NHL Transaction Madness Through 7/9

I’m just going to go over a few of the key free agent signings in the past week or so and talk about the relative impact for their teams.  I’ll also talk about some the big names that are still out there that could be good for our Boston Bruins.  Since the North East division has been kind of beefed up this offseason, I expect Chiarelli to make some kind of move for a forward or two.  Let’s get into the free agent madness though:

C Olli Jokinen – 2 years, $9M, from Calgary to Winnipeg

The 33-year-old Jokinen will be entering his 13^th NHL season this year with the Jets.  This is a pretty devastating loss for Calgary in my opinion because of the impact it will have on Jarome Iginla.  The Jokinen-Iginla 1-2 punch in Calgary had always been a great scoring combination, but once again Jokinen will be playing somewhere else.  The Jets have been having a pretty good offseason now after signing crafty center Ponikarovsky from the Devils and now Jokinen.  I predict Winnipeg’s first line consisting of the 20 year old Evander Kane (who had a breakout 57 point season last year), Jokinen and Blake Wheeler (who had 64 points last season).  I think that Jokinen will definitely bring Kane’s game up with him in Winnipeg next year, and there’s no doubt that the members of this line will all exceed 60 points next season.  Great move for the Jets, they’re going to have tremendous offensive depth next season.

LW Jiri Hudler – 4 years, $16M, from Detroit to Calgary

Nasty

Calgary lost Jokinen, but acquired Hudler who is coming off of a 50-point season in Detroit.  The 28-year-old has a great two-way game and can score, pass, play on the power play and penalty kill.  He also has some nasty dangles… check out his shootout videos on YouTube! When it comes down to it, he's a utility guy who will do whatever Calgary asks him to do.  I expect that he’ll stay behind Alex Tanguay on the depth chart only because of Jarome Iginla’s chemistry value with Tanguay, but he should be able to have a 40-50 point season with Calgary.  Despite being a little pricy, the 4-year contract will ensure strength at left wing for the Flames.

RW Jaromir Jagr – 1 year, $4.55M, from Philadelphia to Dallas

The Salute!

Yay! I can stop hating Jagr now that he’s no longer on the Flyers! Awesome move by Dallas, Jagr is well worth the price. Dallas has been having an incredible offseason so far with acquisitions including Derek Roy, Ray Whitney and now Jaromir Jagr. Jagr gives you physical play with added scoring and veteran experience.  Jamie Benn, Loui Eriksson, Michael Ryder and Ray Whitney are all 60+ point scorers for the Dallas Stars. Then you throw Derek Roy (44 points) and Jagr (54 points) in the mix and you’ve got yourself 2 exceptional lines of offensive production.  If Kari Lehtonen plays at the same level he did last season I believe the Stars have a good chance of making the playoffs.  Watch out for Dallas, they’ve got a lot of talent on the offensive end and two new old guys who will make everyone else look silly!

LW Steve Sullivan – 1 year, $1.85M, from Pittsburgh to Phoenix

This was definitely an attempt to fill the void left by Ray Whitney in Phoenix. The 38-year-old utility forward will be going into his 16^th season next year and brings a veteran presence plus leadership to Phoenix.  Phoenix had an incredible run last year, making it to the Western Conference Finals and giving the LA Kings a bit of a scare after winning two straight to come back 3-2 in the series.  However, with the loss of the Coyotes leading goal scorer, Ray Whitney, I’m not sure they will be the same team they were last year.  While Steve Sullivan is a guy who can put up between 40 and 50 points a season, he’s no Ray Whitney.  However, the Coyotes are a fairly young team (average age of 27 years old, not including goalies) and maybe Sullivan will have a bigger impact than I think in Phoenix.  He also knows how to play with superstar players like Evgeni Malkin and Sidney Crosby.  This is a more important intangible than most people think.  All in all, however, I don’t see Phoenix having the same success that they did last year.

D Jason Garrison – 6 years, $27.6M, from Florida to Vancouver

Why the Canucks, Jason… Why?!

Curse you Canucks! Why do you take away the guy that I wanted to join the Bruins? So the ‘Nucks drop Aaron Rome and pick up Jason Garrison.  Not bad… but worth a $4.6M cap hit every year? No way! I think Garrison was way overpaid for.  While the 27-year-old Garrison did score 16G and 17A last year, I don’t think he’ll continue to put up those numbers for the next 6 years.  Maybe I’m wrong though… he did have a fantastic year last year running the Panthers power play and had the third most goals as a defenseman in the NHL last year.  He can also hit and play solid defense. He’s a physical defenseman with a wicked slap shot and a high hockey IQ.  Will he continue to score like he did last year though? Doubtful. Maybe I’m just bitter that the Canucks got him instead of us… At least they overpaid him and lost that cap space, I guess?

