Marc Staal happy about Rangers summer

From Steve Zipay of Newsday:

"I'm excited about the guys we got," he said. "Redden's an All-Star, a great player, he'll really be good. I know Naslund from watching him when I was growing up [in Thunder Bay, Ontario]. He's got experience, he's been on the power play." Asked about the critics who believe Naslund, at 35, is no longer the force he once was, Staal said, "Maybe a change of scenery will be good for him."

Staal also was pleased with the return of defenseman Michal Rozsival. "I got pretty comfortable playing with him last year," Staal said, noting that he had no preference for a pairing with either Redden or Rozsival. "It's not up to me, but I want to play as much as I can, so I can probably get the minutes with either of those guys."

Read the entire article here.

We should set up a back and forth between Larry Brooks and Marc Staal debating the merits of each NYR off-season move. You can't tell me that wouldn't be a hoot!

Sather no longer averse to no-trade/no-move clauses

From Larry Brooks of the NY Post:

Before last summer, Sather had a policy against no-trade or no-move clauses. Then he gave a full five-year no-move to Chris Drury, in addition to $7.05M per. Oh well. Live and learn.

Except this year, there are two more exceptions. Somehow, $8M over two years wasn't enough to get Markus Naslund to agree to come to New York, so what did Sather do? The GM gave Naslund, who will be 35 at the end of the month and is coming off two consecutive disappointing seasons in Vancouver, a full no-move clause.

Hello?

It also seems Wade Redden needed a sweetener to take his $39M, seven-year deal. So the GM gave the defenseman the annual right to give management a list of eight teams to which he cannot be traded, and it will just be unfortunate if Atlanta should want him in a deal for Ilya Kovalchuk, won't it?

Brutal.

Read more from Brooks here.

When in the heat of negotiations, it looks like Sather felt he needed to include these no-trade/no-move clauses to get certain deals done. They may comeback to cause trouble for Sather, or if the Rangers contend like he hopes, they may have no affect at all. Time will tell...

Looking at the 2008/09 Rangers

From Larry Brooks of the NY Post:

There will be a gust of fresh air next season but it's impossible to immediately judge what the wind blew in this week. Wade Redden had a bad year in a deteriorating environment in Ottawa and Markus Naslund had a disappointing season in Vancouver. The Rangers, who gave Redden a six-year deal at $6.5M per and Naslund a two-year deal at $4M per, are heavily invested in the theory that a change of scenery will revitalize careers that went stale.

And who knows about Nikolai Zherdev, about as unpredictable as they come? Will Zherdev shine in the spotlight or will he melt? Will New York ignite him or overwhelm him after knowing only Columbus? Will he be an all-for-one, one-for-all guy here, and if not, will the Rangers have the presence in the room to correct or cope with that?

Read more from Brooks here.

This is the beauty of sports. No one knows how these three players will respond to the pressures and change of environment that New York will present. Nonetheless, the Rangers management obviously felt that the team, as it was constructed last season, was not good enough to make it to the Finals.

Rangers picked Redden over Orpik

From Brett Cyrgalis of the NY Post:

Apparently, the Rangers had a decision to make between hard-hitting Pittsburgh defenseman Brooks Orpik (who was believed to be looking for a deal in the 4 years, $20-million range) and Redden. They chose Redden, and if Orpik signs out of the Division, everyone will be thanking them.

Read more from The Blue Seats here.

Nothing like the free agent market to inflate the value of both of these players. Regardless, Redden should be the better fit in NY because of his puck-moving skills and ability to quarterback the power play.

Rangers don't have much money left

From John Dellapina of the NY Daily News:

By my calculations - using the nhlscap.com website and adding in today’s re-signing of backup goalie Steve Valiquette and Monday’s qualifying offers to forwards Nigel Dawes and Fredrik Sjostrom - the Rangers have approximately $9 million of cap space left. They could clear some by waiving Christian Backman and sending him to the minors if he isn’t claimed, but still.

You can imagine Jaromir Jagr’s confusion as he sat in his Manhattan apartment Tuesday wondering why the Rangers have held firm to the one-year, $6 million offer they last made him.

Read more from Dellapina here.

Dellapina is right. The Rangers didn't give Jagr or Shanny much in negotiations, but then splurged for Rozsival and Redden. Will they have enough money to bring back more than one impact forward into the fold for next season?

Redden signs with Rangers

TSN Reports

One of the NHL's top free agent blueliners is off the market, as the New York Rangers have signed defenceman Wade Redden to a six-year contract worth $6.5 million a season.

