General Rumors

[lakingsfan19]

On August 27th, I wrote a blog about the Kings looking to acquire a 2nd line center in case Jarret Stoll was not ready to start the season.

In an interview with Team 1260 this afternoon, Kings centerman and faceoff specialist Stoll admitted he had arthritis in his knee, wrist and elbows (at the tender age of 27), to the point where he couldn't move. He's currently under medication and plans to be ready for the start of the season (didn't we hear this about Adam Deadmarsh and Jason Allison a few years ago?).

Coming off of a major groin tear, if Stoll is not ready to take on the role of 2nd line center, it bumps up Handzus, leaving the checking line thin and the 4th line absent of a veteran/decent center. With Derek Armstrong not waiting around for the Kings to make up their minds about him taking a 2-way deal with his former coach, Lombardi will once again be hitting the phones looking for help.

Marleau is unlikely to waive his no trade clause.

Stoll also said that Kings GM Dean Lombardi apologized to him for all of the recent turmoil surrounding the Dany Heatley rumors.

So here come the "Michael Peca" filler type rumors!

Matthew Barry
http://www.hockeybuzz.com/blog/Matth...ason/125/22906

Jarret sStoll may or may not be ready for the season, and if he is ready for the season, can he LAST the season? Especially as the #2 center.

The Kings certainly can ask 2nd year undersized pro Oscar Moller to take on the duties, but I'm not sure given the level of competition in the West they want Oscar to have that responsibility.

They could move Handzus up to the 2nd line, which is a possibility, but then the "shut down" line is extremely thin.

Not too many options left:

Manny Malhotra - he stupidly turned down offers from Columbus and another team( help me out folks), and may have to settle for a one year del with the Kings.

Michael Peca - is there ANY tread left on his tires? He can still put in the minutes (when not hurt) and would come cheaply.

Rob Neidermeyer - (gulp) don't know if we could have a Duck on the team, but he has been a fantastic shut down player for the Ducks, and does have WINNING experience.

Frolov - As I mentioned last post, it wouldn't surprise me if Lombardi were looking to deal Fro for a 2nd/3rd line center plus a physical on-the-way-up D-man like Matt Greene was. There's no doubt whatsoever that Frolov is on the block. Yes, Lombardi mentioned he'd "like" to get Fro locked up long term, but the odds of that happening are about the same as me getting a trade rumor right.
__________________________________________________ _________

For those that just handed the Sharks the presidents trophy... think again.

Right now they have one of the single sickest lines in the world:
Heatley-Thornton-Setoguchi

And a damn good 2nd line as well

Clowe-Marleau-Mitchell

And then there's Scott Nichol.... and NOBODY ELSE!!!

Who is their "shutdown" line?

They have NINE roster forwards under contract with Jamie McGinn and Rob Staubitz as possibilites.

That STILL leaves the Sharks NINE PLAYERS SHORT with only 5 million in cap space to spare.

San Jose is not going to fill their roster with Jed Ortmeyer, Logan Couture, Brandon Mashinter, Steve Zalewski, Frazer... you get the idea.

With 2 dmen shuttled off to Vancouver, they have Boyle and a 39 year old Rob Blake, followed by Vlasak and Murray (not bad) and Kent Huskins???

Two injuries to the back-end and the Sharks and Nobokov is seeing more shots than a Calgary bar after the 1st round of the playoffs.

Matthew Barry
http://www.hockeybuzz.com/blog/Matth...ions/125/22927

[FightingIsGood]

Originally Posted by thepolishkid88

Thought is that Godard DOSE NOT fit into Disco Dan's system. But a guy like Rupp does though because he can skate and has a decent offensive set. Shero and Bylsma want a 4th line that is tough and aggresive, yet can skate and bang in a few goals. It does open the door for Biz though...

They will have all the scoring they need on the top 3 lines. There is absolutely NO NEED to trade Godard. Why the hell do so many ****ing teams think that you need 4th liners to score? They aren't out there to score - they're out there to crash, bang and fight! Do they have any idea who the hell is in their own division? I don't want to go into battle with the Flyers and Devils with Mike Rupp as the only decent fighter and NO secondary toughness. I bitched like hell about that last year, and it's looking like I'm going to be bitching again this year. What's it going to take, Crosby and Malkin getting put out of action with cheap shots? I'm tired of the Pens being one of the softest teams in the league, Cup or no Cup.

