Draft Day Notes >>>

[CuseFan10]

The stupidity of the NHL rings true again on this Buffalo vs. Pittsburgh outdoor game at Ralph Wilson Stadium. How in the ******* ****ity **** **** do they expect anyone outside of those two cities (and maybe Canada - which doesn't count ratings wise) to watch a hockey game on JANUARY 1ST??? It's the biggest college football day of the year, and the mental midgets of the NHL schedule their big outdoor hockey showcase that day?

What a joke... Enjoy that 0.26 rating Mr Bettman. :thumbs:

[JohnnyMapleLeaf]

Much like the game in Edmonton a couple years, I think it's just a gimmick to treat the local fans...more than an attempt at a ratings grab?

TSN.ca

The Red Deer Rebels of the Western Hockey League have called a news conference for Thursday and sources suggest team owner Brent Sutter will announce that he's stepping down as general manager and head coach.

NHL sources tell TSN that Sutter is stepping down from his junior club to pursue a head coaching job in the NHL and that Sutter is the odds-on favourite to be named the next head coach of the New Jersey Devils.

Looks like one good move by your Devils...although I don't know why anyone would want to work for Lou, after all the **** he pulls on his coaches. It's always a good move getting a Sutter on board...

[flmmkrz]

Much like the game in Edmonton a couple years, I think it's just a gimmick to treat the local fans...more than an attempt at a ratings grab?

TSN.ca

The Red Deer Rebels of the Western Hockey League have called a news conference for Thursday and sources suggest team owner Brent Sutter will announce that he's stepping down as general manager and head coach.

NHL sources tell TSN that Sutter is stepping down from his junior club to pursue a head coaching job in the NHL and that Sutter is the odds-on favourite to be named the next head coach of the New Jersey Devils.

Looks like one good move by your Devils...although I don't know why anyone would want to work for Lou, after all the **** he pulls on his coaches. It's always a good move getting a Sutter on board...

Lous gotta be close to retirement and Brent could've had his choice of nhl openings so I'm guessing he'll be Lous eventual replacement when Lou dies, cause thats about the only way that old goats ever lettin up on that job

[chickameng33]

The stupidity of the NHL rings true again on this Buffalo vs. Pittsburgh outdoor game at Ralph Wilson Stadium. How in the ******* ****ity **** **** do they expect anyone outside of those two cities (and maybe Canada - which doesn't count ratings wise) to watch a hockey game on JANUARY 1ST??? It's the biggest college football day of the year, and the mental midgets of the NHL schedule their big outdoor hockey showcase that day?

What a joke... Enjoy that 0.26 rating Mr Bettman. :thumbs:

You have to remember this is the same league that thought ..... hey lets use the versus network for the Stanly cup finals is a good idea(ratings speak for themselves)... So obviously NHL need some new marketing people under bettman or even a better network then versus, because hockey has made it to where a casual fan cant watch games... You figure this game wont even make prime time, I have to agree that this is more for the locals and just a gimmick..But hey cant hate on it IMO. I am going to be there and how many outdoor NHL games to you get to go to?

I mean lets be real BCS games VS. early/middle season hockey=BCS games

either way ratings or not it will be fun to watch for us Locals! :beerbang:

[JohnnyMapleLeaf]

Oilers Sign Souray....sorry Cuse...congrats Ang. That came out of left field...all I was hearing was how Souray is a big city guy, and loved the action of Cali and NY City. Lowe finally makes a splash! They guy is great on the powerplay...but remember, he was a -25 on a pretty decent team last year. :blackeye:

[Angelus]

Oilers Sign Souray....sorry Cuse...congrats Ang. That came out of left field...all I was hearing was how Souray is a big city guy, and loved the action of Cali and NY City. Lowe finally makes a splash! They guy is great on the powerplay...but remember, he was a -25 on a pretty decent team last year. :blackeye:

Montreal sucked 5v5. Koivu was a -21...

The Oil are a lot better 5v5 then the Habs were. With Pitkanen and Souray, our PP should be MUCH improved. A lot of people aren't happy with this signing, but I'm going to take a wait & see approach.

At least somebody was willing to come here...

[JohnnyMapleLeaf]

Montreal sucked 5v5. Koivu was a -21...

The Oil are a lot better 5v5 then the Habs were. With Pitkanen and Souray, our PP should be MUCH improved. A lot of people aren't happy with this signing, but I'm going to take a wait & see approach.

Well...not really...lol...I didn't think that could be true, so I looked it up...5v5 last year the Habs gave up 162 goals, the Oil gave up 161.
PP will definitely be better! The Oilers were 27th...a big problem as you know! MTL was first...mainly because of Souray!

Don't get me wrong...I like the signing...after all that ****, one of the prized FA's did end up in Northern Alberta after all...good stuff. :thumbs:

[Angelus]

Well...not really...lol...I didn't think that could be true, so I looked it up...5v5 last year the Habs gave up 162 goals, the Oil gave up 161.
PP will definitely be better! The Oilers were 27th...a big problem as you know! MTL was first...mainly because of Souray!

