Canadiens well ahead of plan—by Sean Campbell
MONTREAL – General Manager Bob Gainey has done wonders with the Montreal Canadiens. Take out the lockout year and Gainey is going into year five of a so-called five year plan, but you could just go back a year ago and see the influx of young talent that has started to emerge on the Bleu-Blanc-Rouge. Slated to finish out of the playoffs, the Habs quite unpredictably finished on top of the Eastern Conference. Even a second round knockout couldn’t mask the quick work Bob Gainey has done.
Looking at Gainey’s current roster, he is sitting front row center for year five with plenty of options at his finger tips. In a salary cap world, Gainey has a lot of room to work with.
Out of the number of players that played a key role in last year’s success, Gainey has sixteen of them under contract. With only five RFA’s
Photo courtesy of the NHL
Let’s see where this money can go:
RFA’s Andrei Kostitsyn: Probably the most important signing for Bob Gainey. It’ll be tough to see where Gainey will go with him, and we’ve seen monster long-term contracts go to many players in Andrei’s shoes, but Gainey sticks close to his chest, and if you look at players like Chris Higgins and Mike Komisarek, he may offer him a 2-year deal in the 4 million dollar range.
Ryan O’Byrne: He’ll sign for something just over what Maxim Lapierre received (2 years 1.4 million).
Josh Gorges: I could see a 3-year, 3 point something million dollar contract. That would be a bargain for Montreal because Gorges was able to fill some big shoes coming down the stretch for the Habs.
Jaroslav Halak: He may not be happy playing second fiddle to Carey Price, but his options are as limited as his experience, and he’ll get renewed minimally.
Mikhail Grabovski: Gainey had high hopes for him, but how many chances will he give him. Don’t be surprised to see him in Russia next year, but Gainey may pull something out of his hat.
Without signing Grabovski, Gainey has just spent 4.5 million on his RFA’s.
UFA’s Mark Streit: It’s a bit of pickle for Gainey with all of the young talent he has in the farm system, especially on the blue line. Is it worth signing a power play specialist to a long term deal? Roman Hamrlik and Andrei Markov each have three years left and Mike Komisarek will be a big signing going into next year. Does Gainey want to handcuff himself on the blue line cap-wise (see Toronto for details) by signing Streit to a 3 year, 9 million dollar contract? You can bet Gainey wants a shorter, cheaper deal (2 years 5 million). I can see Streit leaving town for a better deal out on the open market.
Michael Ryder and Brian Smolinski: Ryder is gone, and Smolinski can stay for a pay cut to about a 1-year, 1.3 million deal.
If he lets them all go, Gainey will have $12.5 million to spend on the open market and he will not have to worry about signing (for example) a Marian Hossa to a long-term deal as both big contracts of Saku Koivu and Alex Kovalev are up next summer.
A year after subtractions, Predators ready to add to mix—by Brian Jennings
NASHVILLE, Tn – The Nashville Predators outlook on the off-season will take a different turn for the team as for the first time in team history the Predators will go into the off-season looking to add players rather than see them move on to other clubs due to the team’s financial situation.
General Manager David Poile has done nothing short of a magnificent job in not only restocking his team with quality draft picks, but is able to put a team on the ice that is as competitive as any despite losing some key free agents and trading away high priced stars in order to keep payroll down in a market that is still trying to gain a foothold in the Nashville area.
Fortunately for the team retaining players has not been an issue so far as the Predators resigned several key players such as goaltender Dan Ellis, along with defensemen Ryan Suter and Shea Weber.
On offense the Preds need to resign five players but Martin Gelinas, Jan Hlavac, and Rich Peverley are tops on the list of priorities. The Predators are solid up front with Jason Arnott, J.P. Dumont, and Alexander Radulov, but the team needs more scoring punch up front if they are to compete with the Red Wings and the Blackhawks.
Someone like Brian Rolston could be an option for Nashville or since the Rangers look like they will not re-sign Brendan Shanahan he could be used as a power play specialist. Marian Hossa would be a nice addition as well but his price tag probably will push Nashville out of the race before it begins. Don’t be surprised if the name Markus Naslund comes in conjunction with the Predators.
The bottom line is, if the Preds can land one or two offensive threats, with the solid defensive core and with Dan Ellis in the net, the Predators might finally get past the first round of the playoffs.
With the signing of Suter and Weber, the team looks solid on defense. Plus you can bet they will give some young prospects a shot at making the team in training camp. That said they could use another d-man if one of those prospects look like they need more seasoning in the minors. But don’t look for the Preds to be looking for help on the blueline come free agency time.
With Ellis resigning, and Chris Mason having moved on to the Blues, prospect Pekke Rinne will get his shot at backing up Ellis. Drafting Chet Pickard was a solid move and will push Rinne to be the best he can be or Pickard will be Ellis’s backup sooner than later. Unless an injury occurs, don’t look for the Preds to look for a veteran backup just yet.
Contact the author at Brian.Jennings@prohockeynews.com
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