Sorry I'm late, folks- internet and cable was down here from early Saturday a.m. until tonight.
Missed Boston's shootout loss to Vancouver and the shutout win over Montreal over the weekend. Congratulations to Adam McQuaid on his first NHL goal. He's a guy who won't score many of 'em even when he does become a full-time big leaguer, but it is nice to see that the Lone Wolf got the winner against the hated Habs.
Now, for the pick update for the June draft (not taking the lottery into account):
1st Round
2nd overall- Toronto (49 points; 19-29-11)
10th overall- Boston (59 points; 24-22-11)
2nd Round
32nd overall- Toronto
40th overall- Boston
43rd overall- Tampa Bay (61 points 25-21-11)
3rd Round
None- Traded to Buffalo for Dan Paille
4th Round
93rd overall- Carolina (49 points; 21-30-7)
100th overall- Boston*
*Conditional pick awarded to Buffalo if Dan Paille scores 16 goals
5th Round
130th overall- Boston
6th Round
160th overall- Boston
7th Round
190th overall- Boston
Monday, February 8, 2010
Friday, February 5, 2010
Three guys you should know: Brandon Archibald, Stephen Silas and Julian Melchiori
If you're a Bruins fan and supporter who believes that the team needs to add skill and upside to the defense position, then a trio of Ontario-based defenders are worth keeping an eye on as the season progresses: Brandon Archibald, Stephen Silas and Julian Melchiori.
Archibald, who plays for the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds of the OHL, is a Michigander with a big frame (6-3, 205) who projects as a solid shutdown defender when he fills out. He's mobile and smart, and has been a dependable player on the blue line this season. He's not a fighter, but has shown a willingness to drop the gloves when challenged and has proven to be more than capable of holding his own. He may not have a big offensive upside, but he's a character player with the strong hockey skills to be a solid second-round projection right now.
I talked to a scout recently about him and this is what he said: "He's a young guy who's playing a big role on his team. He makes a good first pass and has a big (point) shot. I like him."
Silas is a two-way defenseman on the OHL's Belleville Bulls who doesn't have a lot of size (6-0, 180), but has been a consistent, steady presence for that club. He did participate in the CHL Top Prospects Game and while he didn't stand out, was solid.
"He's a smart puck mover," the scout said of Silas. "He's a calm guy with the puck who makes the right decisions. He's pretty good in his own end even if he isn't the biggest guy. He looks like a steady No. 4 defender (at the NHL level) if he keeps progressing."
Finally, Melchiori may be the most intriguing of the three.
At 6-3, 185, the late '91 birthdate has a lot of filling out to do, but is a superb skater playing for the Newmarket Hurricanes on the Ontario Jr. A circuit. He turned down a chance to play for the OHL's Oshawa Generals in favor of accepting a scholarship to UMass-Lowell (2010-11), and at last check, he's still committed to going the NCAA route.
"He's a very nice skater who is an offensive presence for his team," the scout said. "He's gotten way better as the year has gone on, and anytime you have a 6-3 guy who can move like he can, he's going to attract some attention."
Here's what Red Line Report had to say about Melchiori in their November issue, after he participated in the World Jr. A Challenge Tournament as a member of Team Canada East: "Tall, lanky defenseman is thin as a rail, but has surprisingly quick feet and acceleration...He's raw as hell, but has a nice frame to fill out and some pretty good tools."
All three are generating some buzz in scouting circles for their solid play and are probably worth following even though we're still smack dab in the middle of winter.
Archibald, who plays for the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds of the OHL, is a Michigander with a big frame (6-3, 205) who projects as a solid shutdown defender when he fills out. He's mobile and smart, and has been a dependable player on the blue line this season. He's not a fighter, but has shown a willingness to drop the gloves when challenged and has proven to be more than capable of holding his own. He may not have a big offensive upside, but he's a character player with the strong hockey skills to be a solid second-round projection right now.
I talked to a scout recently about him and this is what he said: "He's a young guy who's playing a big role on his team. He makes a good first pass and has a big (point) shot. I like him."
Silas is a two-way defenseman on the OHL's Belleville Bulls who doesn't have a lot of size (6-0, 180), but has been a consistent, steady presence for that club. He did participate in the CHL Top Prospects Game and while he didn't stand out, was solid.
"He's a smart puck mover," the scout said of Silas. "He's a calm guy with the puck who makes the right decisions. He's pretty good in his own end even if he isn't the biggest guy. He looks like a steady No. 4 defender (at the NHL level) if he keeps progressing."
Finally, Melchiori may be the most intriguing of the three.
At 6-3, 185, the late '91 birthdate has a lot of filling out to do, but is a superb skater playing for the Newmarket Hurricanes on the Ontario Jr. A circuit. He turned down a chance to play for the OHL's Oshawa Generals in favor of accepting a scholarship to UMass-Lowell (2010-11), and at last check, he's still committed to going the NCAA route.
