffle was the Nikita Filatov trade. Two years ago, Filatov

looked like a franchise-changing forward. Saturday he was dealt to Ottawa for a third-round pick.

Finally, we're still three weeks away from the Canadian Open at Shaughnessy, but if you're not excited about the field that's coming you haven't been paying attention.

It's not a major field but considering the drek golf fans have been served here at the ACC and the 2005 Open, it might as well be. You've got World No. 1 Luke Donald and two others players in the top 15 in Matt Kuchar and Paul Casey. There are great veterans in Jim Furyk, Ernie Els and Justin Leonard; rising stars in Rickie Fowler and Anthony Kim; major winners in Retief Goosen, Charl Schwartzel, Louis Oosthuizen and Lucas Glover; and another layer of solid players in Sean O'Hair, Hunter Mahan, Tim Clark, Ryan Moore and Ricky Barnes.

In short, it's as good a field as you'll see outside a major anywhere in the world. Now, as long as Gene Sauers or Brandell Chamblee doesn't win, it will be a great week.

Vancouver Province: LOADED: 06.27.2011

573727 Washington Capitals

Washington Capitals pick trio of NCAA-bound players at 2011 NHL draft

By Katie Carrera

There was something of a common theme among three of the four Capitals’ picks at the 2011 NHL Entry Draft: They play, or will soon play, college hockey.

Washington had the luxury of a solid prospect pool within the organization heading into a draft in which team officials didn’t believe they could acquire a player to help in the relative short term. So they opted to trade their first- round pick off to Chicago and add to the future with players that will require some development.

Of their four picks, defenseman Patrick Koudys just finished his freshman season at RPI while center Travis Boyd (Minnesota) will enter college in the fall. Defenseman Garrett Haar was set to attend Northeastern but after coach Greg Cronin resigned to join the Maple Leafs’ front office, he decided to decommit. Haar will spend another season with Fargo in the USHL and then go to college, according to Minnesota hockey reporter Ryan S. Clark from The Forum at Fargo-Moorhead. Fourth-round selection Steffen Soberg is the only Capitals draftee not taking part in college hockey.

“You’d like to have as many players as you could ready to play right away, said Ross Mahoney, the Capitals’ director of amateur scouting. “A lot of these guys are still very young players, physically they’re young, and so getting two extra years of development and working with the good strength coaches that they have is not going to hurt them. It’s going to be more of a help to them in their own development.”

Mahoney said he expects Koudys, a rangy blue-liner who will fill into his 6-foot-2, 190-pound frame, to take on a larger role and see increased playing time as a sophomore at RPI. Koudys, Washington’s fifth-round pick, joked about being drafted before his father, Jim, was in 1982 by the Islanders. But when asked about his offensive upside, he said he hopes to become more of a two-way defenseman.

“I feel my points this year don’t really affect my offensive ability that I have,” said Koudys, who recorded three points in 32 games. “That wasn’t necessarily my role. I feel next year I’ll be able to step in and fill that role and get some more points and then everyone can kind of see my offensive upside that I do believe I have.”

(Thanks to former Capitals media relations director Nate Ewell for RPI Coach Seth Appert’s evaluation of Koudys after his freshman season. )

“I think at times, Patty was challenged by the speed, size and strength of the players at this level, but over the course of the season, he started catching up and became a very effective college defenseman,” Appert said. “He’s very impressive in his work ethic and attention to detail and those things are going to win out in the end. I think his talent, mind for the game, and work ethic are real special, and we’re expecting great things from him in the next couple of years.”

The other defenseman Washington chose was Haar, in the seventh round. Mahoney said what they liked about the California native was that he is a “good skater, works hard, good compete level.”

Boyd is someone Mahoney described as a “smart player, handles the puck well, is a good skater” but added that he needs to bulk up in order to be effective as a professional hockey player, as is the case with many prospects when they’re first drafted.

Minnesota Coach Dan Lucia emphasized the same points with Boyd. “He sees the ice exceptionally well and is a tremendous playmaker. He is good on draws. He can play on the power play, on the half wall and can kill penalties,” Lucia said. “I think as he adds strength that he will be able to play in any situation that we have going into the next few years.”

Washington Post LOADED: 06.27.2011

573728 Washington Capitals

Deal signaled Capitals’ desire to win now

By Stephen Whyno

ST. PAUL, Minn. — Just like any other year, the Washington Capitals‘ front office made a list of prospects for NHL draft and checked it twice.