Read the entire article here

Redden should thank his agents for this contract, the Rangers were willing to pay much more than he is worth.

Redden deciding between Flames, Sharks and Rangers

From TSN:

Bob McKenzie has just reported that he believes Wade Redden is deciding between the Calgary Flames, New York Rangers and San Jose Sharks.

The Rangers and Sharks are more desperate for his services than are the Flames. If Redden were to sign with either of those two teams, he would be the quarterback on the power play and arguably each team's number one defenseman. If Redden signs with Calgary, he will be slotted behind Dion Phaneuf and would probably play on the second power play unit and less overall minutes. That being said, Redden is a Western Canadian boy and the appeal of playing close to home (Saskatchewan) may be too good to pass up.

Blue Jackets to make big bid for Redden

From Aaron Portzline of the Columbus Dispatch:

-- The Blue Jackets will take a major swing at defensemen Wade Redden. Not
saying they'll get him, but they'll make a hell of an offer.

Read more notes from Puck-rakers here.

The Jackets will one of a few teams that will toss a lot of money at Wade Redden. Teams like San Jose, Florida and Chicago are sure to be interested.

NHL Morning Papers: Playoff Teams (Saturday Edition)

Here are the morning papers for the Eastern Conference playoff match ups:

Note: I am going to continue including teams that were eliminated from the first round under this post until the second round begins.

Montreal versus Boston:

• All eyes will be on Carey Price tonight in Boston, writes Herb Zurkowsky. It looks like Saku Koivu may dress for tonight's Game 6. With Passover beginning tonight, if the Habs would have just finished off the Bruins in Game 5 they would have made it a lot easier on their Jewish fans. It looks like Claude Julien's special teams adjustments have paid off.
• Give Claude Julien credit, his recent rosters decisions have paid off. Bruins fans should not expect to see Patrice Bergeron suit up tonight for the Bruins. The play of Shane Hnidy has impressed Steve Conroy of the Boston Herald. It is fair to say that coach Julien has the Bruins believing in themselves.

Pittsburgh versus Ottawa:

• Dave Molinari of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette takes a closer look at the Penguins' Jordan Staal. Are the Rangers up next for the Penguins? If you wanted to buy second round tickets for the Penguins, it is too late.
• Apparently the Senators are interested in bringing back Wade Redden if the price is right. (Writer's note: Why would Redden re-sign in Ottawa? Seriously, this team has treated him like garbage for two years now.) While they have interest in retaining Redden, the Senators also have interest in ridding themselves of the distraction that is Ray Emery. Scott Morrison of Sun Media wonders if the Senators should rebuild?

Washington versus Philadelphia:

• Just like at the end of the regular season, the Capitals are back in must-win territory, writes Tarik El-Bashir. Forget lessons, the Capitals just want to win. Regardless of what happens in their first round series, the Capitals can take solace in the fact that the organization has a bright future, writes Bob Cohn.
• If the Flyers want to finish off the Capitals today, they could use some help from their struggling power play. Jimmy Dowd has been a very productive fourth line player for the Flyers.

New Jersey versus New York Rangers:

• "Of all the playoff series I've been in and all the early exits, this one hurts the most, for sure," said Devils center John Madden after last night's elimination loss to the Rangers. Losing in the first round hurts, losing in the first round to the Rangers hurts more. Here is a review of Game 5. Martin Brodeur snubbed Sean Avery during the post-game handshake.
• Larry Brooks of the NY Post thinks that losing Scott Gomez last summer has stung the Devils more than any other free agent loss they've had. (Writer's note: Scott Niedermayer's loss to the Devils was FAR more important than Gomez's loss but thanks Larry.) Jay Greenberg of the Post says that Sean Avery did a better job of keeping his focus than the Devils did. The Rangers can thank Henrik Lundqvist for saving the game with his penalty shot stop on John Madden. (Writer's note: I love how the NY press always finds reasons for the Devils' loss and the Rangers' victory. Here is the reason: The Rangers are the BETTER team. They are significantly better on paper and have dominated the Devils all season. Sometimes the answer is that simple.)

The morning papers for the Western Conference playoff match ups are soon to follow...

For Illegal Curve, I'm Richard Pollock.