"He's a very nice skater who is an offensive presence for his team," the scout said. "He's gotten way better as the year has gone on, and anytime you have a 6-3 guy who can move like he can, he's going to attract some attention."
Here's what Red Line Report had to say about Melchiori in their November issue, after he participated in the World Jr. A Challenge Tournament as a member of Team Canada East: "Tall, lanky defenseman is thin as a rail, but has surprisingly quick feet and acceleration...He's raw as hell, but has a nice frame to fill out and some pretty good tools."
All three are generating some buzz in scouting circles for their solid play and are probably worth following even though we're still smack dab in the middle of winter.
Thursday, February 4, 2010
Nine losses and counting for B's...time to break out the Einstein
In my last post, I opined that it was time for Bruins GM Peter Chiarelli to make a change, any change to try and get the team on track.
He missed out on the Ilya Kovalchuk sweeps, which were won by the wily Lou Lamoriello and the New Jersey Devils, who didn't really surrender all that much for the sniper when you get down to it. But even after watching other teams make trades involving some pretty big names in the NHL, it isn't a requirement for Chiarelli to go out and make a big splash necessarily. He just needs to bring in one piece that will one day be part of a winning solution in Boston, but it's important that he take charge and make something happen because the players and the fans look like they're losing hope.
I've said that Andrew Cogliano or Sam Gagner, two pieces of a loser puzzle in Edmonton, might fit that bill. We're talking young players with speed and upside, who just haven't been able to make a difference on the only team that has been more moribund than Boston has since the calendar flipped over to 2010.
Boston's GM has chosen not to act, and tonight, his finest took a 2-0 lead thanks to Mark Recchi and Blake Wheeler, only to melt down for 39 seconds in the middle frame, allowing Glen Metropolit and Roman Hamrlik to tie it.
So once again, the Bruins and their fans are looking at a game in which the effort was there, but the finish wasn't Jaroslav Halak played a brilliant game in net, and while Tuukka Rask was very good at the other end, his teammates couldn't bail him out of the 3-2 shootout loss that saw former BC star Brian Gionta deke left, then flip the backhand into the net for the only tally, while Marc Savard was denied by Halak moments later.
Mr. Chiarelli...and, I'll try to put this as delicately as I can here... Your team is a gongshow. If you aren't thinking about selling, then perhaps you might want to start. Your blueprint just isn't working.
The only other thing I can think of to define the moment is something that the great Albert Einstein once said: "Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results."
I've not seen nine consecutive losses by a Boston Bruins team in my lifetime. Not even during the darkest days of the 1997 cellar finish and the Dave Lewis fiasco a decade later. But, this team needs help, and we're looking at the same exact lineup night after night as the losses mount and the points slip away in the standings.
It's Chiarelli's job to figure out who might be able to help them at least get going in a respectable direction and then get it done.
He missed out on the Ilya Kovalchuk sweeps, which were won by the wily Lou Lamoriello and the New Jersey Devils, who didn't really surrender all that much for the sniper when you get down to it. But even after watching other teams make trades involving some pretty big names in the NHL, it isn't a requirement for Chiarelli to go out and make a big splash necessarily. He just needs to bring in one piece that will one day be part of a winning solution in Boston, but it's important that he take charge and make something happen because the players and the fans look like they're losing hope.
I've said that Andrew Cogliano or Sam Gagner, two pieces of a loser puzzle in Edmonton, might fit that bill. We're talking young players with speed and upside, who just haven't been able to make a difference on the only team that has been more moribund than Boston has since the calendar flipped over to 2010.
Boston's GM has chosen not to act, and tonight, his finest took a 2-0 lead thanks to Mark Recchi and Blake Wheeler, only to melt down for 39 seconds in the middle frame, allowing Glen Metropolit and Roman Hamrlik to tie it.
So once again, the Bruins and their fans are looking at a game in which the effort was there, but the finish wasn't Jaroslav Halak played a brilliant game in net, and while Tuukka Rask was very good at the other end, his teammates couldn't bail him out of the 3-2 shootout loss that saw former BC star Brian Gionta deke left, then flip the backhand into the net for the only tally, while Marc Savard was denied by Halak moments later.
Mr. Chiarelli...and, I'll try to put this as delicately as I can here... Your team is a gongshow. If you aren't thinking about selling, then perhaps you might want to start. Your blueprint just isn't working.
The only other thing I can think of to define the moment is something that the great Albert Einstein once said: "Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results."
I've not seen nine consecutive losses by a Boston Bruins team in my lifetime. Not even during the darkest days of the 1997 cellar finish and the Dave Lewis fiasco a decade later. But, this team needs help, and we're looking at the same exact lineup night after night as the losses mount and the points slip away in the standings.
It's Chiarelli's job to figure out who might be able to help them at least get going in a respectable direction and then get it done.
