“I Might Just Be A Hockey Fan In California” is a feature that will be posted every Saturday here at the View From My Seats. There are plenty of things going on in the hockey world (and even the sports world); and you know everyone has an opinion. This is a place for some quick hits of the week that was.
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I might just be a hockey fan in California, but:
- The KHL might be looking to follow the NBA’s lead with an age minimum. They will not accept any players younger than 35 years old.
- There’s something strangely perfect about the Rod Brind’Amour retirement. The Hurricanes were up front with Brind’Amour and told him that he wasn’t in their plans as a player. He said he didn’t want to play for anyone else, so he’d retire. Canes management said that they wanted him to be part of their organization and they’d figure out a role for him. Done deal. All class—from both sides.
- I find it interesting that before the draft, the majority of people thought Tyler Seguin would be drafted by the Boston Bruins and spend another year in Plymouth. Now, people are talking about trading away a center and just assuming he’ll have the 3rd line center role. What changed?
- The sooner the Dallas Stars can find a new owner, the better. While they’re nowhere near the salary cap, they’re pressed up against their current internal budget. If the summer drags on and James Neal doesn’t get taken care of, an offer sheet could put the team in a serious bind.
- How ironic would it be if Carey Price signed a contract for MORE than Halak’s $3.75 million per year? But hey, the Canadiens have done stranger things.
- Ilya Kovalchuk is going to sign with the Kings or the Devils. Or another team will swoop in and sign him at the last minute. Or he’s going to the KHL. See? I can play journalist too!
- Last time around, the owners stuck to their guns because they wanted salaries linked to league-wide revenue. So if the rumors are true that they’d want the cap-rolled back to $48 million, whose fault is that? I have a hard time believing it’s the players fault.
- I feel bad for not caring where Mike Modano ends up. I kind of liked the illusion of him sticking with one team for his entire career.
- I recently saw an article that had the top 5 defenseman under 21 years old. Either they forgot Zach Bogosian exists or he’s vastly underrated.
- Don’t be surprised if the Sharks get off to a poor start next season. Starting the season in Europe and trying to learn how to play in front of a new goaltender aren’t exactly recipes to start on a roll.
Even if these guys turn into Gretzky and Kurri, the Oilers might want to mix in a defenseman or two...
- Marty Turco has a lot more in the tank than people are giving him credit for. Ryan Miller could have played behind the Stars’ defense last year and given up 4 goals per game. Put him behind a decent defensive corps and watch him thrive.
- How hard will Dale Tallon push for Bryan McCabe and/or Tomas Vokoun to waive their no-movement clauses at the deadline this year?
- The Phoenix Coyotes fans better enjoy this upcoming season—because their whole damn team is a free agent on July 1st, 2011.
- Don’t tell Oilers fans this, but none of Hall, Eberle, or Pääjärvi-Svensson play defense. That still might pose a problem.
- I don’t think Tampa’s assistant GM Julien BriseBois is going to get as much publicity as that new GM guy.
- The Dan Ellis and Dustin Boyd to Montreal for Sergei Kostitsyn might be a bigger trade than people thought at the time. I know Habs fans were focused on pending unrestricted free agent Dan Ellis, but the trade looks like it could be big for the Preds. They basically traded a goaltender that was leaving and a restricted free agent who they weren’t sure about for a player who they think can help cure their scoring woes.
- Is it any surprise that the Bruins are having a hard time signing Blake Wheeler? I’m sure Phoenix fans aren’t exactly shocked. This is what we call a “trend.”
- Don’t be surprised if Cam Fowler sticks with Anaheim for opening night. He was polished enough that he could have run an NHL power-play last year when he was at Windsor and his defensive game is incredibly underrated. Easing him in with 3rd pairing minutes (and on the power play) might be better than another year in the OHL.
- How happy are the Flyers to FINALLY have Mike Rathje’s contract off the books?
- I’m sure Lee Stempniak wants to get paid based on the player he was in Phoenix, but I wonder how many GMs are reminded of how he played in Toronto for the last 2 years.
- Gary Bettman is a pompous little person that needs to be fired for the good of the game.
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Click here for our archive of past editions of our “I Might Just Be A Hockey Fan In California” feature.
Matt Reitz
Matt Reitz is an NHL Writer for ProHockeyTalk on NBCSports and the Editor-In-Chief here at ViewFromMySeats.com. When he's not shoving a mic in the face of NHLers or explaining why home teams should wear white, he's usually trying to figure out what song to play next on his iPod. It's a never-ending job.
