SB Nation - Kyle Turris

SBNation NHL Preview: 2009-2010 Phoenix Coyotes

OdinMercer — Sat, 26 Sep 2009 10:00:33 -0000

by Matt York - AP

April 11, 2010: Phoenix Coyotes captain Shane Doan talks about how he helped lead the Phoenix Coyotes into the 6th Seed in the Western Conference... Hopefully.

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The struggles of this NHL franchise in the desert have been well documented all summer long. We're still waiting for a decision as to the long term future of the team, but they're here for this season and all the speculation in the world won't change a preview of the team will it? (No, it won't) We're just one short week away from the season opener so now it's down to the nuts and bolts of what the on ice product is going to look like.

The upside of this team is that with the exception of Olli Jokinen and some fourth line forwards and 5/6 pairing Dmen, this is the same team that went into the All-Star break in 5th place in the Western Conference. The team promptly fell apart after the break with all the rumors about the financial troubles and the general lack of experience. With some more mid-aged experience to bridge the gap between the veteran and the kids, there really is a lot of potential for a breakout year.

Amid all the uncertainty this summer, just on Thursday the Coyotes signed a new head coach in the form of Dave Tippett following Wayne Gretzky's resignation. Tippett brings with him a proven system that has proven results in Dallas. While he's a little late to the party in terms of training camp, there's a lot of talent for him to work with here in Phoenix. This biggest question mark with this team is how they'll react to all the media that will be focused on them, especially at the beginning of the season. If they're able to turn it into an us against the world type of situation then we could have a strong start. If, on the other hand, they react like they did down the stretch last season and turn all that inward and implode it'll be a disaster. There's not a whole lot of room for error this year as the team needs to show outside observers and potential fans in the valley that the team is the real deal.

Without a whole lot of budget room to work with this summer, GM Don Maloney put together a pretty decent lineup. He did especially well filling in the defensive holes that have plagued the team the last few years. The spots that had been held by any combination of Ken Klee, Dimitri Kalinin and David Hale have now been filled with Adrian Aucoin and Jim Vandermeer. Aucoin has some offensive ability but is a good puckmover, while Vandermeer is all about defense. Along with the existing defense of Zbynek Michalek, Kurt Sauer, Ed Jovanovski and Keith Yandle this year's blueline pairs look solid.

At Forward, some of the youth has been sent down to San Antonio already to get a little more experience. Viktor Tikhonov and Kyle Turris are the biggest names to be sent to the farm. Turris needs to just grow since he's a small little twig man and Tikhonov just needs more experience. He had a solid time on the PK with the big club last year, but he had a weak camp and needs more time to develop. I expect to see both at times this year though. In Camp Brett MacLean and Kevin Porter have both played well and will Challenge for a roster spot. MacLean tore up the OHL in the 06-07 and 07-08 seasons (going 47-53-100 and 61-58-119 respectively) before moving to the AHL last year. In 74 games on a pretty bad San Antonio team he was able to go 21-19-40. If he can bring some scoring touch to the team that would be great. Most of the roster though is already set. Shane Doan will once again captain the team and be his usual awesome self.Peter Mueller and Martin Hanzal are now entering their third seasons. Both will be looking for new contracts this summer and both need to pick up their games to get good ones. Mueller hit the Sophomore slump HARD and needs to find his scoring touch again. Hanzal was a solid Defensive forward, and had flashes of offense here and there last season. He needs to simply shoot the puck though, he has a cannon of a shot, but he tends to pass a little too much when he has chances. Other notables are Mikkel Boedker who had a pretty good rookie year, Radim Vrbata, who returns to the club and Scottie Upshall who needs to deliver on the potential everyone says he has.

Ilya Bryzgalov will continue to hold down the starting spot this season. Jason LaBarbera was brought in to back him up, but i'm not seeing anything in LaBarbera that makes me think he's going to give Bryz the competition everyone thinks he needs. Bryz has been on the decline, but with this year's defensive unit he needs to show he can get the job done.

Who's in: C Vernon Fiddler, LW Lauri Korpikoski, D Adrian Aucoin, D Jim Vandermeer, LW Taylor Pyatt, RW Radim Vrbata, D Sami Lepisto, G Jason LaBarbera, D Shaun Heshka,

Who's Out: Enver Lisin, Nigel Dawes, Brandon Prust, Brian McGrattan, Steven Reinprecht, Joakim Lindstrom, Demitri Kalinin, Ken Klee, David Hale, Todd Fedoruk

Who's Up?: (Players up from AHL) Brett MacLean, Kevin Porter and David Schlemko

Who's Down?: (Demotions) Kyle Turris and Viktor Tikhonov

Depth Chart:

C - Matthew Lombardi, Martin Hanzal, Vernon Fiddler, Kevin Porter, Daniel Winnik

LW - Mikkel Boedker, Lauri Korpokoski, Petr Prucha, Taylor Pyatt, Brett MacLean

RW - Shane Doan, Peter Mueller, Scottie Upshall, Radim Vrbata,

D - Zbynek Michalek, Kurt Sauer, Ed Jovanovski, Keith Yandle, Adrian Aucoin, Jim Vandermeer

G - Ilya Bryzgalov, Jason LaBarbera, Al Montoya

Season Prediction: The Coyotes make it into the playoffs. Why? Because they have to. It's the only end that makes sense for this crappy story so far. I'm not saying we win the division or anything crazy like that, but bringing in Tippett and an honest to god system instead of an ever changing one can only do good things for this team. Like I said earlier, this team is packed with potential. We saw small parts of that potential realized in the first part of last season. The key is to keep it going through April and hopefully into May. I think Tippett is able to get them to do just that. He brings the mustache back and leads the Coyotes to a 7th place finish in the West and at least make the playoffs interesting. Feel good story of the year and everything. David Shoalts and Canadian media outlets complain about how our playoff spot wasn't given to Edmonton automatically.

Poll

Where in the Western Conference standings do you think the Phoenix Coyotes will finish in the 2009-2010 season?

1st

5 votes

2nd

3 votes

3rd

2 votes

4th

2 votes

5th

8 votes

6th

12 votes

7th

14 votes

8th

15 votes

9th

6 votes

10th

3 votes

11th

0 votes

12th

7 votes

13th

4 votes

14th

7 votes

15th (Banned)

17 votes

105 votes | Poll has closed

Predictions sure to go wrong: 2009-10 Western Conference preview

Hooks Orpik — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 13:30:40 -0000

With the new season right around the corner, everyone's got outlooks for you. I decided to make a quick and dirty look at teams, their key star player and a young gun. Here's the order of expected finish, which from my past with the Western Conference usually means I'll peg 6 of the 8 playoff teams correctly but the order will be butchere.

15. Phoenix/Hamilton/Saskatoon/Kansas City/Winnipeg Coyotes

Outlook: What a mess this whole thing is. While Penguins fans can empathize with the status of an uncertain franchise this is a whole new degree of craziness. On the ice the team has a decent young core, but so much is up in the air and unsettled it's hard to imagine anything gelling. Of course all of these ownership questions and problems are not the fault of the players, but they're the ones that are going to have to deal with it.

How they could make this prediction wrong: By somehow blocking out the myriad of distractions and unique problems of the mess they're surrounded by and rallying amongst themselves. The arena figures to be about empty this year, it'll almost literally be that group of young players against the world. Not much in the way of fans, not much of a budget, who knows who owns them....Yep welcome to the NHL.

Player to watch: Shane Doan [82 games, 31 goals, 42 assists last season]
Young gun: Kyle Turris [62 gp, 13g, 23a]

The rest for you after the jump...