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
The Bruins are woeful...change needed
For all the focus this space has had on Toronto's failings throughout the season, the Bruins are giving the Leafs a run for their money when it comes to ineptitude.
After watching the Bruins lose to the Washington Capitals tonight, it has become clear to a lot of B's fans that Peter Chiarelli needs to do something, anything to change the face of his team because nothing is working.
The team can't score goals...that much has been known for quite some time, but the B's showed little life or fight after a great first period tonight gave way to a putrid final 20 minutes, which saw the Capitals score three goals (one empty netter) while the Bruins couldn't get anything past Jose Theodore. (Before I go on, let me tell you something about Theodore...I talk to him often here in D.C. and he's pretty open about his deep dislike of the Bruins. His hatred of them (fueled in his youth as a Montreal Canadiens fan) propels him to great lengths whenever he plays Boston. He still holds a deep-seeded grudge against them over Kyle McLaren's hatchet job against Richard Zednik in 2002, and Theodore showed it again tonight. The guy simply loves to play against...and beat the Bruins.)
Obviously, playing the top team in the East, who entered the game with a 10-game winning streak and boosted it to a franchise-record 11 consecutive victories, gave the Bruins little margin for error tonight. The home team took an early lead on a 5-on-3 power play, when David Krejci banked a shot off of Theodore's inside left pad, just squirting into the net. But that was it. Once former 700-pound line alum Mike Knuble tied it early in the second, you just hoped the Bruins would find a way to score again, but deep down inside, unless you're the ultimate optimist, you knew it wasn't coming.
The Boston GM misjudged his team. He assumed that the youngsters who played great last season would take the next step. He figured that Michael Ryder and Dennis Wideman would continue to anchor a solid veteran core after their 28-goal and 50-point seasons. He no doubt thought he had repeat winners in the troika of coach Claude Julien, defenseman Zdeno Chara and goaltender Tim Thomas. Julien and Chara are off their games, and Thomas, who is forced to playwith next to no margin for error each and every night (a crushing kind of pressure you have no idea about if you've never played the position), hasn't been as sensational as he was last season. Tuukka Rask has been outstanding as a rookie, but those screaming for him to take over as the starter on this team ask yourselves this: Do you really want Rask thrown into this pool of dreck? Think of the future, baby!
I'm stating the obvious here, but the fans aren't going to take much more of this. Even though Chiarelli is dealing form a position of weakness, I'm of the belief that it's time he did something.
I'm no fan of the deals Brian Burke made (and J.S. Giguere and Co. are making me look silly thus far, shutting out the Devils tonight, 3-0), but he at least did SOMETHING. Right or wrong...for better or worse. He made deals that the jury is still out on, and he could end up being lauded as a genius. In the midst of this "staganant" trade market, he found a way to pull the trigger and effect major change within his team and organization. Chiarelli cannot make excuses about the trade market any longer. Three big deals have gone down in the last 48 hours including the two Toronto made.
Now, I'm not saying he has to go out and pay a king's ransom to get a rental player in Ilya Kovalchuk, who isn't about to sign with anyone without keeping his options (and a potential return home to the KHL) open. I'm not even saying Chiarelli needs to make a season-saving move. That may be a bridge too far (and I'm not talking the Tobin either); I don't believe this team has it in them to be a serious contender, although they can clearly regain a playoff spot. But, the team, as constructed, is flawed and ineffective.
Trying to fix the offense on the cheap with Miroslav Satan was a failure. No harm done, because he didn't cost any assets beyond the money and cap hit it took to bring the former 40-goal man in for what has been a pretty mediocre audition. Satan is the Boston encore edition of Joe Murphy 10 years ago... remember him? Like Murphy, Satan is a washed-up former scorer who is good for the odd tally, but couldn't give a hoot about playing defense and ultimately isn't worth a spot on the top-three lines of any NHL playoff-caliber club.
Fans feel that it is time for Boston to make a change, and Ryder is a good place to start. The guy just doesn't play the kind of hockey that is going to win the Bruins enough games to justify his presence. He was a bad decision and it's time to cut him loose for cents on the dollar. Problem is- what team will want an underachieving streaky scorer who, when off his game, plays the kind of pathetic, uninspired hockey that brings back visions of Dmitri Khristich? Ryder is an easy scapegoat, but at this stage, he is what he is. Anyone who thinks he is worth the $4 million over three years that the Bruins outbid at least one other team to secure his services for hasn't watched Ryder this season, skating up and down the wing, misfiring on shots, failing to hit the net, and playing with an overall sense of malaise.
While no proponent of buy-at-a-premium with minimal results types of moves that see teams pay overinflated rates for declining veteran players, I do feel that some kind of change needs to be made, though. For the sake of the players who do care and who have given their all so far this season. Patrice Bergeron is really the only one who comes to mind right now, and I'm sure there are others.
