Oren Koules on the Dan Boyle trade

From Jerome Stockfisch of the Tampa Tribune:

"Like anything in life, there's two sides to the story," he told fans after one inquired about the circumstances. "I'm certainly not going to debate that Dan Boyle won a Stanley Cup here. He's a great hockey player, the best puck-moving defenseman in the league.

"To make our team better, to make it better tomorrow, to make it better in the future, to make it better now, we felt this was a move we had to do. We got four great assets back for him and Brad Lukowich. It makes us a better hockey club."

Read Stockfisch's entire profile of Koules here.

Trading Boyle sure doesn't make the Lightning better now. In the future, it may be a beneficial move; however, if the Lightning is so concerned about the future, why sign Mark Recchi, Gary Roberts and Olaf Kolzig?

Darren Rumble to be hired to coach Norfolk of AHL

From Damian Cristodero of the St. Petersburg Times:

Darren Rumble will coach AHL Norfolk next season, and promised to try to pay back Admirals fans who watched their team for the first time in 19 years, miss the playoffs. Why is this a nice story? Because Rumble was an assistant to coach Steve Stirling last season and was basically fired when his option was not picked up after Stirling was re-assigned.

Read the entire post from Lightning Strikes here.

From all I've read, Darren Rumble is apparently a stand-up guy. If he has some success in Norfolk, I wouldn't be surprised to see him jump to Tampa as an assistant coach.

Islanders get permission to speak with Tortorella

From Erik Erlendsson of the Tampa Tribune:

Former Lightning coach John Tortorella could be in line to take over the vacant head coaching position with the New York Islanders.

The Islanders have contacted Tampa Bay seeking permission to speak to Tortorella, the Tribune has learned. The Lightning have granted the Islanders their request to talk to Tortorella.

Read the entire story here.

Hiring Tortorella would be a great move for the Islanders franchise. He is a terrific coach with a winning pedigree, who would bring accountability and passion to the Island.

Lightning hires Vernon

From Damian Cristodero Lightning Strikes:

Here's the team announcement:

The Lightning have hired former NHL goaltender Mike Vernon as special assistant to the vice president of hockey operations today, owners Oren Koules and Len Barrie announced. Vernon ’s duties will be to assist in hockey-related matters and to provide guidance to the team’s goaltenders.

Read the entire story here.

Vernon was a heck of a goalie, but we will have to wait and see whether that translates into managerial success.

Lightning is still Vinny's team

From Erik Erlendsson of the Tampa Tribune:

"This is Vinny's team; we know that. We are here to help him," Recchi said. "That will be something we'll talk to Vincent about, but we know he's the leader of this team. ... He's been a champion and he knows what it takes to win. I think it just strayed a little bit the past couple of years. But I think once you get that feeling back again, it's easy to grab again. When you are not winning it's easy to go the other way."

Read the entire article here.

Players like Gary Roberts and Mark Recchi were brought in as much for their ability to play on the team's 3rd/4th line as for their leadership. The truth is, the Bolts don't lack leadership with Vincent Lecavalier and Martin St. Louis having both led the team to a Stanley Cup championship.

Smith is number one in Tampa

From Damian Cristodero of the St. Petersburg Times:

So much for the idea the Lightning lacked confidence in goaltender Mike Smith. Brian Lawton, the team's vice president of hockey operations said Monday that the No. 1 job "is Mike's job to lose," and that the two-year, $4.4-million contract extension was a way "to instill some confidence in him. ... We wanted to eliminate any doubt where we stand. We are behind him 1,000 percent."

Read the entire entry from Lightning Strikes here.

Good decision on Lawton's part. Smith should be capable of carrying the load in Tampa and giving him confidence heading into the season can only help matters.

Mike Smith re-signs in Tampa

From Damian Cristodero of the St. Petersburg Times:

The Lightning announced it has signed goaltender Mike Smith to a two-year contract extension that begins in 2009-10. Smith, next season, will finish off a two-year contract that will pay $950,000 in 2008-09.

Here's more from the team's announcement:

“It goes without saying that Mike has a bright future in the Lightning organization,” vice president of hockey operations Brian Lawton said. “It is important in our plan to have locked up Mike, along with Ollie, to solidify our goaltending situation this season and beyond.”

Read the entire story from Lightning Strikes here.