14. Colorado Avalanche

Outlook: Rebuilding in Colorado is well under way and another season of struggles is expected for an organization trying out a 1st year general manager and a 1st year head coach. The Avs are a team in transition, they shed Ryan Smyth but still (momentarily at least) have vets like Milan Hejduk and Adam Foote around.

How they could make this prediction wrong: Matt Duchene turns out to be the real deal, right from jump street and Craig Anderson shows he can be a true #1 goalie.

Player to watch: Paul Stastny [45 games, 11 goals, 25 assists last season]
Young gun: Duchene [rookie]

13. Nashville Predators

Outlook: Working on a tight budget, Nashville hasn't been able to bring in many outside free agents, though they did well to retain the oft-injured Steve Sullivan. Scoring depth up front worries me, in addition to Sullivan, as top forwards like Jason Arnott, David Legwand and Martin Erat all missed time with injury and aren't considered ironmen. If a couple of them go down, so will Nashville in the standings.

How they could make this prediction wrong: Goalie Pekka Rinne proves last year was no fluke and has enough help from a good blueline to overcome what figures to be not much in the way of offensive support.

Player to watch: Shea Weber [81 games, 23 goals, 30 assists last season]
Young gun: Colin Wilson [rookie]

12. Edmonton Oilers

Outlook: One old goalie (Dwayne Roloson) out, one old goalie (Nikolai Khabibulin) in for Edmonton. There's always a big group clumped up, so even though I have them 12th, they could have a strong season and just miss the playoffs by a point or two. Edmonton has a talented but still relatively unproven group of young players who could put them over the top or could let them down.

How they could make this prediction wrong: Dustin Penner earns his millions and that young core players like Robert Nilsson, Andrew Cogliano, Sam Gagne, Gilbert Brule and Rob Schremp all make a big push this season.

Player to watch: Ales Hemsky [72 games, 23 goals, 43 assists last season]
Young gun: Gagne [76 gp, 16g, 25a]

11. Dallas Stars

Outlook: Dallas imploded last year with Sean Avery and Brett Hull fiascos, but they look to quietly build from within now. Defensively the Stars don't seem that impressive, but the loss of Sergei Zubov might not sting so bad considering he missed almost the entire year last season.

How they could make this prediction wrong: If Marty Turco and Brad Richards (now said to be finally healthy) both revert to form, it's not a stretch imagining Dallas playing into May. Keeping Brenden Morrow and Jere Lehtinen in the lineup is going to be crucial as well.

Player to watch: Mike Ribeiro [82 games, 22 goals, 56 assists last season]
Young gun: James Neal [77 gp, 24g, 13a]

10. Columbus Blue Jackets

Outlook: Columbus made the playoffs for the first time in franchise history last season, now they look to get back with mainly the same cast of characters.

How they could make this prediction wrong: Steve Mason avoids a sophomore slump and has another Vezina-worthy season, there's no doubt the BJ's are back in the playoffs.

Player to watch: Rick Nash [78 games, 40 goals, 39 assists last season]
Young gun: Nikita Filatov [8gp, 4g, 0a]

9. Minnesota Wild

Outlook: Long last, the days of trap hockey are done in Minnesota. With Chuck Fletcher and Todd Richards about to take what they learned in Pittsburgh, Wilkes-Barre and San Jose, expect the Wild to start playing a more aggressive brand of hockey. Through free agency they swapped high-profile European oft-injured skill wingers welcoming Martin Havlat and bidding farewell to Marian Gaborik.

How they could make this prediction wrong: First time head coach Richards gets the most out of his team in a Bylsma-esque setting. Veterans Owen Nolan and Petr Sykora are going to need to have a little more left in the tank than most believe as well.

Player to watch: Havlat [81 games, 29 goals, 48 assists last season in Chicago]
Young gun: Benoit Pouliot [37 gp, 5g, 6a]

Later today....The order of the playoff teams in the West...

Game Recap: Kings v. Coyotes SuperSeries

RudyKelly — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 18:46:18 -0000

More photos » by Chris Carlson - AP

Man, Opie's really pissed that someone killed his wife.

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-Staples had maybe 8,000 people there for their preseason game against the Coyotes; Peter Mueller remarked, "Hey, this is just like playing at home!"

-Above you'll see young Kevin Westgarth fighting ~~Grendel~~ Mitch Fritz. It was a spirited contest but I think Fritz won the fight because Westgarth tried to block every one of Fritz' punches with his face. Fun fact: Richard Clune got into a fight at the same time as Westgarth and beat the piss out of Stefan Meyer. A Kings goon that I actually like? It may just happen.

-The Kings' top line of Justin Williams-Anze Kopitar-Ryan Smyth played about 20 minutes of the game. Justin Williams had a really nice individual effort that led to a goal, toe-dragging around a sliding Coyote and then getting his own rebound to bury the goal. Ryan Smyth drew a penalty (he just has one of those faces you want to smash) and screened the goaltender on 2 Kings' goals. Kopitar just kind of skated around, he didn't do much.

-Ted Purcell was probably the Kings' best forward on the night, tallying a goal and an assist and making several nice plays to create opportunities, especially on the power play. It'll be interesting to see what happens to him, as he plays the same position on the power play that Kopitar and Frolov usually occupy (that half-wall on the left side). He also won a few good corner battles and looked noticeably bigger than he used to. He's going to make the team, I am almost 100% sure.

-Andrei Loktionov and Oscar Moller were Purcell's linemates and both looked pretty much the same: good skaters, a few nice plays, but very small and easily pushed around. The Kings should put them both in Manchester and let them grow for a year.

-Brayden Schenn had a few nice hits and Kyle Clifford used his body well, but they were kind of invisible for most of the night. Clifford was in front of the net on one play and got pushed in the back by Keith Yandle, then looked like a jackass when he dropped his gloves and Yandle just skated away. We'll see them in a few years.

-Juraj Mikus (pronounced "Mee-koosh," which is incredibly fun to say) had a few nice plays and didn't seem out of place on NHL ice. I don't remember if he can go down to Manchester or if he's going back to Europe and I can't really be bothered to do "research" or whatever it's called, but he didn't look like a dick out there so that's something.

-Drew Doughty looks bigger. He had the biggest hits of the night, including a bomb on Ryan Holweg, although he didn't really try to do too much outside of one nice rush up the ice that resulted in a penalty for the Coyotes.

-Thomas Hickey had one play where he grabbed a puck behind the net by skating backwards, collected the puck when it came between his legs and then passed cross-ice to a streaking Justin Williams. It made my dick flutter. He just looks better than Davis Drewiskie, at least for what the Kings need in a defenseman, but I won't mind if he logs heavy minutes in Manchester for a year.

-Colten Teubert, on the other hand, looked like dog shit. There was a sequence in the 2nd where he got burned to the outside by Taylor Pyatt, slashed Pyatt, punched him in the face, and then got the shit kicked out of him. He ended up with 9 minutes in penalties and gave the Coyotes a 4-minute power play. I don't know what the hell is wrong with him; it's like he thinks the quickest way to the NHL is by being a goon. Just play smart hockey, dickhead, and you'll make the league someday. Right now it's not looking too likely.

-Jack Johnson... is really good in the preseason. He had 2 goals, one a power play slap shot, the other a really nice move on a 4-on-3 for the Coyotes where he burst ahead of Kyle Turris, put it between a Coyote's legs and then roofed it backhand over Al Montoya. He was the Kings' best defenseman last night. Can he do that in the NHL? We'll see.

-Rob Scuderi... huh. He was mostly invisible, which is good for a guy like him, although he made a brutal pass that led to one Coyotes goal (update: it didn't lead to a goal, it led to a penalty shot that missed) and deflected another into his own net. I'll chalk it up to early Cup hangover.

