Addition of Brad Richards boosts Atlantic Division
by Hooks Orpik on Jul 7, 2011 11:33 AM EDT
Email
Print
After the flurry of free agency has settled down, the Atlantic Division has taken on a new look. How have the Pittsburgh Penguins division rivals done so far this summer and who's improving, holding ground or has a lesser roster on paper for the upcoming season.
New Jersey Devils
Added: nothing of note
Subtracted: nothing of note
Retained: Johan Hedberg, Andy Greene
Verdict: Same
Not much activity going on in New Jersey, who's biggest free agent signing is still to come as they try to reach agreement with restricted free agent forward Zach Parise.
New York Islanders
Added: Marty Reasoner
Subtracted: Zenon Konopka, Nathan Lawson, Doug Weight
Retained: Trevor Gillies
Verdict: Same
Not much happening on the Island either, who only really swapped one checking center for another in Reasoner and Konopka. This team will have to improve not through free agent signings but by continued growth of young players like former first round picks Nino Neiddereiter and Ryan Strome.
Brad Richards and the rest of the division after the jump..
New York Rangers
Added: Brad Richards, Mike Rupp
Subtracted: Matt Gilroy, Alex Frolov, Bryan McCabe, Vinny Prospal
Retained: Ruslan Fedotenko
Verdict: Improved
Richards is an elite center and could provide much needed support for sniper Marian Gaborik. Rupp should add a little jam and be good in the locker-room. As always, the Rangers may have spent a little too much, but no doubt they've improved their team's skill and size.
Philadelphia Flyers
Added: Ilya Bryzgalov, Jaromir Jagr, Max Talbot, Andreas Lilja, Jakub Voracek, Brayden Schenn, Wayne Simmonds
Subtracted: Mike Richards, Jeff Carter, Kris Versteeg, Ville Leino, Dan Carcillo, Brian Boucher, Sean O'Donnell, Nikolai Zherdev
Verdict: Lesser
Enough has been spoken here about Jagr and Talbot, so we'll leave that at that. Philly's huge shake-up sees them deal team mainstays in Richards and Carter for young players and then over-haul the team with Jagr and letting Versteeg and Leino go. Finally addressing their lack of franchise goalie the Flyers signed Bryz to a huge deal. Now the question is with all the turnover and new faces, will the chemistry be there right off the bat? We'll give them a grade of lesser, because on paper their forwards have stepped back and young players like Voracek, Schenn and Simmonds will not contribute as much next season as the stars they dealt for them will.
Pittsburgh Penguins
Added: Steve Sullivan, Boris Valabik, Alexandre Picard
Subtracted: Max Talbot, Mike Rupp, Alex Kovalev, Mike Comrie, Eric Godard, Chris Conner
Retained: Tyler Kennedy, Pascal Dupuis, Arron Asham, Craig Adams
Verdict: Same
Adding Sullivan gives the Pens potential skill on the wing, but the 37 year old injury ridden 5'7" forward is far from a guarantee. The major losses are Talbot and Rupp, two players who may have contributed more in the locker-room than actually on the ice. Being able to keep "glue" players like Dupuis and Adams is a plus. The Pens don't have the cap room to make big free agency splash, of more importance is getting their top players healthy.
What teams did the best to improve themselves so far this summer? How many playoff contender teams do you see coming out of the Atlantic? Is the addition of Richards enough to get the Rangers back into the conversation?
83 comments
|
0 recs |
Do you like this story?
Comments
I think it will be between us and the Rangers this year. No doubt the Blue Shirts added to their team.
Rangers
had Callahan not gone down right before the playoffs, they would have beaten the Caps in Rd 1 and had a good chance to at least make it to the ECF. adding Richards…yeah, they will definitely contend.
Forget about Gaborik?
People said the same thing when Gaborik signed with the Rangers. Time will tell if this actually helps the Rangers. 2 People a team does not make.