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

NHL Morning Papers (Sunday Edition)

Here are the Eastern Conference morning papers:

• With their 2-1 overtime win over the Lightning last night, the Thrashers are back to .500 and now tied for first place with Carolina in the Southeast Division standings. Meanwhile, Don Waddell wants people to understand he is still attempting to sign Marian Hossa and not trade him.
• The Bruins blew not one, not two, but three leads last night in their 6-3 home loss to the Panthers. Here is Kevin Paul Dupont's usual Sunday gem of a column.
• Sabres coach Lindy Ruff said his team was playing stupid not scared on Friday night and he made sure his team was aware of that yesterday at practice. In good news, the Sabres are getting Tim Connolly back in the line-up tonight; however, he is replacing Drew Stafford who sustained an ankle sprain on Friday.
• Whether they deserve to be or not, the Hurricanes remain in first place after their 6-1 road loss at New Jersey. Meanwhile, Luke Decock of the News Observer suggests the NHL give out an end of season award to the best defensive defenseman in the NHL.
• After shutting out the Flyers yesterday for the second time in ten days, Larry Brooks of the NY Post wonders if Steve Valiquette will start for the Rangers today when they take on the Capitals. Brooks also wonders if it is time to say goodbye to the Jaromir Jagr era in New York after this season. John Dellapina of the NY Daily News lists five things he thinks must happen for the Rangers to resemble the conference favorite they were supposed to be prior to the season.
• Phil Sheridan of the Philadelphia Inquirer thinks the Flyers should pass on re-signing Peter Forsberg.
• Evgeni Malkin put on a show for the fans of Pittsburgh and his parents yesterday with a three point game in leading the Pens to a 4-2 win over the Kings. The Penguins are geared up to end their 0-4 streak against the Flyers when the two teams face-off this afternoon.
• The Capitals will be looking to improve their struggling powerplay today as they take on the Rangers, writes Tarik El-Bashir of the Washington Post.
• With a 6-3 victory over the Bruins last night, the Panthers have now scored eighteen goals in their past three games. The streaking Panthers are expecting a couple of their injured regulars to return to the line-up in the not-so distant future.
• Yesterday was a nightmare for Cristobal Huet and the Habs, writes Pat Hickey of the Montreal Gazette. Hickey then speculates on possible Senators rumors prior to the trade deadline.
• The Devils handily defeated the Hurricanes 6-1 yesterday but the entire spotlight was on Johnny Oduya who scored a highlight goal from end-to-end last night.
• The Islanders continued their free-fall last night with a 4-3 overtime loss at Minnesota, writes Greg Logan of Newsday.
• The Senators proved the Habs have a ways to go to reach first place in the Northwest Division, writes Wayne Scanlan of the Ottawa Citizen. Don Brennan tells fans not to question Wade Redden's heart when it comes to the Ottawa Senators. Here are Bruce Garrioch's usual Sunday rumors.
• The Bolts were disappointed to not get the two points last night, but they did gain five of six points on their three-game road trip and are looking at the positives, writes Erik Erlendsson of the Tampa Tribune.
• The Leafs surprisingly defeated the powerful Red Wings 3-2 last night, confusing all hockey fans around North America. For all that has gone wrong with the Buds this season, Damien Cox sees a big positive in between the pipes for the team.

I'm running late and don't have time to post the Western Conference morning papers. The usual format will return bright and early tomorrow morning. Have a great Sunday.

For Illegal Curve, I'm Richard Pollock.

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

NHL Morning Papers

Here are the national morning papers:

• Tim Wharnsby of the Globe & Mail tells us that it appears likely Eric Lindros will officially announce his retirement from the NHL later this week.
• Kevin Allen has the story of the total transformation of Ilya Kovalchuk as a player and as a teammate in this morning's USA Today.

Here are the Eastern Conference morning papers:

