Confirmed with Link: Bickell re-signs (4 years, $4M AAV)

[ColdSteel2]

Bickell took the same crap from people that Emery took from me, at I didn't make an "I suck" avitar.

 

[DisgruntledHawkFan]

Nobody here said that Bickell is an ECHL third liner at best, so no, it's really not comparable.

 

[ColdSteel2]

Lol.

 

[Sir Psycho T]

This is just patently false. He hasn't had a sustained period of play that you'd classify as "rolling". That's the whole argument. He's certainly got the size and skill to be a valuable top six player. It's up to him to capitalize on that ability.

THIS!

He hasn't put together a full year of hockey to judge his contract.

People keep bringing up the playoffs, they why the hell is Bolland gone, no player in the last 5 years played better in the playoffs then Bolland, even this year when people said his play was down, look at some of the plays he made. He was a key part of this team winning the cup. He is moved at under 3.5 to give Bickell 4.

I hope Bickell found his game and can keep it going, I am going to be skeptical for now though because he hasn't proven yet he can be that player for a full season.

 

[Hawkaholic]

Who cares if he doesnt have the stats in the regular season. I'll judge him on his playoff performances from here on out, because thats a big reason why he was kept. He is the type of player you need in the post season.

 

[SLarmer28*]

Some posters on this message board are so butt sore that Dave Bolland and Michael Frolik have been traded away that the scapegoat needs to be Bryan Bickell.

 

[ColdSteel2]

Butt sore, yes, why, I don't know.

 

[DisgruntledHawkFan]

Scapegoat? Hardly. Just giving my opinion on a player that's parlayed a good couple of months playing a style he's never shown before into a 16 million dollar payday.

Wanted Bolland gone, and even with Bickell at this cost I've posted the roster I would have ran with, which included Frolik as well.

 

[Bubba88]

we agreed here that Bickell only stayed on the roster because of his dirt cheap contract...

 

[Sir Psycho T]

Some posters on this message board are so butt sore that Dave Bolland and Michael Frolik have been traded away that the scapegoat needs to be Bryan Bickell.

What are we 6?

Because some of us aren't sold on Bickell only playing as well as he did for 1 playoff run getting 16 million out of it? We are butthurt and looking for scapegoats. Way to be mature about it.

 

[Bubba88]

I'm not sold on Bickell too, but you get paid for what you are going to do based on what you've done in the past. This is a contract that can make Bowman look bad for sure.

 

[UsernameWasTaken]

Some posters on this message board are so butt sore that Dave Bolland and Michael Frolik have been traded away that the scapegoat needs to be Bryan Bickell.

It has nothing to do with that - I don't care they traded Bolland and Frolik - Bolland I wanted them to and Frolik I'm indifferent about.

I'm annoyed about Bickell's contract because it was an overpayment - and I'm not as convinced that his performance in the playoffs (except for the final round, of course - when he disappeared when it mattered most) is in any way indicative of how he will play.

This is going to be a contract that angers us in the future. I guarantee it.

 

[topnotch]

It has nothing to do with that - I don't care they traded Bolland and Frolik - Bolland I wanted them to and Frolik I'm indifferent about.

I'm annoyed about Bickell's contract because it was an overpayment - and I'm not as convinced that his performance in the playoffs (except for the final round, of course - when he disappeared when it mattered most) is in any way indicative of how he will play.

This is going to be a contract that angers us in the future. I guarantee it.

Bickell's contract is a gamble, definitely. All contracts a GM gives out are gambles to some extent.

Bowman took a look at Bickell's regular season production (which all happened on the 3rd line with little to no PP time), and playoff production (good to amazing) and decided to take a bit of a gamble and assume that Bickell can be a top 6 power forward.

For those that don't like this contract, the other option is to lose Bickell to FA. Market value for him was no lower than 4 million and could have been a bit higher. It's either pay him or lose him (our only true power forward).

