Top four winners so far this off-season

I realize it is only three days into the free agent process, however, there has been an incredible amount of activity the past few days. Therefore, I think it is time to compile a list of the four winners since the off-season began:

Winners

1. Detroit Red Wings: Well this is easy. The Red Wings were able to re-sign Brad Stuart to a four-year contract and then pen Marian Hossa to a one-year deal at $7.4 million. More importantly, the Wings didn't lose anyone off their 2008 Stanley Cup roster. The best team in the entire NHL got substantially better without giving anything up. With the roster the team has lined up for next season, they will be even more overwhelming favorites than they were this past season. What does Ken Holland eat for breakfast in the morning? I'd love to know.

2. San Jose Sharks: The past few seasons, the Sharks have been loaded at forward; unfortunately, the team has been lacking the necessary defensive corps to take the next step. Well, that is no longer an issue for Bay Area fans. The Sharks' back-end is now comprised of Dan Boyle, Marc-Eduard Vlasic, Rob Blake, Christian Ehrhoff, Kyle McLaren, Doug Murray and Brad Lukowich (Craig Rivet was traded as this was written). That is a terrific blend of finesse and toughness. The additions of Boyle and Blake cannot be underestimated. Maybe the most important fact of all is that both players have won the Stanley Cup.

3. Columbus Blue Jackets: Blue Jackets GM Scott Howson has done a great job of molding his team and establishing organizational credibility throughout the NHL. By signing Mike Commodore and trading for Fedor Tyutin and Christian Backman, the Jackets were able to solidify their defense going into next season. Additionally, the team was able to replace the scoring void left by Nikolai Zherdev by quickly signing Kristian Huselius. With these trades, the Jackets are demonstrating their intention of building from the net out. That is a perfect strategy with Ken Hitchcock at the helm. More importantly for Jackets fans is that Howson has signed or acquired players with 3/4 year deals; thus, not handicapping himself down the line when prospects Derrick Brassard, Jakub Voracek, etc. come up for their second contracts.

4. Montreal Canadiens: This may same like a strange team to include on this list but bear with me for a second. The Habs haven't done anything stupid this off-season, in fact, they have actually improved their roster. While they lost Mark Streit to the Islanders, the Habs would have been more foolish had they actually paid Streit that type of money (5yr, $20.5 million). The Habs only really need to replace Streit on the power play, and with Kirk Muller continuing to guide the team with the man-advantage and Andrei Markov playing the point that shouldn't be a big concern. Additionally, the Habs have become more talented up-front with the addition of tremendous passer Alex Tanguay. As well, the team added much needed muscle on the fourth line by signing the hulking Georges Laraque to a three-year contract. Finally, the team signed Andrei Kostitsyn to one of the more reasonable three-year contract extensions I've seen in a while (3yr, $9.75 million). Good work by Bob Gainey and Company.

Honorable mention:
New Jersey Devils

For Illegal Curve, I'm Richard Pollock.

Streit had good feeling about the Islanders

From Greg Logan of Newsday:

"I just had a good feeling about the whole situation," Streit said in a telephone interview from Zurich, where he's working with his personal trainer. "I really like the team, and I love the city.

So, it was kind of an easy decision for me."I had good, exciting years in Montreal, but for me as a person and a player, it was time to move on. I'm not sad at all. I'm really excited because I played in Long Island many times with Montreal, and I always liked it there."

Read the entire article here.

Translation: "The Islanders offered me way more money than the Habs, so it was time to move on."

Rangers interested in Hossa and Streit

From Larry Brooks of the NY Post:

Sharks are on Marian Hossa's short list on which the New York Rangers, Penguins and Red Wings also appear, a source reports. If San Jose adds Hossa, who is believed seeking between $7.5-8M per, they will intensify their efforts to deal Jonathan Cheechoo, who was dangled at the draft. Blueshirts will be all ears.

Brian Campbell, good but hardly a difference-maker, is seeking $7M a year. That's why there is going to be so much interest - cough, cough, Rangers - in Montreal's Mark Streit, who compiled 52 of his 62 points from the point this season and will probably come in at half Campbell's cost.

Read the entire article here.

Rumors have been around for a while that the Rangers are interested in both Hossa and Streit. Personally, I think Streit should be of more priority than Hossa. The Rangers don't particularly need another big money, long-term deal like Hossa will demand and the team is in dire need of a point-man on the power play. Never mind the fact that he will cost significantly less.

Streit to go the free agent route?

