SB Nation - Josh Gratton

Analyzing the Battles for Roster Spots

timmyf — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 15:30:15 -0000

2 months ago: Atlanta Thrashers goalie Ondrej Pavelec (31), of the Czech Republic, lets the puck get past him for a goal by theTampa Bay Lightning during the third period in an NHL preseason hockey game, Sunday, Sept. 27, 2009, in Atlanta. Tampa Bay won 5-1. (AP Photo/John Amis)

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With the last pre-season game (thankfully) over, we can now turn our attention to the final cuts that will be made between now and opening day. The Thrashers need to cut their team down to 23 players by Wednesday at 3pm. Let's take a look at where the team stands.

Up front, we've got 8 skaters who are virtually guaranteed to be with the team on Opening Night: Kovalchuk, Antropov, Little, Kozlov, White, Peverley, Reasoner, and Armstrong. Just four spots on the blueline are decided: Enstrom, Bogosian, Hainsey, and Kubina. There are serious questions in goal. Let's evaluate the 4 battles for those final positions.

The Battle: Kane vs Afinogenov

The Position: 3rd-line Left Wing

The Basics: With 8 of the Top-9 forward spots filled, the last spot will likely be taken by either 2009 1st-round draft pick Evander Kane or pro-tryout Maxim Afinogenov. Neither of these players will remain with the team to play 4th line minutes (or sit in the press box as a 13th forward).

The Dark Horse: Dan Fritsche. He could earn a spot as the penalty-kill specialist badly needed by the anemic Thrashers penalty kill unit. That was only reinforced on Sunday night; the Thrashers gave up 3 powerplay goals to the Lightning. His chances could be hurt by Coach Anderson's willingness to play Kane on the penalty kill; Kane had 2:51 of short-handed time in the final pre-season game.

The Twist: Evander Kane cannot be sent to the Chicago Wolves, he would have to return to his junior team, the Vancouver Giants of the WHL. After scoring 48 goals and 96 points with the Giants last year, there is little left for Kane to prove in junior hockey. Maxim Afinogenov, on the other hand, doesn't have a contract with the Thrashers. It would have to be negotiated before Wednesday. His last contract was upward of $3,000,000 a season, and while we could likely sign him for less, signing Max would further stress our budget.

Predictions:

Tim: This is a tough one. Don Waddell has said repeatedly that they want Evander to make the Thrashers this season. The coaching staff is giving him every opportunity to stick with the big club. At the Thrashers Fan Club meeting before Sunday's game, however, he also made a revealing comment. [Side note: if you haven't yet joined the Fan Club, you can do so here.] When a question about Max came up, the audience cheered and Don commented, 'Oh, you're making it harder for me now, his agent is probably here. He'll use that against me.' [That's roughly paraphrased from memory, not a direct quote.] I think it comes down to contract: if we can get Max for the right term (short) and money (in the low 2 millions), I think we sign him. If not, Kane sticks with the Thrash.
EvilMilkshake: If you had the chance to see Evander in the preseason, or even listened on the radio, you could see (or hear) he's not ready. He gets tossed around too easily. It's good to see him on the PK, getting some experience, but he probably wouldn't help in that department this season. He may get the 9-day tryout, but I don't see him sticking with the club all season. My guess is they'll sign Maxim. He's got experience and speed and although he himself may not finish, he creates scoring chances or makes plays on many of his shifts. Pair him with the right players, and his line could rack up some points.
Aaron: My head says "Evander", but my heart whispers "Maxim!" in an overly tender and loving way. I don't see any downside at all to signing Afinogenov to said short term/low money deal and sending Kane back to Vancouver. I can't imagine Kane's development as a player would be that stunted, and (I could be wrong about this) he's available for recall if needed. Will giving Evander 3rd line minutes give us that little push over the cliff we need to make the playoffs? Doubtful. We've got more depth at the wing than at any time in recent memory - let's not risk anything. Having said that, here's my offical prediction: I'm fairly certain Kane sticks with the big club, and Max walks.

The Battle: Boulton vs Thorburn vs Gratton

The Position: 4th-line Wing

The Basics: Tough guys Eric Boulton and Chris Thorburn have some competition this year in the form of pro-tryout Josh Gratton. As a "checking-line" winger, the Thrashers need a skater who can hit, fore- and back-check against the opposition's top lines, and drop the gloves on occasion.

The Twist: Energy-line guys don't normally score two goals in a game, pre-season or not. With a couple solid performances, Josh Gratton is going to make this decision much harder for the Thrashers' coaches.

Predictions:

Tim: I think the Thrashers tipped their hand with the lineup for the final game: Boulton - Slater - Thorburn. Gratton could stay with the Thrashers as a 13th forward and get some time in, but I don't see it happening.
EvilMilkshake: As much as I've liked Gratton's game, I don't see him staying with the big club either unless it's as the 13th man. He'll most likely be the first call up in the event of a 4th line injury.
Aaron: The performance of "the best 4th line in the league" last night told us we need a change. Ergo, Boulton - Slater - Thorburn it is and shall stay.

The Battle: Valabik vs Oystrick vs Salmela vs Popovic

The Positions: Two Bottom-Pairing Defensemen, Reserve Defenseman

The Basics: The Top-4 spots on D are locked up, but the next three are up for grabs. One of Boris Valabik, Nathan Oystrick, Anssi Salmela, and Mark Popovic will be cut before Opening Night. The first three have contracts and Popovic is with the team on a pro-tryout basis.

The Dark Horse: Just like Gratton with the forwards, tryout Popovic is trying to earn a contract by bumping someone from the roster. He's looked good so far, earning 1st Star honors at the first home pre-season game. Also, while not currently in the Thrashers system, Mark was previously a Thrashers prospect, so he's a familiar face within the organization.

Predictions:

Tim: You know who hasn't looked great so far this year? Boris Valabik. For guys as big as Boris, it takes some time before they find their feet and learn how to play physical without taking penalties. Personally, I just don't think Valabik is there yet. That said, sending him to Chicago would only stunt his development further. It's a balancing act between over-learning the lesson of Braydon Coburn (big defensemen take time to develop) and having too much faith in a player who isn't performing as well as we'd like. For my money, I think Boris spends some time in Chicago this year with a skating coach while Popovic and Salmela start with the Thrashers. Nathan Oystrick sits in the press box but will occasionally spell the other guys to stay fresh.
EvilMilkshake: I agree with Tim about Valabik in that he hasn't looked very good at all. He seems to be trying too hard. Valabik has performed well in the past, and it would be a mistake to send him down. So far in the pre-season he's gotten a lot of ice time, so his faults are showing up more. If he stays, expect 3rd pairing minutes only (he hasn't been on the 3rd pairing in most pre-season games) and even press box nights if he has a few bad games. I think Oystrick gets sent down. He hasn't impressed and the Thrashers have more options at defense this season.
Aaron: John Anderson said in his post-game presser last night that Boris needs to keep moving to improve. I expect Valabik to stick with the club for at least 10-15 games, but after that, look for Oystrick to come up after knocking the cobwebs out in Chicago, if necessary. Salmela & Popovic comprise the bottom D pairing.