Damn, you must think Callahan is Hart material. He would have helped, but that’s quite a leap you’re making.
Obviously, this is all speculation.
Comical comments aside, no way Callahan takes NYR from losing in 5 to winning even in 7. That’s a 3 game swing.
Ryan Callahan is an important and very good player, but he aint that good. Other than a Lemieux or Gretzky I don’t think any skater is. And even then that could be a stretch.
"Game's the same. Just got more fierce."
Maybe, if it was evenly matched (like TB/PITT)
But Washington was much better than NYR. Look at the results of the 82 game season, look at the playoffs where they fairly easily disposed of the Rangers. Adding one player to such a mis-match isn’t going to reverse the fortunes.
NYR didn’t lose because they didn’t have Callahan (though that didn’t help)…NYR lost because Lundqvist wasn’t special, Gaborik didn’t score, and 90% of their lineup got out-played by 90% of the Caps lineup.
Maybe a Crosby/Malkin turns things around a little, but I doubt it alters the whole course of the series for such a mismatch.
"Game's the same. Just got more fierce."
Last year the Atlantic was also the tightest division in the league. This promises to be a riot!
Btw, I don’t want the Flyers to suck. We have to beat them & not have them able to say they were having an off year.
If Hell freezes over, I'll play hockey there too.
I wouldn’t worry about the Flyers sucking. Once they get a bit of chemistry going they’ll have quite a lethal team. The question is whether that happens before the locker room implodes.
Much as I would love the Flyers to suck, I don't think they will
I do think their offense took a significant hit – replacing Richards, Carter, Versteeg, and Leino with Jagr and some other dudes is gonna hurt their goals for. But on the other hand, they finally have a solid goalie, and their D’s pretty solid too.
I think they make the playoffs but don’t have the depth to make more than the second round.
"90% of the game is physical. The other half is mental." - Yogi Berra
I honestly don’t think they lost too much in term of goals. Both JVR and Giroux looked more than ready to take the next step and should flourish in expanded roles. I think most people underestimate Jagr’s potential contribution, but then I also thought he was worth the $3.3mil given. Yes he’s 39, but boy has he still got it. All in all the improved production of the first two and the addition of Jagr should go a long way towards replacing any offence lost with Richards and Carter, while Versteeg and Leino are more or less replaced by Simmonds and Voracek (Not quite, but close enough to make little difference).
Where I think the Flyers may struggle is with all the other things Richards and Carter provided (Mainly Richards). Here I’m thinking leadership, defence and PK. Who will replace Richards’ tough minutes against other team’s top lines? Certainly not Talbot. Perhaps Giroux can take the role, but I think he’d be better suited for racking up points.
Their goal total likely will be down a little, but I don’t believe it will be anywhere near the amount people around here seem to be expecting. And the lost production is readily made up for by having a competent goalie in net.
I wouldn’t go so far as to say the Flyers are an improved team, they’re not. They’re a different team, but one comparable to last season’s in terms of strength, at least if they find a way to fill the defensive void left by Richards.
I find it impressive that Holmgren effectively managed to maintain a sort of status quo, while adding prospects such as Schenn and Couturier. The only comfort for us Pens fans in that regard is that by the time those young studs are dominating the NHL, Pronger will be in his dotage (But still under contract) and players like Briere and Bryzgalov will be entering the twilight of their respective careers.
Personally I think the Flyers will be better in 2-3 years than they will be in the last (or this upcoming) season. Guys like Couturier and Schenn are going to need time before they are NHL difference makers.
"Game's the same. Just got more fierce."
I’d say based on last year their best D might already fit in that category.
There is a knack to flying: it's learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss.
by Sid the captain on Jul 7, 2011 6:58 PM EDT up reply actions
poor timing by Holmgren. ha ha ha ha.
had he waited for July 1, he could have signed a better goaltender for less than 1/2 price without having to part w/ ANY assets.
ha ha ha ha x1000.