There were rumors that Smith was on the block earlier this month, but those don't seem to be true. That is a good thing for Bolts fans, as Smith is a very good young netminder. In fact, his puck-moving ability should be a huge asset to Tampa's young defense. Smith should get the majority of the starts over Olaf Kolzig. Whether that happens or not is anyone's guess.

Lecavalier excited about Lightning's new owners

From Erik Erlendsson of the Tampa Tribune:

Aside from the long-term security the contract guarantees, Lecavalier said he is excited with ownership's long-term plan about the team's chances of competing for a long time.

"They are very passionate and they've said all along they want to win and they have proven that with all the players that have been brought in and all the moves they've made since July 1," Lecavalier said.

Read the entire article here.

If I were Lecavalier I'd be excited too. My question is, will the Bolts ownership continue to spend like they have if they are losing lots of money?

Lecavaler signs 11 year contract extension

From the Tampa Tribune:

Vinny Lecavalier's hockey career will end where it began - in a Lightning
uniform.

Lecavalier signed an 11-year contract extension worth $85 million, the details of which surfaced on Saturday. The deal, which averages $7.72 million per season as the salary cap hit, was signed on Friday and submitted to the league office. The extension will kick in at the start of the 2009-10 season and carry through the end of the 2019-20 season, just before Lecavalier's 40th birthday.

Read the entire article here.

Well, I don't like the fact this contract is for 11 years. There is just too much risk involved with a contract that long. Never mind the fact that Lecavalier is already 28 and probably has 3-4 more prime years left. Nevertheless, the team is obviously ecstatic to have their best player under contract for a long time. Also, the contract dwindles down to $1 million for the 11th year of the deal; that makes the contract's average cap hit a more reasonable $7.72 million per season. All in all, Tampa fans have to be very happy to know their best player should remain with the team through the remainder of his career.

Feaster and Bolts split up

From Erik Erlendsson of the Tampa Tribune:

Once Oren Koules and Len Barrie assumed control of the Lightning, they immediately went about a reconstruction project. And with all the disassembling and rebuilding done in the past two weeks, it was inevitable that the architect of the old regime would be swept out.

Tampa Bay general manager Jay Feaster submitted his resignation Friday, ending a 10-year run with the franchise that began when he was hired as assistant general manager on Oct. 20, 1998, under Jacques Demers.

Read the entire article here.

Someday love will find you
Break those chains that bind you
One night will remind you
How we touched
And went our separate ways

Lightning and Feaster part ways

From TSN:

The Tampa Bay Lightning and general manager Jay Feaster have parted ways. Sources tell TSN that club has negotiated a settlement on the remaining three years of his contract.

Feaster was hired by the Lightning in 1998 as assistant general manager to Jacques Demers and later to Rick Dudley. He was promoted to general manager in February of 2002.

Read the entire report here.

I really don't understand why the team treated Feaster the way it did. They essentially hired his replacement while he was still GM and then took away all of his power. The former Cup champ deserved better and won't have a difficult time finding another NHL job.

Lecavalier's contract extension expected to be announced on Tuesday

From Erik Erlendsson of the Tampa Tribune:

"The numbers are not as advertised," Lawton said Thursday. "We are putting the final touches on it. Everything you have read and all that's been reported in the media, they are all false. We'll announce it all next week."

Lecavalier's deal is expected to be announced Tuesday during a day-long event at the St. Pete Times Forum that will be capped off with a town hall meeting involving owners Oren Koules and Len Barrie, Coach Barry Melrose and Lecavalier.

"It's exciting. We still have little things to take care of but things are looking very good," Lecavalier said.

Read the entire article here.

This contract extension has been rumored for some time now, so it appears to be basically done. I guess the question is, whether the contract is over ten years or not?

Feaster's role to be defined soon

From Damian Cristodero of the St. Petersburg Times:

- Lawton also better defined the team's management structure. He said he and general manager Jay Feaster are in discussions to define Feaster's role. He said co-assistant general managers Tom Kurvers and Claude Loiselle will split duties. Kurvers will be more concerned with player issues, more so on the minor league side. He said Loiselle will work on contract negotiations and CBA compliance. "So they'll be a division of work, the way I see it," Lawton said.

Read more about the Lightning here.

Feaster is a stand-up guy and a very solid GM who deserves a lot better than this. Remember, this man put together the 2004 Stanley Cup champions, so he won't have too much trouble finding another job.