The Battle: Pavelec vs Hedberg vs Legace vs Lehtonen

The Positions: Starting and Backup Goaltender

The Basics: The Thrashers have lacked stability in goal for much of their history. Superstitious fans might say the team has something of a "goalie curse," and if you were around for the 2005 - 2006 season, you got to see an almost shocking number of goalies. (Adam Berkhoel and Steve Shields, anyone?) 2nd-overall pick Kari Lehtonen was supposed to be the future between the pipes, but repeated injuries have caused concern. Backup goaltender Johan Hedberg fills in admirably, but he isn't going to be a solution for the top job. Stanley Cup winner and former All-Star Manny Legace was invited to camp as a pro tryout, and the Thrashers are also auditioning top prospect Ondrej Pavelec for the starting job.

The Dark Horse: Three of these goalies have contracts. One of these goalies does not. Still, Manny Legace has had an impressive career thus far: 177-92-18-23 with a 0.912 save percentage and 2.38 GAA in the NHL. His last losing season in the NHL? 1998 - 1999 with the Los Angeles Kings. If not for an unfortunate tumble on a carpet placed for Vice Presidential candidate Sarah Palin, so the story goes, Manny would still be a part of the rotation with the St. Louis Blues. In his short playing time with the Thrashers, he's looked solid. Don't overlook the importance of his character: Manny's a fun guy, and the Thrashers are a team that is striving to maintain a unified locker room.

The Twist: Kari Lehtonen is injured. Thrashers fans probably won't be surprised by that statement. It's looking like Kari will spend the first 3 or 4 weeks of the season on the injured reserve, meaning he won't count against the player limit of 23. Once he goes onto IR (on Wednesday at 3pm), he must remain there for at least two weeks. When he's back and ready to play, he could see time in Chicago on a conditioning stint. Assuming the team carries 13 forwards and 7 defensemen, they can carry 3 goalies. Does that mean two for the start of the season and three once Kari returns? Or does it mean three for the start of the season and some player movement in the future?

Predictions:

Tim: Don Waddell commented that he was speaking with Legace's agent in an attempt to keep him "within the organization." I won't attempt to read into that comment here, but I'll simply say that Manny's shots at a contract are looking a little better than a few weeks ago. I haven't been overly impressed with Pavelec this pre-season and having some stability in goal would be huge for the Thrashers. I think we'll start the season with Pavelec, Hedberg, and Legace, but I expect some player movement in the near future.
EvilMilkshake: Having the fortunate opportunity to see Manny's one pre-season game and in behind an Atlanta defense, I'd like to see him here this season. Now granted, the lineup during that game was not all the players on our roster, but he proved he's still got it in my eyes. With the Thrashers current rotation of Hedberg & Pavelec, I believe it would be a mistake to not sign Legace as some added insurance.
Aaron: I'll go one step further: sign Manny, trade Kari for a solid PKer and tell Pavelec to find some way to not look so scared when he's in an NHL net. The kid can tear it up in the AHL, but has a hard time adjusting with the big club. He'll make a spectacular save, and then look a little weak on the very next shot.

Feel free to comment below and let us know who you think will earn a spot to start the season.

Thrashers @ Carolina Live Blog: Pre-season Game #5

The Falconer — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 22:29:31 -0000

More photos » by John Amis - AP

3 months ago: Carolina Hurricanes forward Sergei Samsonov (14) and Atlanta Thrashers forward Bryan Little vie for the puck during the second period of an NHL preseason hockey game, Monday, Sept. 21, 2009, in Atlanta. Atlanta won 4-2. (AP Photo/John Amis)

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Greetings from high atop the RBC Center in Raleigh Carolina. The organist is playing "you can't hide your lying eyes"--not sure if that is aimed at the Thrashers :) Warm ups ~~should begin shortly~~ are finished. Got a few decent pictures, I'll try to post a pre-season gallery this weekend.

Thrashers lineup missing most of the regular season scoring punch. No Kovy,Kozzie, Antro. Todd White, Peverley and Bryan Little are the biggest offensive threats. On defense Bogosian is the only top 4 D tonight. The starting lineup features Todd White centering Afinogenov and Peverley. D paring is Postma and Oystrick.

Game on!

Stapleton dumped on first shift. Salmela almost gets beat but steers his man behind the net where Valabik tried to bury him with a huge hit--but he mostly missed him. Not good having both D in the same corner.

Valabik passed picked off in hight slot, leads to 20 seconds of CAR possession.

Legace with a couple of saves on long shots and then a great save on a short rebound.

Josh Gratton drives the net hard for a chance and basically eats the cross bar. First Thrasher scoring chance.

Nice O Zone steal by Fritsche who passes to a wide open Reasoner at the top of the circle--only his stick shatters on the shot attempt. 2nd scoring opportunity for ATL.

Afinogenov stakes puck circles all the way behind the net back out to the slot--and then shots it wide.Thrahers getting a some offensive flow after starting off back on their heels.

Machecek just pissed left post after aggressive forecheck by Krog and Stapleton leads to turnover.

Legace just got lucky as CAR player missed the net, there was room to score from where I sit

Gratton drops gloves they dance forever, CAR player Kostpolous falls down and gets back up and then a real slugfest. Gratton trades punches and wins the bout.

Vernace turnover, teammate covers for him.

Afinogenov blows a tire while trying to cut in O Zone.

Shot against, save, good job of Popovic and Vernance of boxing out CAR forwards diving for rebound chances.

Another good save by Legace on shot from the hash marks, he looks pretty sharp so far.

Goal CAR. Legace stops point blank shot from hash marks and directs puck towards the corner but right on the stick of CAR forward.

They have the shots at 12-1 CAR, but I can tell you it hasn't been nearly that lopesided in terms of play. Thrashers missed the net and broke a stick on their two best looks so far in the game.

Todd White with nice D play to break up pass in the slot.

Stapleton called tripping, ATL on PK: Salmela and Valabik , Reasoner and Fritsche out there--they get the clear. Now Oystrick and Postma out with Crabb and Slater. Killed it.

Valabik gets away with stupid unnecessary, cross check.

Gratton blocked shot leads to breakout.

3:29 to go, shots still ugly 14-1, can they dress Kovy for the next period?

CAR guy steps on White's stick and they call tripping.

ATL PK: Boris hits guy who doesn't see it coming, nearly a hit from behind. Postma and Salmela get lucky as CAR fails to connect on pass as neither D really takes his man around net. Postma clears. Now Popovic and Oystrick go into the same corner to attack the puck leaving slot wide open--they get it out but very high risk.

Peverley breaks up play with a hit.

1-0 CAR, shots 15-1 CAR. Period was closer than that, but Thrashers got lucky on several D-zone breakdowns.

2nd period

A lot of buzz up here about Gratton's knockout punch. The CAR player was wuzzy and went straight to the dressing room.

Sort of boring back and forth so far.

Crabb to the box, ATL PK: Slater SH SOG. Slater steals again in N Zone and fires another blueline shot.

2-0 CAR takes puck up the ice and scores. Valabik forces his man wide but as he hits the goal line CAR guy just throws it at the net and it goes in off of Postma's stick blade past a very surprised Manny Legace.

The Maxim, Pev and Slater trio controlling the puck and creating multiple shots. Peveley got a golden opportunity but fired it high.

Vernace's man gets a good chance against him.

Reasoner with a steal at O Zone blueline but linemate off side.

Vernace lost stick but made a nice play with his body to stop CAR player--leads to mini-PP for CAR until Legace is able to cover the puck for a faceoff.

Shots are much more even this period 4-4 with 8:19 left.

