Confirmed with Link: Anton Volchenkov signed (1yr/$1 mil)

[jwhouk]

Well, take a look at his list of comparos over at hockey-reference.com.

 

[Drake744]

So unfortunate.

Now that we have VOLchenkov, let's waste another D-spot and go get Mike Commodore from Russia

 

[AfroThunder396]

Devils fan here, Volchenkov is definitely still a serviceable player. Guy is an absolute warrior, completely fearless and will put his body on the line every shift. Unfortunately his skating is shot and he has no offensive upside to speak of. Doesn't really hit that much anymore because he has trouble closing the gap in transition, but every so often he pulls one off and it's a thing of beauty.

Devils fans hated the contract but most of us like him as guy. He just couldn't keep up as a top-4 defenseman anymore. Dude is a tough son of a ***** though. Keep his ES minutes sheltered and he can be a reliable PKer for you. Great guy, his team mates all love him, and his interviews in broken English are hilarious to listen to.

Even though he got bought out most Devils fans are still rooting for him to do well. Wish him and your team all the best.

 

[gopreds19]

Would be nice to have Klein back right about now...

 

[NSH615]

Would be nice to have Klein back right about now...

Where would he fit in? I guess we could always send Ellis or Jones to Milwaukee or scratch one of them because that was the problem. The 3 of them could not play on their off hand.

 

[triggrman]

Where would he fit in? I guess we could always send Ellis or Jones to Milwaukee or scratch one of them because that was the problem. The 3 of them could not play on their off hand.

Correct

 

[ScottyK]

You guys got a great PK'er for next to nothing. Wishing Volch the best would rather have him in NJ over Salvador.

Shelter his 5 on 5 minutes and let him go beast mode on the PK and you guys will love him.

 

[dougie1107]

The Klein trade was a bad one but it became a necessary risk. Jones probably played his worst hockey when he got slotted to the left of Klein this year. Too many RHD. Obviously in hindsight we should've gotten a safer piece back but the idea behind the trade was right.

 

[TheUnseenHand]

He IS slow, but as a 6th D man PK specialist I think you guys are gonna love him. We hated his contract compared to his play, not necessarily his play itself. I'd take him over Salvador 11 out of 10 times. If NJ wasn't loaded with young D men that need to get into the lineup I'd like him on the contract he signed in Nashville.

The guy is an absolute fearless warrior. He will give everything for the team on every shift. He was really good on the PK. He doesn't have that devastating hitting ability anymore, but you will never question his heart or his willingness to do everything it takes to get the team a win.

 

[Setec Astronomy]

Devils fan here saying that I think Preds fans will be pleasantly surprised. He was an important part of a great PK unit, and he's decent enough at even strength as long as he's not getting tough minutes, or at least not too many of them. You basically got him for a little more than the league minimum and on a one year deal.

 

[Swedishpredator]

good sign. 1 mil. is nothing for that guy. a real steal

atleast something positive news today :/

volochenkov is like hal gill and we need a real PK d man. hopefully preds can sign vinny now tho with fisher out.

 

[INDhockeyfan]

Good cheap signing for a vet stay at home D man with PK time.

 

[pepty]

When he was in Ottawa he delivered huge hits and blocked as many shots as the goalie, that sort of play takes its toll,but he is a warrior still, I hope he fits in and does well.

I thought he would be reunited with Fisher but I see Fisher is out for a few months.

 

[maplepred]

in practice... as a pylon.

Totally unnecessary move... No foot speed. You all hated Hal Gill, and this guy makes him look like Doughty.

This is a ridiculous comment. Makes gill look like a doughty?
Have you ever watched Anton even play before?

We are getting a huge pk guy who is the best shot blocker in the NHL possibly. And we needed a sturdy dman after the mdz fiasco and he was the best fit for us by far. And didn't cost us any assets to fill out the blueline.

And if we aren't playoff team he nets us at the least a second round pick or solid prospect at the trade deadline.

Welcome to Nashville volchenkov! Looking forward to seeing ya in gold!

 

[Top 6 Spaling]

I still can't comprehend how people can be upset when we sign decent players for cheap on one year deals...

We need a veteran presence. Josi was our 2nd most experienced D. Absolute worst, we pay him to mentor our guys and be a depth option, but i think he fits solidly on the third pair. No downside here.

 

[sparkle twin]

Short, cheap, low risk. I like it.

 

[Cashville]

This is a great deal; I don't get the complaints at all. He is exactly what you want for a third pairing guy:

1) Big, physical
2) Quintessential shot blocker
3) Solid on the PK
4) Cheap

If paired with Ellis, I think they compliment each other fairly well (mobile, puck-mover rocketship with steady, physical presence guy).

 

[StarvinArvyn33]

weve needed a physical dman

weber cant be the only guy throwing checks, only other guy that has a physical presence is bartley..... ouch. Our d is made up of ellis, jones, josi, ekholm, thats about as soft as charmin. Good signing that gives us competition for our bottom pairing.

 

[Armourboy]

About as good of a stop gap signing as you are ever going to make.

 

[Privy]

weve needed a physical dman

weber cant be the only guy throwing checks, only other guy that has a physical presence is bartley..... ouch. Our d is made up of ellis, jones, josi, ekholm, thats about as soft as charmin. Good signing that gives us competition for our bottom pairing.

Hopefully he's paired with Jones and some of Volchenkov's physicality rubs off. It's not Jones' game, but it wasn't Franson's game either and he piled up the hits in Toronto.

 

[billingtons ghost]

You guys did great with this signing.

Devils fan here.

Complete warrior, lost a couple of steps when he broke his leg during the lockout. At his best, a shot-blocking, hard-checking machine. Character all around. Gutsy and ballsy to the core.

At his worst, he's getting pyloned and is lost in space screening your goalie.

Seriously - at 4.5m/yr for the next 4 years, he was death to our cap as a #5 Dman.

At 1m for a short term, the guy is gold.

Put him on your pk, and on your 3rd pair, and he'll be a monster for you.

Sad to see him off of our team - as his loss will hurt. Losing the contract won't.

 

[jwhouk]

...Did we just sign the reincarnation of Karlis Skrastins?

 

[ilikeblocks]

...Did we just sign the reincarnation of Karlis Skrastins?

Too soon. RIP Karlis.

 

[PredsV82]

...Did we just sign the reincarnation of Karlis Skrastins?

no, Skratch was never a pylon.

we maybe got a different version of Greg Zanon

 

[triggrman]

no, Skratch was never a pylon.

we maybe got a different version of Greg Zanon

This is a true statement.