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spt_NHLOffseason09.sPubDate = "6/28/2009 6:53:36 AM GMT";
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spt_NHLOffseason09.appHeader = "What to watch for in NHL offseason";
spt_NHLOffseason09.appDeck = "NBCSports.com contributor Bill Clement takes a look at some of the top items to keep an eye on until the puck is dropped on a new season in the fall.";
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spt_NHLOffseason09[i++] = new Array("","Bouwmeester's next team?","","http://nbcsportsmedia3.msnbc.com/j/NBCSports/Components/Photo-Sports/2009/February/090228_JayBouwmeester_headshot_v.small.jpg","","", "", "", "", "", "right", "", "Getty Images", "198", "150", "#000000", "", "", "", "");
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Florida’s Jay Bouwmeester is the top defenseman among this summer’s free agents. There will be a number of teams bidding on him. With that being the case, there’s a good chance the expectations for his production are going to outpace reality.
He’s a 40-point-per-season player, but he’ll get paid like a 60-or-70-point player because the open market is by no means flooded with standout defenseman. Bouwmeester is the prize catch.
Also, his personality isn't right for the bright spotlight, which he’ll be in given his new contract. He’s a quiet, withdrawn kind of guy.
What’s really interesting is that Florida neither signed him, nor made the playoffs, nor traded him. Any of those three things would have helped the franchise. Now it’s a foregone conclusion he’ll be leaving the Panthers.";
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The Flyers need cap space in the worst way, and they are loaded with centers.
In addition to Daniel Briere, they have Jeff Carter, Mike Richards, and Claude Giroux.
Briere has five years left on a deal that pays him $6.5 million a year, and so he’s the one from the aforementioned group who if traded, would free up a bunch of money for the team.
Injuries limited Briere to just 29 games last season, but he still put up 25 points, so other teams should be interested in making a deal. Briere, however, does have a no-trade clause that he'd have to waive. ";
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Since the puck dropped to open the season, 13 of the NHL’s 30 teams have made coaching changes. And Calgary, Minnesota and New Jersey are still looking to fill openings.
It’s rumored that Darryl Sutter (right), Calgary’s general manager, will also take on the role as coach, especially since the team is still paying Mike Keenan, whom it fired in May. Sutter was both Calgary’s coach and GM earlier this decade and led the Flames to the 2004 Stanley Cup finals.
One name that has surfaced for the Calgary job is Brent Sutter, Darryl’s brother, who resigned as Devils coach. But I take Brent at his word when he says the Calgary opening had nothing to do with his decision to leave New Jersey. He simply wants to be closer to his family in Alberta.
In Minnesota, San Jose assistant Todd Richards is likely the leading candidate.
Among the names mentioned for the New Jersey opening are former Islanders coach Peter Laviolette, current Devils assistant coach John MacLean, and former Devils coach Jacques Lemaire, who just left the Wild bench.";
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Will this franchise still be a desert dweller next season? Will Wayne Gretzky (right) still be behind the bench?
Canadian billionaire Jim Balsillie is not giving up his quest to buy the team and move them to Hamilton, Ontario, despite the rejection of his bid by a U.S. bankruptcy judge on June 15.
NHL commissioner Gary Bettman is opposed to moving the franchise, but now the league must find an owner who would buy the franchise and keep it in Phoenix, where it has lost $36 million each of the past three years. The name most often mentioned is Jerry Reinsdorf, owner of MLB’s Chicago White Sox and the NBA’s Chicago Bulls.
Any offer to buy the team and keep it in the desert is certain to be far less than the $212.5 million Balsillie put up contingent on moving the club to Hamilton.";
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Who will skate in the Olympics in February?
There’s a great deal of curiosity over which players will be on the preliminary rosters and which will be left off.
It’s not known how many players will be on the initial rosters, but eventually they have to be narrowed to 20 skaters and three goalies for the Vancouver Games.
Canada has its orientation camp in late August in Calgary, and the United States has its in mid-August in Chicago.
Team Canada should be the favorite for the gold since it just has so much depth, but that doesn’t mean that Russia, Sweden, the U.S. and the Czech Republic won’t be strong.
As there was in 2002 in Salt Lake City, there will be a lot of attention on Olympic hockey because it is being played on North American soil.";
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Dany Heatley has asked to be dealt because he doesn’t see things the same way coach Cory Clouston does. Specifically, Clouston has basically demanded that Heatley play a more physical, robust, power-forward type of game.
Heatley is big, strong and fast, but he would rather step into a shooting hole than go into the corner and get the puck.
Trading Heatley would be a mistake because it would send a message that Ottawa management allows players to dictate organizational decisions.
Ottawa general manager Bryan Murray has to back his coach, and give player and coach time to find common ground.
Heatley would also be hard to trade because he has four years left on his contract at a cap hit of $7.5 million per year. ";
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The NHL is quietly shrinking the goaltending equipment incrementally as opposed to doing it all in one year. How much smaller will the pads, gloves and chest protectors be next season, and how much will that affect scoring?
Anyone who believes that increasing scoring is a negative is mistaken.
Scoring more goals is good for the game. It would create the image of star power for at least a few players. There was only one 50-goal scorer this season (Alexander Ovechkin).
Somebody tell me what’s wrong with having a 70-goal scorer, or a couple of them? People come out to games when the stars shine. And for the growth of the sport, and for the entertainment value of the sport, there’s nothing wrong with more goal scoring.";
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Last summer, Marian Hossa turned down a lucrative, multi-year deal to stay in Pittsburgh, and instead took a one-year, $7 million contract from Detroit. He thought that was his best option for winning a Stanley Cup.
Oops.
Look for Hossa to go for a long-term deal this summer, so the question is can Detroit be creative enough under the salary cap to find a way to keep Hossa?
Can the Red Wings get in a position to give him the kind of money he is going to command on the open market?
If anyone can do that, it seems Detroit general manager Ken Holland is that guy.
Also, in the past, some Red Wings have signed for discounts to stay in Detroit. Will Hossa be the next to do so?
If he doesn’t remain with Detroit, one possibility for Hossa is the Los Angeles Kings, who have missed the playoffs the last six years, and who are looking to jump up in the Western Conference standings. The Kings have the cap space to make a huge offer to Hossa.";
// END editorial data