For me trading Bolland in favor of keeping Bickell is a no brainer. Bolland's injury history sealed his fate, sadly. Trading Frolik was a surprise but if in the end it gets the Hawks to re-sign Rozsival I'm all for that trade as well.

 

[Hawkaholic]

Bickell at 4mil, is better than losing Bickell and replacing him with a scrub like Hayes and waiting another 3-4 years for someone to replace what Bickell does.

That's all there is to it.

 

[Sarava]

Bickell at 4mil, is better than losing Bickell and replacing him with a scrub like Hayes and waiting another 3-4 years for someone to replace what Bickell does.

That's all there is to it.

Well said.

 

[hockeydoug]

Who cares if he doesnt have the stats in the regular season. I'll judge him on his playoff performances from here on out, because thats a big reason why he was kept. He is the type of player you need in the post season.

Part of the success of the Hawks this year was their regular season success and ability to build a cushion and not push players prior to the postseason.

The postseason is too erratic to project, and matchups and challenges vary too much year to year for anybody outside of the top skaters. Lou, or Kenny should have dumped most of their teams over the years if they based retention just on a couple years of postseason play.

Get good hockey players that don't shrink in a big game, not just playoffs. Every player has hot and cold streaks.

 

[hockeydoug]

Bickell at 4mil, is better than losing Bickell and replacing him with a scrub like Hayes and waiting another 3-4 years for someone to replace what Bickell does.

That's all there is to it.

3 million more to spend upgrades depth significantly. Of course Bickell is better than Hayes. Hayes + 3 million in better depth might be worth more than Bickell at the end of the day in terms of wins. That was my problem with Bolland for years.

 

[DisgruntledHawkFan]

Bickell at 4mil, is better than losing Bickell and replacing him with a scrub like Hayes and waiting another 3-4 years for someone to replace what Bickell does.

That's all there is to it.

A scrub like Jayes is all Bickell was until this year. If he really did turn the corner and is now the player we saw this spring four million is cheap for what he brings. If not...

I'm not saying he's not gonna be worth those dollars. It's just a pretty big risk to be taking for a team with a bunch of core pieces needing to be given raises in the next few years

 

[Blue Liner]

Hayes is a scrub now?

 

[UsernameWasTaken]

A scrub like Jayes is all Bickell was until this year. If he really did turn the corner and is now the player we saw this spring four million is cheap for what he brings. If not...

I'm not saying he's not gonna be worth those dollars. It's just a pretty big risk to be taking for a team with a bunch of core pieces needing to be given raises in the next few years

The contract was a waste of money. The team will regret it and when he reverts to norm next year we will have to read posts of implausible justifications of why the contract was a good idea.

 

[DisgruntledHawkFan]

Hayes is a scrub now?

Black and white. NHL mainstay or bust at his age. Nothing in between.

 

[Bubba88]

CapGeek now says that a modified NTC is included.

 

[Hawkaholic]

A scrub like Jayes is all Bickell was until this year. If he really did turn the corner and is now the player we saw this spring four million is cheap for what he brings. If not...

I'm not saying he's not gonna be worth those dollars. It's just a pretty big risk to be taking for a team with a bunch of core pieces needing to be given raises in the next few years

Not really, Bickell was good in his first year..alot better than what Hayes has EVER shown. He also had a great playoff that year. Last year was the only year where Bickell looked even close to a scrub.

It's a risk worth it, Bickell doesn't seem to be the guy who will just coast. He knows he won't be playing if he coasts regardless of his play. It's a risk, but a risk you must take...every team does.

Personally, I think he is over paid, but it's better than over paying some unknown.

 

[DisgruntledHawkFan]

Bickell scored his first year, largely from the perimeter. Every other part of his game was wanting.

 

[topnotch]

Bickell scored his first year, largely from the perimeter. Every other part of his game was wanting.

Just because his shot was good from the outside doesn't mean that's all he did. He was 2nd among forwards in hits, and he rarely gave the puck away. Add in his good 3rd year and his 3 successful playoffs and the Hawks decided they had found their power forward.