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Every time I do one of these, they get out of hand. I try to set a ceiling of questions I'll respond to. It
never works.
I approached this one differently: ask for questions, immediately start writing, try to beat the additional responses before publishing. Like when you race the Mario Kart ghost in time trials, I guess.
Still a futile effort.
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@Lowetide_: You're the Edmonton Oilers and you have no money left but badly need a 2-way LW for the Gordon-Hemky 3line. What do you do?
It's interesting that Lowetide asks this question -- it's something I've weirdly been thinking about over the past couple of days. The Boyd Gordon signing was more or less a brilliant get for Craig MacTavish, a prototypical shutdown bottom-six center that can log heavy defensive zone minutes against tough competition and chew through ice time on the penalty kill. Paired with the skill set of Hemsky, you've got something cooking with a third-line. But it's missing an ingredient.
Ryan Smyth seems like the guy a lot of people are plugging into the lineup right now. I don't know if it's particularly problematic, but his prime passed a long time ago. And really, if you're talking Smyth-Gordon-Hemsky for a third-line, you're doing alright. There are ways to rearrange this to get Ryan Jones on a third-line, so at the very least, it can always get worse.
I think Lowetide was hinting at a potential acquisition to get away from the above, though, so I'll kind of go in a few directions here. One: if the team would be able to clear a bit of cap space through any kind of player-trade for future considerations to get dollars off of the 1314 roster, I'd highly recommend Mason Raymond. You know the story with Raymond: 53% possession guy the last five seasons, 0.48 PPG player in the same. Pair him with the brilliance of Hemsky against some softer competition, and you might see fireworks. So long as both guys can stay on the ice, that is ..
Raymond's going to cost a bit, and Lowetide made it clear the team's not really willing to spend much more than they already have. I submit two counterpoints: (a) Smyth and Jones both come off the books at the end of the year, and Raymond is a multi-year fit anyway; and (b) your LW, bargain-bin alternative is JF Jacques.
@Shack_Trev19: are you confident with the current D situation for both offence/defence? Or do they still need to add a top-4 (and who)?
If Erik Karlsson's 100% healthy, I think the Karlsson-Methot pairing automatically resurfaces as one of the best in the league. We had a sampling of their abilities prior to Karlsson losing 70% of his achilles back in February -- they dominated competition, drove possession like absolute madmen, etc.
But, the question here is whether I'm OK with the top-four. And, as much as I love the first-pairing, the second-pairing still feels nightmarish. Patrick Wiercioch seems to me a guy who has absolutely earned a shot at the top-four, playing very well in some soft minutes with power-play time last year. But, Paul MacLean hasn't been as friendly to his game -- at least when compared to the other youngster-who-isn't-really-a-youngster, Eric Gryba.
It's the one thing I've really disagreed with MacLean over the last two years, and I've kind of learned to-date that being on the right side of what the Jack Adams winner thinks tends to payoff. I just don't see it with Gryba. He was thoroughly chewed for large stretches last year, and although I think his game did improve over the second-half, none of it merited a 1314 shot at the top-four.
Chris Phillips and Joe Corvo don't belong anywhere near a top-four.
Jared Cowen was kind of a disaster the second-half of last year, but I wrote off his poor play -- and the inconsistent play of the aforementioned Karlsson -- because of their early return from long-term / season-ending injury. Hard to compete at this level when you're not at 100%, especially when you're still adapting to the game.
Thing is, even if I buy into Cowen and buy into Wiercioch, neither is a guarantee at this point. Which makes the top-four -- and more specifically, the second-pairing -- the team's ultimate weak-point heading into next year.
@Sens_Army/@joeisadams/@pwjustin: Your line combo predictions, if nothing changes?
Tricky stuff, line forecasting this year. We know Bryan Murray's tentatively keeping Mika Zibanejad at center, which helps. I still have no idea how Zack Smith fits into this team's plans long-term with the way the roster is filling out, unless Jason Spezza actually leaves via free agency when his contract expires. Couldn't happen, though. Ottawa always retains their best talent.
Also, before I get to these, remember I'm trying to predict what Paul MacLean will do here. Example: I'd avoid sandbagging Mika Zibanejad with Chris Neil as a linemate. But MacLean does it. So he'll probably do it again.