Don't get me wrong...I like the signing...after all that ****, one of the prized FA's did end up in Northern Alberta after all...good stuff. :thumbs:

Alright, maybe not A LOT better, but if you eliminate those games after the trade deadline where the Oil basically gave up, I think it'd prove me right. 5v5 goal differential was .77 for the Oil and .75 for the Habs. Take away those games after the deadline and our differential was probably MUCH higher. We scored like only 10 goals down the stretch...lol...

Bottom line is that I think his +/- with the Oil will be better than it was with the Habs.

[flmmkrz]

Bottom line is that I think his +/- with the Oil will be better than it was with the Habs.

stocking yourself full of guys who can move the puck, still nobody to help Rolly with some defensive coverage. I can see his +/- being better just not by a whole lot. I like the signing tho, good to see someone sign in oil country

[JohnnyMapleLeaf]

stocking yourself full of guys who can move the puck, still nobody to help Rolly with some defensive coverage. I can see his +/- being better just not by a whole lot. I like the signing tho, good to see someone sign in oil country

And they lost their stay at home captain in Jason Smith!

[FlyersFan]

And they lost their stay at home captain in Jason Smith!

:beerbang: :beerbang: ....dang now where did he end up again....lol.....


wow....out of left field for sure on that Souray deal. As i said a few posts earlier...he is an offensive upgrade but he is a very average to below average defensive defenseman skill wise. He would have been perfect to pair up with Jason Smith on D for the Oilcan. They will need to find a defense partner that is responsible defensively and willing to take on some 2 on 1's when Souray gets caught behind the opponents net....lol......i like the signing at this point...i mean what was the other option, don't sign him and leave free agency with a couple used puck bags??????

Ang- Oilcan are going to be an interesting team to watch the first half of the year. I think it's real important they find some kind of positive identity in the first couple months and ride that out, whether it be winning 3-2 games or 5-4 games. I think they are going to struggle to make the playoffs this year, but we'll see. NAS, CHI and LAK all stink IMO....i think that COL, SAN, ANA, DAL, DET, VAN, CAL are all playoff teams and then the last spot should be decided amongst Minnesota, St. Louis and the Oilcan. But that's just my 2 cents.

[Angelus]

And they lost their stay at home captain in Jason Smith!

Yeah, but any hardcore Oilfan will tell you that Smith has lost a step or two over the last few seasons. I think we traded him at the right time. The Flyers will find that out next year.

[Angelus]

:beerbang: :beerbang: ....dang now where did he end up again....lol.....


wow....out of left field for sure on that Souray deal. As i said a few posts earlier...he is an offensive upgrade but he is a very average to below average defensive defenseman skill wise. He would have been perfect to pair up with Jason Smith on D for the Oilcan. They will need to find a defense partner that is responsible defensively and willing to take on some 2 on 1's when Souray gets caught behind the opponents net....lol......i like the signing at this point...i mean what was the other option, don't sign him and leave free agency with a couple used puck bags??????

Ang- Oilcan are going to be an interesting team to watch the first half of the year. I think it's real important they find some kind of positive identity in the first couple months and ride that out, whether it be winning 3-2 games or 5-4 games. I think they are going to struggle to make the playoffs this year, but we'll see. NAS, CHI and LAK all stink IMO....i think that COL, SAN, ANA, DAL, DET, VAN, CAL are all playoff teams and then the last spot should be decided amongst Minnesota, St. Louis and the Oilcan. But that's just my 2 cents.

If you ask me, at this moment, the Oilers are NOT a playoff team. They won't score enough goals. They'll have to add a few bodies up front to have any hope.

GL with Smith and Lupul... :glass:

[FlyersFan]

GL with Smith and Lupul... :glass:

Lupul is an interesting guy Angelus. He was here in ANA for a couple of years and he would be just awesome for like 3 or 4 games and then disappear for another 3 or 4. He was a much better player in ANA for some reason, whether it was who he was playing with or what, i don't know. He is another one of these "projects" that the Flyers love to go after. Kyle Calder, Jon Sim, Mike York.....and none of them ever pan out. I honestly think he is going to struggle on offense this year because the 3rd and 4th lines of PHI aren't very consistent. I would expect him to get time on PHI 3rd line with Richards maybe. But you never know. The guy was pegged as a future start and i saw it in snippits with the Ducks when he was here. 9 SOG/game for like 3 games in a row....like 5 points, then bang....3 SOG in his next 3 games total and 0 points. We'll see.....As far as Smith, even if he has lost a step he could skate to the end of the ice and back before Hatcher, Rathje or Gauthier reach their own blue lines, so we'll take him...lol. After DesJardins left, that defense really had no veteran leader that was also decent on the ice. That is why i think Smith appealed to PHI is that he is kind of an established presence on the back line and he is responsible defensively.

[FlyersFan]

Two sources in Finland said that right winger Teemu Selanne was considering signing with the Philadelphia Flyers to rekindle his international playing days with Kimmo Timonen and Sami Kapanen.

Philly GM Paul Holmgren said the thought of Selanne's playing for the Flyers never crossed his mind, because the Flyers are less than $900,000 under the NHL cap.

Courtesy of the Philadelphia Enquirer. Interesting if it is true. You never know with a guy like Selanne. He might sign for 1 year 1M....he is that type of player. Play one last year with PHI and the Fins. Longshot but who knows.