Editor's Note: globeandmail.com editors will pore over and put up with or turn one's back on each question/comment. Comments/questions may be edited for magnitude or clarity. HTML is not allowed.
We will not report questions/comments that embody in person attacks on participants in these discussions, that serve as false or unsubstantiated allegations, that purport to retell people or reports where the purported recite or fact cannot be question verified, or questions/comments that include ordinary language or libellous statements. Preference will be given to readers who enter questions/comments using their fullest name and home town, rather than a pseudonym. Steve McAllister, Editor, globesports.com: Eric, thanks very much for winning moment away from preparing your weekly notebook and the recur of the Globe Sports hockey errand-boy this Saturday to gossip with us.
While many of us watched the games in Stockholm and Prague stay weekend, there seems to be more eagerness circumjacent the start of the season tonight. And, as so often is the cover in today's skilful sport environment, you pretty much shortage a program to keep track of the off-ice power especially in the salary-cap worlds. With that in mind, can you cause us up to speed on the example roster tweaking by the team in your backyard - the Calgary Flames? Eric Duhatschek writes: For anyone set to evaluating punter faction on merit, the events of the conclusive 24 hours — on a unite of different fronts — must have them shaking their heads.
The occasion you direct to concerns the Flames and Dustin Boyd, the second-year send on who tied with David Moss for the party spend in exhibition scoring and looked as if he'd developed some chemistry with Moss and Curtis Glencross. The Flames demoted Boyd to the minors Wednesday anyway, strictly as a salary-cap dodge — or until they could get the NHL to peruse the medical assertion and give the stamp of approval to their purposefulness to put defenceman Rhett Warrener on long-time offence reserve. Once the combine did that — effectively making Warrener's $2.35-million (all currency U.S.) salary-cap hit evaporate — then they recalled Boyd.
The uncut fancy took about 19 hours. He'll border the duo in Vancouver today in interval for their time opener against the Canucks. NHL rules appreciative the Flames to physically vessel Boyd out — to Moline, Illinois, where one lives of their Quad Cities AHL franchise — as opposed to just doing a article transaction, before they could lure him back. (Note to self: Whatever happened to the NHL's much ballyhooed Green initiative, which, amongst things, means no more newsletter media directories)? A like schema unfolded in Dallas, where the Stars sent James Neal and Mark Fistric to their the Oklahoma City affiliate, until such rhythm as it took the join to favour Sergei Zubov's hand to the LTI list. Once that occurred, Neal and Fistric returned to Dallas.
Both Warrener and Zubov will be out a slightest of 10 games and 24 chronology which means the soonest they could resurfacing to battle is quondam in beginning November. In Calgary's case, the moves estate the Flames just under the $56.7-million emolument hat but the realistic dollars that they're paying players are well above that.
They be indebted to Warrener his salary, Anders Eriksson his (he's in Quad Cities), and they're also paying Marcus Nilson $1-million to occupy oneself in in Russia. Counting the front-loaded contracts for Miikka Kiprusoff and Dion Phaneuf ($15.5-million present dollars in their pockets, but a better hit of only $12.33-million), their existent payroll is over $60-million.
Remind me again why they had the lockout in the inception place? Sometimes, all these convoluted maneuvers be placed you extended for the days when sports writers unmistakably needed to affliction about was how to riff off 'he shoots, he scores!' Scot Loucks from Pickering, Canada writes: Hi Eric; Everyone seems to be jumping on the Habs bandwagon this year…. and I do as though their team… but…Why isn't anybody talking about Boston? They played Montreal burly in the playoffs at year… and they have added (back from injury) Bergeron and Fernandez. Plus I delight in a (I'm sure) motivated Ryder. Then they put down about Pittsburgh (who are currently minus both Gonchar and Whitney). Isn't Philladelphia …. with the restore of Gagne the much improved team? Your thoughts? Cheers Duhatschek: Hi Scott, thanks for your question.
I cultured a great drill about 20 years ago in an utilize that we had to do for The Hockey News. As character of their annual preview, they asked their correspondents to render a best-case and worst-case outline for the teams they covered — and then ran both stories ancillary by side. It surely made you because — within a few prime parameters — you can present a avail wrapper either way. So much depends upon injury, the maturation of children players, the chemistry that evolves surrounded by the 23 players on the roster. And I did mention, in Wednesday's 15 Questions opening piece, that I brooding the Bruins could contend for the rubric in the Northeast, newer toughest diremption in the NHL after the Pacific, if Patrice Bergeron and Zdeno Chara put an end to healthy; and if their goaltending holds up.
Pittsburgh is permissible enough to joust even without Gonchar and Whitney. Although they quite won't kill away with the division, as Kris Letang and Alex Goligoski acquire knowledge on the job, if these injuries hurriedly street their condition and then Whitney and Gonchar are both hitting their strides come playoff time, then they could be the caste of the conference. As for Philadelphia, I in the same way as the Flyers overall deepness up front, but and if Simon Gagne stays healthy, he'll daily Daniel Briere have a much better season. Like a lot of teams, they're weak on the dispirited railway if injuries strike.
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