-Joe Piskula is someone we will all soon forget.

-Jon Bernier looked... okay, I guess. I'm dubious about him supplanting Jon Quick someday because he's so small to be a pure butterfly goaltender, but we'll see. He didn't have much to do all night and 2 of the goals were fluky (the Scuderi tip and a ridiculous goal by Michael Boedker that he shot from about 1/2 an inch from the goal line... although Bernier kind of caused that one by leaving it behind the net instead of flipping it to Doughty, so I guess that's his fault).

-The Kings really only had one power play line on the game, but it worked pretty well. They had Smyth in front of the net, Moller around the net to collect rebounds, Purcell on the halfboards to run things, and Johnson and Justin Williams on the backend. I don't necessarily like the idea of having a forward playing defense on both power play units (Jarret Stoll being the other), but Williams did look pretty good back there.

-In the other game at Jobing.com Arena (nice name) the Kings fell, 4-2. Both Kings goals were by Wayne Simmonds, who could have a big year offensively if he's playing with Frolov. The Kings need to re-sign Craig Conroy and run a line of Frolov-Conroy-Simmonds so my heart can swell like the Grinch.

-There was this old couple in front of my brother and me that kept getting more and more hands on with one another the more they drank. It was horrifying. When Johnson scored his beautiful 2nd goal they immediately stood up and started making out. My brother and I thought of showing them up by going down on one another but we wanted to watch the rest of the game.

3 Stars:

1) Jack Johnson

2) Drew Doughty

3) Justin Williams

I'll have a look at the position battles that will kick into high gear this week (with a special guest!) coming up either tonight or tomorrow.

Coyotes Open Training Camp Practices Start Today

OdinMercer — Sun, 13 Sep 2009 07:00:28 -0000

More photos » by Paul Connors - AP

The Great One won't be the one leading camp this year.

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Officially camp actually started yesterday, but the first public practices start today at 9:00 am. Here's a look at those invited to camp this year. There are a few names in there that you might recognize from around the league that have not signed with the Coyotes. Ryan Hollweg formerly with Toronto, Aaron Downey from Detroit, Ross Lupaschuk from Anaheim and the KHL and Mitch Fritz from the Islanders. None of them have particularly impressive resumes, but I imagine they're trying out for the position of "Hey someone got hurt, call us up from San Antonio."

Wayne Gretzky, doesn't look to be coming to camp as of today, Ulf Samuellson will be leading in his place. With Wayne's contract situation in the air due to the bankruptcy mess, he simply decided he wasn't going to be there. But I guess Coyotes fans will be getting what a large portion of them had wanted for some time, Wayne out as head coach.

I'll update and repost the list as cuts are made.

Forwards		Defence		Goaltenders
Justin Bernhardt	Mikkel Boedker	Jonas Ahnelov	Nick Ross	Ilya Bryzgalov
Jeff Hoggan	Peter Mueller	Adrian Aucoin	Ed Jovanovski	Joel Gistedt
Kevin Porter	Taylor Pyatt	Shaun Heshka	Michael Stone	Josh Tordjman
Matt Watkins	Scottie Upshall	Chris Frank	Ross Lupaschuk	Jason LaBarbera
David Spina	Francis Lessard	Mathieu Brodeur	Zbynek Michalek	Al Montoya
Vernon Fiddler	Mitch Fritz	Sean Sullivan	Kurt Sauer
Martin Hanzal	Ryan Hollweg	Sean Zimmerman	Sami Lepisto
Lauri Korpikoski	Jordan Szwarz	Tim Billingsley	Keith Yandle
Daniel Winnik	Radim Vrbata	Justin Weller	Jim Vandermeer
Viktor Tikhonov	Andrew Orpik	David Schlemko	Jeff May
Colin Long	Aaron Downey
Shane Doan	Chad Kolarik
Matthew Lombardi	Brett MacLean
Stefan Meyer	Joel Perrault
Petr Prucha	Jared Staal
Kyle Turris

A Conversation about the Phoenix Coyotes with Five for Howling

John Fischer — Sat, 08 Aug 2009 15:12:34 -0000

More photos » by Marcio Jose Sanchez - AP

These are the Phoenix Coyotes, celebrating a goal. Also pictured: expected salary-eater, Ed Jovanovski. Let's learn more about this team. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)

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During this offseason, there is plenty of time available as we await training camp and the 2009-10 season to actually begin. Plenty of time to reflect, to analyze, and to learn. Among the SB Nation hockey blog network, we have decided to ask questions of a team in the opposite conference. Given that the Devils don't play too many Western conference opponents, we may not know much about them. And the only way to find answers is to seek them out (I think that's from a book, but whatever). Call it, a Summer Fill, if you will. It's taking place across the network even as you read this (example: Tampa Bay and Detroit.)

In any case, I had a conversation with Odin Mercer of Five for Howling - a Phoenix Coyotes blog - to learn more about each other's teams. We split up the questions and posted up the our respective responses. Odin has the questions he had about the Devils and my response already up at Five for Howling. What follows after the jump are my questions about the Phoenix Coyotes and his responses.

I encourage you to check out Five for Howling and engage in the discussion there, perhaps you have something to add that I missed about the Devils. I also encourage you to comment on any other questions or thoughts you have about the Coyotes. I'll pass on any interesting questions to Odin and if there's enough, we could have a follow-up to this post.

John Fischer: OK. First question, and it's the obligatory and ONLY one regarding this situation: How long will the Coyotes stay in Phoenix?

Odin Mercer: For the foreseeable future. If the court accepts the Reinsdorf bid, the only official bid that keeps the team in phoenix, then there's no way that the Glendale lease gets broken in the near future. Everyone talks about them bailing after a couple years but Glendale will still be there and won't be putting any out clauses into the lease.

John Fischer: Most recently, Devils fans saw the Coyotes come to the Rock last season and saw a guy by the name of Josh Tordjman get lit up pretty well. [Here's my recap of that game, a 5-2 Devils win.] Not exactly a fair representation of the team, perhaps. So let's start there. Who are the netminders for the Coyotes and how are confident are you in them for this coming season?

Odin Mercer: Well, Ilya Bryzgalov will be the starter the majority of the time. He's solid when the team can play D in front of him, but if teams get to him early he can get in his head and then implode. We also signed Jason LaBarbera in the offseason to back him up. I don't think there's too much danger of him stealing the starting role, but he can at least step up for a game or two if we need him. Al Montoya is the young guy to keep watching. He came in for the last 4 games of the season and went 3-1 with a shutout. They weren't pressure filled games, but he could be in the NHL in the not too distant future. So long as Bryz stays healthy we should be okay in goal though.

John Fischer: Now, speaking of the Islanders, the Coyotes are at least a little similar in that younger players have significant roles on the team. Which of those younger players have been doing well with Phoenix so far?

Odin Mercer: We do have a lot of young guys on the team. I think depending on who was on the roster from game to game we went back and forth with the Hawks on being the youngest in the league. I think Martin Hanzal has been huge for us. He's not scoring tons of goals, but he's a big kid and can be the 2nd or 3rd center. He's very good on the defensive end as well. Mikkel Boedker is probably my favorite of last year's rookies, he wasn't super consistent in his first year, but he's great with the puck and makes some incredible moves.

	GP	G	A	P	+/-	PIM	PPG	SHG	GWG	GTG	SOG	PCT
2008 - Mikkel Boedker	78	11	17	28	-6	18	2	0	3	0	116	9.5

John Fischer: Let's talk a little more about Boedker. He's entering his second season of hockey. Do you think he'll hit the sophomore slump hard, or do you think he'll rise above?