L1: Ryan - Spezza - Michalek
L2: Greening - Turris - MacArthur
L3: Smith - Zibanejad - Neil
L4: Conacher - Pageau - Condra
Funny: I talk often about how good Mika Zibanejad is. There's not a chance in hell I take L3 over L4, if that's what MacLean decides. Linemates matter.
@uvgt2bkdnme: top priority rule change for next season?
Hybrid icing. Out of a hundred races to the puck to touch-up, about ninety-seven are completely unnecessary. The rare instance where a checking forward beats a guy out to avoid an icing call isn't worth these brutal injuries along the boards.
My strongest argument against it is Ken Campbell endorses the status quo, as does Damien Cox:
So, I'll take the other side of that and feel strong about it.
@DefenseMinister: Is Mark Stone a legit candidate to be Top 6 forward in the NHL within next 2 years or is his skating going to hold him back?
You know, I'm not particularly thrilled with how Stone's really come along. Lord knows I've been wrong about prospects before -- there was a time I was kind of down on Patrick Wiercioch as one, and now I'm carrying his water like he's scratching my checks.
His skating is still well below par. And there's a lot of talk about how much time he'll have to work on it before transitioning to the league full-time, which is mostly true. But, I haven't seen much of a change from his first few games with AHL Binghamton to present. It's particularly noticeable at the NHL-level, too, which makes intuitive sense.
I think the team still hopes the skating will improve, if only because every other part of his game seems to be there in spades. For his sake, I sure hope so. Have to skate in this league to compete.
@donnaschaneen: boxer or briefs?
I don't know any self-respecting adult male that considers himself in even decent physical shape that wears briefs. And, (mostly) the same thing can be said about boxers, because the next guy who runs fives at the local rec center while lettin' 'em fly will be the first.
See, years and years ago they made this thing called boxer briefs: the length, the protection, the comfort. I've never looked back.
@DJ_Improv: did you ever get anymore emails from Melnyks camp?
That would insinuate the first was, without certainty, from Melnyk's camp. I still don't know for sure. And I haven't heard anything since. Did see one of his horses [Bagatelle Terrance] recently show at Mountaineer. See, perhaps his luck is turning up.
@Don_inOakville: on a scale of "Hal Gill" to "Chris Pronger" where do you see Jared Cowen's upside netting out and when?
Right smack in the middle?
Two points at best tangentially-related, but something that your question made me think about. One: for a guy who cares as little about fighting in the National Hockey League as I do, Jared Cowen has to be one of the more underrated throwers in the game. Remember his tune-up of LaRose?
Second: I don't really understand the argument that Jared Cowen's going to get paid big here as an RFA. Ottawa's a cheap-team, and they're also a smart-team. Combine the two, I guess they understand the importance of a bridge contract for a guy who (a) really hasn't proved himself yet at the league over consecutive seasons; and (b) is mostly leaning on raw skill and major potential.
Anyways, I'll go Derian Hatcher. Maybe a bit more skill.
@MJallday12: If you're the NJ Devils, who do you target in Free Agency next summer?
You know, it sure seems like Dion Phaneuf is a guy that could be headed to free agency at the end of this season. New Jersey's in a tough-spot temporarily with Ilya Kovalchuk gone, and that Ryane Clowe contract is an absolute disaster. Kind of makes you think they should really target the wing immediately.
But, I think there's a bit more of a pressing need on the defensive side. Marek Zidlicky and Mark Fayne are both free agents at the end of the year. Anton Volchenkov's horrendous. You're left with a combination of Bryce Salvador, Adam Larsson, Andy Greene, and Peter Harrold.
Dion Phaneuf gets a bad rap for being kind of a weird guy on an extremely pricy contract, but I've never really understood the criticism of him as a player. Yeah, a lot of his shots are wild and miss the net by a few dozen feet. He's still an effective first-pairing guy, one that eats up tough minutes against the best-of-the-best (1st in QoC last year) and does it pretty well. He had a decent season last year with a Toronto Maple Leafs team that just about spent every waning moment in their own zone.
With all of the odd criticisms of his game, I can see his leverage in free agency being a bit on the lower-end, which means New Jersey could come in and grab him on the [relative] cheap. He's still on the right side of thirty, too.