[thepolishkid88]

Originally Posted by FightingIsGood

They will have all the scoring they need on the top 3 lines. There is absolutely NO NEED to trade Godard. Why the hell do so many ****ing teams think that you need 4th liners to score? They aren't out there to score - they're out there to crash, bang and fight! Do they have any idea who the hell is in their own division? I don't want to go into battle with the Flyers and Devils with Mike Rupp as the only decent fighter and NO secondary toughness. I bitched like hell about that last year, and it's looking like I'm going to be bitching again this year. What's it going to take, Crosby and Malkin getting put out of action with cheap shots? I'm tired of the Pens being one of the softest teams in the league, Cup or no Cup.

They have enough grit, it isnt like last year where we had so many softies. They dont expect the 4th line to score 20 goals they just want them to be able to be quick and aggresive. Which I truthfully dont mind. Godard is a top 3 fighter in the league but his skating is piss poor and often times it was rough. They would be sprung on a play and Godard is taking all day to get down there. Rupp can at least skate. Plus we will have Brookbank, Biz, Boogard and Rupp. Plus you have guys like guerin, Kunitz, Talbot, and TK. We will be ok, I dont wanna compete with teams on a level of toughness.

[thepolishkid88]

Originally Posted by grits207

If thats true the Avs would be retarded not to do the trade. The team is going to be sh*t this season so why not atleast make the team entertaining?

Godard and Koci together would be pretty cool and would give Avs fans a reason to actually watch the games.

From what I read the Pens price is just too high.

[FightingIsGood]

Originally Posted by thepolishkid88

They have enough grit, it isnt like last year where we had so many softies. They dont expect the 4th line to score 20 goals they just want them to be able to be quick and aggresive. Which I truthfully dont mind. Godard is a top 3 fighter in the league but his skating is piss poor and often times it was rough. They would be sprung on a play and Godard is taking all day to get down there. Rupp can at least skate. Plus we will have Brookbank, Biz, Boogard and Rupp. Plus you have guys like guerin, Kunitz, Talbot, and TK. We will be ok, I dont wanna compete with teams on a level of toughness.

3 of the guys you mentioned would be in the minors with the possible exception of Biz. Guerin is 38 - how much fighting is he going to do? Kunitz hits a ton, but he drops the gloves once a year, if that. Talbot is not a good fighter by any stretch. TK is actually a decent fighter for a lightweight, but again, he doesn't drop the gloves nearly enough. Compare those guys to Cote, Asham, Carcillo, Lappy, Leblond, Clarkson, Davison, Salvador, Brash, Rechlicz and Jackman...well, you see what I mean. And let's not forget 4 games against the Leafs and 2 against the Ducks. The Pens didn't have the guns to go with all of those guys with both Godard and Rupp, but I'd feel a hell of a lot better going into battle with both of them on the ice. Instead, I'm going to have to watch them get dummied every friggin night.

Just for once, I'd like the Pens to have a nice mix of skill and toughness. Just once. I'm not asking for the Ducks or Flyers, just more than they have now.

[BrianTheAdsFan]

[quote]The Predators have offered a combination of draft picks and prospects to Boston for forward Phil Kessel, General Manager David Poile said Wednesday.

Now it's time to see whether Bruins GM Peter Chiarelli chooses to deal Kessel to the Predators, to another team or — less likely — re-sign him.

"I certainly believe in being aggressive and persistent and going after what I want. But I've made it clear what we can do,'' Poile said. "It's fairly apparent what other teams are doing.''

There have been reports saying Toronto is willing to give up two first-round draft picks and a second-rounder for Kessel.

"If (Chiarelli) gets two firsts and a second, he's getting really good compensation,'' Poile said. "But it is all in the eye of the beholder for a 21-year-old player who scored 36 goals.''

Scrimmage: The Silver edged the Blue 5-4 in Wednesday's intrasquad scrimmage at Sommet Center.

Patric Hornqvist, Steve Sullivan, Peter Olvecky and Colin Wilson scored for Silver, which also got a goal for winning one of the two shootouts.

Mike Santorelli had a pair of goals for Blue and linemate Martin Erat added one. Blue also got a goal by winning one of two shootouts.

Coach Barry Trotz said Santorelli "had the right mind-set going in. We tried to give him some confidence by playing with Legwand and Erat, and it showed.''

Cutting down: The Predators trimmed 12 players, leaving 44 in camp.