It's hard to pile on with everyone else who's been clamoring for moves since the wheels started to come off earlier this year, when we saw that the offense was going to be hard to come by, and then crippling injuries to key players started to take their toll. I'm no hockey GM with a degree from Harvard Yard, but Chiarelli has surrounded himself with smart hockey guys who should be able to help him with some solutions.
Andrew Cogliano? Another underachiever on the NHL's bottom-feeder in Edmonton, but a player with real speed to burn who may just need a change of scenery to kickstart his game. Sam Gagner? Once coveted by the Bruins in the '07 draft, but would the Oil give him up before they're sure he isn't a future 30-goal guy like his dad, Dave? Ray Whitney? Still an effective scorer at 36, but no serious threat to make this team seen as anything more than a pretender, and with Carolina moving up in the standings, the asking price for Whitney is going up, not down.
I don't have the answers, but I do know this: It's only February, and the Bruins are in danger of blowing all of the goodwill they earned through the blood, sweat and honest effort of the 2008-09 season. This season's Bruins look a lot like the patchwork Ruins of a decade ago who had some viable parts, but relied on too many not-good-enough guys to get the job done.
The fact that a club who came within one overtime goal of the Eastern Conference finals last spring after a No. 2 overall regular season finish can look this unskilled and listless is a scathing indictment on Chiarelli's judgment in assembling this roster. Ripping him for trading Phil Kessel is too simplistic an approach: Kessel didn't want to be in Boston and made his intentions known. However, there are a lot of players not pulling their weight you can criticize him for. And, the buck stops with the GM, just as he got the credit last year.
The team needs a change for credibility's sake, but the real challenge for the GM will be in not surrendering the wrong assets to at least right the ship. You can bet this blog will be keeping a close eye on said assets, mainly the two top-10 picks this club currently possesses, with a total of five in the top-40 of what is shaping up to be one of the deepest drafts since 2003. I know that you have to give to get, but when trading draft picks like that, it has to be for players who are part of a long-term solution in Boston, not a quick, band-aid fix to save face in what is starting to look like a lost season.
This is Chiarelli's first real, true test. I can't imagine Cam Neely abiding the fact that the team has lost seven consecutive games at home for the first time in more than 75 years. This is embarrassing, and Neely of all people isn't going to accept it. From anyone.
I do think that those B's fans who have been demanding change since November will probably get it.
But, be careful what you wish for. If the GM makes any more bad decisions like some of those that have hamstrung his team, the long-term potential for success could hang in the balance.
After watching the Bruins lose to the Washington Capitals tonight, it has become clear to a lot of B's fans that Peter Chiarelli needs to do something, anything to change the face of his team because nothing is working.
The team can't score goals...that much has been known for quite some time, but the B's showed little life or fight after a great first period tonight gave way to a putrid final 20 minutes, which saw the Capitals score three goals (one empty netter) while the Bruins couldn't get anything past Jose Theodore. (Before I go on, let me tell you something about Theodore...I talk to him often here in D.C. and he's pretty open about his deep dislike of the Bruins. His hatred of them (fueled in his youth as a Montreal Canadiens fan) propels him to great lengths whenever he plays Boston. He still holds a deep-seeded grudge against them over Kyle McLaren's hatchet job against Richard Zednik in 2002, and Theodore showed it again tonight. The guy simply loves to play against...and beat the Bruins.)
Obviously, playing the top team in the East, who entered the game with a 10-game winning streak and boosted it to a franchise-record 11 consecutive victories, gave the Bruins little margin for error tonight. The home team took an early lead on a 5-on-3 power play, when David Krejci banked a shot off of Theodore's inside left pad, just squirting into the net. But that was it. Once former 700-pound line alum Mike Knuble tied it early in the second, you just hoped the Bruins would find a way to score again, but deep down inside, unless you're the ultimate optimist, you knew it wasn't coming.
The Boston GM misjudged his team. He assumed that the youngsters who played great last season would take the next step. He figured that Michael Ryder and Dennis Wideman would continue to anchor a solid veteran core after their 28-goal and 50-point seasons. He no doubt thought he had repeat winners in the troika of coach Claude Julien, defenseman Zdeno Chara and goaltender Tim Thomas. Julien and Chara are off their games, and Thomas, who is forced to playwith next to no margin for error each and every night (a crushing kind of pressure you have no idea about if you've never played the position), hasn't been as sensational as he was last season. Tuukka Rask has been outstanding as a rookie, but those screaming for him to take over as the starter on this team ask yourselves this: Do you really want Rask thrown into this pool of dreck? Think of the future, baby!
I'm stating the obvious here, but the fans aren't going to take much more of this. Even though Chiarelli is dealing form a position of weakness, I'm of the belief that it's time he did something.