Odin Mercer: It's always hard to tell with young guys. Peter Mueller is an example of one of our kids that really hit that slump in year two. The thing is though, to everyone watching you can tell what the problem is but no one was fixing it. So I think a lot of it will have to do with who's there to help when he hits an inevitable rough patch or two. The other thing he has going for him is that while he played well, he wasn't this massive producer that's going to be leaned on to win the game. With all the young guys that pressure kind of gets spread around so hopefully it won't have too much of an effect.

John Fischer: Fair enough. The Devils got a big taste of that with Zajac, who had an excellent third season which was parlayed into a nice contract for him and a lot of love for him here. Maybe the Coyotes' third year players will have the same effect?

Odin Mercer: They could. Hopefully they don't do too well though so we can sign them to reasonable deals.

John Fischer: Speaking of third year players, how's Kyle Turris?

Odin Mercer: Kyle is small.

Kyle Turris

#91 / Center / Phoenix Coyotes

Height: 6-1

Weight: 180

Born: Aug 14, 1989

How is he: Small

John Fischer: Seriously.

Odin Mercer: He's a good player, but I think he got rushed a bit. He just wasn't ready to be in the NHL full time. His size doesn't help. He's got little chicken legs and especially at the beginning of the year was getting shoved all over the place. He got better about shrugging off the checks as the year went on. He may have to fight for his spot in camp this year - which may not be a bad thing. He'll be a great player at some point, but we'll have to see what shape he is come camp time. If he puts on a little more muscle, then that will help his game a ton.

John Fischer: Now, what do you make of the current Coyote's defense? What would you say their overall style would be (e.g. physically-inclined, etc.)

Odin Mercer: It's hard to say. Every pairing seems to bring something different. The Zbynek Michalek - Kurt Sauer tandem led the league in blocked shots. Keith Yandle is a little more offensive minded and has started to find his Game. Ed Jovanovski just needs to decide who he wants to be again. Does he want to lay the other team out with the hits he can make? Or try and be the scoring defenseman? Last year he couldn't decide and ended up not being either one. We added Adrian Aucoin and Jim Vandermeer who aren't exactly offensive forces in the off season but can eat up minutes. I think if I had to go with a "style" I'd say they're going to prevent a lot of shots from the beginning. Not necessarily from checks, but from blocks and other methods.

John Fischer: What do you expect out of Ed Jovanovski next season?

Odin Mercer: I expect nothing except for him to eat salary at this point. Seriously. I find that it's better to not expect much from him and be surprised. I was so frustrated with him last year. There were times he literally assisted on other team's goals. Not just turned it over or the neutral zone or something, but stick to stick to the other team for a goal. It's aggravating to pay 6 million for that. If he can just get back to hitting and denying the puck and not even thinking about scoring, that will make me happy.

	GP	G	A	P	+/-	PIM	PPG	SHG	GWG	GTG	SOG	PCT
2008 - Ed Jovanovski	82	9	27	36	-15	106	6	0	3	0	194	4.6

John Fischer: Let's talk about the fans. What is the general atmosphere at a Coyotes game?

Odin Mercer: It depends. At the beginning of the year it's pretty good, people are at the games, the arena is mostly full, but once we hit rough spots it becomes harder to fill. The other problem is that I think the casual fan doesn't really know what to do at a hockey game. They don't know what to cheer for or when to do what. I've had friends shushed at the games for cheering by people that don't really get it. I think there's some fan education that needs to happen there. But mainly when the team does well the crowds show up. We had it going pretty well until we tanked after the break last year. We just need some sort of success and the fans will come and make the arena rock. Which it needs to. It's a beautiful arena and one of the best hockey venues in the league, but it needs to be full of fans.

John Fischer: What is Wayne Gretzky's style of coaching? Other than, not good enough?

Odin Mercer: It's hard to say. There are times when he's not even at the practices and lets the assistants do it. On the bench he can be fiery, but like too many coaches these days, he often starts blending up the lines after the first shift. It's hard to keep track of who's playing with whom. The blender gets old really fast. It would be one thing if there wasn't chemistry between guys, but if a line has one or two of games but was previously successful it gets blown up.

John Fischer: That sounds like Brent Sutter in '07-'08.

Odin Mercer: Yeah. It's even hard to tell what style of play he's going for from night to night. Makes me wonder if he even knows what it is. If there's one good thing to come out of this mess it's that if Reinsdorf wins Gretz is done coaching us and we can see if it was him or our guys.

John Fischer: Who would you want coaching the Coyotes?

Odin Mercer: That's a good question. I'm not really sure who would work for us. Dave Tippett is a name I've heard mentioned a few times. He's played against us enough to know what works/doesn't on our team too. He got a raw deal in Dallas for last year too. How much was he supposed to do with half the team on the IR? He might want to pound the Stars 6 times a year.

John Fischer: I would have liked him in NJ, but my understanding is that he wanted some time off?

Odin Mercer: I'm not sure. There have been plenty of other issues to deal with before the looking for a new coach phase.

John Fischer: Of course.

I hope you got plenty of information out that as much as I did. I would like to give a big thanks to Odin at Five for Howling for responding to my questions and for taking part in this effort to fill the summer time up. Again, leave any comments and questions about the Coyotes here.

Grease the Tires and Light the Fires: Getting Ready for Next Season

Gootzman — Sun, 21 Jun 2009 05:58:55 -0000

More photos » by David Zalubowski - AP

8 months ago: Phoenix Coyotes right winger Mikkel Boedker, of Denmark, celebrates his goal with teammates against the Colorado Avalanche in the first period of an NHL hockey game in Denver on Wednesday, April 1, 2009. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

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With the financial situation of the Phoenix Coyotes becoming clearer in recent days, General Manager Don Maloney has been able to draw a more accurate picture of what his plan will be for the organization this summer as the franchise looks to fill holes and get ready for next season.

The year was going well for the Phoenix Coyotes. They went into the All Star Break fighting for the 5th seed in the Western Conference, a spot they had not been familiar with since the 2001-2002 season when they finished 6th in the conference, one point behind the Chicago Blackhawks who owned the fifth seed. The situation was looking strong and Don Maloney was in line of getting the team into the playoffs for the first time since that year.

However, the team began to unravel. The Coyotes could not get going again and went on a stretch where they lost 12 of their next 15 games. They were held to one goal or less in 8 of those games, including being shut out in back to back games and a scoreless drought which spanned over 180 minutes, the equivalent of three games. Inconsistent and poor play on the part of many players contributed to the rapid decline as rookies could not find a scoring touch and the veterans were snake bitten. Goaltender Ilya Bryzgalov kept the team in many games but the inability to score on the Coyotes' part led to a padding of his loss column. When he failed, the team was doomed.

The trade deadline saw a better team coming together, winning five of their last seven games, but it was not enough as the team finished 13th in the Western Conference and out of a top five draft lottery spot.

There are many problems that this team needs to address and as I have mentioned throughout the season it starts behind the bench. Head Coach Wayne Gretzky and his staff are not the coaching staff needed to run this team. If this was a team of veteran players then Gretzky's approach may work but with such a young team, the players need someone who can teach and guide the team through good times and bad. Coaching experience is an aspect of the game that often gets overlooked but it is necessary for a team to succeed, especially if the situation involves a young team. There are a couple of candidates that should be considered by Don Maloney for the coaching position:

Peter Laviolette: With a Stanley Cup on his resume', Laviolette should be a man that is considered for the job. He worked hard in bringing a team that did not have alot of big names in the Carolina Hurricanes to the top of the league. Despite the lockout year between the Stanley Cup year and when they finished 11th, Laviolette led a team that had veterans but relied on young players to succeed. Eric Staal was 21 and led the team in scoring both for the regular season and the playoffs while rookie goaltender Cam Ward took over for the veteran Martin Gerber and was phenomenal in the crease during that playoff run. His aggressive style of play would allow for the Coyotes to use their speed more effectively.