Up in the press box they just handed out a release saying that Tom Kostopoulos is out with an "upper body" injury after his fight. I'm going speculate that it is his head that is hurting right now.

Todd White with shot on goal, no problem for Cam Ward.

Holy highway robbery! Cam Ward with huge leg pad save as Mike Vernace pinches in for wide open back door chance on the cross crease pass (Anderson will like to see that).

2-1 Atlanta Scores. Oystrick with slapper, rebounds quips to Reasoner who redirects it to Stapleton for the goal. Great scramble play.

Postma fails to hold in pass from Afinogenov along the boards.

Postma shot from blueine just barely misses the post, I think it changed directions at the top of the crease area.

Another robbery save/miss. This time the backdoor shooter was Afinogenov, I think the passer was Peverley. Krog looses the handle on puck down low, clear for CAR.

Long CAR shot rings off far post.

Boulton with turnover on the boards that leads directly to a CAR chance, Legace makes the save but sprawls out snow angels style trying to cover the puck.

Gratton delay of game, ATL PK: Slater with shorthanded steal carries behind CAR net and backhands puck to Oystrick who jumps up and nearly scores a shortie. I'm not a huge Slater fan, but he has looked very good in every pre-season game in my opinion.

Goal this period 1-1, Shots are 10-10 this period. Big improvement for the Thrashers.

3rd period.

Drew MacIntyre in goal now.

ATL PP Thrashers with great pressure at the goal mouth, Ward strong.

MacIntyre with a great save on a shortie chance.

5>3 ATL, they pass it from left faceoff circle to right face off dot where Afinogenov scores on a one time slapper.

TIE GAME, shots 3-17 CAR.

Gratton closes hand on the puck. ATL PK: Carolina goal by Staal, slapshot from the blueline that just blows past MacIntyre upstairs. My angle up here isn't great though, but I think a NHL goalie has to stop that shot.

3-2 CAR

Thrashers kill off the penalties but are CAR has the momentum and are keeping the pressure on them.

Peverley with rush and curls behind net but nobody is available for a pass.

ATL killing off a penalty once again.

Eric Boulton with glorious chance right side circle, Cam Ward is having none of it.

Argh! ATL allows 2-0 breakaway, pass across for easy tap in goal, MacIntyre had zero chance.

4-2 CAR now.

Thrashers Score! I was working on post-game questions and missed and they are being stingy with the ATL replays. ~~Afinogenov's 2nd!~~ correction: Mike Vernace had the 3rd Atlanta Goal.

4-3 with 2 and a half to go.

Good night readers, time to pack up for locker room. Hopefully I'll get some interesting quotes.

Update: I talked to Manny Legace, Nathan Oystrick and Coach Anderson and got some good quotes, I should have a post up tomorrow if not tonight.

Thrashers - Nashville Home Game Analysis

The Falconer — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 15:13:28 -0000

More photos » by John Amis - AP

3 months ago: Atlanta Thrashers forward Illya Kovalchuk works the puck against the Carolina Hurricanes during the third period of an NHL preseason hockey game, Monday, Sept. 21, 2009, in Atlanta. Atlanta won 4-2. (AP Photo/John Amis)

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Defense Ice Time

Forward Ice Time

The Predators brought their 2nd line, but left their 1st line back home. They brought pretty good defensemen as well. Probably the closest thing to a game featuring a balanced lineup so far in the pre-season.

Team discipline was a problem as the Predators ended up with 12:40 minutes of Power Play ice to the Thrashers 4:10 with the man advantage. The total shots are rather misleading in this context because of the special teams disparity. The Thrashers were certainly even of better in the scoring chances department at even strength.

One reason the Thrashers ended up short is that guys took penalties standing up for teammates after some borderline hits (Tootoo was involved--shockingly!). Kovalchuk and Enstrom both got tagged and Kubina and Throburn went to the box while trying to send a message. Valabik took a minor after leveling a guy who came into Pavelec's crease. Discipline is going to be important in the regular season, but it is a good sign that players care about their teammates--that hasn't always been the case in Atlanta. I've seen some bad hits where nobody did anything to send a message. It is yet another sign that this locker room is good and has fewer cliques than in the past.

**Falconer's take:

Kovalchuk-Antropov-Little Line: Looks ready to go to me. Ilya is just flying around in the pre-season and looks extremely excited about this year. I saw more sustained offensive zone shifts from this line again, which is another positive sign. Heading into this year, I was worried Bryan Little might have trouble matching his numbers of last year--but Ilya and Nik seem to get all of the attention of opposing defensemen leaving him wide open to shoot.

Enstrom-Bogosian: They looked like they were both in mid-season form (they were both +3 in the game). They played extremely well and read off each other like they have played together for years. The biggest danger might be that the coaching staff overplays them early and wears them out, but they are both young and have lots of energy.

Nathan Oystrick: Made a really bad decision to pinch up late in the 3rd period and missed. This left his D partner Pavel Kubina alone defending a 2>1 and the open man scored on Pavelec to cut the lead down to 5-3 and it gave Predators new life. I know Anderson likes offense from his D, but with just under 4 minutes left and a 2 goal lead you don't need to make low probability plays.

Mark Popovic: I noticed him much less last night, but looking at the ice time he also played a lot less. He made a mistake at one point but I can't remember now what it was.

Boris Valabik: His skating looks so much better this fall it is very noticeable. However, he got blown around a couple of times in this game. And he can't go to the penalty box alone so often. He led all Thrashers with 6:42 on the PK.

Jim Slater: I've been hard on him in the past, but he's looked pretty good in both pre-season games. With his hustle he got a loose puck to Josh Gratton who scored from way over on the wall for the 1st goal of the game.

Tim Stapleton: I suspect he will start the year in Chicago, but he could be called up if the Thrashers have an injury on a scoring line. He made a terrific pass to set up Josh Gratton's 2nd goal. It was a 2>1 rush and the opposing defenseman went down to block off the passing lane. Stapleton kept going and the moment he was clear of the sprawled out D-man's skate he made a hard pass right to the slot which Gratton put past the goalie. For my money Stapleon looks like he has the puck skills to jump in and not hold back a scoring line. His lack of size makes it unlikely he would end up on a checking line.

Maxim Afinogenov: He looked a little raw early. He lost the puck twice on his 1st or 2nd shift of the game. Once he got his feet under him the NHL speed was apparent. He had one of his typical rushes where he flies up the ice, makes some stickhandling moves, shot, glove save.

Ondrej Pavelec: Still has problems overplaying the puck once or twice a game--he got lucky both times. One Nashville player mishandled the puck and on the other his D-man got to the rebound first. The 3rd Nashville goal, which gave them renewed life in a blow out at 17:52 of the 3rd, probably should not have gone in. Maybe I'm being too harsh because it was a 2>1 pass right to the slot.

Evander Kane: He looked much better last night than when they played the Predators one week ago. He looked more confident and fluid in his skating. He had a couple of shot attempts. He still has a lot to learn in terms of exploiting NHL defenseman, but you can see that he has the foundation to be a very exciting player down the road.

Josh Gratton: Could he really steal Eric Boulton's job? I'm not an expert on fighters, but he showed some very nice hands last night. On both plays, the passer deserves some credit, but Gratton did his part and finished. The 1st one was a bad goal for the Nashville goalie, but the 2nd goal was a nice bang-bang play at the net.