I'm no fan of the deals Brian Burke made (and J.S. Giguere and Co. are making me look silly thus far, shutting out the Devils tonight, 3-0), but he at least did SOMETHING. Right or wrong...for better or worse. He made deals that the jury is still out on, and he could end up being lauded as a genius. In the midst of this "staganant" trade market, he found a way to pull the trigger and effect major change within his team and organization. Chiarelli cannot make excuses about the trade market any longer. Three big deals have gone down in the last 48 hours including the two Toronto made.
Now, I'm not saying he has to go out and pay a king's ransom to get a rental player in Ilya Kovalchuk, who isn't about to sign with anyone without keeping his options (and a potential return home to the KHL) open. I'm not even saying Chiarelli needs to make a season-saving move. That may be a bridge too far (and I'm not talking the Tobin either); I don't believe this team has it in them to be a serious contender, although they can clearly regain a playoff spot. But, the team, as constructed, is flawed and ineffective.
Trying to fix the offense on the cheap with Miroslav Satan was a failure. No harm done, because he didn't cost any assets beyond the money and cap hit it took to bring the former 40-goal man in for what has been a pretty mediocre audition. Satan is the Boston encore edition of Joe Murphy 10 years ago... remember him? Like Murphy, Satan is a washed-up former scorer who is good for the odd tally, but couldn't give a hoot about playing defense and ultimately isn't worth a spot on the top-three lines of any NHL playoff-caliber club.
Fans feel that it is time for Boston to make a change, and Ryder is a good place to start. The guy just doesn't play the kind of hockey that is going to win the Bruins enough games to justify his presence. He was a bad decision and it's time to cut him loose for cents on the dollar. Problem is- what team will want an underachieving streaky scorer who, when off his game, plays the kind of pathetic, uninspired hockey that brings back visions of Dmitri Khristich? Ryder is an easy scapegoat, but at this stage, he is what he is. Anyone who thinks he is worth the $4 million over three years that the Bruins outbid at least one other team to secure his services for hasn't watched Ryder this season, skating up and down the wing, misfiring on shots, failing to hit the net, and playing with an overall sense of malaise.
While no proponent of buy-at-a-premium with minimal results types of moves that see teams pay overinflated rates for declining veteran players, I do feel that some kind of change needs to be made, though. For the sake of the players who do care and who have given their all so far this season. Patrice Bergeron is really the only one who comes to mind right now, and I'm sure there are others.
It's hard to pile on with everyone else who's been clamoring for moves since the wheels started to come off earlier this year, when we saw that the offense was going to be hard to come by, and then crippling injuries to key players started to take their toll. I'm no hockey GM with a degree from Harvard Yard, but Chiarelli has surrounded himself with smart hockey guys who should be able to help him with some solutions.
Andrew Cogliano? Another underachiever on the NHL's bottom-feeder in Edmonton, but a player with real speed to burn who may just need a change of scenery to kickstart his game. Sam Gagner? Once coveted by the Bruins in the '07 draft, but would the Oil give him up before they're sure he isn't a future 30-goal guy like his dad, Dave? Ray Whitney? Still an effective scorer at 36, but no serious threat to make this team seen as anything more than a pretender, and with Carolina moving up in the standings, the asking price for Whitney is going up, not down.
I don't have the answers, but I do know this: It's only February, and the Bruins are in danger of blowing all of the goodwill they earned through the blood, sweat and honest effort of the 2008-09 season. This season's Bruins look a lot like the patchwork Ruins of a decade ago who had some viable parts, but relied on too many not-good-enough guys to get the job done.
The fact that a club who came within one overtime goal of the Eastern Conference finals last spring after a No. 2 overall regular season finish can look this unskilled and listless is a scathing indictment on Chiarelli's judgment in assembling this roster. Ripping him for trading Phil Kessel is too simplistic an approach: Kessel didn't want to be in Boston and made his intentions known. However, there are a lot of players not pulling their weight you can criticize him for. And, the buck stops with the GM, just as he got the credit last year.
The team needs a change for credibility's sake, but the real challenge for the GM will be in not surrendering the wrong assets to at least right the ship. You can bet this blog will be keeping a close eye on said assets, mainly the two top-10 picks this club currently possesses, with a total of five in the top-40 of what is shaping up to be one of the deepest drafts since 2003. I know that you have to give to get, but when trading draft picks like that, it has to be for players who are part of a long-term solution in Boston, not a quick, band-aid fix to save face in what is starting to look like a lost season.
This is Chiarelli's first real, true test. I can't imagine Cam Neely abiding the fact that the team has lost seven consecutive games at home for the first time in more than 75 years. This is embarrassing, and Neely of all people isn't going to accept it. From anyone.
I do think that those B's fans who have been demanding change since November will probably get it.
But, be careful what you wish for. If the GM makes any more bad decisions like some of those that have hamstrung his team, the long-term potential for success could hang in the balance.
Monday, February 1, 2010
Bruins 2010 draft picks update: 1 Feb
February is here!