Now, I may not want them to suck, but I sure as hell don’t want them to succeed beyond us. I had a huge chuckle when the Caps signed Vokoun for spare change & then I thought of Bryz…
If Hell freezes over, I'll play hockey there too.
That’s not really the best way to do it, but I agree with the point they could have saved money. If they were hell-bent on getting an elite G, they should have traded for both Bryz and Koun’s rights, offered them the same deal, and then sign the cheapest guy. You’re guaranteed to get a G and you give yourself all the negotiating leverage.
Obviously, this is all speculation.
crosby is lindros jr except he actually got his cup. :( too bad i have his rc
by J.D_Rentschler on Jul 8, 2011 3:46 PM EDT up reply actions
not sure that's an accurate comparison
obviously Lindros was very talented, but I just don’t think they have the same play style… and saying that Crosby is like Lindros due to the concussion is way too early for that.
There's an 87% chance this post is sarcasm...
I think it’s the Pens division to lose. When healthy they are by far the best team. Philly subtracted a bit this season, but I still feel they’ll be a playoff contender. The Rangers definitely added and I think they could easily make the playoffs too. Also with the style the Devils play, Marty could shut the door and they can contend.
I concur, the Pens are the team to beat in the Atlantic for all though they added little, no pun intended, and lost some valued pieces I am of the opinion that a Penguin team with Malkin and Sid healthy was better than the two teams that were in the Finals last year.
Every player has a role, there is some young talent at wing and defense that can be called upon if needed and they still have about 3 million of cap space if needed come the trade deadline. Ray Shero knows what he is doing
Life is about one simple choice, get busy living or get busy dying
I have a feeling that...
the Islanders could actually be fairly decent this season… “MAYBE” a playoff contender. They have talent on that team and were very injury plagued last season… DiPietro is an okay goalie when healthy(both games) and I think if they stay healthy, they could possibly make a run for the playoffs.
They had 5 guys last season with more than 20 goals… the Pens only had 3… They have quite a bit of really good and young talent (the Tavares, Okposo, Grabners of the world) that could really blossom to make them a team to be excited about.
There's an 87% chance this post is sarcasm...
I definitely agree they have some interesting young forward talent, but their defense is terrible.
Eaton-Streit
Jurcina-Hamonic
Mottau-MacDonald
Wishart, Hillen as RFA
They still have money to add someone (not sure who that would be) so we’ll see, but that defense I don’t think allows them to compete for a playoff spot.
"Game's the same. Just got more fierce."
yea, it's a fair point..
not real sure their goaltending is going t hold up either… no way to think that DiPietro is going to A) be healthy and B) be a good goalie.
There's an 87% chance this post is sarcasm...
Yeah, and it’s clear they can’t count on Nabokov joining them.
Which leaves Al Montoya and DiPietro as their goalies.
With those goalies and that defense, I don’t know if the ’80s Oilers could score enough goals to get them into the playoffs.
Ok, yeah they probably could, be these Islanders aint those Oilers.
"Game's the same. Just got more fierce."
Really? They’re missing a top-4 but Hamonic, Macdonald, and Streit are all legit players. With some good goaltending I think they’ll finish a little out of the playoff picture (read: some good luck and they’re in).
Red Line Station and @RedArmyLine, featuring coverage of the most frustrating team in the NHL
To help with basic Timeonice functions.
If I reference a lot of stats, just assume I haven't seen anything to contradict or invalidate them.
by red army line on Jul 7, 2011 3:58 PM EDT up reply actions
“Legit”?
Hamonic had a good season on a terrible defense. I’m not a fan of MacDonald. Admittedly, Streit is a near-allstar level defenseman.
We’ll wait to see how all the rosters fill out, but the Isles have to be closer to finishing 15th than they are 8th right now in the conference. Their D is super thin (and guys like Streit/Eaton/Jurcina) have been injury prone. And their goalies are worse than that in both areas.
"Game's the same. Just got more fierce."
