Around the NHL 2013-2014

[Winger98]

There's a pretty big difference between Henrik Lundqvist, the #1 goaltender in the NHL, opposed to the #10 goaltender in the NHL. Contracts are also going up. I think this deal is far too much, but it's not nearly one of the worst in the NHL. You're doubtful to get fair value back for Lundqvist.

Henrik hasn't won a cup? Okay, Tuukka Rask nor Pekka Rinne have (Rask has but not as a starter). The Rangers have generally been a mess too outside of Lundqvist, who has dragged them into the playoffs many times. You really seem to be underrating how big of a loss Lundqvist would be.

I wouldn't call Lundqvist making 3M more than Crawford that crazy. Wait until a big free agent hits the market too. If Horton and Clarkson are getting 5+ million over 6-7 years, just imagine a superstar like Lundqvist, or even an all-star. Zach Parise is making 7.5M over the next 11 years for crying out loud.

Lundquist's career sv% is .920. Howard's is .918. The average starter is around 91%. Even if Lundquist goes out and stop .925 or .93, it's not that big of a gap.

And I wouldn't pay $8.5m for Rinne or Rask, either. There's no reason to. Boston lost Thomas and haven't missed a beat. Chicago lost Niemi and won a cup with Crawford. Last year's Vezina winner was a castoff from Philly. St. Louis and Phoenix have turned mediocre goalies into monsters while contending for the playoffs/cup.

Meanwhile, NYR keeps losing and Buffalo still sucks. And Nashville could use Suter a helluva lot more than Rinne right now.

 

[joe89]

Lundquist's career sv% is .920. Howard's is .918. The average starter is around 91%. Even if Lundquist goes out and stop .925 or .93, it's not that big of a gap.

And I wouldn't pay $8.5m for Rinne or Rask, either. There's no reason to. Boston lost Thomas and haven't missed a beat. Chicago lost Niemi and won a cup with Crawford. Last year's Vezina winner was a castoff from Philly. St. Louis and Phoenix have turned mediocre goalies into monsters while contending for the playoffs/cup.

Meanwhile, NYR keeps losing and Buffalo still sucks. And Nashville could use Suter a helluva lot more than Rinne right now.

Save% is the single most telling stat for a goalie, but that says little. When Lundqvist entered the league, anything above .910 was good, and now it's average at best. Howard missed out on all the high scoring years right after the lockout.

But in general, I agree with your post. Don't want big goalie deals. Think we signed Howard for at least one year too many. Let's not compare one-season great and the rest steady seasons Miller with the true elite ones though.

 

[InjuredChoker]

of goalies who have played every year for past 6 years (7-13), 2 goalies have better ES sv% than lundqvist. luongo and vokoun. lou got his deal and vokoun was/is too old to get one.

 

[InjuredChoker]

that said, i wouldn't be happy to be on sather's shoes when making the decision. you can't let one of the best players since lockout year to walk and you wouldn't get fair return for him anyway. they better win the cup in next 3-5 years imo.

 

[InjuredChoker]

Aaron Portzline ‏@Aportzline 1 min
#CBJ Sergei Bobrovsky has a groin strain. Out 4-5 weeks.

 

[TatarTangle]

It's already been discussed but came in here to say;

And people think Jimmy Howard's term on his contract is horrible.

 

[InjuredChoker]

what to expect from the king on his next deal?

good article imo. ignore the site, willis is solid guy.

As an example, in Lundqvist’s 23-year-old season (2005-06) he posted a 0.922 save percentage in a league where the average number was 0.901. That’s 21 points better than the average, so in 2012-13 terms that equates to a 0.933 save percentage.

The first composite is of eight goalies with similar early careers to Lundqvist. The players involved are Mike Richter, Miikka Kiprusoff, Tomas Vokoun, John Vanbiesbrouck, Reggie Lemelin, Manny Legace, Guy Hebert and Glen Hanlon. This is what the average of that group looks like in comparison to Lundqvist:

If this projection is true to life, it suggests the Rangers will get three more years (including 2013-14) of exceptional goaltending out of Lundqvist, after which he’ll provide them with an NHL-average performance.

The second composite is four different goalies who posted a similar average save percentage to Lundqvist from age 23 to age 30, but who had dramatically different career curves. The players involved are Patrick Roy, Martin Brodeur, Ed Belfour and Andy Moog. Here’s what that group looks like:

My belief is that the best projection combines both of the composites above, since all the goalies in the group of 12 had roughly similar performances in the aggregate. Here’s what that looks like:

 

[SoupNazi]

From LeBrun, news and notes from around the league: http://espn.go.com/blog/nhl/post/_/id/28105/sharks-have-some-tricky-decisions-to-make

The board of governors gathers next week in Pebble Beach, Calif., and traditionally that's where the league gives teams a clearer projection for where the salary cap might stand for next season.

That's going to be of particular interest to the San Jose Sharks, who have had ongoing discussions with their big three UFAs -- Joe Thornton, Patrick Marleau and Dan Boyle. There's only so much money and cap space to go around, especially with new extensions kicking in next year for the likes of Logan Couture and Joe Pavelski. So the Sharks want to be fair to their three core veterans, but also have to fit all three deals into the reality of their cap situation.