On the draft floor, as always, names were scratched off the list as teams announced their picks and players celebrated with their families.

But unlike the past several seasons, when Washington nabbed the likes of center Marcus Johansson, defenseman John Carlson and center Cody Eakin, the Caps didn’t own a pick in the first three rounds. That was the result of trades over the past 16 months that netted veteran players - including one George McPhee orchestrated Friday night with the Chicago Blackhawks, dealing the 26th pick for gritty right wing Troy Brouwer.

The Caps stocked up for the future on the second day of the draft, but never before had they made only four picks. With a farm system already chock full of young talent, this trip to the Twin Cities was more about adding a crucial piece to a playoff roster in an attempt to win a championship now.

“This couldn’t have worked out better for us. We drafted really well, we have some good young players coming in,” McPhee said Friday night. “We really wanted to insert this kind of player into our lineup; he was available at this draft. And this was the kind of draft to do it in.”

Brouwer, a restricted free agent, is expected to receive a raise from the $1.05 million he earned the past two seasons. But McPhee isn’t worried about keeping him around. As a versatile right wing who can play on all four lines - and even on the left side - Brouwer provides some sandpaper and a scoring touch (76 points the past two seasons) to a team desiring that mix of ingredients.

On his blog, owner Ted Leonsis endorsed the move, saying the Caps “don’t have to wait to get productivity.” It’s uncertain what this means for unrestricted free agents Brooks Laich and Matt Bradley, as McPhee refused to discuss their situations less than a week before they can hit the open market. But the Caps know what they’re getting in Brouwer, and McPhee sounded excited after speaking with the 25-year-old.

“You always welcome a guy who plays hard and plays physical,” McPhee said. “I talked to him [Friday] night. … It’s amazing how you feel about somebody after a three-minute conversation. But he sounds like the kind of leader that we’re looking for.”

It remains to be seen whether this is a minor tweak to a team that finished first in the Eastern Conference or the first step of an overhaul to a team that was swept out of the second round by the Tampa Bay Lightning.

But on the draft’s second day, the Caps planned for their long-term future by taking Norwegian goalie Steffen Soberg in the fourth round, college defenseman Patrick Koudys in the fifth, U.S. National Team Development Program center Travis Boyd in the sixth and USHL defenseman Garrett Haar in the seventh.

It was much different waiting for pick No. 117 to finally select a player, amateur scouting director Ross Mahoney acknowledged, but something he and his staff weren’t upset about.

“With the move we made [Friday night], we already had one player from this draft who was an NHL player,” he said. “That’s the way you have to look at it.”

The Caps have a group of prospects nearing NHL-readiness, including Eakin, defenseman Dmitri Orlov and center Evgeny Kuznetsov, their first-round pick in 2010. The four players they took Saturday likely are three to four years away, with the current structure of the system providing a good chance to look to the more distant future while letting those guys develop.

McPhee and Mahoney insisted that wasn’t by design - that they always took the “best player available” - but added that it doesn’t hurt to think long-term. Soberg could be playing in the Canadian Hockey League next season; Koudys is going back to RPI; Boyd is heading to Minnesota.

“You’d like to have as many players as you could ready to play right away,” Mahoney said. The bottom line, I guess, is that a lot of these guys are still

very young players. Physically, they’re young. Going to college and getting two extra years of development and working with the good strength coaches, the good programs that they have, it’s not going to hurt them. It’s going to be more of a help to them in their own development.”

Perhaps by that point, they’ll blossom into the kind of difference-makers the Caps typically leave the draft with. And if that happens, this weekend will be seen as another crucial moment in the history of the franchise as it seeks to win now and in the future.

Washington Times LOADED: 06.27.2011

573729 Winnipeg Jets

Jets pick Kasdorf knows it's a tough road

Portage Terriers goalie sees a future full of hard work

By: Tim Campbell

ST. PAUL, Minn. -- After calling it the best day of his life, Jason Kasdorf knows that a lot less glamour is going to follow being picked by the Winnipeg Jets on draft day.

"This is just a start," said the 19-year-old Portage Terriers goalie, taken by the Jets with the sixth-round, 157th pick on Saturday. "I want lots of progress, training.

"I'm just going to have to stay focused, do lots of training, just making sure I'm doing everything right, eating right and doing everything I can to stay on top of it."