Hamonic really impressed me last year. That kid can play! And as you said Streit is an excellent defenceman. But other than that they’re really in trouble with that defence, particularly with Al Montoya looking like the likely starter. Do they even have a backup for him? Or better yet, someone he can back-up? DiPietro doesn’t count.
On the other hand their offence will likely be very good, particularly with Okposo and Streit back.
The question is which will dominate? Goals for or goals against? A 4-3 win counts just as much as a 2-0 win. But with a 5-4 loss it doesn’t matter how many goals you scored, you still lost. I reckon a lot of that will come down the locker room. Strength of will and belief in each other can do wonders. If they get that far, they wouldn’t be the first team to get into the playoffs with great offence and sub-par defence.
As I see it this team can go anywhere from 8th to 15th, with neither being more likely.
We’ll wait to see how all the rosters fill out, but the Isles have to be closer to finishing 15th than they are 8th right now in the conference.
I don’t disagree, but as always there should be several teams competing for the final spots in the playoff picture.
Hamonic had a good season on a terrible defense. I’m not a fan of MacDonald. Admittedly, Streit is a near-allstar level defenseman.
Hamonic-Macdonald were a break-even pair (in goals) despite tough competition and tough zone starts. Hamonic was almost break-even in shots. They were the best (healthy) defensemen on a bad team by a large margin. That’s gotta be at least top-4, no? There’s enough parity in the league for that. At any rate, they’ll be even better next season.
Red Line Station and @RedArmyLine, featuring coverage of the most frustrating team in the NHL
To help with basic Timeonice functions.
If I reference a lot of stats, just assume I haven't seen anything to contradict or invalidate them.
by red army line on Jul 7, 2011 6:30 PM EDT up reply actions
Hamonic-Macdonald were a break-even pair (in goals) despite tough competition and tough zone starts. Hamonic was almost break-even in shots. They were the best (healthy) defensemen on a bad team by a large margin. That’s gotta be at least top-4, no?
Hamonic-Macdonald would not be 3/4 defensemen playoff team, no way. (Unless the top two defensemen were Chara and Lidstrom)
"Game's the same. Just got more fierce."
…or Chara and Seidenberg, right?
Macdonald and Hamonic ranked 56 and 61 in pts by defensemen, which is borderline top pair. 44th and 81st in plus-minus on a pretty bad team playing tough opposition is pretty good. They were 2nd and 3rd on the Isles’ blueline in shots against. They logged lots of ice time on both special teams units. Yes, they had plenty of help from Nielsen-Grabner, but that’s support they’d get with many other teams as well.
Red Line Station and @RedArmyLine, featuring coverage of the most frustrating team in the NHL
To help with basic Timeonice functions.
If I reference a lot of stats, just assume I haven't seen anything to contradict or invalidate them.
by red army line on Jul 8, 2011 11:38 AM EDT up reply actions
Both also only played 60 and 62 games. That’s a lot of missed time. The timing of the games played I think boosted their stats. And are we really citing plus/minus?
NYI’s record was 26-36 (lumping any loss as a loss) when Hamonic played, 28-32 with MacDonald. Overall they were 30-52, so both players had the good fortunate to play in most all of the wins, and miss a bunch of losses.
Obviously this is a chicken/egg situation and maybe NYI was losing games because they didn’t have those guys. I’d buy that to a very low degree.
But I still don’t think those are 3/4 defenseman on a playoff team. They would be 5/6 guys in Pittsburgh, and 5/6 guys in Washington, 6/7 in Philly and right on down the list.
"Game's the same. Just got more fierce."
Regarding plus-minus, it’s all about context, right? It’s worthless on its own, but in context it goes after exactly the right idea—scoring more than the opponent.
On the wins/losses, part of it I think is also the early season injuries.
5/6 in PIT, 5/6 in DC, 6/7 in Philly…those are three of the deepest D corps in the league. Hardly a fair comparison. What about Buffalo? Tampa? Boston? New Jersey? They’re not 2nd pair on an elite team, but playoff team? Sure. Stats have them as ~average 2nd pair or better, which has them as 2nd pair on a playoff (albeit barely) team.