So is Monday, which means I'm back with the draft pick position update for the Bruins. Boston blew its chance at a win on Saturday, squandering Mark Recchi's third period power play goal by allowing Anze Kopitar's man advantage strike and then losing in the shootout when Jarret Stoll roofed a wicked wrister on Tim Thomas (this after Marc Savard had scored in the previous round, but Thomas failed to stop Ryan Smyth on the ensuing attempt.) It was great to see Marco Sturm back after he missed six games to a mystery injury (and he made a splash with his team leading 16th goal to tie the game late in the 2nd), but the offense still isn't capable enough to call the Bruins a contender this year, and now defensive and goaltending issues are further exposing the B's as a pretender.
Toronto is a new-look team the day after adding Dion Phaneuf, Fredrik Sjostrom and J.S. Giguere, but will they be improved? I don't think so, and you can read my analysis below this post for more. What is true is that Carolina's recent surge has dropped the Leafs to the 29th position in the league, above the drowning Edmonton Oilers, who haven't won a game in 2010 and are now seven points behind the Leafs with no signs of having any chance of getting back into the race.
We don't know how the picks will look like next week, but here is where things stand if the season ended today:
2010 Boston Bruins Draft Picks
1st Round
2nd overall- Toronto (45 points; 17-28-11)
7th overall- Boston (55 points; 23-21-9)
2nd Round
32nd overall- Toronto
36th overall- Tampa Bay (55 points; 22-21-11)
37th overall- Boston
3rd Round
No pick- Traded to Buffalo for Daniel Paille*
* Conditional fourth-round pick also due if Paille scores 16 goals
4th Round
93rd overall- Carolina (45 points; 19-28-7)
97th overall- Boston
5th Round
127th overall- Boston
6th Round
157th overall- Boston
7th Round
187th overall- Boston
So is Monday, which means I'm back with the draft pick position update for the Bruins. Boston blew its chance at a win on Saturday, squandering Mark Recchi's third period power play goal by allowing Anze Kopitar's man advantage strike and then losing in the shootout when Jarret Stoll roofed a wicked wrister on Tim Thomas (this after Marc Savard had scored in the previous round, but Thomas failed to stop Ryan Smyth on the ensuing attempt.) It was great to see Marco Sturm back after he missed six games to a mystery injury (and he made a splash with his team leading 16th goal to tie the game late in the 2nd), but the offense still isn't capable enough to call the Bruins a contender this year, and now defensive and goaltending issues are further exposing the B's as a pretender.
Toronto is a new-look team the day after adding Dion Phaneuf, Fredrik Sjostrom and J.S. Giguere, but will they be improved? I don't think so, and you can read my analysis below this post for more. What is true is that Carolina's recent surge has dropped the Leafs to the 29th position in the league, above the drowning Edmonton Oilers, who haven't won a game in 2010 and are now seven points behind the Leafs with no signs of having any chance of getting back into the race.
We don't know how the picks will look like next week, but here is where things stand if the season ended today:
2010 Boston Bruins Draft Picks
1st Round
2nd overall- Toronto (45 points; 17-28-11)
7th overall- Boston (55 points; 23-21-9)
2nd Round
32nd overall- Toronto
36th overall- Tampa Bay (55 points; 22-21-11)
37th overall- Boston
3rd Round
No pick- Traded to Buffalo for Daniel Paille*
* Conditional fourth-round pick also due if Paille scores 16 goals
4th Round
93rd overall- Carolina (45 points; 19-28-7)
97th overall- Boston
5th Round
127th overall- Boston
6th Round
157th overall- Boston
7th Round
187th overall- Boston
Sunday, January 31, 2010
Leafs Trades Analysis: Big moves, bigger risk
For Brian Burke, last night's collapse against the Vancouver Canucks after building a 3-0 lead in the first period and chasing all-world goalie Roberto Luongo from the nets, only to lose 5-3 was the final straw that forced his hand in two earth-shaking moves for Toronto.
After the loss dropped them to the Eastern Conference basement (Carolina ithout any draft picks to speak of, Burke was forced to part with roster players in two separate, multi-player deals with Calgary and Anaheim, bringing in Dion Phaneuf, Jean-Sebastien Giguere and Fredrik Sjostrom (as well as defense prospect Keith Aulie). However, the Leafs surrendered a significant portion of their offense in order to shore up their D and goaltending. Gone to Calgary are: Niklas Hagman, Matt Stajan, Jamal Mayers and defenseman Ian White. To reunite with Burke's Stanley Cup-winning goalie from Anaheim days, Jason Blake and Vesa Toskala went out west.
Make no mistake- with the Leafs being in a free-fall, Burke had to do something. But, two big moves like these are a big risk.
In reading some of the initial feedback, I'm sensing that the general consensus is that the Leafs are worse today with a chance of being better in the long run. I am going to stay from the norm and say that in my view, these are bad trades for Toronto that is going to make a bad team worse; not just today but tomorrow as well.
