Obviously the offseason isn't over yet, but we all know most of the activity on the market happens almost immediately. Campbell signed, Sundin's biding his time, and Hossa surprised a lot of people. Obviously the Flyers weren't involved with these names, but that's not going to stop them from getting things done.
First, the team traded D Denis Gauthier just a day after putting him on waivers. Great trade, who'd we get, right? Wrong. Obviously it's great that he's off the payroll, and make no mistake about it; that's what we needed to happen. However, it's annoying that he had such little value that we had to give LA something to take him. Along with Goat, the Flyers sent the Kings a second round pick to get D Patrik Hersley and Ned Lukacevic. Both will likely play with the Phantoms.
They also signed four free agents. We'll start with the two that will play with the Flyers: Glen Metropolit and probably Ossi Vaananen. Metropolit is a nice depth player that can probably play every forward position, and he chipped in 11 goals for Boston last year. He probably won't get that many this year, but he'll put in some time on the PK, and the Flyers need guys like that. Vaananen is a potential 5-6 D-Man who plays physical and blocks shots. He got a bit banged up, so he had to play in Sweden last year. He's back, and hopefully he can contribute. They also added Nate Raduns and Sean Currey to the Phantoms.
Today, the signings of Randy Jones and Riley Cote became official. As you can tell by my headline, the Jones signing doesn't sit well with me. I like him a lot, but that is a lot of money for a player still proving himself. I really hope he earns it.
Showing posts with label denis gauthier. Show all posts
Showing posts with label denis gauthier. Show all posts
Wednesday, July 2, 2008
Monday, June 30, 2008
Flyers Do A Lot And Accomplish Very Little
The Flyers made several moves today, summed up here by Bill Meltzer.
To kick off the day, the Flyers added D Tim Ramholt from Calgary for Phantoms forward Kyle Greentree. You may remember Greentree from a couple games with the Flyers. He's a pretty big body, and he has a nice shootout move up on YouTube. Like a lot of forwards we have or had, there just wasn't much of a chance he could make an impact here with our depth.
Next, the Flyers placed D Denis Gauthier on waivers. They did this last year, and he cleared waivers and landed on the Phantoms. Paul Holmgren apparently promised he would try to avoid this, so he was waived with the intention of buying him out. That'll take a good chunk off the salary cap, but he'll still count against it a little. There are conflicting reports.
Finally, the Flyers traded D Janne Niskala to Tampa for a 6th round pick. Niskala was just acquired last week, and it's kind of a bad reflection on the front office to have to do this. They must not have done their homework when acquiring Niskala and weren't fully aware of his demands to have a one-way contract. Either way, it doesn't matter much, but the situation probably wasn't handed correctly.
Free agency kicks off tomorrow, and if you remember last year, the action is fast and furious. If you blink, you might miss a signing or two. This year, there aren't as many high-profile targets, but that's not going to stop teams from paying a lot of money to get players.
The Flyers probably won't be active. They won't be making a big splash, and you can definitely rule out guys like Brian Campbell and Wade Redden. Those guys are getting big bucks, and the Flyers don't have the money to spend like last summer. We should find out if Hatch is retiring soon, and that decision will impact what the team does.
To kick off the day, the Flyers added D Tim Ramholt from Calgary for Phantoms forward Kyle Greentree. You may remember Greentree from a couple games with the Flyers. He's a pretty big body, and he has a nice shootout move up on YouTube. Like a lot of forwards we have or had, there just wasn't much of a chance he could make an impact here with our depth.
Next, the Flyers placed D Denis Gauthier on waivers. They did this last year, and he cleared waivers and landed on the Phantoms. Paul Holmgren apparently promised he would try to avoid this, so he was waived with the intention of buying him out. That'll take a good chunk off the salary cap, but he'll still count against it a little. There are conflicting reports.
Finally, the Flyers traded D Janne Niskala to Tampa for a 6th round pick. Niskala was just acquired last week, and it's kind of a bad reflection on the front office to have to do this. They must not have done their homework when acquiring Niskala and weren't fully aware of his demands to have a one-way contract. Either way, it doesn't matter much, but the situation probably wasn't handed correctly.
Free agency kicks off tomorrow, and if you remember last year, the action is fast and furious. If you blink, you might miss a signing or two. This year, there aren't as many high-profile targets, but that's not going to stop teams from paying a lot of money to get players.
The Flyers probably won't be active. They won't be making a big splash, and you can definitely rule out guys like Brian Campbell and Wade Redden. Those guys are getting big bucks, and the Flyers don't have the money to spend like last summer. We should find out if Hatch is retiring soon, and that decision will impact what the team does.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