Joey Crabb Vs Dan Fritsche: These two guys are probably battling for the same job. Both were +1 and got some time on the PK. I don't see a huge difference between them, but I liked Crabb a little better last night.

Pavel Kubina: I'm very impressed by how he can lean on people and not get called for interference. He's big and he is constantly in the way of opposing forwards. He must be annoying as hell to play against. I just hope regular season refs don't start calling him for that stuff.

**Tim's Take:

I figured I'd chime in with a few additional comments. Falconer and I seemed to have different impressions of Boris Valabik, for one.

Boris Valabik: Yes, his skating looks better than last year, but he was barely able to keep up out there. Rather than play D deep in the Thrashers' defensive-zone, he seemed like he was always trying to hang by the face-off circle. This was giving him an advantage in getting up to the neutral zone with the team, but he was leaving his defensive partner all alone near the net. I think Boris has the right tools to play in the NHL, but I'm not sure if he's a good fit for our system this year.

Evander Kane: We all expect rookie mistakes, but what I saw from Evander Kane last night was important: he looks like he can keep up with NHL-sized players. He played strong on the puck, and while he got pushed off a few times, he'd go right back after it. He has a tenacity that will help him adjust to the NHL game faster. We will hopefully get to see him for the whole year, but at the very least, I expect a 9-game tryout.

Maxim Afinogenov: I was at the game with my girlfriend and we were sitting next to a couple people who were at their first hockey game. Every time Max got the puck, they were oooh-ing and aaah-ing. I'm not saying that we should sign Max because he's an exciting player, but for a city that needs to create some excitement around hockey, this guy is a heck of a lot of fun to watch. Sign him for Todd White-money (low-to-middle $2 million range) and I'm satisfied. I'd play him with Kane and White or Peverley and watch them zoom all over the place ... *or* ... play him with Peverley and Armstrong (a guy who can go hard to the net and finish the chances that Maxim generates.)

Josh Gratton: A lot of folks say we have the best 4th line in the NHL. They say that because our 4th line buzzes around and generates a lot of chances. This is true... but generating chances means nothing if you can't finish them. Josh Gratton showed an ability to finish chances last night. Conventional wisdom is that he's challenging for Boulton's spot... it'll be interesting to see where this goes.

Ondrej Pavelec: He looks ready to go. It'll be interesting to see how Legace plays on Friday (or Sunday).

Enstrom-Bogosian: Did you think these guys were just a flash-in-the-pan? Guess what? They aren't.

Kovalchuk-Antropov-Little: Those are three names you'll be hearing from our PA guy in scoring announcements... a lot... I will say, though, that Kovalchuk seemed somewhat tentative to shoot at times. I know he's got some scorers on his line now, but Kovy, please, for the love of God, SHOOT!

That's it from me for now, but I hope to have more to say if/when there are some cuts today. So far everybody is at the morning skate, so it's up in the air as to whether they make cuts.

Predators comeback falls short as Nashville loses 5-4 in Atlanta

Dirk Hoag — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 01:52:11 -0000

More photos » by Gregory Smith - AP

3 months ago: Atlanta Thrashers Josh Gratton, center, scores against Nashville Predators goaltender Pekka Rinne (35), of Finland, with Predators defenseman Dan Hamhuis (2) nearby during the second period of a preseason NHL hockey game Wednesday, Sept. 23, 2009, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Gregory Smith)

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Thanks to two goals by Josh Gratton (yes, that Josh Gratton who had a short stint with the Preds), the Atlanta Thrashers beat Nashville by a score of 5-4 tonight, ending the Predators' unbeaten streak during this pre-season. The announced attendance was a mere 5,017 at Phillips Arena. At one point midway through the third period the Preds trailed 5-2, but the team fought back to make a game of it before the end. (Game summary)

Martin Erat scored twice for the Preds, his last coming with 1:40 left in the game, but Nashville couldn't muster the tying goal. Mike Santorelli and Peter Olvecky provided the other Predators goals. David Legwand and Patric Hornqvist each posted two assists, while Shea Weber and Ryan Suter were each +3 on the evening. In the final moments of the game, Weber put two shots on net and Suter one, as the comeback fell just short.

In goal, Pekka Rinne and Dan Ellis split the duty, with Rinne giving up 3 goals and Ellis 2.

In their next pre-season action, Nashville hosts Carolina at the Sommet Center on Saturday.

UPDATE: We have video highlights...

Poll

Who is your Predators player of the game?

Martin Erat, 2 goals

48 votes

David Legwand, 2 assists

2 votes

Patric Hornqvist, 2 assists

8 votes

58 votes | Poll has closed

ThrashersTraining Camp Job Battles Narrow

The Falconer — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 05:15:17 -0000

After two pre-season games the Thrashers have cut down their camp roster to 37 players who are still in the mix for NHL roster spots. I'm going to assume that these 9 forwards have NHL jobs: Kovalchuk, Kozlov, White, Antropov, Peverley, Little, Armstrong and Reasoner. So what does that leave?

Forwards: 4 starting spots and 1 or 2 bench slots.

Incumbents:

Challengers:

Thoughts: All of the incumbents have at least a one year NHL contracts and I would surprised if they failed to make the final roster. This last summer I wrote about the "myth of the best 4th line" and suggested that the Thrashers could find better players to flesh out the bottom of their forward ranks. But the Thrashers choose to re-sign Slater and Thorburn which indicates they think more favorably about that line than I do. If the incumbent 4th liners are all safe, that really leaves just one active roster spot and one or two bench slots available.

How might this race shake out? Personally, I've seen very little out of Dan Fritsche in practice or exhibition play, the guy looks like he's lost his mojo. Gratton is probably the only person really challenging Boulton for the tough guy slot, but I think the organization values Boulton's locker room presence enough that he keeps his spot. Machacek looks pretty good but he might still benefit from receiving bigger minutes in the AHL. Evander Kane has looked OK in pre-season but hasn't really amazed. I've already laid out the case for returning him to the WHL--the fact that he's not scoring in pre-season could make this decision easier.

That narrows it down to some veterans: Afinogenov, Crabb, Stapleton, Krog. Personally, I find Maxim Afinogenov incredibly frustrating to watch play. He has amazing stick handling skills and good speed but it seems like he rarely turns those attributes into goals. Still if he's willing to sign for a low price, it would be a low risk gamble with some upside potential. My guess is that if Evander Kane goes back to the WHL, Afinogenov might make the NHL roster if the price is right.

The other three guys--Stapleton, Krog and Crabb--are all AHL veterans who are no longer developing as prospects. They are all a bit undersized by NHL standards but have solid puck skills (Krog, Stapleton) or speed (Crabb, Stapleton). If the Thrashers were to keep Afinogenov and bump Peverley to the 3rd line, any one of these AHL veterans could step into 13th forward spot and it would not harm their development as it would a younger kid.

Prediction: My gut instinct is that Coach Anderson will give Jason Krog that 13th forward spot and one more crack at playing in the NHL. Krog and Anderson had some great seasons together in Chicago and if anyone knows what Jason brings to the table--it is Anderson.

Defense

The top four defensemen (Bogosian, Enstrom, Hainsey and Kubina) appear set and that leaves two starting positions and a bench slot up for grabs.

Incumbents

Challengers

I would cross Vernance off the list first. He looked totally out of his league in Nashville and I'm surprised that he survived the most recent round of cuts. I haven't seen Welch in game action, but like Dan Fritsche you have to really look hard to notice him in training camp. I'm a big Grant Lewis supporter, but he's clearly still recovering from his significant knee injury. Postma probably needs a full season in the AHL playing against bigger men.