He may be an obvious candidate but at this point anyone would be better than Wayne Gretzky and his staff behind the bench.

On the ice the Coyotes have some work to do in re-signing players this offseason, especially young ones. Steven Reinprecht has already been shipped out and signed by the Florida Panthers with the Coyotes receiving AHL player Stefan Meyer.

Two other names that are in the unrestricted pool for the Coyotes are two defenseman. Dmitri Kalinin was acquired at the deadline from the New York Rangers in the Derek Morris trade. He had four points for the Coyotes in his 15 games with the team and was solid on the back end as well. Depending on his price, Kalinin would provide depth to the blue line and some offensive abilities that may have been missing on the back end.

Ken Klee is the other defenseman. He was picked up off waiver during the season from the Anaheim Ducks. He may not be known for scoring points anymore, finishing with 11 points in 68 games but his work with young defenseman Keith Yandle helped his development tremendously on both sides of the puck. Klee may be getting up there in years but another year in the NHL to lead and teach a young blue line will provide a significant benefit to the growth of the young players on the blue line like Yandle and Zbynek Michalek.

It is on the restricted free agent front that the Coyotes management will be looking to spend the money they have in bringing back young players:

Scottie Upshall: Acquired from Philadelphia for Daniel Carcillo, Upshall provided a spark to the anemic offense of the Coyotes. In 19 games with Phoenix, he had 13 points, 8 goals and 5 assists. His speed was refreshing to watch as he drove to the net and his offensive abilities began to blossom. Phoenix did not have alot of fire power on the wings this season but Upshall will be looked at to make up for it next season. Don Maloney must sign Upshall.

Petr Prucha: The young sparkplug came over from the New York Rangers in the Derek Morris trade and he had an immediate impact on the team. His hardworking style of play got him 10 points, 2 goals and 8 assists, in 19 games with the Coyotes as he got time on the top line and on the power play. He has guts and a great work ethic, using it to score thirty goals in his rookie year with the Rangers. Many have questioned whether he could do it again. He has the offensive skills to do so but he needs the opportunity. In Phoenix he will get that opportunity and the Coyotes are hoping that it will pay off. Prucha provides more speed down the wing and needs to be re-signed. Resigned...2 year deal

Matthew Lombardi: A center acquired in the Olli Jokinen trade with Calgary, Lombardi was inserted into the top center spot on the team and had success finishing with 16 points, 5 goals and 11 assists, in 19 games with the Coyotes. Being stuck on lower lines in Calgary he was finally able to show his offensive abilities as he meshed well with Prucha and Upshall, forming a quick and skilled top line. Don Maloney was looking for established young players at the deadline and Lombardi is on the cusp of establishing himself as a skilled center in the NHL. He is another player who needs to be re-signed.

Enver Lisin: A Russian prospect who did not look to have a future in the NHL because of his lack of defensive play was developed by San Antonio Rampage Head Coach Greg Ireland, the American Hockey League affiliate of the Coyotes. Lisin was brought up and his offensive impact was felt as he finished with 21 points, 13 goals and 8 assists, in 48 games. His incredible speed down the wing helped him create offense and at times, he took over the play on the ice. His defensive play fell off towards the end of the season but a full year in the NHL will help him develop that and he can become an effective NHL scorer. In terms of skill his ceiling is very high and it needs to be developed. Bringing him back will add a whole new meaning of speed to the offensive attack of Phoenix. However, Maloney will have to compete with a recent KHL contract offered to the young Russian winger.

Joakim Lindstrom: Acquired from the Anaheim Ducks that sent defensive prospect Logan Stephenson the other way, Lindstrom was having trouble finding his place in the NHL, bouncing from the Columbus Blue Jackets, to the Ducks and finally Phoenix in a short amount of time. However in Phoenix Lindstrom did find his place as his offense finally began to arrive. Finishing with 20 points, 9 goals and 11 assists, in 44 games Lindstrom was a main source of offense towards the end of the season. His prowess in the shootout helped the Coyotes earn a few more victories but his step on the ice has gone a long way in finding his place in the NHL as he certainly has earned another chance to show off what he is capable of.

Daniel Winnik: One interesting case is that of Daniel Winnik. After a great rookie year that saw him score score 11 goals and 15 assists in 79 games, his offensive production fell to just seven points, 3 goals and 4 assists, in 49 games. He is known as a checking forward who can play both sides of the puck but Phoenix was hoping for a better offensive output. His work ethic is near the top of the team and, being a 9th round pick in the NHL Draft, the fact he has made any impact in the NHL is a small miracle. Going from the East Coast Hockey League (ECHL) to the NHL in a short span of time has shown his ability to improve, earning him another shot at impressing the Coyotes.

Nigel Dawes: The young winger came over from the Rangers in the Derek Morris trade and is known for his offense primarily. However he had trouble scoring with the Coyotes as he had just two points in twelve games for Phoenix, both of those being assists. The Rangers believed that he could become a solid goal scorer in the NHL but problems with consistency have made it hard for Dawes to accomplish this feat. He could be used as trade bait at the draft this season but with the lack of options at wing for the Coyotes and the uncertain financial situation, the Coyotes will look to bring him back.

Keith Yandle: The young defenseman made great strides this season as his defensive play greatly improved with the guidance of veteran Ken Klee. His strong point of igniting an offense was made known has he had thirty points, 4 goals and 26 assists, in 69 games. The Phoenix blue line has been considered a weakness of the team in the future but Yandle is part of the strength of the future. The team will be looking for him to take an even larger role in providing offense from the back end and will be key for them going forward. Maloney needs to re-sign Yandle.

Josh Tordjman: Playing in San Antonio for most of the season, Tordjman got a cup of coffee in the NHL towards the end of the season playing two games with Phoenix. He lost both games giving up a total of eight goals. With Bryzgalov having the top spot for the foreseeable future and the success that Al Montoya had in his NHL debut, it looks as if Tordjman will be spending another season in the AHL as the top goalie there. However his skills as a goaltender are still high and he is young with plenty of time to learn. With very little goaltending depth in the organization, Tordjman will be re-signed.

The unfortunate piece to the restricted free agent front is that other teams can put in offer sheets and send the Coyotes if they can not match the offer. However the organization and the fans are looking to get out of the rebuilding stage and into being a competitor. With very little to work with, Maloney will need to work fast to get these young players signed before July 1st when other teams can put up offer sheets and possibly outbid the Coyotes for some of this young talent.

While Phoenix will probably not be big players in the unrestricted free agent market, chances at improving the team are always available at any price. Management will have to be stingy about who they target in this market but there are gems at low prices, as Phoenix found out when they signed Kurt Sauer last summer, a stellar defensive defenseman signed at a low price. However, here are a couple of possibilities for the Coyotes:

The Sedins: I am sure that after mentioning that the Coyotes have very little money to work with, you are surprised to see the Sedin twins on this list. However, in the event that the Coyotes do get a viable owner who has money to spend, Don Maloney should go all ahead full for the Sedins. It is not assured that Daniel and Henrik will stay in Vancouver after this season. They want to stay together and a young team like Phoenix may be their chance to truly break out in the NHL. Henrik had 22 goals and 60 assists this season for 82 points in 82 games. His playmaking abilities have developed and he has become one of the elite playmakers in the Western Conference. Daniel was also a point per game player as he finished with 31 goals and 51 assists and as been known more for his scoring. If Don Maloney could get his hands on the money to sign both of these players, who want to stay together, it would go a long way in establishing a firm foundation from which Phoenix could move forward from.

