Isles win draft lottery
As Mahatma said in his earlier post, something actually went right for the Isles this season in that they hold the first overall pick in this years draft. It's going to be either Jonathan Tavares or Victor Hedman. Tavares is most likely the top pick, but Hedman is a pretty good consolation (not Evgeni Malkin good consolation though). Either way the Isles will get a top flight skater that is much needed since they threw away the chance to draft Spezza at forwad, or anyone by trading down last year. Now that I think of it, given the Isles incompetence, they may not end up with either.
Maple Leafs are after the 1st or 2nd Pick
Leafs GM Brian Burke has openly stated he wants the first or second overall pick this year. Given the two players they can draft with that spot (the Tampa Bay Lightning hold the 2nd pick) they will have to give a to up to get it. I dont think the Isles will budge to be frank, but Tampa is another story. They took Steven Stamkos with the first overall pick last year and signed Vinny Lecavalier and Ryan Malone long term last year. Their glaring weakness is defense so they will probably want Hedman more than Tavares anyways. The Maple Leafs happen to have a young stud defenseman who stepped into the NHL immediately in Luke Schenn. Of course giving up a 19 year old dman who is already playing in the NHL isnt really a smart move, but he's clsoer to a sure thing since he's already had one successful year of NHL play. Burke may not be willing to part with him, and if not he's going to have to give up more than just a first round pick to get it. If he's willing to deal Schenn for the 2nd pick to Tampa, they may bite. To be frank though I dont think Burke will be willing to offer what either team would want.
Jonathan Tavares-the Next One
Well, the next one since Sidney Crosby. Should we really be having this many "next one's?"
Colorado Avalanche fire GM Pierre Lacroix
Lacroix didnt have the same advantage as his predecessor of unlimited spending, so in a way he got the short of the stick (Paying the big four on Colorado of Sakic, Roy, Forsberg and Blake would bring them almost to the cap floor now). Still he didnt do anything good really, overpaying to bring in players and doing idiotic things like trading for Jose Theodore and his massive contract. The change needed to be made though and with luck a new GM will get Colorado back to being a serious contender.
Edmonton Oilers fire head coach Craig MacTavish
This was inevitable. After a Cinderella run three years ago the Oilers have yet to make the playoffs again, though part of that was due to former GM Kevin Lowe not making the right moves. It seemed like nothing Mac did would work so he was finally let go. The question is are the Oilers going to go for a rehash in a coach, or follow the trend of the last season and go with new names in hope of striking gold?
Because I wanted to post this picture
For you're entertainment:
Posts
1 comment:
For clarification, Tavares is not a top flight skater. He's a top flight player, but his skating is actually sub par. But it's not a major knock because his anticipation is so good. The Isles should take him at # 1.
Luke Schenn is nowhere near the player that Hedman is. Schenn will be a solid stay at home defensement. But he does not have the ability to consistently join the rush or add offensive production. That's why Schenn wasn't among the big 3 dmen drafted last year. Hedman, by contrast, projects as a dominant two way player. I think he will be better than all four dmen taken with the top 5 picks last year.
Post a Comment