That leaves 3 incumbents and 2 challengers battling it out for 3 slots. So far Kulda and Popovic both have played well and gotten the attention of Coach Anderson. I would not be surprised if either were on the team opening day. The biggest problem for Kulda is that he can be sent down that gives the Thrashers a quality first call up should injuries strike. With Popovic they have to fish or cut bait soon--which gives him more leverage in some respects.

The real question is who would they knock off? I can't see Valabik going anywhere. His size and physicality are badly needed on this roster. I do think that both Salmela and Oystrick could be vulnerable to losing their spot. Oystrick in particular looked very nervous and rough at times in the Nashville pre-season game. Perhaps, it was just initial nerves but if he continues to struggle in pre-season he could end up on the outside looking in. Salmela was ridiculously non-physical in Nashville allowing opposing forwards to do pretty much whatever they wanted. He can't continue to play like that and hold a NHL D spot.

Summary: If Oystrick and Salmela can play like they did at the end of last season, they should hold off Popovic. The next few games will be crucial.

Goaltender

The incumbent Lehtonen is hurt yet again and his lack of professionalism is irritating a team that needs someone reliable in the nets. The Opening Night starting job is a free for all. Ondrej Pavelec played a very strong game in Tampa on Friday. MacIntyre played a strong period in Nashville. Manny Legace is a NHL pro with a long track record. Johan Hedberg is the sentimental favorite of many, but is under heavy pressure this camp. The Thrashers have a legitimate shot at making the playoffs assuming they get solid goaltending most nights. If Legace looks better than Hedberg, the team would be wise to put keep him, skill not likability must determine this contest.

Expectation: Lehtonen starts the season on IR, with Pavelec and Legace on the opening night roster.

Training Camp Preview: Position Battles Among AHL Veterans

The Falconer — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 02:49:06 -0000

NHL Training Camp is still about six weeks away from beginning and hockey news is rather sparse. So I decided to put together a table that looks at the AHL stats of F, D and G who will fighting it out at camp for NHL jobs. I tried to include everyone who played in the AHL last season or the season before that (Oystrick, Stewart) who is under contract with the Thrashers.

My table does not include Evander Kane or Angelo Esposito who both played junior hockey last year. I did include Rich Peverly and Bryan Little in the table--even though both those guys have locked up a roster spot, I found it interesting to see how their stats compared to other players.

First up we have the Forwards. I have chosen to list them in the order of their age (except for Bryan Little who I added after I listed all the other forwards). Age is extremely important since a 20 or 21 year old player is MUCH more likely to take a dramatic step forward and a guy at age 25 is close to being a physically mature prospect.

Forwards

Player	Age	08-09 NHL Games	08-09 AHL Games	Career NHL Points Per Game	Career AHL Points Per Game	Career NHL Plus/Minus	Career AHL Plus/Minus
Spencer Macheck	20	0	74	.00	.43	0	+8
Riley Holzapfel	20	2	77	N.A.	.60	N.A.	+10
Jordan LaValle	23	2	64	.50	.48	+1	-15
Anthony Stewart	24	59	0	.11	.51	-4	-19
Brett Sterling	25	6	52	.21	1.04	-5	+17
Joey Crabb	26	29	42	.31	.49	-2	+24
Tim Stapleton	26	4	70	.25	1.06	-3	+15
Josh Gratton	26	19	21	.07	.33	-13	+13
Rich Peverley	27	39	27	.49	.95	+16	+14
Jason Krog	33	4	74	.29	1.19	+5	+41
Bryan Little	21	79	0	.53	.74	-7	+1

A few things jump out at me when I look at these numbers. Peverley was very hot in the 2nd half and that led to his NHL plus/minus being better than his AHL numbers--I expect him to come back down to Earth a little bit next season. Riley Holzapfel is two months older than Spencer Macheck, but the younger player has the better statistical profile. Gratton is a fighter who comes from a tough organization (Flyers). I'm all in favor of signing tough guys rather than using a draft pick on one. In my mind there simply isn't enough difference between a NHL and AHL tough guy to merit using a draft pick that could potentially land an impact player.

LaValle's NHL scoring rate is higher than his career AHL scoring rate--and since the AHL rate has a larger sample size it is probably a better indicator of LaVallee's true NHL offensive skill level. I'll be shocked if Jordan keeps up that half a point per game pace. On average AHL players who make the NHL only keep about 45% of their AHL scoring rate when they move up. Crabb and LaVallee head to camp competing for the same checking line job. The stats suggest that LaVallee has more offensive upside than Crabb, but the plus/minus indicates Crabb has the better two way game. (Plus/minus is not good measure of defensive ability--but it is a good measure of Even Strength Goal Differential which is very important to winning hockey games.)

Anthony Stewart is a mixed bag. On the one hand, his AHL scoring rate suggests he has slightly underachieved offensively in the NHL, but his ugly AHL plus/minus numbers suggest he wasn't much of an impact player in the minors. One year Stewart had a bad plus/minus on a weak team, but the other year he finished nearly dead last in plus/minus on a roster where most players were a slight plus.

Four players (Sterling, Peverley, Stapleton and Krog) have all averaged around a point per game in the AHL. That suggests that they all have sufficient NHL puck skills to play at a high level. Of that group, Peverly and Krog have gotten some real opportunities to make the league. Sterling has never really gotten the long audition he should have received in my opinion (such as last year) and Stapleton might also just need an extended NHL trial to prove himself. Peverley has a NHL job, but the other three might earn one out of camp or have a chance to impress with a mid-season injury call up.

Defense

Player	Age	08-09 NHL Games	08-09 NHL Games	NHL Career Points Per Game	AHL Career Points Per Game	NHL Career Plus/Minus	AHL Career Plus/Minus
Arturs Kulda	21	0	57	N.A.	.26	N.A.	+10
Chad Denny	22	0	40	N.A.	.22	N.A.	-2
Boris Valabik	23	50	11	.09	.17	-16	+41
Scott Lehman	23	1	50	.00	.13	0	-8
Grant Lewis	24	1	54	.00	.39	0	+33
Anssi Salmela	26	26	40	.23	.60	+1	-8
Nathan Oystrick	26	53	0	.23	.54	-2	+8
Noah Welch	26	40	7	.12	.48	-4	+25

Kulda was a top defensemen for Chicago all last year. He's the youngest guy on this list. I think he will become a NHL player, it just a question of when. Chad Denny on the other hand struggled to get into the lineup in the AHL and was even tried as a forward--he's yet another example of a string of busted draft picks to come out of the QMJHL (more on that in a future post).

I know some posters on the official boards are down on Valabik--and he is still rather raw in his decision making at times. But he is still just 23 with some time to take another big step forward. Lehman on the other struggled to suit up in the AHL last year is simply not a very good player. Lewis is 24 but injuries have cost him a year of development, I thought he looked fine in his one NHL game last year.

Salmela, Oystrick and Welch are all fighting for the last few defenseman roster spots and none of them can be considered prospects anymore at they are 26 now. All three players averaged roughly half a point per game in the AHL at age 25 or 26. None are considered outstanding defenders but all three fit into Coach Anderson's offensive minded system and have the puck skills necessary to play with NHL level forwards. Whether they have the hockey IQ or the defensive skills to hang with NHL forwards is the big unknown.