 

[InjuredChoker]

Strombone ‏@strombone1 19 s
You sure about this @HLundqvist30 ???

 

[jaster]

That Lundqvist contract.... ick. Too much.

 

[InjuredChoker]

I can tell you with a great deal of authority that the Senators were pursuing a trade with the Flyers near the deadline that would have seen Ben Bishop traded to Philadelphia for Sean Couturier. That was the Senators first option and it looked like it may happen right up until 12 noon on deadline day. The Flyers had even claimed centre Adam Hall off waivers right around the deadline, making the Sens believe they were ready to part with Couturier under the right circumstances.

But once the Flyers got cold feet, Murray had to look at his other options and he circled back to the Lightning. Yes, there was a deal on the table from the Oilers that would have included Ryan Jones, but the Senators needed some scoring up front.

http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/story/?id=438255

 

[InjuredChoker]

James Mìrtle ‏@mirtle 24 s
Leafs have placed Tyler Bozak on injured reserve.

 

[SoupNazi]

Boychuk was taken off via stretcher after a hit from Pacioretty during the Bruins-Canadiens game.

 

[ArGarBarGar]

So last night every team we wanted to lose won, so we went from tied for third in the Atlantic to only two points above Toronto for the first wildcard spot.

 

[InjuredChoker]

fraser ruined/hurt development of our prospects and now he's doing the same on dallas powerplay.

 

[Bench]

Well, Shawn Thornton now has the most dirty plays in hockey to his name.



Oprik did give Eriksson a nasty hit earlier, but you don't drag a guy down from behind. Ridiculous. I'm hopeful he's okay, but landing like unexpectedly that can cause a full spectrum of issues.

People are saying, "If Orpik has fought, it wouldn't have happened..." Okay, sure. Or you can say, "If fighting wasn't part of hockey, guys like Thornton wouldn't be headhunting people after the whistle." That blade cuts both ways.

Good luck, to all the mods that cover the general forums or the Boston/Pens forums.

 

[Brick Top]

Well, Shawn Thornton now has the most dirty plays in hockey to his name.



Oprik did give Eriksson a nasty hit earlier, but you don't drag a guy down from behind. Ridiculous. I'm hopeful he's okay, but landing like unexpectedly that can cause a full spectrum of issues.

People are saying, "If Orpik has fought, it wouldn't have happened..." Okay, sure. Or you can say, "If fighting wasn't part of hockey, guys like Thornton wouldn't be headhunting people after the whistle." That blade cuts both ways.

Good luck, to all the mods that cover the general forums or the Boston/Pens forums.

Yeah, not a big fan of seeing Orpik hurt like that, although I doubt that Thornton expected Orpik to hit the ice as guys are pulled from behind in scrums in every game.

Far worse was Neal giving Marchand a knee to the head as he skated by- that's bull****, and I think that Neal just might get some retaliation for that one. Neal actually has a sneaky solid resume of dirty plays in his career.

 

[joe89]

Always laugh when CBC shows their camera on Bryan Murray cursing, before he quickly realizes "oh right i'm being filmed" and contains himself.

 

[Bench]

Neal actually has a sneaky solid resume of dirty plays in his career.

Yeah, he's a bit of a punk for sure.

Will be interesting to see what the league does here. I can see anything from 5 games to 30. Guess it depends how all the injuries shake out. What a bloodbath game.

 

[ProPAIN]

Are there actually more Leafs fans in Ottawa than actual Sens fans?

 

[Chance on Chance]

Near gets away with a lot, hopefully they come down on you to teach him a lesson

 

[Winger98]

Yeah, he's a bit of a punk for sure.

Will be interesting to see what the league does here. I can see anything from 5 games to 30. Guess it depends how all the injuries shake out. What a bloodbath game.

Wouldn't mind if Neal and Thornton got 30 games. Or more.

This might just derail the hell out of this thread, but having guys on both clubs who are willing to drop the gloves didn't prevent a thing from happening. In fact, having Thornton on the ice directly related to half the problem.

 

[SoupNazi]

Are there actually more Leafs fans in Ottawa than actual Sens fans?

Yes.

 

[Bench]

Wouldn't mind if Neal and Thornton got 30 games. Or more.

This might just derail the hell out of this thread, but having guys on both clubs who are willing to drop the gloves didn't prevent a thing from happening. In fact, having Thornton on the ice directly related to half the problem.

That's my exact thinking.

And likely why people such as Yzerman and plenty of others feel fighting is leaving the game and for the better.

 

[ArGarBarGar]

Wouldn't mind if Neal and Thornton got 30 games. Or more.

This might just derail the hell out of this thread, but having guys on both clubs who are willing to drop the gloves didn't prevent a thing from happening. In fact, having Thornton on the ice directly related to half the problem.

There will always be guys who play dirty no matter what rules you make to change the game. You can argue the need for retribution, but you can't argue that enforcers will remove these guys from the game.