• Things only seem to be getting worse for Glen Hanlon and his Washington Capitals as they were blown out 5-0 yesterday by the Hurricanes in the first game of an important road trip.
• With both Mark Bell and Kyle Wellwood making their season debuts tonight there is finally some good news in Leafland.
• The Lightning just can't catch a break right now and now have a seven game road losing streak after last night's 4-3 loss to the Panthers.
• Michel Therrien switched around all of his lines except for the Malkin-Crosby-Malone line and it worked out well as Pittsburgh got one goal from each of the team's four lines on their way to defeating the Devils 5-0. Meanwhile, Penguins' fans who are critics of Marc-Andre Fleury should read the comments that Martin Brodeur has about the young netminder.
• The score may have looked close but the Flyers were outplayed and outshot 45-30 in their 2-0 loss to the Rangers last night.
• If the Senators defeat the Leafs tonight then they will have recorded the most points in NHL history after fourteen regular season games. After hearing Wade Redden say yesterday that he'd consider taking a paycut to stay with the Senators, you can't help but appreciate his loyalty to the city of Ottawa and desire to win the Stanley Cup.
• Rick DiPietro is no worse for wear after the eye injury he suffered this weekend and the netminder may be in between the pipes tonight for the battle of New York.
• The Rangers have had a very successful homestand, moving from last to one point out of first after last night's 2-0 victory over the first place Flyers. Due to the fact he is returning from a serious shoulder problem, Larry Brooks of the NY Post suggests that Sean Avery use more discretion when he plays.
• After being pasted 5-0 by the Penguins, Devils' coach Brent Sutter regretted giving the Devils the day off on Sunday. "It was a total lack of professionalism and commitment as individuals and as a group," said Sutter after the game.
• Habs' coach Guy Carbonneau surprisingly tapped Cristobal Huet to start last night's game against the Sabres and the French netminder made his coach look like a genius with a 2-0 shutout.
• The Panthers got a late goal from David Booth to defeat the Lightning 4-3 at home last night. Mike Van Ryn doesn't have a point this season, and he attributes that lack of production to his increased focus on the defensive side of the game.
• The Hurricanes' Cory Stillman led his team to a dominating 5-0 victory over Washington with a hat trick in the first ten minutes last night's game. Stillman may have gotten the headlines, but had it not been for Cam Ward's play early in the first period, the Canes may not have had such a successful night.
• The Sabres weren't overly displeased with their game as much as they were impressed by the play of Cristobal Huet writes Mike Harrington of the Buffalo News. In other Sabres' news, the team has re-arranged its first line.
• It doesn't look like Don Waddell is going to hire a coach anytime soon writes Mark Bradley of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Rookie Onrej Pavelec appears to be the favorite to get the start tonight for the Thrashers.
• Even though the Bruins lost both games to Ottawa over the weekend, they are taking solace in the fact that they were in both games against arguably the best team in the NHL.

Here are the Western Conference morning papers:

• Prior to last night's game, it looked like the Ducks were turning their season around, however, Anaheim was dominated by the Stars and were defeated 5-0 on home ice.
• The Flames didn't have an urgency to their game according to coach Mike Keenan and were easily defeated 4-1 last night by the Avalanche. "It's disappointing, and I expected, quite frankly, our team to be a lot more passionate about the game," said Keenan after the contest.
• The Hawks are beginning a television era by announcing their new home television schedule. (Writer's note: Reading this article is kind of like being in the twilight zone. You would think it was 1978 with all the passion the organization has about broadcasting home hockey games on television.)
• Had it not been for Miikka Kiprusoff's play in the first two periods, the Avs would have dominated the scoreboard even more writes Adrian Dater of the Denver Post.
• The Columbus Dispatch provides readers with a couple of National analysts' thoughts on the Blue Jackets so far this season. With the recent play of Pascal Leclaire, Jackets' goaltending coach Clint Malarchuk says he has it easy.
• Helene St. James of the Detroit Free Press profiles the Zetterberg-Holmstrom-Datsyuk line and opines that it may be the best unit in the NHL.
• The Stars put forth their best effort of the season last night writes Mike Heika of the Dallas Morning News.
• The Oilers' finally beat goaltender Niklas Backstrom, however, they couldn't stay out of the penalty box and it cost them in their 5-2 loss to the Wild. With all the injuries the Oilers have encountered, at least they can count on Raffi Torres who played his 201st consecutive game last night.
• With the way the Wild's powerplay was clicking last night, who needs Gaborik and Demitra asks Michael Russo of the Star Tribune.
• Dustin Brown of the Kings tells Lonnie White of the L.A. Times that he is unhappy about the team's long layoff.
• Martin Gelinas has no problems with players wearing visors, he just chooses not to wear one himself.
• Coyotes' coach Wayne Gretzky has some tough lineup decisions on his hands with his team exhibiting surprising depth.
• Jeremy Roenick wants people to forget about him scoring 500 goals and focus on the Sharks getting far above the .500 level of play.
• The St. Louis Post-Dispatch has five questions with Blues' GM John Davidson.
• Canucks' coach Alain Vigneault is sticking with having his eggs all in one basket on the top line writes Gordon McIntyre of the Vancouver Province.

For Illegal Curve, I'm Richard Pollock.