Only three Manitobans had their names called at the 2011 entry draft at the Xcel Energy Center: Kasdorf, Brandon-born defenceman Joel Edmundson of the Moose Jaw Warriors, and Winnipeg's Michael St. Croix of the Edmonton Oil Kings.

Edmundson was chosen by the St. Louis Blues in the second round, 46th overall, and St. Croix went in the fourth round, 106th, to the Rangers.

Either this fall or sometime next year, Kasdorf is headed for Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy N.Y., to play NCAA hockey for coach Seth Appert.

"I love the guy," Kasdorf said. "He's the reason why I committed to them. His track record with goalies is unbelievable. Going over video, he was teaching me so many things. I just think he could really help me improve my game."

Kasdorf, who cited Pekka Rinne and Carey Price as his favourite NHL goalies, was thrilled to share the spotlight of his draft day with his family in attendance and his Turnbull Cup-winning Terriers teammates.

"I was on a great team with great players in front of me and a great coaching staff," he said of the MJHL champs. "(Here), my family was freaking out. I sort of missed a part of it (when he was picked) I was so excited."

He said he didn't mind waiting as Saturday's proceedings dragged on.

"Getting drafted to my hometown feels awesome," Kasdorf said. "I've never been so excited in my life.

"Not many goalies were getting drafted. I was a little bit nervous as people were getting picked. But I was really excited when I got picked.

"Best day of my life."

St. Croix, who was ranked as high as a second-round pick by some lists, didn't travel to St. Paul for the draft.

He went to the lake instead for the weekend and found out he had been picked by the Rangers while he was unloading some junk at the local dump with his father, former NHLer and Manitoba Moose goalie coach Rick St. Croix.

"I figured I'd just get a phone call if I got picked," Michael said. "But we were there and my sister started up the Internet and we were watching it live, pick by pick. But it was starting to get a little antsy for me and my dad, so we took some stuff to the dump."

St. Croix said it didn't bother him he wasn't in St. Paul to hear his name.

"If you're not going to go in the first round, it's not necessary to be there," he said. "Sitting there and waiting and waiting, that's not so good. I figured I might as well go to the lake and not worry about it.

"I know I went to a good organization. Their needs are my kind of game."

The slick, offensive right-winger had 75 points for Edmonton of the WHL this season.

St. Croix's lake weekend ended a little early. He left Sunday for New York to get acquainted with the Rangers organization.

NOTES: The Jets could be considering adding some Manitoba content when free agency starts later this week. They had a meeting at the draft with Winnipegger Jason Gregoire, 22, who was drafted by the New York Islanders in 2007. Gregoire, a heady, smart left-winger, went unsigned and will leave the University of North Dakota after three years to become an NHL free agent.



One down, only 999 to go

No time for Jets to rest after draft, now it's quickly on to other things

By: Ed Tait

ST. PAUL, Minn. -- Craig Heisinger leaned on a railing at the XCel Energy Center as the picture of organized chaos unfolded directly behind him.

Tables were taken apart and chairs packed up as the stage that provided the backdrop to the National Hockey League entry draft was being dismantled.

And in many ways it was a scene that best described the perpetual motion that is life for Heisinger and the rest of the Winnipeg Jets management team these days. There is little time to sit back, throw their feet up and relax -- although they did have occasion to do just that Friday night during the first round of the draft.

"We made our pick there early (seventh overall) and then sat there for three hours," said Heisinger. "I said to Chevy (GM Kevin Cheveldayoff), 'This is the most time off we've had in three weeks, sitting and waiting for this to be over.' "

The draft is now yesterday's news. Next is preparing for the opening of this week's free agency market by making qualifying offers to captain Andrew Ladd and other restricted free agents like Blake Wheeler, Zach Bogosian and Andrew Stewart and also finding assistant coaches for Claude Noel, getting the operation set up with their AHL affiliate in St. John's, planning for a rookie camp...

"I was sitting with Zinger and I turned to him after we made our last pick and said, 'All right, cross that one off the list and let's go on to the next thing,' " said Cheveldayoff. "There's lots of different things that we have to accomplish, but bit by bit we'll get it all done."

Yes, this organization has already proven it can think on its feet. As evidence, we give you the whirlwind that has been the last few days, from meeting with the scouting staff that came north from Atlanta for the first time, to choosing Noel as the head coach, 'Jets' as the team nickname, to making two trades on the second day of the draft and calling out seven names over the two-day affair.