Goalies

Player	Age	08-09 NHL Games Played	08-09 AHL Games Played	Career NHL Save %	Career AHL Save %	Career NHL Goals Against Average	Career AHL Goals Against Average
Ondrej Pavelec	21	12	40	.890	.912	3.42	2.69
Peter Mannino	25	0	50	.885	.900	4.51	2.94
Drew MacIntyre	26	3	34	.864	.918	2.95	2.36

None of the three AHL Veteran goalies have really torn it up at the NHL level. Pavelec has the major advantage of being just 21 at a position where many goalie don't hit their stride until their mid 20s. He has already put up a career AHL SV% close that of MacIntyre who is 5 years older than him.

Conclusion

It is far too early to try and figure out who will win those last roster spots coming out of camp. However, it is August and this is a blog. So let's imagine one of you kidnapped my cat and forced me to make a prediction about the NHL Opening Roster--my guesstimate appears below.

I suspect the competition for the last two forward spots is going to be just brutal. I can imagine LaValle or Crabb sneaking in under the wire too. I'm guessing Evander Kane goes back to the WHL, he might get into a few NHL games. This also assumes no waiver wire pick ups as well. Among the unknowns there is also training camp injuries which often open up a spot.

F1 Kovalchuk-White-Antropov

F2 Kozlov-Peverley-Little

F3 Macheck-Reasoner-Armstrong

F4 Boulton-Slater-Thorburn

D1 Enstrom-Bogosian

D2 Hainsey-Kubina

D3 Valabik-Oystrick

G1 Lehtonen-Pavelec

Bench: Stewart, Hedberg, Salmela

2009 NHL Free Agency / Teams by Cap Space / Unsigned UFA's and RFA's

Robert L — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 19:19:41 -0000

This is a listing of NHL teams by order of remaining cap space as of July 4. The Islanders top the list with approximately $23M left to spend. The Sharks have just under $2M remaining. The list is helpful in determining which team are closest to filling out their 2009-10 lineup. As one can see, there is much work to be done at both ends of the spectrum. The numbers figures are based on totals given by NHL Numbers.com.

1 - New York Islanders: $23.265 (18)

UFA: Andy Hilbert C 28, Dean McAmmond C 36, Mike Sillinger C 38, Thomas Pock D 27, Yann Danis G 28, Joey MacDonald G 29.

RFA: Nate Thompson C 24, Jeremy Colliton C 24, Jamie Fraser D 23, Jack Hillen D 23.

2 - Phoenix Coyotes: $21.972 (18)

UFA: Brian McGrattan R 27, Dmitri Kalinin D 29, Ken Klee D 38.

RFA: Nigel Dawes L 24, Joakim Lindstrom C 25, Enver Lisin R 23, Scottie Upshall R 25, Daniel Winnik C 24, Keith Yandle D 22.

3 - Atlanta Thrashers: $19.599 (15)

RFA: Eric Perrin C 33.

UFA: Kari Lehtonen G 25, Colby Armstrong R 26, Jim Slater C 26, Boris Valabik D 23.

4 - Nashville Predators: $17.913 (16)

UFA: Radek Bonk C 33, Scott Nichol C 34, Greg de Vries D 36.

RFA: Ryan Jones R 25, Antti Pihlstrom L 24,.

5 - New York Rangers: $16.436 (13)

UFA: Blair Betts C 29, Mark Bell L 28, Patrick Rissmiller C 30, Paul Mara D 29, Derek Morris D 30.

RFA: Christopher Higgins R 26, Ryan Callahan R 24, Brandon Dubinsky C 23, Lauri Korpikoski L 22, Nikolai Zherdev L 24, Corey Potter D 25.

6 - Anaheim Ducks: $14.295 (17)

UFA: Rob Niedermayer F 34, Todd Marchant C 33, Francois Beauchemin D 29, Bret Hedican D 38.

RFA: James Wisniewski D 25.

7 - Tampa Bay Lightning: $14.295 (17)

UFA: Matt Pettinger L 28, Wade Brookbank L 31, Jason Ward R 30, Marek Malik D 34, Josef Melichar D 30, Cory Murphy D 31, Noah Welch D 26.

RFA: Martins Karsums R 23, Radek Smolenak L 22, Matt Lashoff D 22, Matt Smaby D 24, Mike Lundin D 24, Karri Ramo G 22, Mike McKenna G 26.

8 - Columbus Blue Jackets: $13.313 (20)

UFA: Chris Gratton C 33, Manny Malhotra C 29, Michael Peca C 35, Jason Williams C 28, Christian Backman D 29.

RFA: Jiri Novotny C 25, Marc Methot D 24, Ole-Kristian Tollefsen D 25.

9 - Dallas Stars: $13.193 (19)

UFA: Sergei Zubov D 38, Brendan Morrison C 33, Joel Lundqvist C 27, Mark Parrish R 32, Landon Wilson R 34, Tobias Stephan G 25, Darryl Sydor D 37.

RFA: Mark Fistric D 23.

10 - St. Louis Blues: $12.295 (22)

UFA: Trent Whitfield C 32, Dan Hinote R 32, Jay McKee D 31, Manny Legace G 36.

RFA: Brandon Crombeen R 23, Chris Porter C 25, Steve Regier L 24, Roman Polak D 23, Jeff Woywitka D 25, Marek Schwarz G 23.

11 - New Jersey Devils: $12.129

UFA: Brendan Shanahan L 40, Kevin Weekes G 34, Niclas Havelid D NJ.

RFA: Travis Zajac C 24.

12 - Toronto Maple Leafs: $12.022 (20)

UFA: Brad May L 37, Bates Battaglia L 33, Andre Deveaux C 25, Boyd Devereaux C 31, Jeff Hamilton C 31, Kris Newbury C 27, Ben Ondrus R 27, Jay Harrison D 26, Jamie Heward D 38, Martin Gerber G 34, Olaf Kolzig G 39, Curtis Joseph G 42.

RFA: Jeremy Williams R 25, Justin Pogge G 23, Jaime Sifers D 26, Ryan Hollweg C 26.

13 - Chicago Blackhawks: $11.797

UFA: Aaron Johnson D 26.

RFA: Cam Barker D 23, Troy Brouwer R 23, Ben Eager L 25, Colin Fraser C 24, Kris Versteeg R 23.

14 - Colorado Avalanche: $11.654 (15)

UFA: Joe Sakic F 39, Ben Guite R 30, Brian Willsie R 31, Andrew Raycroft G 29.

RFA: Kyle Cumiskey D 22, David Jones R 24, Cody McCormick C 26.

15 - Montreal Canadiens: $10.454 (16)

UFA: Alexei Kovalev F 36, Saku Koivu C 34, Alex Tanguay L 29, Robert Lang C 38, Mathieu Schneider D 40, Tom Kostopoulos R 30, Mathieu Dandenault D 33, Patrice Brisebois D 38, Francis Bouillon D 33, Marc Denis G 31.

RFA: Tomas Plekanec C 26, Matt D'Agostini R 22, Guillaume Latendresse R 22, Kyle Chipchura C 23, Gregory Stewart L 23.

16 - Los Angeles Kings: $10.285 (21)

UFA: Derek Armstrong F 36, Denis Gauthier D 32, Kyle Calder L 30.

RFA: Jack Johnson D 22, Teddy Purcell R 23.