From Kevin Mio of the Montreal Gazette:

According to RDS, it looks like utility man Mark Streit will be able to offer his
services to the NHL's 29 other teams next Tuesday.

The all-sports network is reporting that the Canadiens have yet to offer the Swiss player a new contract.

Read Mio's short entry here.

While I am surprised the Habs haven't offered Streit a contract, I would not be surprised if Streit walks after July 1. Lots of teams could use a power play quarterback with forward/defense versatility.

Flyers will look to mid-level free agent defensemen

From Ed Moran of the Philadelphia Daily News:

There will be some salary adjustments but not enough to go over the top as the Flyers did last summer. So they will look at the list of free agents in the midsalary range, including Colorado's John-Michael Liles, Buffalo's Dmitri Kalinin and Montreal's Mark Streit.

"We'll be right up against the upper limit of the cap," Holmgren said. "But there are ways to be creative and we will look at those ways. We need to concentrate on ways to make our team better for next season.

Read the entire article here.

Liles and Streit may even be out of the Flyers' price range as they will most likely command pretty hefty dollars on the market. I would expect the Flyers to sign a defenseman at around the $3-3.5 million range.

Streit to leave Montreal?

From Mike Boone of the Montreal Gazette:

Journal du Montréal beat man Marc de Foy reports the Canadiens may be loath to shell out the dollars needed to keep Mark Streit in Montreal.

The team has a lot of balls in the air, in terms of contracts. Themain priority is Andrei Kostitsyn, who can become an RFA on July 1, ascan Josh Gorges and Jaroslav Halak.

De Foy also points out that Alex Kovalev and Saku Koivu are entering the final year of theircontracts. And the team will want to lock up Mike Komisarek, who canbecome a UFA on July 1, 2009.

Read the short entry here.

I don't see the Habs breaking the bank to sign Streit. While he is extremely versatile and valuable to the team, his defensive work does not merit him signing a large-money contract. As much as the Habs would hate to lose him on their power play, Andrei Markov is capable of handling the load on the point without him. Additionally, mastermind Kirk Muller can surely find a way to maintain the Habs' success with the man-advantage.

NHL Morning Papers (Monday Edition)

Here are the national morning papers:

• William Houston of the Globe & Mail is critical of CBC's Hockey Day in Canada coverage, in this morning's paper.
• There was a scary incident involving Richard Zednik last night in Buffalo, as the winger had his neck cut by the skate of a teammate and was taken to a local hospital to have emergency surgery.
• Kevin Allen of USA Today has the recap of the Red Wings/Ducks match-up from Sunday afternoon.

Here are the Eastern Conference morning papers:

• Since the All-Star break, Kari Lehtonen is finally starting to display the form that made the Thrashes draft him second overall in the NHL Entry Draft, writes Craig Custance of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
• Even after undergoing surgery on his left knee, Manny Fernandez may not be done for the season just yet, writes Kevin Paul Dupont of the Boston Globe. With the trade deadline just over two weeks away, Stephen Harris of the Boston Herald says fans should hope the Bruins don't sacrifice the future for a quick fix.
• The Sabres' 5-3 win over the Panthers was put into perspective last night after Richard Zednik was cut with a skate blade on his neck and was taken immediately to the hospital.
• After yesterday's 3-2 overtime loss to the Capitals, the Rangers now have the week to come together at practice before their next game on Saturday, writes Larry Brooks of the NY Post.
• After yesterday's 4-3 loss to the Penguins, the Flyers are now 0-for-3 in February, and to make matters worse, they lost Simon Gagne to a mild concussion. (Writer's note: I think it is time to shutdown Gagne for the season. He has suffered far too many head injuries in one season.) On the Forsberg front, the Flyers announced that his agent Don Baizley told them that the Swedish center wouldn't make a decision on his comeback for another week.
• Evgeni Malkin is vying for the NHL's MVP with his recent play, and last night was no exception, as the talented Russian had four points in his team's 4-3 victory over the Flyers. Meanwhile, Penguins netminder Marc-Andre Fleury has been sent down to Wilkes-Barre on a conditioning stint.
• Alexander Ovechkin and Mike Green made sure to fix the Capitals powerplay yesterday, as they led Washington to a 3-2 overtime victory over the Rangers.
• The result of their game with Buffalo was secondary last night, as the entire Panthers team and fan-base was more concerned about the status of Richard Zednik after he took a skate blade to the neck. In positive news, the winger is listed as being in stable condition.
• Canadiens defenseman Ryan O'Byrne has been recalled from his conditioning stint in Hamilton. Mark Streit has become one of the Habs' most valuable players, writes Pat Hickey of the Montreal Gazette.
• The salary cap won't get in the way of the Devils' attempts to make a trade at the deadline, writes Rich Chere of the Newark Star-Ledger.
• The Islanders won't be looking for a short-term fix this season as they did last season, writes Greg Logan of Newsday.
• The Senators are only three points up on the Pittsburgh Penguins for top spot in the Eastern Conference, writes Chris Stevenson of the Ottawa Sun. Here are the results from the Senators' skills competition.
• The Maple Leafs were happy to have Chad Kilger back with the team, and he didn't take long to make a good impression by winning the team's hardest shot contest. Big-time prospect Steve Stamkos wants to be a Maple Leaf, so someone has to tell the Leafs to go back to losing, writes Mike Zeisberger of the Toronto Sun.
• Erik Erlendsson of the Tampa Tribune has the month-by-month story of the Lightning's difficult season.