It's hard to imagine any franchise anywhere in sport having a longer to-do list to complete in a shorter period of time. Next: the qualifying offers to the restricted free agents must be submitted today with free agency beginning on Canada Day.

"We'll be as aggressive as is feasible and reasonable," said Cheveldayoff, who stressed the Jets will spend in the mid-range of a salary cap that has a floor of $48.3 million and a ceiling of $64.3 million. "This is going to be a process. There's not going to be a quick fix that is out there just to say one guy is going to put us over the top. For now, we'll spend some time going over a couple of things from the pro-scouting staff and getting ready for free agency.

"There's lots of things that still need to happen," Cheveldayoff added. "It's going to be a busy, busy summer from a free-agency standpoint, from a team-building standpoint and also from the relocation of the team standpoint."

The Jets, like all 30 teams at the draft, were thrilled with their handiwork over Friday and Saturday. As Heisinger warned, however: "Every team left with the same opinion. In three years we'll know."

Winnipeg went big on big North American-born skaters on the weekend, selecting Barrie Colts centre Mark Scheifele seventh overall; Swift Current Broncos left-winger Adam Lowry (67th); sending two later-round picks to Montreal to move up and grab defenceman Brennan Serville (78th), who will be attending the University of Michigan; doing the same with San Jose to slide up to select Tri-City Americans D-man Zach Yuen (119th) before completing their haul with Belleville Bulls right-winger Austen Brassard (149th), Portage Terriers goaltender Jason Kasdorf (157th), off to Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in September; and defenceman Aaron Harstad (187th), who will be headed to Colorado College in the fall.

In the end, the Jets' collective approach to all this -- from the long to-do list to simply being back with the big boys of the NHL -- might be best represented by Scheifele, the Dale Hawerchuk-coached first-round selection who simply couldn't stop grinning Friday night and through the weekend.

"That kid," cracked Heisinger, "is going to have a sore face from smiling so much."



Jets are active on Day 2

By KEN WIEBE, QMI Agency

Adam Lowry is the second player selected by the Winnipeg Jets in the 2011 NHL Entry Draft.

Lowry, a 6-foot-4, 184-pound left winger from Calgary, had 18 goals and 45 points in 66 games with the Swift Current Broncos last season. As a rookie, he had 15 goals and 34 points in 61 games.

Lowry wasn’t in attendance at the Excel Energy Centre.

The Jets didn’t own a second round pick in this year’s draft, since they moved it in the move to acquire captain Andrew Ladd last summer.

However, the Jets made a deal with the Montreal Canadiens for the 78th pick (third round) and selected defenceman Brennan Serville, who spent last season with the Stouffville of Tier II Stouffville and will be attending Michigan University this fall.

8 8

“I had a meeting with (Winnipeg on Friday) and I thought it went really well,” said Serville. “I was really shocked going to Winnipeg. I had no idea they were going to choose me. I had no idea where I was going to get taken. The rankings had me all over the map.”

Winnipeg gave up the 97th and 108th selections to move up to get Serville.

They weren’t doing dealing there, acquiring the 119th pick (fourth round) to pick defenceman Zachary Yuen of the Tri-City Americans.

Yuen had eight goals and 32 points in 72 games with the Americans last season.

In the fifth round, the Jets chose right-winger Austen Brassard of the Belleville Bulls of the OHL.

Brassard had 19 goals and 34 points in 67 games last season.

The Jets chose goalie Jason Kasdorf of Winnipeg in the sixth round.

Kasdorf spent the past two seasons with the Portage Terriers of the Manitoba Junior Hockey League.

The Jets final selection was defenceman Aaron Harstad, who spent the past three seasons with Green Bay of the USHL.

Joel Edmundson of Brandon was the first Manitoban selected as the Moose Jaw Warriros defenceman was selected 46th by the St. Louis Blues.

“It was unreal,” said Edmundson. “I was waiting a pretty long time, but the second round is awesome for me.”

Winnipegger Michael St. Croix was picked 106th by the New York Rangers.

St. Croix had 27 goals and 75 points in 68 games with the Edmonton Oil Kings last season.

Brandon Wheat Kings defenceman Jordan Fransoo was the final Manitoban selected as he went in the seventh round to the Ottawa Senators.