Red Line Station and @RedArmyLine, featuring coverage of the most frustrating team in the NHL
To help with basic Timeonice functions.
If I reference a lot of stats, just assume I haven't seen anything to contradict or invalidate them.
by red army line on Jul 9, 2011 11:44 PM EDT up reply actions
New Jersey
So will NJ be the same as they were in the early part of the season, or something like the latter part of the season? Or will they be some hybridized average of the two?
A lot depends on how their new coach turns out, I think. And whether or not he calls their D ‘soff’.
Jagr? I hardly even know 'er.
If they get Parise under contract, they're a playoff team.
Two 40-goal scorers in Parise and Kovalchuk, a solid-if-not-amazing top-line center in Zajac, solid bottom-six/PK players, a good D-corps, and a world-class goaltender.
Can’t see them winning the division, but it’s equally hard to imagine them playing as horribly as they did for most of last season.
Hard work always beats talent if talent doesn't work hard.
ARE YOU F#$%ING KIDDING ME!!!! ADAMS!!! JESUS TAPDANCING CHRIST YOU HAD 24 SQUARE FEET AND YOU MISSED IT ALL!! - OlenWhitaker
Certified Grabbo Lover, though only by accident.
I love lots of guys. - leaflover4ever
I think they’re a playoff contender, but I’m reserving the right to change my mind based off of the caliber of coach they hire (and which style they employ).
"Game's the same. Just got more fierce."
“Pensburgh goal his first of the off-season, scored by number 7, Dio…Assisted by Alex Stich…That’s Dio from Stitch at July 8th”
"Game's the same. Just got more fierce."
by Hooks Orpik on Jul 7, 2011 11:18 PM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
I think all five teams are playoff caliber or close. I’m seeing four playoff teams and one just missing, sort of like the Central from two years ago.
Red Line Station and @RedArmyLine, featuring coverage of the most frustrating team in the NHL
To help with basic Timeonice functions.
If I reference a lot of stats, just assume I haven't seen anything to contradict or invalidate them.
Can’t argue with that.
The Devils and Flyers are the least predictable to me – the Devs b/c I’m not sure which team will show up (or who will coach), and the Flyers b/c of the huge turnover on their roster.
"90% of the game is physical. The other half is mental." - Yogi Berra
NJD isn’t going to be a pushover. It’s pretty clear MacLean was a huge cause of their problems. After the coaching change, they were awesome.
Obviously, this is all speculation.
my 2 cents
Flyers – in different sports I’ve rarely seen a major overhaul of the roster pay dividends right away, so it’s quite a gamble by the Flyers… it’ll be interesting to see if they blend together (of course here’s hoping they don’t)
Devils – they showed in the second half of the season that they are a solid team even without Parise. With him back I expect them to be traditionally tough to play against and make the playoffs.
Rangers – somehow I find it hard to believe that the things in NY city are going to work… it seems they’re better, at least on paper, but let’s see
Islanders – NO
Penguins – baring serious injuries to top players should be the favorite for the division title. No major changes in an already well built squad should bring stable play and good results.
You have to see it for yourself...
thoughts.
i would put the verdict on the flyers as a hung jury. with the huge turnover thats gotta be a minus. with the add of bryzg its a huge plus. just to many unknowns to make a solid good or bad off season for them atm
" Lord Stanley, scratch thier names on your fabled cup" Mike Lange june 12, 2009
Uh didnt the Rangers also buy out of the Drury contract, so minus Chris Drury for them as well
We have to unify and watch our flag ascend!
Flyers - did they just screw Max out of $250,000?
CapGeek
Re-filed #NHL #Flyers contract for Maxime Talbot has a cap hit of $1.75m and total salary of $8.75m http://bit.ly/ogc2XO
Originally, the deal was announced as 5 years/$9M….