Phaneuf is overpaid and overrated. Since taking the league by storm as a rookie, we've watched his overall game regress. He's a good, talented player who will definitely bring some snarl to Toronto, but he's not the kind of guy who will carry a team on his shoulders. On paper, Phaneuf seems like the right player to bring in, but given his struggles on a better team in Calgary, what makes anyone so sure he will suddenly reverse his fortunes on a team where the pressures to keep the puck out of the net will be bigger than before now that a big portion of their offensive firepower is gone.
Hagman had 20 goals in 55 games with Toronto at the time of the trade. Stajan was the second-leading team scorer after Tomas Kaberle with 16 goals and 41 points. Blake was clearly struggling with 10 goals and 26 points, but his speed and experience will be missed. White, who was second on the team for scoring among defensemen with 9 goals and 26 points was having an up-and-down season, but I had seen him come up with several clutch goals this year when his team really needed them. White will be missed as well. Between them, Toronto is giving up 55 goals and getting back 11 when you combine Phaneuf and Sjostrom's totals. Mayers only had two markers and needed a change of scenery. I remember him being a tough, character guy in St. Louis, but was clearly down on his luck in Toronto.
Toronto cut some contracts, yes. But they added two big ones in Phaneuf ($6.5M) and Giguere ($6M) for the 2010-11 season. That is going to make whatever moves Burke planned for the off-season a little trickier. Now, if you assume that Phaneuf and Giguere would be better than anyone Toronto could have landed in the offseason, then we'll have to wait and see how it plays out. However, recent trends of both players have not been favorable. Leafs fans will have to hope and pray that both suddenly reverse their relatively mediocre performances over the past few seasons. Giguere, who lost the starting job on the Ducks to Jonas Hiller, probably has a lot left in the tank, but he isn't going to have anywhere near the offensive firepower he had in front of him in Anaheim to bail him out.
While the trade brings in a couple of bigger names for Toronto than the ones who departed, one fact remains: this deal is no sure thing. Burke has dramatically altered team chemistry, and there's no telling how that will affect the Leafs' bottom line. The Leafs may turn things around, but the pressure on that defense to play mistake-free hockey is going to be bigger than ever before.
There are just too many ifs, here. Maybe this deal turns things around in Toronto, maybe not. Thus far, Burke's moves as Leafs' GM have not turned out well...we're taking a big leap of faith to assume that this one will work out the way he and Leafs fans hope.
After the loss dropped them to the Eastern Conference basement (Carolina ithout any draft picks to speak of, Burke was forced to part with roster players in two separate, multi-player deals with Calgary and Anaheim, bringing in Dion Phaneuf, Jean-Sebastien Giguere and Fredrik Sjostrom (as well as defense prospect Keith Aulie). However, the Leafs surrendered a significant portion of their offense in order to shore up their D and goaltending. Gone to Calgary are: Niklas Hagman, Matt Stajan, Jamal Mayers and defenseman Ian White. To reunite with Burke's Stanley Cup-winning goalie from Anaheim days, Jason Blake and Vesa Toskala went out west.
Make no mistake- with the Leafs being in a free-fall, Burke had to do something. But, two big moves like these are a big risk.
In reading some of the initial feedback, I'm sensing that the general consensus is that the Leafs are worse today with a chance of being better in the long run. I am going to stay from the norm and say that in my view, these are bad trades for Toronto that is going to make a bad team worse; not just today but tomorrow as well.
Phaneuf is overpaid and overrated. Since taking the league by storm as a rookie, we've watched his overall game regress. He's a good, talented player who will definitely bring some snarl to Toronto, but he's not the kind of guy who will carry a team on his shoulders. On paper, Phaneuf seems like the right player to bring in, but given his struggles on a better team in Calgary, what makes anyone so sure he will suddenly reverse his fortunes on a team where the pressures to keep the puck out of the net will be bigger than before now that a big portion of their offensive firepower is gone.
Hagman had 20 goals in 55 games with Toronto at the time of the trade. Stajan was the second-leading team scorer after Tomas Kaberle with 16 goals and 41 points. Blake was clearly struggling with 10 goals and 26 points, but his speed and experience will be missed. White, who was second on the team for scoring among defensemen with 9 goals and 26 points was having an up-and-down season, but I had seen him come up with several clutch goals this year when his team really needed them. White will be missed as well. Between them, Toronto is giving up 55 goals and getting back 11 when you combine Phaneuf and Sjostrom's totals. Mayers only had two markers and needed a change of scenery. I remember him being a tough, character guy in St. Louis, but was clearly down on his luck in Toronto.