Here are the Western Conference morning papers:

• Mathieu Schneider made the Red Wings pay for letting him go yesterday, tallying a goal and an assist in the Ducks' 3-2 victory in Motown.
• "The thing that's been our nemesis all year is haunting us right now, and that's our inability to garner more than a couple goals a game," said Blue Jackets coach Ken Hitchcock after his team's 3-2 shootout loss to the last-place Kings at home. Last night was the Columbus debut of Dick Tarnstrom, as the former Oiler registered one assist in his team's loss.
• J.J. Taylor of the Dallas Morning News says the Stars are flourishing this season, in large part due to their balanced scoring. Even though Marty Turco is now back to 100% and the unquestioned starting netminder in Dallas, it doesn't mean Dave Tippett will forget about impressive back-up Michael Smith.
• The Wings were unhappy with Nicklas Lidstrom's disallowed goal with under a minute remaining in the game as they lost 3-2 to the defending Cup champion Ducks. Yesterday's game may very well have been a preview of the Western Conference Finals, writes Michael Rosenberg of the Detroit Free Press. In injury news, the Wings will be without Dan Cleary for the next 6-8 weeks because of a broken jaw.
• The Wild continues to be impressed with the play of youngster Brent Burns as the defenseman scored the shootout winner last night in his team's 2-1 victory over the Blues. Even though Wes Walz has retired from hockey, that doesn't mean he won't be a part of the Wild organization.
• Many of the Blues had the flu yesterday, but even so, the team had an opportunity to defeat the Wild in a shootout; unfortunately for Blues fans they came up empty, writes Jeremy Rutherford of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
• The Flames are the definition of mediocre so far this season, writes Jean Lefebvre of the Calgary Herald.
• Even with the return of Jonathan Toews to their line-up, the Blackhawks continued their free-fall from playoff contention last night with a 3-2 shootout loss at Vancouver. While his team is struggling, youngster Cam Barker finally seems to be finding his way in the NHL.
• Brett Clark is second place in the entire NHL in blocked shots, writes Adrian Dater of the Denver Post.
• Ladislav Smid is more aggressive than some people may think, writes Jim Matheson of the Edmonton Journal.
• "This team is built on being resilient," said Predators coach Barry Trotz after his team scored three period goals at Phoenix to defeat the Coyotes 6-3. If you listen to coach Trotz all the internet rumors about Kevin Klein being traded seem even more far-fetched.
• The Coyotes continued their poor play at home with a 6-3 loss to the Predators last night. In other news, coach Wayne Gretzky is growing tired of these one-piece sticks. (Writer's note: I agree with Gretz on this one. It is time to go back to wooden sticks. )
• The Canucks were victorious last night, but it wasn't without controversy on the shootout winner, writes Gordon McIntyre of the Vancouver Province.

For Illegal Curve, I'm Richard Pollock.

Email any thoughts, ideas, or suggestions to illegalcurve@gmail.com

Morning Musings

Due to the high number of articles this morning, I am going to skip my usual preamble.