Winnipeg Sun LOADED: 06.27.2011


Jets weighing their options

Cheveldayoff kicks tires on deal

By KEN WIEBE, QMI Agency

ST. PAUL, MINN. - A Chicago connection led to a big deal between the Blackhawks and Florida Panthers, but did it nearly lead to a trade with the Winnipeg Jets?

While Jets general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff did have a few discussions with former boss Stan Bowman, the Blackhawks GM, nothing really materialized — at least not yet.

“Stan and I chatted on a couple of things, but Stan had some big things on the go that were maybe a little bit not in the direction I was looking at at this point in time,” said Cheveldayoff. “We had some good conversations, they gave me some good support along the way and we had a good couple of laughs.

“We’ll have to wait for our first Chicago-Winnipeg deal.”

Bowman and the Blackhawks were able to unload the contract of defenceman Brian Campbell in a trade with the Panthers (whose GM Dale Tallon was the GM of the ’Hawks before he was replaced by Bowman) and moved winger Troy Brouwer to the Washington Capitals for a first round pick on Friday.

Cheveldayoff said he had a number of “feeling out” discussions with other GMs who were trying to gauge where things were at in terms of the Jets’ roster.

However, Cheveldayoff would neither confirm nor deny a report that the Jets were among the teams that kicked the tires on Kenora product Mike Richards before the Los Angeles Kings acquired the former Philadelphia Flyers captain in a package deal that included former Brandon Wheat Kings centre Brayden Schenn.

One published report said the Flyers were looking for a package that included Evander Kane, Winnipeg’s first round pick (seventh overall on Friday) and possibly second-year centre and 2010 first-rounder Alexander Burmistrov.

We’re guessing that conversation was a brief one, but Cheveldayoff wasn’t willing to shed any light on it.

“You know what, I’m not going to discuss anything we may or may not have been in,” said Cheveldayoff.

IRONING IT OUT: The Jets are still working on which prospects tournament they’ll play in this fall before training camp officially gets underway.

The Atlanta Thrashers had planned to play in one with the Florida Panthers but reports say the Jets’ preference is to take part in the one in Penticton, B.C. that includes the Vancouver Canucks, Edmonton Oilers and Calgary Flames, among others.

“That’s still in the works but we’ll definitely be part of one of them,” said Cheveldayoff.

Unlike most NHL teams, the Jets won’t hold a prospects camp for the draft picks and other prospects in the system this summer.

UP NEXT: Monday is the deadline for the Jets to send out qualifying offers to their restricted free agents.

Cheveldayoff and vice president of hockey operations Craig Heisinger will spend much of this week preparing for free agency, which opens Friday.

Head coach Claude Noel will likely be working on filling out his coaching staff, while the coaching staff for the Jets’ American Hockey League in St. John’s, Nfld., will also require some attention.

You can cross one of the potential candidates off the AHL list as Kirk Muller accepted the job as head coach of the Milwaukee Admirals on Sunday.

Muller spent the past five seasons as an assistant coach with the Montreal Canadiens and was considered for Winnipeg’s head coaching job, though he didn’t make the short list or interview for the job.

Gary Agnew, who worked with Noel as an assistant with the Columbus Blue Jackets, could emerge as a candidate for St. John’s or potentially as an NHL assistant but he’s also one of the finalists for a head coaching job with the Houston Aeros.

Winnipeg Sun LOADED: 06.27.2011

573733 Websites

NBCSports.com / Phil Kessel to the Leafs trade is finally complete

Matt Reitz

It only took twenty-one months, but the deal that sent Phil Kessel from Boston to Toronto is finally complete. It was a different climate when the deal went down—the Bruins were looking to trade the disgruntled sniper, due in part to difficult contract negotiations. Meanwhile, the Maple Leafs were coming off of an offseason where they thought they had put together a team that would be able to complete in the postseason. By adding an offensive player of Kessel’s caliber, Brian Burke and Co. thought they’d be able to do damage in the playoffs.

Things didn’t exactly work out that way.

The king’s ransom the Maple Leafs traded was a potpourri of future assets that had the potential to help the Bruins for years to come. When the Leafs plummeted in the standings, the trade almost looked comical by draft day. Not only did Toronto struggle with Kessel on their team, but the freefall in the standings meant the #2 overall pick would be headed to Boston—not Toronto. For their efforts, the Bruins happily picked up the leftovers from the Taylor Hall vs. Tyler Seguin debate. Fans in Toronto were left to dream about Tyler Seguin in a Leafs jersey.