Blair Betts: Regardless of what happens with the Coyotes financially, they need to look to improve their special teams. While the center position is not a weakness for the Coyotes, the penalty kill is and if they want to improve it, they should be looking at one of the best penalty killers in the league in Betts. Phoenix finished 28th in the league in penalty kill and it led to their demise down the stretch. Betts would bring a veteran presence to a young penalty killing unit and would be an option in helping a young player like Martin Hanzal who is slowly becoming a good shut down forward for the Coyotes. Betts would not be overly expensive and would provide benefits both on and off the ice for the Coyotes. Betts finished with 6 goals and 4 assists in 81 games this season, tallying a goal and 3 assists shorthanded. The New York Rangers finished first in the league on the penalty kill.

Stephane Veilleux: A left winger who has played for the Minnesota Wild his entire career, Veilleux has played for a team that has had trouble scoring because of their system. This past season he had 13 goals and 10 assists in 81 games for the Wild. He has played on one of the top penalty kills the past few years as Minnesota finished this season second on the penalty kill in the NHL. Other teams will be after his services this summer but he may fly under the radar and if he does Phoenix should be right there to get him.

As I mentioned before, the Sedins are a long shot and should only be pursued if the right financial situation is in place but other than players like Betts and Veilleux, the Coyotes should not be looking to do too much in the unrestricted market.

Phoenix will most likely not be fielding a Stanley Cup contender the next few years so draft picks are essential to the future of the team. Restricted free agents will be very hard to go after considering all the restricted players that need to be signed for the Coyotes and the little amount of money that could easily be matched or outbid. Giving up draft picks that could result in high draft positions is too risky for a team that is relying on young players and their development for success.

What the Coyotes who do not need to be signed need to do is improve, greatly. Captain Shane Doan had a career season and continues to improve on a mediocre team as he scored 31 goals and 42 assists for 73 points in 82 games. He has committed himself to this franchise when he could have gone elsewhere for more money and glory. His leadership has provided an intangible benefit to the team that many people overlook. However, he will need to continue to be a leader both on and off the ice as he is the focal point of the offense right now.

Young players were going to be the core of the team this season and, unfortunately, things did not pan out as Don Maloney and management would have liked them to. Peter Mueller had a good rookie season where he scored 54 points, including 22 goals. However he was troubled with inconsistency and injuries this season and was only able to tally 13 goals and 23 assists in 72 games. He was being counted on to improve his play and numbers but it did not happen for the young winger. This offseason he will be working hard to get back into optimum game shape after suffering a concussion late in the season. The expectations of the team and of himself will drive him to make him do much better next season

Martin Hanzal, another sophomore for Phoenix, was a bright spot for the team. He may not have improved on his rookie total scoring 11 goals and 20 assists this season but his defensive play was stellar as he was put up against some of the big centers in the Western Conference like Ryan Getzlaf, Joe Thornton, and Anze Kopitar. He matured as a two way forward which benefitted the Coyotes and was on their penalty kill. However, he needs to use his large frame more and improve on his offensive totals.

Rookies made their debuts for the Coyotes and they were being thrown right into the fire as they were immediately relied upon for offense. Kyle Turris was the big name for first year players. The team had high hopes that he would have a great rookie year on the score sheet. Unfortunately Turris had trouble with his small frame in producing as much as the Coyotes would have liked him to as he had 8 goals and 12 assists for 20 points in 63 games. However with a year now under his belt Turris can prepare this offseason both physically and mentally for the rigors of the NHL season. His second season will be important to his development as a young player.

Danish forward Mikkel Boedker jumped right from the Kitchener Rangers of the Ontario Hockey League to the Phoenix Coyotes as the 8th overall pick in the 2008 NHL Entry Draft. This season he scored 11 goals and 17 assists for 28 points in 78 games. Boedker's chemistry with former Phoenix Coyote Olli Jokinen was stellar in helping him put points on the board while his speed helped him put space between himself and some of the bigger defenders in the Western Conference. Like Turris, Boedker's big issue is in size. Bulking up while keeping his speed and hands will be key to Boedker's success in his second season where Phoenix will be looking for more of an offensive output.

A wild card to make the team, Russian forward Viktor Tikhonov was noted more for his grandfather's reputation than for his play on the ice. However Tikhonov showed why so many teams were after the young forward at the draft last year as he tallied 8 goals and 8 assists for 16 points in 61 games. He needs to learn bulk up his frame a bit but there is no doubt the kid has potential to be a good player in the league and for the Phoenix Coyotes in the future.

Every rookie will need to improve their play if the team wants to be successful now and in the future which means putting in the summer work and coming back to training camp ready to go. Conditioning has been a problem with this team and has led to its downfalls late in seasons. It must be improved if the Coyotes want to take the next step forward. They showed that they have the skill to compete in the Western Conference but they need the physical endurance to stay at that high level for an extended period of time.

What actually happens this offseason with the Coyotes is a great mystery to everyone following the NHL. The battle between Jim Balsillie and the NHL will be branding the headlines for the foreseeable future as a fight for the franchise will continue. Coyotes fans are hoping that there will be a hockey team at Jobing.com Arena this October and for many years to come while critics of Gary Bettman and his initiative to bring hockey to untraditional hockey markets are hoping there will be an empty arena. However what ever the outcome of the financial battle, general manager Don Maloney will need to have a course of action that will field a competitive hockey team no matter where it will be playing.

Count me as a hopeful it is in Phoenix.

Penguins sign prospect Casey Pierro-Zabotel to entry level contract

Hooks Orpik — Wed, 06 May 2009 00:55:51 -0000

From Oursportscentral.com:

The Pittsburgh Penguins have signed forward Casey Pierro-Zabotel to a three-year entry-level contract through 2012, it was announced today by Executive Vice President and General Manager Ray Shero. Zabotel will report to the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins of the American Hockey League (AHL).

Pierro-Zabotel is ranked by Hockey's Future as the #4 prospect in the Penguins' organization. CPZ could have been a free agent (think: Blake Wheeler) if he did not sign with the Pens before the summer started, so the fact that Pittsburgh was able to get him taken care of now that his junior career is over is a huge feather in the hat for the team.

Pierro-Zabotel is a very interesting prospect. CPZ is one of a troika of power-forward prospects--along with Luca Caputi and Eric Tangradi--that Pittsburgh is hoping can one-day develop into being top 6 NHL forwards to ride shotgun with Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin. Pierro-Zabotel was drafted in the 3rd round in 2007 80th overall by the Penguins.

CPZ did not take the "normal" Canadian junior route to become a professional. Prior to his draft year, he played in the lower tier BCHL and clearly out-shined everyone scoring (except top prospect Kyle Turris) by putting up a Mario Lemieux-esque 116 points (51 goals, 65 assists) in just 55 games in the BCHL. Pierro-Zabotel intended to go to college, but he didn't make the grades to get eligible at Michigan Tech Univeristy, so he instead headed off to the Vancouver Giants of the Western Hockey League (WHL).

Pierro-Zabotel would continue his statistical dominance in the WHL, winning the Bob Clarke Trophy [yes named after that Bobby Clarke] as the league's leading scorer with 115 points (36g, 79a) in 72 games. It should be pointed out though, that Pierro-Zabotel played in the WHL as a 19 and 20 year old against competition that included younger players again.

Now that he's a pro, Pierro-Zabotel will finally be playing up to the competition and won't be able to take advantage anymore of being superior to his opponents in age, size and skill. Also, CPZ had a linemate in Evander Kane who is expected to be a top draft pick in this summer's draft. Sometimes in juniors a player can reap the rewards from having another very talented linemate which can inflate stats.