On to the morning papers:

• Shawn Horcoff may not be penciled in on the Oilers' number one line, but he will still play on the top powerplay unit and kill penalties. To his credit, Horcoff is not complaining about being demoted from the team's top line.
• All the youngsters were impressive for the Oilers last night versus the Flames writes Robert Tychkowski of the Edmonton Sun.
• Sheldon Souray takes it personally when people put down the city of Edmonton and the province of Alberta.
• As Steve Gorton writes, Olli Jokinen is coming into his own as captain and leader of the Florida Panthers.
• Dan Boyle suffered a freak accident in the locker room and the team will be without his services for 3-6 weeks.
• Injured Mike Van Ryn and Steve Montador both skated on their own yesterday in an effort to get ready for the team's first regular season game.
• After an impressive rookie campaign, sophomore Anze Kopitar is looking to improve upon last season's terrific numbers; Lonnie White of the L.A. Times has the story.
• Most families hate to see their children fight, however, the Boogards are a different breed writes Michael Russo.
• The newest line of Fiddler-Arnott-Dumont is gelling at Predators' camp writes John Glennon of the Tennessean. Meanwhile, the Predators made more cuts on Saturday and have now trimmed their roster down to 28.
• Saku Koivu think that the Habs need to work on their powerplay. The Habs went 0-for-5 on the man-advantage in their 2-1 loss to the Sens on Saturday.
• The Rangers' forward combination of Gomez and Jagr needs more time to click writes John Dellapina of the New York Daily News. The Rangers left much to be desired in their 5-0 defeat to the Flyers on Saturday.
• Sean Bergenheim and Charles Wang have put their differences behind them and Bergenheim is looking forward to a having big season with the Islanders.
• With Sheldon Souray gone from Montreal, Jason Spezza picked a new Habs' defenseman to pick on and that was Mark Streit.
• Christoph Schubert impressed a number of scouts who were taking in the Sens/Habs pre-season game on Saturday.
• Many fans are unhappy with the look of the NHL's new uniforms writes Hugh Adami of the Ottawa Citizen.
• Wayne Gretzky was very happy with the way his team's youngsters performed in a 6-5 victory over Dallas on Saturday.
• Because the new uniforms repel moisture, players are noticing all of their equipment is having to absorb more sweat than before writes Dave Molinari of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
• The Pens lost to the Red Wings 5-2 on Sunday.
• The NHL is looking to grow its brand across Europe writes Tim Panaccio of the Philadelphia Inquirer.
• There is plenty of competition in Detroit for the final two roster spots writes George Sipple of the Detroit Free Press.
• As David Pollak of the San Jose Mercury News explains, there are four players fighting tooth and nail to win the Sharks' sixth defenseman job this training camp.
• The Blues were able to sign Keith Tkachuk and Paul Kariya for the same price it would have cost to sign Scott Gomez writes Jeremy Rutherford of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. The Blues defeated the Thrashers 3-2 on Saturday night.
• According to Mark Zwolinksi of the Toronto Star, the best case scenario for a Kyle Wellwood return is 3-4 weeks. However, Paul Maurice thinks we should know more about the situation in the next 2-3 days.
• The Leafs are considering lining up Chad Kilger as the team's number two center. The adjustment may not be as significant for Kilger as people thing because, as Kilger points out, he started his career as a center.
• Damien Cox of the Toronto Star opines that the 2005-06 NHL season was the exception rather than the rule in terms of increased offensive hockey.
• Not unlike just about every game last season, the Canucks asked too much of Roberto Luongo as the team was defeated by the Sharks 3-1 on Saturday.
• Patrick Marleau is opting to put last season's playoff struggles behind him and is looking forward to 07/08 writes Ben Kuzma of the Vancouver Province.
• Mike Modano is only six points from passing Phil Housley and becoming the all-time points leader for American born players.
• Chris Clark has moved from a scoring role, back to his old checking role and is not in the least bit complaining.
• The Columbus Dispatch has a Q & A with the Blue Jackets' owner.
• With Jose Theodore nursing an injury, long-shot candidate Tyler Weiman may begin the season as the Avs' backup goaltender; Andrian Dater has the story.
• As Craig Custance of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution explains, Keith Tkachuk has only good things to say about his time in Atlanta.
• The Hurricanes lost to the Predators 4-1 on Saturday; Luke Decock of the News Observer has the recap.
• While making the Sabres' opening day roster seems unlikely at this point, Patrick Kaleta only has one gear and he is not going to change his style of play just because his chances to make the team are slim at Sabres' camp.
• Kevin Paul Dupont's usual Sunday morning gem of an article can be found here.
• Dupont also provides us with a recap of Saturday's Bruins/Leafs contest and notes from around Bruins' camp in this morning's Boston Globe.
• Newcomer Peter Schaeffer has developed great chemistry with Marc Savard in Boston training camp thus far.
• The youngsters were flying on the ice for the Flames as they took on the Oilers on Saturday night. While the number one line of Iginla-Langkow-Tanguay was put together for the first time this pre-season and didn't disappoint.

For Illegal Curve, I'm Richard Pollock.