Up-top, every team is going to look at the big names: Vanek and Stastny are two guys who could potentially hit the market next year. If New Jersey's looking for an effective guy at a fraction of the cost, I think Alexander Steen is a great fit.
@cuttsy15: most likely prospect to crack the lineup?
Are we still counting Pageau? If so, Pageau. If not, good luck to the field, because I don't see many/any vulnerable names to jump, and useless-enforcer Matt Kassian is tied to the team on his one-way deal.
You'll likely see a number of guys -- Hoffman, Prince, Ceci, Puempel -- in time. Out of the gate, I'm not so sure.
@datesloth: Shit or Get Off The Pot: The Milan Michalek story.
Not sure if a question or statement here, but I'll choose shit, because he was
with Kobe shootin' in the gym.
@NickBenny10: Ottawa makes the postseason or not with the current lineup ?
I think so. I think it's just about a guarantee they'll be a good team, but this new division is going to be one hell of a knife-fight at the top.
Biggest issue for Ottawa? Keeping pace with the others. I think Boston and Detroit are the closest to locks in terms of reaching the playoffs. The other two/three spots for berth/wild-card should be a brawl between Ottawa, Montreal, Toronto, and Tampa Bay. I kind of sense Tampa Bay will be a bit better than anticipated this year, but I'm not sure how you improve your possession numbers by, I don't know, 8%.
Which is why I'll take Ottawa and Montreal 3/4. Toronto 5. Tampa Bay (6), outside looking in, along with Buffalo (7) and Florida (8).
@thereallrf: Lakers make playoffs next year?
Count on
the ultimate ball-stopper Kobe.
Thanks for Metta, by the way. Queensbridge is back.
@fearthefin: Cool Ranch or Nacho Cheese?
Felonious to even ask this question. Nacho Cheese is the most overrated flavor in the game today. Cool Ranch is the Yoenis Cespedes of potato chip flavors.
@sniped_ca tyler kennedy vs tj galiardi. did the sharks make the right choice?
I go back and forth between best GMs in the league, but I do know Ottawa's Bryan Murray and recently, San Jose's Doug Wilson are seriously in the mix. The swap with Pittsbugh was (again) a great deal for San Jose, and naturally, I think Kennedy is a definitive upgrade.
Kennedy's one of the league's better third-line wingers, and a lot of it stems from how aggressive he is with both the forecheck and getting shots on net. Kennedy is third amongst forwards last year in even-strength SOGs per sixty minutes over the last five years. He's a 55% possession guy, too -- a 55% possession guy that's had to lug most-common linemate Matt Cooke around for the last five years. Cooke's WOWYs tail-off wildly from Kennedy; the alternative is not true.
@MitchellLoates: How much liquor have we drank?
Coconut Ciroc.
@BringBackLee: Do you actually watch the hockey games?
If I had a nickel for every time someone refuted an argument I put forth that was substantiated with data I had culled, I'd have enough to buy Melnyk Racing Stables.
@WTJefff: 2013 Dark horse major award winners
Does Oliver Ekman-Larsson qualify as a dark horse for the Norris Trophy? I think it's understood at this point he's one of the better defensemen in the league, but you need to score to win a Norris these days, and OEL plays for a Phoenix Coyotes team that's not particularly strong offensively.
Give me Patrick Marleau for the Art Ross. 54% possession player at evens last five years, still playing with elite hockey talent in San Jose, and likely not going to post a 6.81 on-ice shooting percentage at even-strength again like he did in 1213.
It's a longshot pick, because he's seen his PPG averages drop three consecutive years. I'm not buying into his regression just yet, though. Maybe he catches the lightning rod the entire Anaheim team did last year. Maybe he benefits from playing new division-rivals Calgary and Edmonton a bit more.
Speaking of Art Ross: Taylor Hall, too.
@INurHOMEIf you could fight anyone who would you fight? #FightClub
The entire Buffalo Bills organization. Every single executive who has been responsible for the past thirteen years [and counting] of football misery. Sixteen Sundays, every year, no more no less, but each more painful than the next.
But if I had to pick just one guy, I'd probably pick Trent Edwards. Hell in a Cell. Like what the Undertaker did to Mankind:
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