Baby Pens beat writer Jonathan Bombulie thinks that it might not be a shock if CPZ can jump right into Wilkes-Barre's lineup this weekend for their ongoing playoff series against the Hershey Bears....The Baby Pens could use the offensive punch, as they are losing their series to Washington's affiliate 2 games to 0, just like their NHL comrades.

Pierro-Zabotel is probably going to be a boom or bust prospect. It'll be interesting to see how his transition goes this spring as well as his long-term progress towards becoming a legit NHL player.

Anaheim Ducks @ Phoenix Coyotes Preview

OdinMercer — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 23:04:38 -0000

Ahhh... Ducks are good for something...

Regular readers or those that have a scroll button on their mouse may know that we here at FfH have commited to the tank. Well, after some thought we've revised our tanking policy. From here to the end of the season we still want to end up near the bottom, but not at the expense of losing to teams such as the Ducks and Sharks. So we'll allow wins to our guys over those two division foes so long as they proudly tank to others. That way we get get our hate on at appropriate times without feeling all conflicted about it.

Five for Winning

McG: Brian McGratton is back from his stint in the AHL and the NHL Substance ABuse Program. In his first game back against the Sharks, he pummeled Jody Shelly and actually looked pretty good out there. At practice today he was one of the last guys off the ice before they let today's scratched players get worn out. I like that he's committed to both being the guy that's creating space for the young guys and not being a liability out there. He got fairly regular minutes last game so we'll see him again. He will likely be out there whenever Parros is, but you could really match him up with any of the Ducks bruisers. Him going with Pronger would be nice.

Join the Dark Side: Let the hate flow through you... we hate the Ducks, you hate the Ducks, who doesn't hate the ducks? You've got nothing else to motivate other than ruining any of the Anaheim hopes for a playoff bid. I like it.

Top Line: FInally a number one line! Doan-Turris-Mueller was great. Especially whatever telepathic link was going on with Doan and Turris who both had a hand in all of the 4 Coyote goals. WHatever they we doing worked so hopefully we keep it up.

Tenderize the Duck: In adition to that top line, the line of Fedoruk-Prust-McGratton is just physically intimidating. That line being able to shove around the other is what creates space for other lines. It was scary the other night and it'll be fun if they can get the ducks running.

BRYZZIE!: He's been lights out over the last couple of games. The key to the win was that we realized we can actually score once in a while. THat was the first time in as long as I can remember we had more than 2 in one game. GIve him support and he'll keep you in it.

GO YOTES GO!

Coyotes Recieve St. Pats' DOANation. Down Sharks 4-3.

OdinMercer — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 07:20:07 -0000

Image idea c/o Moridin417. Yeah i'll steal your thoughts.

That was an excelent finish to a pretty lively game at Jobing.com arena. We took a little deviation from our tank plan, but that's okay. We always show up to play the tough teams. Even if we don't show up for the whole thing necessarily. The Coyotes owned he first period though. At :19 seconds into it Kyle Turris came flying through the zone to wrist in a rebound off of a Shane Doan shot. It was a wicked goal and one that Turris really needed. He wasn't done yet though, later in the first he rang one off the crossbar but the team regrouped and he shot it again from the side and it trickled it past Nabokov and two other sharks. The goal was initially credited to Jovanovski since he was camped in front, but it never went off of him. To close out the period Dmitri Kalinin clanged a shapper off the post and bounced it around and in for his first goal as a Coyote. The Sharks just looked stunned and we looked like the team that was playoff bound before the All-Star Break.

Brian Boucher came in in relief of Nabby to start the Second. This was apperently the fight period as scraps were breaking out all over. Brian McGratton and Jody Shelly dropped the gloves in a heavyweight match. McG was recalled from San Antonio earlier in the day after completing the NHL substance Abuse Program. He looked great out there. He was in control of the fight and landed some bombs on SHelly. He added a little flair after the fight waiving Shelly off that reminded the fans of Danny Carcillo. Staubitz and Prust also had a go. It was mostly a hug fight, but Prust got a few good ones in late. Beyond that there was a bunch of pushing and shoving as SJ was ticked to be behind to the lowly Coyotes and the Coyotes were annoyed by being pushed. Even guys like Turris and Zbynek Michalek were chirping at the Sharks. Joe Thornton got a goal on the Power Play after a terrible penalty call and non call got them there. It was a pretty goal but the crowd was irate. Scottie Upshall got knocked around a bunch by two Sharks but somehow the penalty got called on Keith Yandle of the Yotes. I can't find a clip of it, but those type of calls are what make me wonder why more objects aren't thrown at refs. I'm not condoning it, just saying...

On to the 3rd. The Coyotes really started looking more like the team that had been losing games in this period. Thornton got his second of the game about 4 minutes in. Good move by him to score it, but it was helped by the entire Coyotes squad moving to the far side of the ice to chase the puck. Then everyone got left scrambling to get back into position to cover. Good on their side bad on ours. Marleau would tie it up at 3s at the 8:20 mark when a thornton shot rebounded straight into the slot for Marleau. The Coyotes woke back up and remembered how to play defense for the remainder of the game. They started checking again and trying to keep control of the puck. It looked like the teams would head into overtime until Jonathan Cheechoo took an interference penalty off of a face off with 33 seconds to go. With the faceoff in the Sharks' end Kyle Turris won the draw and Shane Doan was able to make a nifty move and get it past the outstreched skate of Brian Boucher for the game winner, even with Rob Blake hanging all over him.

We may have deviated from the tank plan, but it sure felt good to rain on the Sharks' parade tonight. Kyle Turris and Doan will have to share Star of the Game. Doan and Turris both ended up with 4 points each, meaning both had something to do with every goal tonight. Turris was 2-2-4 Doan 1-3-4. THat's taking a rookie under your wing for a game Doaner...

Tank Standings:

We may have won tonight, but it didn't put us any further out of the tank race. We're now in a threeway tie for 3rd pick with the Coyotes technically being ahead of Colorado and Atlanta because of our amazing inability to score goals over the losing skid.

Team GP W L OTL PTS GF GA GDiff

NY Islanders	70	24	38	8	56	176	224	-48
Tampa Bay	70	23	32	15	61	184	231	-47
Phoenix	70	29	35	6	64	172	215	-43
Colorado	71	31	38	2	64	187	221	-34
Atlanta	71	29	36	6	64	216	240	-24
Los Angeles	69	29	30	10	68	182	203	-21
Ottawa	69	29	30	10	68	181	200	-19
Anaheim	69	32	31	6	70	190	201	-11
Toronto	71	29	29	13	71	213	252	-39
St. Louis	70	32	29	9	73	196	207	-11
Dallas	70	33	29	8	74	201	215	-14
Minnesota	70	33	29	8	74	180	174	6
Edmonton	69	33	27	9	75	194	211	-17
Nashville	70	35	30	5	75	179	192	-13

The good, bad and ugly contracts in the Pacific

jamestobrien — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 17:19:50 -0000

One of the most talked-about columns this week involved the "scariest" contracts in the NHL. (Pour out a 40 for my homie Alexei Yashin)

Even before that, when I was taking a look at the could-be-improving future of the New York Islanders, crunching numbers at NHLSCAP.com became a mild obsession. Why not take a look at each team in the division, then?

Anaheim

It could be time to brace for a whirlwind of change in Duckville next year. With only Chris Pronger under contract D-wise (not counting minor leaguers), the personality of their blue line could change drastically. It's hard to imagine Scott Niedermayer coming back again, so could the Ducks be an unexpected spot for a guy like Jay Bouwmeester?