With the second pick of the second round, the Bruins picked up talented forward Jared Knight from London. The Bruins’ front office is pleased with his development thus far:

“There are some within the Bruins organization that get just as bright-eyed speaking about the offensive potential of Knight as they do about Seguin and his elite skating, shooting and playmaking package.

All that was left to complete the deal for the Bruins was Toronto’s first round pick in this year’s draft. After another struggle this season, the Maple Leafs first rounder was a lottery pick—this time 9th overall. It was the first time since 1983 that the defending Stanley Cup champions were able to select in the top 10 of the next draft. The Islanders were able to pick up Pat LaFontaine with their pick; it almost seems unfair in retrospect.

As the beginning of the draft unfolded, a 6’5” talented defenseman with a booming shot fell to the eagerly awaiting Bruins. Most scouts pegged Dougie Hamilton as the best North American defenseman in the draft (and second best blueliner overall). He can score from the point with his gigantic shot and can punish opponents with devastating physically play. Fans in Toronto had to watch in horror as the highly touted defenseman slipped to the defending Stanley Cup champs.

He threw out some decent names when asked who he compares himself “When asked to name the NHL players he most models his game after, Hamilton quickly spit out Jay Bouwmeester, Brent Burns and Rob Blake among others – a pair of physically bigger defenseman with some offensive upside.”

The good news for the Maple Leafs is that the trade is finally complete. Even if they struggle next season, the Bruins won’t be selecting for them in the 2012 Draft. To recap: the Bruins were able to pick the highest rated center in the 2010 draft and the highest rated North American defenseman in the 2011 draft—both courtesy of Brian Burke. All that is left is the pain of watching Seguin, Knight, and Hamilton develop into NHL players while critics constantly compare the trio to Kessel. If all three players reach their potential, it could be one of the most lopsided trades of the last 10 years.

It’s important to remember that when Burke made the trade, he thought his team was going to make the playoffs in both 2010 and 2011. He was building for the present with high priced newcomers like Mike Komisarek and Francois Beauchemin. But instead of thriving in Toronto, the team has struggled and temporarily shifted into a slight rebuilding mode. They were able to get back into this year’s first round by trading both Tomas Kaberle and Kris Versteeg. Unfortunately for the Leafs, they were unable to re-acquire their own first rounder from Boston.

There is some good news at the end of all of this for the Maple Leafs though. At least this trade helps fans forget about the Andrew Raycroft for Tuukka Rask trade.

NBCSports.com / LOADED: 06.27.2011

573734 Websites

Sportsnet.ca /Injection of Smyth

EDMONTON — Forget about the 20 goals Ryan Smyth could inject into the Edmonton Oilers lineup this season and let’s not think, for the moment, about which up and coming left-winger will lose some minutes here and there, so a 35-year-old on the downswing can finish his career in the place it began.

We can mullet over later.

Ryan Smyth coming back to Edmonton is about so much more than that for the Oilers.

You see, if you don’t live here you might not realize that Smyth is to Oilers fans what Doug Gilmour is to Leafs fans.

Wayne Gretzky, Mark Messier and all the greats whose numbers hang in the rafters here, have nearly all moved on to live somewhere else. But like Kevin Lowe, Smyth is the rare piece of Edmonton’s hockey past who appears to be happy to grow old here, the way so many of the old Canadiens have in Montreal. The way Daniel Alfredsson likely will in Ottawa and Stan Smyl in Vancouver.

Edmonton had more Hall of Fame players in the past 30 years than anyone else, and watched them all relocate. Smyth represents one, historic bone thrown at Oilers fans who know well the reasons the Lauren Prongers of the world prefer to be elsewhere.

But that’s all for down the road.

The most immediate needs for Smyth lie in the dressing where his personality and experience could prove helpful for Taylor Hall, Magnus Paajarvi, and Jordan Eberle.

Smyth could also help mentor hard-grinding, 19-year-old young left-winger out of the Saskatoon Blades named Curtis Hamilton, whom you might remember from Canada’s World Jr. team last year.

This kid could be Ryan Smyth with size one day, and he’s one step closer with the Smyth deal having mercifully wrapped up Sunday.