17 - Washington Capitals: $9.720 (15)

UFA: Viktor Kozlov C 34, Alexandre Giroux C 28, Bryan Helmer D 26, Brent Johnson G 32.

RFA: Jeff Schultz D 23, Shaone Morrisonn D 26, Milan Jurcina D 26, Eric Fehr R 23, Boyd Gordon R 25.

18 - Buffalo Sabres: $8.976 (16)

UFA: Matt Ellis L 24, Dominic Moore C 28, Andrew Peters L 29, Teppo Numminen D 40, Maxim Afinogeno F 29,

RFA: Andrej Sekera D 23, Drew Stafford R 23, Clarke MacArthur L 24, Patrick Kaleta R 23.

19 - Florida Panthers: $8.405 (18)

UFA: Ville Peltonen L 36, Richard Zednik L 33, Jassen Cullimore D 36, Nick Boynton D 30.

RFA: Anthony Stewart C 24, Steve Eminger D 25, Tanner Glass L 25.

20 - Carolina Hurricanes: $8.083 (18)

UFA: Ryan Bayda L 28, Dennis Seidenberg D 27.

RFA: Tuomo Ruutu C 26, Anton Babchuk D 25.

21 - Vancouver Canucks: $7.282 (18)

UFA: Mats Sundin C 38, Jason Krog C 33, Rob Davison D 29, Ossi Vaananen D 28, Curtis Sanford G 29, Michel Ouellet R 27.

RFA: Shane O' Brien D 25. Kyle Wellwood C 26, Jannik Hansen R 23.

22 - Minnesota Wild: $6.296 (20)

UFA: Stephane Veilleux L 27, Krys Kolanos C 27, Marc-Andre Bergeron D 28, Kurtis Foster D 27, Martin Skoula D 29.

RFA: Dan Fritsche C 23, Benoit Pouliot L 22, Kyle Brodziak C 25, Josh Harding G 25.

23 - Edmonton Oilers: $6.404 (20)

UFA: Ales Kotalik R 30, Dany Sabourin G 28.

RFA: Liam Reddox L 23, Gilbert Brule C 22, Ryan Potulny C 24, Rob Schremp C 22, Denis Grebeshkov D 25, Ladislav Smid D 23.

24 - Detroit Red Wings: $5.554 (16)

UFA: Darren McCarty R 37, Aaron Downey R 34, Chris Chelios D 47.

RFA: Jiri Hudler C 25, Ville Leino L 25.

25 - Boston Bruins: $5.340 (18)

UFA: Stephane Yelle F 35, P.J. Axelsson L 34, Manny Fernandez G 34.

RFA: Phil Kessel F 21, Matt Hunwick D 24.

26 - Ottawa Senators: $4.649 (22)

UFA: Mike Comrie C 28.

RFA: Brendan Bell D 26, Brian Elliott G 24.

27 - Pittsburgh Penguins: $3.137 (19)

UFA: Mike Zigomanis C 28, James Connor L 26, Miroslav Satan L 34, Petr Sykora R 32, Janne Pesonen L 27, Philippe Boucher D 36.

RFA: Paul Bissonnette R 24, Tim Wallace R 24, Ben Lovejoy D 25, John Curry G 25.

28 - Calgary Flames: $3.053 (19)

UFA: Todd Bertuzzi R 34, Andre Roy R 34, Rhett Warrener D 33.

RFA: Dustin Boyd C 22.

29 - Philadelphia Flyers: $2.125 (20)

UFA: Josh Gratton L 26, Boyd Kane L 31, Andrew Alberts D 28, Lasse Kukkonen D 27, Martin Biron G 31, Antero Niittymaki G 29.

RFA: Jared Ross C 26, Danny Syvret D 24.

30 - San Jose Sharks: $1.774 (16)

UFA: Claude Lemieux R 43, Jeremy Roenick C 39, Tom Cavanagh R 27, Alexei Semenov D 28, Mike Grier R 34, Marcel Goc C 25, Tomas Plihal L 26, Lukas Kaspar L 23.

RFA: Torrey Mitchell C 24, Thomas Greiss G 23, Brad Staubitz R 24.

2009 Free Agency: The Flyers' situation

Travis Hughes — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 10:45:09 -0000

As we transition from draft mode to free agency, the Flyers have some questions as players hit the open market on Wednesday at noon. The rumors circulating indicate that they may not be done making a big splash in the market, but the Pronger deal on Friday night speaks to the contrary. Regardless, some work still has to be done, so here's a quick rundown of what to expect from the Flyers come the start of July. This is part of an SBN hockey-wide series.

Pending Unrestricted Free Agents

Mike Knuble, Andrew Alberts, Martin Biron, Antero Niittymaki, Josh Gratton, Boyd Kane, Lasse Kukkonen, Scott Munroe, Jean-Sebastien Aubin

Pending Restricted Free Agents

Jared Ross, Nate Raduns, Nate Guenin, Danny Syrvet

Salary cap space and current cap hit

$4.3 million under the cap, $52.5 million cap hit. This includes the Chris Pronger trade and Ray Emery's deal.

Key needs

The Flyers, first and foremost, need a backup goaltender. Preferably, the netminder they sign should not solely be a second-tier player, but a goalie capable of challenging Ray Emery for the starting position. Emery's uncertainty in net could be turned around if he is challenged enough from within by another goaltender. It would also provide a safety net in case Emery falters.

In addition to a goaltender, the team needs at least one defenseman, whether it be Andrew Alberts or a replacement. They also need one or two more forwards to round out the spots voided by Mike Knuble and Joffrey Lupul.

Potential targets

In goal, there are several options. Look for the Flyers to target someone on the low end of the spectrum due to the limited cap space -- no Manny Fernandez's or Nikolai Khabibulin's or even Martin Biron's here. Think about re-signing Niittymaki, or picking up a guy like Craig Anderson, Brian Boucher, Scott Clemmensen, or Ty Conklin. Conklin is 2-0 in the Winter Classic, so if the Flyers are going to play in Boston on January 1, they'd be smart to pick him up.

At forward, Mike Knuble is definitely a re-signable option. Paul Holmgren has said that he's in talks with the soon-to-be-UFA and that he believes Knuble wants to stay in town. He's a good bargain though, and there will be a handful of teams happy to pick up his services. So if the Flyers can't pick up Knuble, look for guys like Nik Antropov, Manny Malhotra, Steve Sullivan, Sami Pahlsson, and Mike Cammalleri to potentially fill the void. At the same time, the front office could opt to push some player up from the Phantoms -- a much cheaper option. The candidates from the farm include Jonathan Matsumoto, Jon Kalinski, Pat Maroon, and Andreas Nodl.

On defense, if the team does not re-sign Alberts, there are several relatively cheap options. Dennis Seidenberg could come back to town from Carolina or Francois Beauchemin could come over from Anaheim. With the top two pairings set already, Mike Komisarek, Jordan Leopold, Marek Malik, Rob Scuderi, Ossi Vaananen, Martin Skoula, Paul Mara, Dmitri Kalinin, and ~~Johnny Oduya~~ would all come relatively cheap and would be very solid third pairing options on the Flyers.

What do our rivals want?

