Posts tagged kessel
What Does Versteeg’s Future Look Like?
Jul 10th
I’m pretty sick of trying to sound all formal and stuff, and making my articles look polished and all that. That being said, I really don’t want to spend a lot of time on an article that has some point but not a lot of depth, so let’s get straight to it.
A week or two ago the Leafs traded for Kris Versteeg. He’s a top-six foward, a right-winger to be exact. He was nominated for the Calder Trophy in 2008-2009 after a pretty impressive rookie campaign but last year his points dipped off because of the depth chart on a stacked Stanley Cup-winning team. First it was up, then it was down for Kris Versteeg and his so far short NHL career…so what should we expect from him next year?
Well, read on to find out.
Defending Burke and the Kessel Trade! Part 3 of 3
Jul 3rd
First off, I apologize that it took me so long to get to my 3rd article, just didn’t have that much time to write it properly, as I was out of town last weekend, and this week was quite the hectic week. Thank you for being patient!
Now, you already know that the first two reasons why I defended the trade of the 2nd overall selection were having both Phil Kessel, and Nazem Kadri on the team. The 3rd reason why I defend the Burke trade, is a different reason. It is not just one player, in fact it is having Brian Burke as the GM. I don’t think people realize how lucky we are to have a GM like this, I personally remember what it was like before him, and it wasn’t good. When was the last time we had a GM who would make blockbuster trades for players in their PRIME (key word), and bring them onto our team. When was the last time we as Leafs fans were constantly excited because we knew every single day the team could change for the better. I know that some people disagree with the moves that Burke has made, however, you cannot deny the fact that unlike a lot of GM’s in the league he is doing his best and being proactive to not only try to get the best team on the ice that he can, but also to win a Stanley Cup. That is what I love about him, he doesn’t care if people will disagree with his moves, he will not do anything unless he thinks it is the best move for the Toronto Maple Leafs having the best chance they can to win the Stanley Cup. He doesn’t just sit around, he is continuously doing the best he can, and looking at ALL OPTIONS, and because of the fact that he does that, to me it doesn’t matter that he traded away the 2nd overall selection. Because he really has more than made up for that. Just look at the other moves he made, that if he were not Brian Burke, would have never happened for the Leafs.
Unrestricted Free Agency: Day One
Jul 1st
In the weeks leading up to free agency I made it clear that there were a few people I didn’t want on this team: Raffi Torres, Colby Armstrong and Dan Hamhuis. Torres is just a mess of a human and a player, Armstrong is an unneeded right-winger, and Hamhuis is an unneeded defenseman.
Which is why I’m very happy to announce the status on all three players in regards to the Toronto Maple Leafs: Vancouver outbid Toronto for Dan Hamhuis, and…are you ready? Colby Armstrong signed with the Leafs!
Yep, that’s right, the so-called gritty right-winger previously of the Atlanta Thrashers and Pittsburgh Penguins has signed with the blue and white for three years, making three million dollars in each of those three seasons. Armstrong put up just 29 points last season, and in his final season with Pittsburgh he had just 24 points in 54 games playing along the league’s top centers in Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin. Yeah, serious questions have to be asked when it comes to this kids offensive abilities.
On the other hand, Armstrong’s a pretty gritty kid, and a character kid at that. His countless interviews on Hockey Central over the last year were hilarious, and he seems like a real loveable kid. He can play at both ends of the ice and, according to some analysts should make a pretty good net presence.
But along the likes of Kessel, Versteeg, Kulemin, Sjostrom, Brown and Orr, Armstrong becomes the seventh right-winger on this team, and he appears to be an overpaid one at that. This might not end badly, but I’m really not sure I like this one.
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15* Players That People Should Stop Caring About
Jun 28th
This is more of a personal tangent than anything, I’m not going to lie. This isn’t really something that goes in the media (though it kind of does), and it sure as heck isn’t happening in actually front office trade/signing discussions, but its a phenomenon that you definitely see throughout the internet, and that’s fan speculation and trade proposals. Depending on exactly where you go to, the quality of such armchair GM hopes and predictions varies, but its always there. To make matters worse, they seem to always be about the same 20 or 25 players around the NHL. And most of them are complete and total pipe dream’s, for various reasons. So here’s 13 of them that I frankly just can’t stand hearing rumors for, plus 2 bonuses.
Leafs Off-Season Rumors #16/Making a Case for Marc Savard
Jun 27th
Rumor
Bob McKenzie and Nick Kypreos of TSN and Sportsnet respectively have reported that Leafs GM Brian Burke and Bruins GM Peter Chiarelli will begin talks on the possibility of sending Marc Savard to Toronto. Both report that any deal including Savard would not include Kaberle, as it is believed the Bruins may be willing to take so-called “spare parts” in order to unload Savard’s contract.
My Analysis
Marc Savard to the Toronto Maple Leafs is very much a possibility at this point in time. It seems that the Bruins are hoping to move forward with their three young centers (Tyler Seguin, Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci) and it also seems the Bruins are worried about Savard’s health issues mixed with his lengthy contract. Acquiring Savard is a risk given his age and current health status as well as contract, but should he return to form then it would be a huge reward and steal for the Leafs.
A similar situation would be Jason Blake, who signed with the Leafs in 2007 at the age of 34. Blake’s first two seasons matched his previous numbers, though this past season, in the third year, his production began to severely decline. Should Marc Savard come to the Leafs he would be 33 once the season starts, and theoretically be able to continue prime production for another three seasons. Also, given the fact that the final three years of Savard’s seven-year deal pay him a combined 2.5M, Savard’s contract would suddenly become very easy to ship to a low-budget team, bury in the minors, be bought out, and there’s always the possibility that Savard could retire before then. Marc Savard is only a four-year commitment, and it’s safe to assume he can continue his elite production for at least another three years. Just my two cents on why the Leafs should pull the trigger on any deal sending Savard our way for spare parts.
Acquiring a first-line center without giving away our greatest trade chip is another positive, and opens others avenues for Tomas Kaberle (such as dealing him for a winger with size as previously speculated).
This could get real interesting real quick, stay tuned.
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