Hall can’t teach Ryan Nugent-Hopkins what it takes to win at the National Hockey League level and with a pretty high European content on the way in Edmonton,

the qualities of a guy who once picked his teeth off the ice and didn’t miss a shift in the 2006 Stanley Cup final for Edmonton, will be in high demand in that dressing room over the next few years.

With the Top 5 drafting phase now over in Edmonton’s rebuild, it is time now to work on a dressing room culture that can take all this talent and mould it into something more.

It’s time for Ryan Whitney and Shaun Horcoff to have another voice, a voice that can still bring it on the ice.

And the ice time? Don’t worry about ice time.

One of the problems of having all these kids in your lineup at the same time is, they are simply given ice time by acclamation. If Hall is taking a night off on the first line, he can be replaced and the same goes with Paajarvi on the second line.

And if both are playing well, you play hard-charging Ryan Jones on the right side of Smyth, and for the first time in forever Edmonton can ice that grinding third line that softens up the opponent.

If that makes Rexall Place a difficult place to play for visiting teams, than the Oilers have made gains here.

At 35, a tad less ice time for Smyth won’t hurt his game either.

This tweet came in from Jones on Sunday: "For everyone asking if I'm threatened by new flow or a LW coming in. No cause Smytty can give me flow advice and I played RW all last yr."

Smyth will mentor Jones, perhaps more than anybody because he’s a good, experienced player who has been around.

There haven’t been enough of those in Edmonton of late and it has shown.

Mark Spector

Sportsnet.ca LOADED: 06.27.2011

573735 Websites

USA TODAY / These 10 teams improved the most during NHL draft week

By Kevin Allen, USA TODAY

With the countdown to the NHL's Friday free agency period having begun, here are teams that helped themselves the most during draft week:

The Sharks picked up offensive defenseman Brent Burns from the Wild.

1. Los Angeles Kings: Leaving aside the debate about whether giving up prospect Brayden Schenn was too much, the Kings made themselves a stronger Stanley Cup contender by acquiring Mike Richards. He appears to be the exact player they need, a hard-nosed No.2 center to play behind Anze Kopitar.

2. San Jose Sharks: The addition of premium defenseman Brent Burns rounds out a quality defense. He's an offensive defenseman with size and bite. Rarely is a team able to trade for a player with that blend.

3. Columbus Blue Jackets: Presuming Jeff Carter gets over his disappointment of leaving Philadelphia, the Blue Jackets have the first legitimate No.1 center in franchise history.

4. Minnesota Wild: The acquisition of Devin Setoguchi adds a goal-scorer (73 over three seasons) to a team that was second-to-last in goals in the Western Conference. First-round pick Jonas Brodin is a skilled defenseman who has proved himself in Sweden. Charlie Coyle, a prospect picked up in the Burns deal, has the potential to be a Ryan Kesler-type center. The Wild picked up another first-rounder from San Jose and took playmaker Zack Phillips.

5. Philadelphia Flyers: They signed Ilya Bryzgalov, who could be their best goalie since Ron Hextall. Schenn is ready to play now and is a star in the making. No.8 overall pick Sean Couturier also has star potential. Jakub Voracek, 21, picked up from Columbus, is skilled. Wayne Simmonds is a good depth acquisition.

6. Buffalo Sabres: Robyn Regehr should step in and anchor Buffalo's defensive coverage. Buffalo's first-round pick, Joel Armia, has the ability to be one of the top players in this draft. He fell mostly because he didn't perform well in international tournaments.

7. Florida Panthers: Brian Campbell's acquisition is the start of this summer's effort to build Florida into a winner. First-round pick Jonathan Huberdeau will be a scorer.

8. New Jersey Devils: Defenseman Adam Larsson (No.4 pick) is a difference-maker.

9. Edmonton Oilers: Ryan Nugent-Hopkins is the playmaker the Oilers needed, and picking David Musil in the second round is like having another first-rounder. Sunday, they reacquired 20-goal scorer Ryan Smyth without giving much to the Kings.

10. Colorado Avalanche: First-round pick Gabriel Landeskog, a fearless, beefy winger, might be the perfect complement for Matt Duchene.

USA TODAY LOADED: 06.27.2011

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SPORT-SCAN DAILY BRIEFflyers.nhl.com/v2/ext/06.27.2011 nhlc.pdf · 573711 Spencerport’s Prince drafted on 2nd round by Ottawa 573712 Report: NHL considering 'dramatic' realignment