Even though the post-Burke Ducks have plenty of questions to answer, their cap situation is pretty damn impressive. Ryan Getzlaf kind of looks like a douche bag, but he's also one of the best centers in the NHL. Where he ranks on that totem pole is hard to say, but at $5.325 million per year through 2012-13, he might just be the best bargain in the league.

Corey Perry comes at the same price too, which is a brilliant brushstroke by Burke. The Ducks' two cornerstone forwards can rest assured that their feewings won't be hurt.

Teemu Selanne doesn't get enough credit for his putting-the-team-first contract decisions. He's been very cheap considering his second tier production, at a ridiculously low $2.6 million next season.

The Ducks are in a nice spot at $34 million. As Sleek mentioned, J.S. Giguere and Jonas Hiller combine for $7.3 million next season, which might be the worst value on a squad that ranks high in "bang for the buck." Then again, with a weak goaltending market, the Ducks boast one of the best big game goalies in Giguere and a very solid backup in Hiller. Cannot complain too much there.

Once the Ducks sign Sammy Pahlsson, they can focus on improving the team's offensive depth or adding another stud D. What direction should the Duckies go in next year?

(And should they trade Pronger? I'd say "no" but it's certainly an interesting topic ...)

Dallas

The scary thing for the Dallas Stars is that, compared to their Pacific competition, the window might be closing. It's not all bad in Dallas, just pretty damn bad. OK, it's almost all bad.

Let's start with the ones that are promising. The closest answer the Stars have to Perry-Getzlaf is Mike Ribeiro and Brenden Morrow, in both productivity and value. Morrow's contract is the best: he'll be only a $4.1 million cap hit until 2012-2013. Ribeiro's not too bad himself, providing a point per game type output for $5 million per year (also ending in 2012-13). Those years should cover the last prime years for both players with Ribeiro being 28 and Morrow 30.

The other solid deals run out soon but provide crucial value. Not sure if Stephane Robidas is a full-on All-Star, but for $1.5 million next year he's a steal. Trevor Daley also has a decent contract, making $2.3 million next year.

Matt "Richard" Niskanen and Nicklas Grossman will finish their rookie contracts next year, so that gives the Stars four decent starting defensemen. With a tight cap coming up (about $40.5 million devoted to 15 players), it might not be reasonable to target a Bouwmeester type blue chip.

Depending on price, the Stars might be wise to shoot for a good veteran like Mattias Ohlund.

Offensively, the Stars are stunted by some dead weight and some rough deals. Sean Avery's $3.87 million cap hit was listed as the Stars scary contract and with good reason. It is a waste of money in every sense of the word.

But Brad Richards still has one of the worst contracts in the NHL, despite decent production. If getting a superior talent in Vincent Lecavalier at nearly $1 million less per year (Vinny L's hit is $6.9) counts as frightening, then how scary is Richards' $7.8 million cap hit?

Between Richards, Avery, Morrow and Ribeiro the Stars have just a hair under $21 million committed to three solid forwards. What happens if the salary cap falls?

Considering the state of the Pacific division, it would be hard for the Stars to justify being within a stone's throw of the cap ceiling if they don't make the playoffs this year.

Los Angeles

The Kings absolutely have a bright future to look to. There's no doubt about it. The team is just chock full of budding D and bargains (with a few bumps and bruises).

My favorite contract has to be Dustin Brown's. His cap hit is only $3.175 million per year through 2013-14. Considering Brown's penchant for head bussin' and his improving scoring ability (not to mention his recent All-Star appearance), it might be the best deal in the division. If not the league.

The one good thing about Jack Johnson missing most of the season is that it might make the perennial prospect more affordable. It will be interesting to see what kind of deal the Kings sign him to. (Dare I ask if Johnson is tradeable with all the other great blue chip D in their system?)

Anze Kopitar is not worth $6.8 million just yet, but that could still be a reasonable contract as the Kings improve. Ultimately his deal is market value (in other words, not great but not awful).

The only deals that are "meh" worthy are probably for Michal Handzus ($4 million) and Jarret Stoll ($3.6 million). Still, most NHL teams would be able to live with those contracts.

The Kings look like they'll be going into the season with about $40 million in cap space plus whatever Johnson gets. They'll have to decide what direction they want to go in goaltending-wise (it might be prudent to bring in a decent veteran on a short-term deal).

What's truly interesting is that the Kings could add a legit free agent forward. It sucks for them that Zetterberg won't hit the open market, but maybe Johan Franzen could be had. (I was told that Marian Hossa is out of the question ... why?)

Either way, the Kings look great. As long as they aren't dumb enough to waste their money on Broken Marian Gaborik.

Phoenix

In a world where every team could spend to the cap, the Coyotes would be an absolute force to reckon with. Gotta love the contracts for their top forwards: Olli Jokinen's just right at $5.25 million and Shane Doan is a steal at $4.55 million for three more seasons.

It never hurts to have young, cheap stars-in-the-making either. It will be one year before the Coyotes have to re-upp Peter Mueller ($1.7 mill) and two more for Kyle Turris ($2.7 mill).

He's had some ups and downs in his first full season as a starter, but Ilya Bryzgalov's $4.25 million cap hit is about right for a young no. 1 goalie.

With Derek Morris and his humorous $3.9 million per year hit coming off the books, the only questionable deal is Jovocop's $6.5 million salary. Jovanovski is a nice combination of physicality and offensive talent, but he's just too injury prone for a team that needs to make every dollar count.

The Coyotes might usurp the Kings as the team of the future if it weren't for their oft-referenced financial "troubles." Since my knowledge of their problems is limited and I don't want to piss off the guy from Five for Howling, I'll just stay away from that sticky situation.

San Jose

For a team that was compared to the pre-lockout Colorado Avalanche, the Sharks are still in pretty decent shape going forward.

Much of their cap space will be accounted for next year: they'll be starting at $46.75 million. Really, though, the Sharks have most of their core intact next season. It's the 2010-11 season that will be tough: that's the year both Devin Setoguchi and Joe Pavelski could attract some Kevin Lowe-down offer sheets.

It's not every day that a $7.2 million cap hit is a steal, but it is for Joe Thornton. He took a discount to keep the Sharks competitive. Last year he was the hottest trade rumor gone un-traded, but Patrick Marleau is now quite reasonable at $6.3 million.

The biggest steal is probably Marc Edouard Vlasic's deal which goes for $3.1 million per year until 2012-13. Vlasic's gotten some rave reviews but I'll let our Sharks pundits cover that base.

After putting up a great season, is Dan Boyle's contract really that "scary" after all? Well, it's at least satanic: his cap hit is a devilish $6.667 per year up to 2013-14. The biggest issue is age: he's already 32 years old. It's hard to imagine him being worth that much once he hits his late 30's, but right now it's worth it.

***

As you can see, each Pacific team has its strengths and weaknesses. Overall, the division is chock full of great values (particularly in deals for team captains and power forwards) with only a handful of albatross type deals. Every team is better than the woeful New York Rangers, who better hope they get more out of Scott Gomez, Chris Drury and Wade Redden or they're going to be in the same rut Glen Sather got them in before the lockout.

Which team has the brightest future from next year to five years to 10 years from now? Who has the best contract in the division? I'd like to hear what you cats think on these subjects and more.

Poll

Which player has the best contract in the Pacific division?

Dustin Brown ($3.17 million cap hit until 2013-14)

93 votes

Shane Doan ($4.55 million cap hit until 2011-12)

6 votes

Ryan Getzlaf ($5.3 million cap hit until 2012-13)

60 votes

Brenden Morrow ($4.1 million cap hit until 2012-13)

17 votes

Marc-Edouard Vlasic ($3.1 million cap hit until 2012-13)

83 votes

Other

1 votes

260 votes | Poll has closed