I also wanted to include that the Nashville ‘Messiah,’ Alexander Radulov, is headed back to the KHL for another 4 years.  The kid can score, there’s no doubt about that, but the lack of effort and poor attitude landed him back in the KHL.  He applied no defensive pressure whatsoever and had a terrible playoff run with the Preds.  Hopefully more time in Russia will help his two-way game.

Radulov's Defense…

By the way, if you're reading this wondering, "Where the hell is the Parise/Suter coverage?!" read a little further back in the blog and you'll find it.  Follow me at @bearbluni and follow the blog on @SportsBlaggah for more NHL transaction news.

B's Offseason Needs

Note* I accidentally deleted the blog I wrote today… so now I’m rewriting it from memory. #BloggerProblems

There are 3 areas of concern on the Bruins roster heading into the 2012-2013.  The B’s need a top 6 forward, an offensively minded defenseman and a veteran presence for next year.  If the Bruins pursue and acquire players that fill those voids, I think they will have a very good chance of being Stanley Cup contenders for the upcoming season.  Here are 3 players that I think would be best for the job.

Throughout this blog, keep in mind that the Bruins have about $3.9M in available cap space.  In addition to this, placing Marc Savard on the long-term injury reserve could potentially free up $4M in cap space.  If Bruins GM Peter Chiarelli were also to find a way to trade away Tim Thomas’ contract, that would also free up another $5M in cap space.  So, for this blog, let’s hypothetically assume we have $12.9M in cap space to work with. 

Top 6 Forward - PA Parenteau

Coming off of an 18G/49A/67P season last year, Parenteau is one of the top playmaking free agents this offseason.  Unfortunately for him, the Islanders are going nowhere and have not actively tried to establish any sort of contract extension with him.  The 29-year-old right-winger could step up in Nathan Horton’s position if there are any lingering health issues (which, there will be).  Parenteau comes relatively cheap, probably no more than $1.75M.  After his 67-point season earning a measly $1.25M, he definitely deserves a better deal.  Parenteau is attractive for the Bruins because his best years are still ahead of him, and he wants to sign a multi-year deal with a successful team.  I think Parenteau would be a fantastic pick for the Chiarelli and the B’s.

PA Parenteau looking goofy as hell

Offensively Minded Defenseman - Jason Garrison

You read that right.  Jason Garrison of the Florida Panthers would be the best pick for the Bruins to fill this void.  Last season Garrison had an outstanding 16G, 17A and 33P.  9 of his 16 goals came on the power play, where he was also able to tally 3 power play assists.  After the Joe Corvo experiment, I can understand any concerns with “puck moving defensemen,” but I think Garrison is different. The 28 year old is bigger and stronger than Corvo, and has a more solid defensive game.  In addition to this, he comes relatively cheap.  His 2-year contract with the Panthers was only worth $1.35M, Chiarelli could easily lock him up at an affordable price, no more than $1.25M a year.

Nice shot by Jason Garrison

Veteran Presence - Jamie Langenbrunner

Although he’s not the gifted goal scorer he once was, we’re talking about the Captain for the USA Olympic team here.  A two-time Stanley Cup champion and Olympic Silver Medalist, Langenbrunner brings that veteran experience to the team similar to what Mark Recchi brought in 2011.  Although his goal scoring ability has significantly tapered off at age 36, (6G, 18A, 24P in 70GP last season) he’s a leader who can energize on and off the ice. We should also take into account what happened when Brian Rolston joined the Bruins last year.  The 39 year old had a renaissance with the Bruins, becoming a consistent point-per-game player on the third line.  Perhaps the Bruins could energize Langenbrunner as well?  Langenbrunner is a bit more expensive, costing a $2.75M cap hit, but it is not unreasonable for him to be expecting less in the future.  I could see him going for $2.25M to a team that would promise him a starting job and a chance to play out the rest of his career on a winning team. 

Captain America beating Canada's Marty Brodeur

Hypothetically speaking, these 3 acquisitions would cost around $5.25M, give or take.  This is within the Bruins spending threshold and can be done given that Marc Savard is placed on the long-term IR, and Chiarelli finds a way to get rid of the Tim Thomas cap hit.  With any luck, we’ll see one, two or hopefully all three of these players in Bruins black and gold come the beginning of the season.