Canada Day / Free Agency in 16 days

KACK · 06-15-10, 12:51 PM

Who are some big name free agent players this summer???

PuckOff · 06-15-10, 02:10 PM

Pretty weak year for UFA's.

Gonchar
Marleau
Kovalchuk
Garnet Exelby

Marauders · 06-15-10, 11:24 PM

The guy I am interested to see where he will end up is Volchenkov. He is just the type of player that the Caps need. Hopefully they can sign him for a reasonable price.

snipeshow23 · 06-16-10, 01:21 AM

Puck, I think as far as big names, there isn't much to get excited about... But there are a lot of under valued guys that could make impacts wherever they end up. I'm interested in seeing where these guys listed below end up (or stay):

Plekanec - 70 pts, good penalty killer and wins about half his face offs

Stempniak - though he was awful in Toronto, he did scored 14 goals in 18 games with Phoenix, and since this year is fairly weak, he could get a deal based on his play at the end of the year

Nabokov - really the only goalie out there, not much of a playoff goalie, but I really think he could end up in Washington

Frolov - had a terrible year, had a major drop in goals and overall play, if he can get consistent he could be a steal for someone

Zbynek Michalek - great shot blocker and terrific in the D zone, perfect guy for someone like Washington

PuckOff · 06-16-10, 10:19 AM

Originally posted by Marauders

The guy I am interested to see where he will end up is Volchenkov. He is just the type of player that the Caps need. Hopefully they can sign him for a reasonable price.

Volchenkov is not worth the money he is asking ($5 Mil +). He hits and that's it. I like him though. Just not the money he is asking.

PuckOff · 06-16-10, 10:21 AM

Originally posted by snipeshow23

Puck, I think as far as big names, there isn't much to get excited about... But there are a lot of under valued guys that could make impacts wherever they end up. I'm interested in seeing where these guys listed below end up (or stay):

Plekanec - 70 pts, good penalty killer and wins about half his face offs

Stempniak - though he was awful in Toronto, he did scored 14 goals in 18 games with Phoenix, and since this year is fairly weak, he could get a deal based on his play at the end of the year

These 2 players played well when it counted....................UFA year. In Stempy's case, he poured it on when traded to Phoenix to maximize his earning potential. He did shit in Toronto adn no don't blame it on he played with horrible players.

OTL · 06-16-10, 04:41 PM

Originally posted by PuckOff

How will Chicago look after they dump a few of their "core" players? Who will be traded or bought out? Chicago are in a world of hurt right now with cap issues. It will be interesting to see the look of the team in Oct.

Chicago won't lose any of their core players, Stan Bowman has stated this numerous times. If I had to guess what he's going to do I'd say that Huet will be shipped down to the minors, and Campbell will be joining him if he's unwilling to waive his NTC. They will let the aging Madden walk which takes another 2.7 million off the books. That will clear 15.4 million in cap space which is more than enough to keep the RFA/UFA players they want to lock up. If Sopel retires deduct another 2.3 million.

LOL, teams like the Leafs and Canucks are in much more difficult situations when it comes to the cap.

PuckOff · 06-16-10, 07:03 PM

There's no way Chicago will pay 2 players $11 million + to play in the minors. Ain't gonna happen Stan!!!

PuckOff · 06-16-10, 07:05 PM

Originally posted by OTL

LOL, teams like the Leafs and Canucks are in much more difficult situations when it comes to the cap.

Leafs are already under the cap. In fact I think they are $11 million under. The thing with the Leafs are that being the most wealthy team in the NHL they can easily absorb paying $100 million to players playing in the minors.

The Leafs can take on salary and bury it if they want. BB has a plan.

OTL · 06-16-10, 07:30 PM

Originally posted by PuckOff

There's no way Chicago will pay 2 players $11 million + to play in the minors. Ain't gonna happen Stan!!!

I don't see why not, they can afford it. It would be a last resort, but it's a much better option than blowing up the core of the team.

Originally posted by PuckOff

Leafs are already under the cap. In fact I think they are $11 million under.

The Leafs are further over the cap than the Blackhawks! Look for a few of their high-priced defenceman to get moved for a salary dump.

Marauders · 06-16-10, 11:51 PM

Originally posted by PuckOff

Volchenkov is not worth the money he is asking ($5 Mil +). He hits and that's it. I like him though. Just not the money he is asking.

I agree he is a defensive specialist with his hitting and shot blocking ability and not worth the 5 mil. But he is exactly the type of player Washington need in the back end. As long as Washington can get him in the 3.5-4million range, I think it's worth it.

PuckOff · 06-17-10, 08:13 AM

Originally posted by OTL

The Leafs are further over the cap than the Blackhawks! Look for a few of their high-priced defenceman to get moved for a salary dump.

Where the heck are you getting this from? The Leafs are under the cap right now and have a handful of RFA's to sign. not signing 2-4 UFA/RFA's and we have about $11 million in cap space.

PuckOff · 06-17-10, 08:15 AM

Originally posted by Marauders

I agree he is a defensive specialist with his hitting and shot blocking ability and not worth the 5 mil. But he is exactly the type of player Washington need in the back end. As long as Washington can get him in the 3.5-4million range, I think it's worth it.

If Washington can get him between $3.5 - $4 then Ottawa will just sign him. They won't sign him if he is asking for $5 Mill.