Lightning round out coaching staff and front office

From Erik Erlendsson of the Tampa Tribune:

Here’s some housekeeping by the team, naming Wes Walz, Rick Tocchet and Cap Raeder to the coaching staff while naming Tom Kurvers as assistant general manager, Greg Malone (yes, Ryan’s father) as head pro scout and Jim Hammett as
director of player personnel. Here are the press releases from the team:

The Tampa Bay Lightning have named Tom Kurvers to the position of assistant general manager, Jim Hammett to the position of director of player personnel and Greg Malone to the position of head professional scout, it was announced today by owners Oren Koules and Len Barrie.

Read the entire story here.

This story helps me understand why I saw Jay Feaster on my milk carton this morning...

Which Tampa forwards could be dealt?

From Allan Muir of Sports Illustrated:

That said, it wouldn't be surprising to see another addition to the group at some point. With so many bodies up front on one-way deals, a trade or two seems inevitable. Jussi Jokinen, acquired last spring in the Richards deal, lost his second line pivot job to Stamkos and is the most likely body to be moved. Michel Ouellet, a versatile forward who doesn't seem to have a spot in Tampa's top six and is far less effective in a lesser role, is another good bet.

Read all about the Bolts' off-season from Muir here.

Jokinen would be a good fit on a number of teams, including the forward needy Canucks. Oullet wouldn't fetch as much on the trade market as Jokinen, but there is sure to be some kind of market for his services too.

Brandon Bochenski signs with Bolts

From Damian Cristodero of Lightning Strikes:

The Lightning announced right wing Brandon Bochenski was signed to a two-year contract to help provide depth for AHL Norfolk. The contract is a two-way for next season but a one-way NHL deal in 2009-10.

Read the entire entry here.

Bochenski will serve as a depth player on the Tampa roster. To be frank, he has a terrific shot but just can't skate well enough to stick as a consistent NHL performer.

Len Barrie predicts division title

From Damian Cristodero of the St. Petersburg Times:

"I'll predict right now, Tampa Bay will win the division," he said of the
Southeast. "That's how much we like our team."

Read more from Lightning Strikes here.

You have to like Barrie's passion, but this move only puts unnecessary pressure on his team. Sure they have added a lot of talent this off-season, but the team will still face intense division competition from Washington and Carolina.

Len Barrie really likes his team's defense

From Erik Erlendsson of the Tampa Tribune:

“You can hear from me first, our defense is better than people think,’’ Barrie said. “That’s why we are loading up on forwards because I really, really like our young defense.’’

Barrie didn’t flat out say that they have no intention of bringing in more on defense and he did indicate that more deals are in the works, especially since they have 14 forwards on one-way deals, not counting Evgeny Artyukhin, who is expected to be signed this week, possibly as early as Tuesday.

Read more from Bolts Report here.

Len Barrie may like his team's defense, but I really don't. Who is going to log the big minutes? This team has lost its best defenseman and is replacing that defenseman with a young and inconsistent Matt Carle. So, the defense, which was poor last season, will arguably be worse this coming season.

Recchi heads to Tampa

From TSN:

The Tampa Bay Lightning continued to pile on veteran support on Monday, signing forward Mark Recchi to a one-year, $1.25 million contract that's worth $1.5 million with incentives.

Read the entire report here.

Yup, the Lightning certainly need more veteran forwards!!! Why on earth does the team continue to throw money at forwards??? Has anyone seen that defense?

Dan Boyle not happy with Lightning ownership

From Erik Erlendsson of the Tampa Tribune:

“I understand at the end of the day that it’s a business, this is a business. I
understand that more than anybody. But there is a way to conduct business, and
the way that my situation was handled was absolutely not the way to do it. I,
for a long time now, have been under the impression that I was part of this team
going forward, wanting input from me on other players, and never in a million
years did I think that I was one of the guys that needed to go. Just a few days
ago [media were told] that the rumors were a joke, Dan Boyle is going to play 25
minutes, he’s not being traded, he’s not going anywhere. They made it clear that
we are not going to go after an offensive-defenseman [in free agency] because we
have the best one in the league. Now, going back to business-is-business, when I
find out from an absolutely ton of different sources that my [butt] has been on
the trading block since I signed the extension, that to me, is not the way you
do business...

Read more from Bolts Report here.

Boyle has a right to be angry that new ownership denied he was going anywhere then traded him about a week and a half later. That said, Boyle should be ecstatic he was traded because the Sharks should be Cup contenders for the foreseeable future.