Colorado Avalanche Sign Andrew Raycroft

The Colorado Avalance have signed goalie Andrew Raycroft to replace the departed Jose Theodore, as reported on TSN's Free-Agent Tracker.

Hopefully the Avalanche can resurrect Raycroft's career in the same way they helped Theodore. Otherwise, it could be a long year on the Avs' back-end.

Raycroft bought out

From the National Post:

Continuing their offseason house cleaning, the Toronto Maple Leafs on Friday bought out the remaining year of goaltender Andrew Raycroft's contract.

Read the entire article here.

The Raycroft acquisition was a disaster from the outset. Anytime you acquire a goaltender from a team within your division, something is fishy.

Waiving goodbye

From TSN:

The Tampa Bay Lightning have place goaltender Marc Denis on waivers for the purpose of buying him out. Should he clear waivers on Wednesday, he will be bought out at that time.

Here is the entire report.

Also from TSN:

The Toronto Maple Leafs took another step toward rebuilding on Tuesday, placing
forward Kyle Wellwood and goaltender Andrew Raycroft on waivers.

Here is the report.

As I said yesterday, putting Wellwood on waivers doesn't make a ton of sense to me. Raycroft's time in Toronto had run out, as the team has Vesa Toskala entrenched as their number one netminder and Justin Pogge on the cusp of making the NHL.

As for Denis, he didn't perform even close to expectations throughout his tenure in Tampa and his placement on waivers is not surprising at all.

News You Can Use in the Morning

In Light of RP's illness, I will post this morning and try to come up with something for the afternoon.

1. Tom Glavine suggests that he would trade his Cy Young for a Stanley Cup.
2. Are the Senators partying too much?
3. ESPN profiles the Oilers, who had a fan beat up in Calgary on Saturday night.
4. David Amber gives us his Top 10 Gordie Howe moments.
5. Ken Hitchcock will coach Team Canada at the World Championships.
6. Canada's Women's team tries to shake off the jet lag and get ready to play in China.
7. The weekly release from the USHL. In a related note, long time Sioux City and Thunder Bay coach Dave Siciliano will retire after this season.
8. Calgary and Edmonton have thrown their hat into the ring for the 2012 World Juniors.
9. Kyle Turris has signed with the Phoenix Coyotes.
10. Andrew Raycroft will get his first start since January 20th.
11. Jim Matheson examines San Jose's acquisition of Brian Campbell.
12. The Top 10 David Amber Top 10 columns.
13. In a move that will surely impress his wife/girlfriend, Jeremy Williams stays up.
14. Damien Cox thinks the Leafs should use the minors, not buyouts to solve their problems.Good idea in theory, but may cause problems with the NHLPA and in attracting Free Agents.
15. The NHL Nickname challenge.
16. The video from "The Good Old Hockey Game"
17. An in-depth Q and A with Luca Cunti, a Tampa prospect currently playing in the USHL.
18. Terry Frei calls out Ryan Smyth.
19. The Oilers have signed Michigan State forward Bryan Lerg.
20. The weekly Hot List from the Hockey News.
21. Kyle Turris will play three games with the Coyotes and then return to Madison to finish his studies.
22. Puck That Hit gives us the Top 10 Fools in the NHL.
23. The April 1st edition of Campbellnomics.
24. A comprehensive look around the WHL with Gregg Drinnan.
25. Spector sees reason for optimism in Columbus.

News You Can Use Late in the Day

1. Marc Crawford has not responded to allegations that he ordered the attack on Steve Moore.
2. Mark Recchi has been assigned to the AHL.
3. The Coyotes have traded Alex Auld to the Bruins for Nate DiCasmirro.
4. Bob McKenzie notes that Brian Burke will have to move some pieces to prepare for Niedermayer's return.
5. Pavel Kubina will return to the Leafs lineup tonight after missing 10 games with a knee injury.
6. Fernando Pisani is happy to be avoiding the spotlight.
7. The New Arena in Fargo is a finalist for the World U-18 Championship.
8. Hockey.com writes that Euro's are becoming more common amongst NHL tough guys.
9. David Amber profiles 10 rivalries in the NHL.
10. Sean Avery doesn't like Toronto.
11. The Bentley Falcons are taking the NCAA by storm.
12. Evgeni Malkin is the forgotten superstar in Pittsburgh.
13. Greg Moore has shed some weight and elevated his game.
14. Bates Battaglia owns a bar in Raleigh, NC.
15. Shawn P. Roarke with his picks for Canada's World Junior team.
16. Andrew Raycroft is adjusting to life as a backup.
17. The Blackhawks have recalled David Bolland.
18. Taking Note with an interesting look at hazing in hockey.
19. Reggie Leach has turned his life around after battling alcohol.
20. The Hockey News Blog is not a fan of the point for a shootout loss.
21. Another installment on the Hockey News' profile of Roseau, MN.
22. Brett Hull says the Stars will assess their talent before making any moves.
23. An update on the small hockey colleges in the Eastern US.
24. Stan Fischler says the Rangers miss Avery.
25. Steve Downie saw only 4:39 in his NHL debut.


For Illegal Curve, I'm Kyle Kosior.