Catching up with a few of the big moves that went down in advance of the free agency deadline:
Sedin Twins Stay In Vancouver: This one was starting to look bleak for the Cannucks as rumors were swirling that the twins (Daniel and Henrik) were looking for contracts in the 10+ year range at around $6-8 million per. As it turns out, they got their $6million per, but for only 5 years. Got to see this as a win-win. Hard to imagine the Sedins anywhere other than Vancouver, and the Cannucks did not have to completely mortgage their future. Now Vancouver turns their eyes (and hearts) towards Luongo.
Bouwmeester Signs With Calgary: A lot of eyebrows were raised when Calgary may a deal at the draft sending Jordan Leopold and a 3rd round pick to Florida in exchange for the rights to negotiate with Jay Bouwmeester. A big gamble that paid off for the Flames when the much coveted 25 year old defenseman inked a deal yesterday for $6.68 million over 5 years. Calgary now has, on paper, one of the most impressive D-corps in the game with Bouwmeester, Dion Phaneuf and Robyn Regehr patroling the blueline in front of Miika Kiprosoff. Now it will be interesting to see if they are able to keep all three, or whether one of them become trade bait. Also will be interesting to see who they have left at forward once the dust settles. Iginla can't score every goal.
Scott Gomez to Montreal: Habs GM Bob Gainey came into the free agency period with enviable cap room available looking to retool the Canadiens who seem to have stagnated a bit after posting the best record in the East just two seasons ago. Well, he apparently thinks Scott Gomez is the answer as his top line center as he just took a sizable chunk out of his cap space with Gomez' $7.35 million per year salary through 2013/2014. The reactions to this so far have been all over the place, with some Habs fans screaming that Gainey got hoodwinked by the Rangers' Glen Sather, with others praising the bold and proactive move. Time will tell. Gomez has a huge contract and has not lived up to expectations on Broadway (coming off his worst point production of his career), but does bring playmaking skills and Stanley Cup experience. The deal consisted of Gomez, winger Tom Pyatt and defenceman Mike Busto going to the Habs in exchange for Christopher Higgins and three defensemen (including the Candiens 2007 1st round draft pick Ryan McDonaugh). Higgins was a popular and gritty performer in Montreal, but was hampered by injuries for much of '08/'09.
Pronger To Philly: This one is old news but thought I would comment on it anyway as it is a big one. Probably the biggest deal coming out of the NHL draft and definitely the biggest on Day 1.
Chris Pronger is a guy you love to hate - would love to have him on my team, but boy to I hate him on another. And the guy always seems to have a chip on his shoulder when playing against the Canes. Pronger is a former member of the franchise, having been the #2 overall pick in the 1993 draft by the Hartford Whalers. The Whale traded Pronger to the St Louis Blues, for Brendan Shanahan, two years later. The one (or in this case 2) that got away? Pronger has spent most of his career in the West, meaning the Canes only faced him once or twice a year. Now they get to face him 4-6 times a year in Philly. The Flyers paid a high price in this deal, essentially mortgaging their future in a grab for Cup glory in the short run. Anaheim sent Pronger and forward Ryan Dingle to the Flyers in exchange for Joffrey Lupul, Luca Sbisa, two first round picks and a conditional third round pick. Holy crap, that's a high price to pay. Don't get me wrong, Pronger is a great player, a hall-of-famer, but he is also a free agent at the end of 2009/2010. The Flyers could very well have just given up 3 first round picks (Sbisa was Philly's #1 pick in 2008, and is highly regarded) for a one year rental. Not to mention that the Ducks get Lupul back into the fold (he was their #1 pick in 2002, #7 overall). If the Flyers win the Cup, it will all be worth it of course. Time will tell. Bold move either way.
-m