The Penguins won the Stanley Cup, but that doesn't mean they're without holes. Hooks Orpik at Pensburgh says that the Pens need to add a "top six forward or two and a top four defenseman." New Jersey needs "to upgrade their defense, preferably with an offensive or two-way defenseman," says John at In Lou We Trust. They're also in need of a backup goaltender, considering Clemmensen and Kevin Weekes are free agents. Oh, a coach too. The Rangers just need to back away from the salary cap, perhaps by shedding some of those ridiculous contracts. Looking at you, Wade Redden. The Islanders need a goalie -- bad. And a lot of other things.

Additional reading

James Mirtle has some great coverage over at From The Rink, listing all the players who will be available come Wednesday by position. The SBN Free Agency Hub is a great place to get all of your free agency news. And just in time for free agency to screw it up tomorrow, our salary cap page will be updated today to include Chris Pronger and Ray Emery. It's an easy to understand tool for breaking down the Flyers salary cap situation.

Cause summers here and the time is right for fighting in the street

Matthew Dirt — Mon, 09 Feb 2009 21:32:32 -0000

So I'm sure a lot of you are pretty angry about how horribly the Hawks played on Saturday. If I hadn't numbed myself with booze I'd probably still be really upset too. And there's really only one way to get over your feelings of frustration.. watch two men repeatedly punch each other in face. They fight so we don't have to - and because we're complete pansies compared to them.

A few other sites have been doing this so I figured I'd give it a go too. I've collected the top 15 Blackhawk fights since the lockout based on the ratings of HockeyFights.com. These are all user generated so there's not really official about it but here they are:

Rank	Date	Fighters	Winner	Rating	Video
1	11.2.05	Jim Vandermeer vs. Aaaron Downey	Vandermeer (55.7%)	9.2	Link
2	12.07.06	Jim Vandermeer vs. Josh Gratton	Vandermeer (83.2%)	8.7	Link
3	10.07.05	Jim Vandermeer vs. Ryane Clowe	Draw (58.6%)	8.4	Link
4	3.23.06	Mark Bell vs. Josh Gratton	Bell (83.3%	8.4	Link
5	3.10.07	David Koci vs. Josh Gratton	Koci (59.8%)	8.2	Link
6	12.26.07	James Wisniewski vs. Jordan Tootoo	Wisniewski (91.3%)	7.9	Link
7	12.26.08	Craig Adams vs. Josh Gratton	Draw (48.6%)	7.8	Link
8	10.04.07	David Koci vs. Derek Boogaard	Koci (59.4%)	7.8	Link
9	10.25.07	David Koci vs. Zdeno Chara	Chara (92.1%)	7.8	Link
10	2.10.08	Adam Burish vs. Byron Ritchie	Draw (63.0%)	7.6	Link
11	10.25.05	Martin Lapointe vs. Jamie Allison	Lapointe (65.0%)	7.5	Link
12	1.22.06	Jim Vandermeer vs. Derek Boogaard	Boogaard (97.6%)	7.5	Link
13	3.23.07	David Koci vs. Raitis Ivanans	Koci (43.5%)	7.4	Link
14	10.20.07	David Koci vs. Wade Belak	Belak (49.3%)	7.2	Link
15	11.19.06	Jim Vandermeer vs. Taylor Pyatt	Pyatt (40.2%)	7.1	Link

What I find most surprising is just how much Josh Gratton seems to like to fight Blackhawks - 4 fights in the top 15 and they're all against different Hawks. Why does he hate us so much?

A lot of people (including me) give Koci shit for how much blood he lost in the fight againt Chara and perhaps rightfully so but what I think a lot of people forget is that Koci already had a broken nose from a fight the night before. He does land one good one punch that buckles Chara's knees though. He might have been a lousy hockey player and not a great fighter but he does have massive Blagojevich-like balls.

The Burish fight that's up there might be my favorite he's ever been in (even better than when he dropped Nystrom) because you get to see just how much he loved his role of getting the Hawks pumped up before he became the key offensive weapon and penalty killer that he is today.

Which fight is your favorite? Are there fights you think deserve to be up here? Or are you one of the few that thinks fighting doesn't belong in the NHL anymore? Lets hear from you in the comments.

The Top 25 Flyers Fights Since The Lockout

Travis Hughes — Mon, 09 Feb 2009 03:06:46 -0000

There was a post over at Japers' Rink last week detailing the Capitals' top 10 fights from the last few years. J.P. went and searched around hockeyfights.com and used their rankings to determine which ones were the best. I thought it was a cool idea, and considering the Flyers lead the league in fights this season, I decided to do a similar post.

I didn't put two and two together though and realize that we have a ton of fights compared to just about everybody else. I had to expand the list a bit. I also figured that, what the hell.. I'll date it back to the lockout. So, here they are, the Top 25 Flyers fights since the 2004/2005 season, as rated by hockeyfights.com.

Rank	Participants	Date	Rating	Winner	Video
25	Aaron Asham vs Dan LaCouture	9.27.08	6.9	win Asham	click
24	Josh Gratton vs Georges Laraque	11.15.08	7.0	win Laraque	click
23	Mike Richards vs Paul Mara	2.19.07	7.0	draw	click
22	Mike Richards vs Brooks Laich	11.2.07	7.1	win Richards	click
21	Mike Richards vs Brandon Dubinsky	10.11.08	7.1	edge Dubinsky	click
20	Riley Cote vs Steve MacIntyre	11.2.08	7.2	edge MacIntyre	click
19	Mike Richards vs Aaron Asham	11.9.06	7.2	edge Asham	click
18	Riley Cote vs Cam Janssen	3.30.07	7.3	win Janssen	click
17	Riley Cote vs Jody Shelley	2.21.08	7.4	win Cote	click
16	Riley Cote vs Jody Shelley	10.18.08	7.5	draw	click
15	Riley Cote vs Pierre-Luc Leblond	9.22.08	7.5	draw	click
14	Ben Eager vs Gary Roberts	12.11.07	7.6	win Roberts	click
13	Jesse Boulerice vs Colton Orr	3.2.08	7.6	edge Orr	click
12	Riley Cote vs Colton Orr	2.9.08	7.6	win Orr	click
11	Josh Gratton vs Craig Adams	12.26.08	7.8	draw	click
10	Riley Cote vs George Parros	2.2.08	7.8	win Parros	click
9	Donald Brashear vs Rob Ray	3.5.07	8.0	win Brashear	click
8	Todd Fedoruk vs Chris Simon	2.27.07	8.1	win Simon	click
7	Riley Cote vs Shawn Thornton	3.15.08	8.2	draw	click
6	Donald Brashear vs Eric Godard	10.15.05	8.3	edge Brashear	click
5	Riley Cote vs Colton Orr	11.15.07	8.4	edge Orr	click
4	Riley Cote vs Aaron Asham	11.8.07	8.4	edge Asham	click
3	Todd Fedoruk vs Francis Lessard	2.5.04	8.6	edge Fridge	click
2	Riley Cote vs Eric Godard	10.14.08	8.9	draw	click
1	Riley Cote vs Shawn Thornton	10.27.07	9.1	draw	click

A few observations:

Riley Cote doesn't win that often, but he stands in there and takes a lot of punches.
Colton Orr loves fighting against the Flyers.
Every time Cote and Shawn Thornton hook up, it's at center ice in Boston and it's a really good fight.
Ben Eager losing to Gary Roberts was really embarrassing.
The last Flyers fight at the Spectrum (number 25 on the list) was won by the Flyers. Fitting.

This might be some of the most fun I've ever had researching a blog post. Your opinions on the list? What about each fight? How accurate is that "winner" column?