Most of the 2009 draft picks — Taylor Beck, Gabriel Bourque, Michael Latta and Charles-Olivier Roussel — were returned to their respective junior teams.

Scott Brannon, John Decaro, Mike McLean, Jacob Muzzin, Brock Sheahan, Arvid Stromberg, Pierre-Alexandre Vandall and Mark Van Guilder were released from the pro/amateur tryout agreements.

Link...

[duda.radek]

Just read a thread in a Czech newspaper about Jiri Hudler and his playing in Dynamo Moscow and he said, he´s playing with Maxim Afinogenov. So he signed also with Dynamo? Did I miss something?

[Ciccarelli]

Originally Posted by duda.radek

Just read a thread in a Czech newspaper about Jiri Hudler and his playing in Dynamo Moscow and he said, he´s playing with Maxim Afinogenov. So he signed also with Dynamo? Did I miss something?

He is still unsigned as far as I know and probably trains and plays for Dynamo until he gets a contract in the NHL.

[duda.radek]

Originally Posted by Ciccarelli

He is still unsigned as far as I know and probably trains and plays for Dynamo until he gets a contract in the NHL.

Thanks for info

[Svyatoslav]

Afinogenov trains with Dynamo but not playing for them in official KHL games. They can't sign him because of salary cap. Rumours are he wants around 3 mln per season. Yesterday in Russian yellow paper I read he leave for America soon to talk about signing with Colorado.

UPD: Last info

The Thrashers will bring Maxim Afinogenov, who played in Buffalo last season, into training camp for a pro tryout. He is expected to arrive Thursday night.

http://blogs.ajc.com/atlanta-thrashe...thrashers_blog

[Svyatoslav]

Free agent Manny Malhotra, a 29-year-old center who has spent the past five seasons with the Columbus Blue Jackets, is about to become a Shark, according to an NHL source.

http://www.mercurynews.com/sharks/ci...nclick_check=1

And another quote

The fourth line — generally the high-energy players who aren't afraid to mix it up — is also taking shape with former Nashville Predator Scott Nichol at center between veteran Jody Shelley and Brad Staubitz, who played 35 games in San Jose last season.

[lakingsfan19]

[quote=BrianTheAdsFan;1781135]

The Predators have offered a combination of draft picks and prospects to Boston for forward Phil Kessel, General Manager David Poile said Wednesday.

Now it's time to see whether Bruins GM Peter Chiarelli chooses to deal Kessel to the Predators, to another team or — less likely — re-sign him.

"I certainly believe in being aggressive and persistent and going after what I want. But I've made it clear what we can do,'' Poile said. "It's fairly apparent what other teams are doing.''

There have been reports saying Toronto is willing to give up two first-round draft picks and a second-rounder for Kessel.

"If (Chiarelli) gets two firsts and a second, he's getting really good compensation,'' Poile said. "But it is all in the eye of the beholder for a 21-year-old player who scored 36 goals.''

Scrimmage: The Silver edged the Blue 5-4 in Wednesday's intrasquad scrimmage at Sommet Center.

Patric Hornqvist, Steve Sullivan, Peter Olvecky and Colin Wilson scored for Silver, which also got a goal for winning one of the two shootouts.

Mike Santorelli had a pair of goals for Blue and linemate Martin Erat added one. Blue also got a goal by winning one of two shootouts.

Coach Barry Trotz said Santorelli "had the right mind-set going in. We tried to give him some confidence by playing with Legwand and Erat, and it showed.''

Cutting down: The Predators trimmed 12 players, leaving 44 in camp.

Most of the 2009 draft picks — Taylor Beck, Gabriel Bourque, Michael Latta and Charles-Olivier Roussel — were returned to their respective junior teams.

Scott Brannon, John Decaro, Mike McLean, Jacob Muzzin, Brock Sheahan, Arvid Stromberg, Pierre-Alexandre Vandall and Mark Van Guilder were released from the pro/amateur tryout agreements.

Link...

I read Jonathan Blum may be part of this a s well

[bigjohnson]

Give me Wilson and Blum or Tootoo and a 1st round pick

[chilly666]

Originally Posted by bigjohnson

Give me Wilson and Blum or Tootoo and a 1st round pick

hahaha wilson isn't goin anywhere...and i would be shocked as well if blum is a part of it as well.

[bigjohnson]

Originally Posted by chilly666

hahaha wilson isn't goin anywhere...and i would be shocked as well if blum is a part of it as well.

blum+radulov and a pick. deal is going to happen soon.