When the deal was rejected they would have to go back and re-draw up the contract (and get Talbot to re-sign it). He wasn’t screwed, he agreed to it, but yeah he did lose out on a little bit of money from the original plan.
Drop in the bucket though for him now.
"Game's the same. Just got more fierce."
The original contract violated an obscure part of the CBA (and one that was not really designed for this sort of contract). The salary of a player can only drop in any given contract year 50% of the maximum salary paid. So the second-to-third year of Max’s contract his salary at the $9m total dropped too much, and they had to restructure and refile the contract to make it compliant. To do so, they reduced his second season salary slightly. They could, in theory, have increased the third season salary slightly, but then you need to adjust the fourth as well. Legal bullsh*t, far as I can tell.
Maxime Talbot - in the Orange and Black ... better than chocolate and peanut butter!
by MaximumTalbot on Jul 8, 2011 10:19 AM EDT up reply actions
instead of making Max take the $250,000 hit, they could have decreased the 3rd year some and increased the 4th year some in order to come into CBA compliance AND leave the total amount due to Max UNchanged.
they agreed to $9.00M over 5 years
the error was the fault of the Flyers
and they make Max eat the difference?!?
that bullshit —>> 2nd rate organization
I agree with this...
but then again, Talbot agreed to it so…
There's an 87% chance this post is sarcasm...
Plus it’s taken about a week since to iron out…I doubt it was as simple as we think it is. With contracts, lawyers and the NHL it hardly is.
"Game's the same. Just got more fierce."
oh no doubt..
but it would have been pretty funny if Talbot said, no screw ya’ll, I really do hate the Flyers and didn’t take the contract :)
Would have been stupid as well(assuming he couldn’t get same $ somewhere else).
There's an 87% chance this post is sarcasm...
True, but what’s he going to say now?
Max’s max leverage was on July 1
Hooks makes a good point. There is undoubtedly a lot of legal mumbo jumbo involved of which we are not aware
That said, I would hope — and expect — that if something like that happened in Pittsburgh, say on the Dupuis or Kennedy contracts, that GMRS/Mario would have the class to make it right by the player.
$250,000 is significant money for a bottom sixer like Talbot, while its chump change to an NHL organization.
Yeah … 2.8% of the total contract. That’s real significant. Not.
Maxime Talbot - in the Orange and Black ... better than chocolate and peanut butter!
by MaximumTalbot on Jul 9, 2011 11:37 PM EDT up reply actions
Philly Flyers
Flyers took a chance to improve their team. They lost a lot of offense. If they score at the start of season & Pronger stays healthy they should be ok. If not they could be in trouble.We all know what happens when Jagr is with a stagnant offense. We wouldnt want him to die alive; again.
Comments For This Post Are Closed
Secondary Sidebar
User Tools
Related FanPosts on PensBurgh
FanPosts
Community blog posts and discussion.
Recent FanPosts
In Association With
Latest Puck Daddy - NHL from Yahoo! Sports
- Devils look to eliminate Rangers in Game 6; Hal Gill’s broken tibia (Playoff Puck Previews)
- Conan O’Brien joins long list of LA media that don’t really know what’s going on with the Kings
- For Los Angeles Kings, when does rest become rust for Stanley Cup Final?
- Dominik Hasek wants NHL return; Tortorella on Game 6; Nash to Boston? (Puck Headlines)
- Marek Vs. Wyshynski Radio: Game Show Friday, Bobby Holik, Game 6 preview, NHL ratings debate
Latest stories and headlines from NHL.com
- Simon Gagne enjoying LA Kings' success, returns to practice after concussion absence
- Gagne back at practice, enjoying Kings' success
- First-place Knights go sight-seeing while awaiting Memorial Cup final
- NHL Network and NHL.com unveil comprehensive coverage plans for the 2012 Stanley Cup Final
- Canadiens hire Rick Dudley as assistant GM