Toronto cut some contracts, yes. But they added two big ones in Phaneuf ($6.5M) and Giguere ($6M) for the 2010-11 season. That is going to make whatever moves Burke planned for the off-season a little trickier. Now, if you assume that Phaneuf and Giguere would be better than anyone Toronto could have landed in the offseason, then we'll have to wait and see how it plays out. However, recent trends of both players have not been favorable. Leafs fans will have to hope and pray that both suddenly reverse their relatively mediocre performances over the past few seasons. Giguere, who lost the starting job on the Ducks to Jonas Hiller, probably has a lot left in the tank, but he isn't going to have anywhere near the offensive firepower he had in front of him in Anaheim to bail him out.
While the trade brings in a couple of bigger names for Toronto than the ones who departed, one fact remains: this deal is no sure thing. Burke has dramatically altered team chemistry, and there's no telling how that will affect the Leafs' bottom line. The Leafs may turn things around, but the pressure on that defense to play mistake-free hockey is going to be bigger than ever before.
There are just too many ifs, here. Maybe this deal turns things around in Toronto, maybe not. Thus far, Burke's moves as Leafs' GM have not turned out well...we're taking a big leap of faith to assume that this one will work out the way he and Leafs fans hope.
Friday, January 29, 2010
Joe Colborne back on TV tonight
OK- a 2010 draft hopeful he is not, but B's top prospect (in my humble opinion) Joe Colborne and his Denver University Pioneers will be back in action on the NHL Network tonight at 8:30 pm ET when they take on the University of North Dakota Fighting Sioux.
Colborne and Co. are televised for the second week in a row, which is a nice bonus for B's fans with access to the NHL Network.
Last week, the 16th overall selection in the 2008 NHL draft scored a nice power play goal, but didn't do a lot to stand out beyond that one excellent play. He's big, but doesn't always move his feet a lot. He glides and coasts, which reminds a lot of people of the way Joe Thornton plays. It looks like he isn't working hard at times, but at the end of the night, he has two or three points.
I'm not saying Colborne is Thornton, but when he is at his best, he's fighting for pucks along the walls, using his superior size and strength to protect the puck down low, and going hard to the net. Like Thornton, he is a terrific playmaker with the superior vision, instincts and soft hands to make plays all over the ice.
For more on Colborne and the rest of the Bruins prospects, here is a link to the web version of the Boston Bruins top-10 prospects story I wrote for the January edition of New England Hockey Journal.
http://www.hockeyjournal.com/news/2010/01/28_colborne.php
If I could do it again today, I'd swap places between Max Sauve and Zach Hamill, but that is a minor adjustment in the grand scheme of things. What has become clear by tracking and reporting on the B's prospects this year is that they need some high-end talent on defense, the wing and even in net. Funny, but Cam Fowler/Brandon Gormley/Eric Gudbranson, Taylor Hall/Nino Niederreiter/Emerson Etem and Jack Campbell/Calvin Pickard/Max Clermont would all fit the bill for them.
The way things are sitting today, the Bruins have a very good chance of addressing multiple needs in the coming draft on paper, but even with some big names, the jury will be out until they can prove themselves at the NHL level.
UPDATE: Watched the game and Colborne looked very good early, scoring a beautiful backhand goal just 90 seconds into it. He took his big frame to the front of the net, pounced on a rebound and flipped it up and over the goalie for the 1-0 lead. The first few shifts he was involved and moving his feet, but as the game wore on, I saw some of the old criticisms of Colborne surface: too much coasting, not enough jam along the boards, invisible over stretches of the game. There is no questioning his talent. On one play in the second period, he used his speed to gain position on the outside, beating the defender and then used his big frame to shield the puck. Although he didn't have much of an angle, he tried to bank the puck into the net off the defender who had scrambled to get back into the play. It didn't work, but it showed the kind of advanced offensive game Colborne possesses.
A night later, he had a goal and an assist in a 4-2 victory to complete the sweep in North Dakota. One report said that Colborne was given his team's "hardhat" award for the hardest-working player in the two-game series. Encouraging, sure. And, it underscores that sometimes, what may look like someone not putting forth an effort from the stands or on television ends up not being the case. Obviously the DU folks were pretty happy with Colborne's play.
Colborne and Co. are televised for the second week in a row, which is a nice bonus for B's fans with access to the NHL Network.
Last week, the 16th overall selection in the 2008 NHL draft scored a nice power play goal, but didn't do a lot to stand out beyond that one excellent play. He's big, but doesn't always move his feet a lot. He glides and coasts, which reminds a lot of people of the way Joe Thornton plays. It looks like he isn't working hard at times, but at the end of the night, he has two or three points.
I'm not saying Colborne is Thornton, but when he is at his best, he's fighting for pucks along the walls, using his superior size and strength to protect the puck down low, and going hard to the net. Like Thornton, he is a terrific playmaker with the superior vision, instincts and soft hands to make plays all over the ice.
For more on Colborne and the rest of the Bruins prospects, here is a link to the web version of the Boston Bruins top-10 prospects story I wrote for the January edition of New England Hockey Journal.
http://www.hockeyjournal.com/news/2010/01/28_colborne.php
If I could do it again today, I'd swap places between Max Sauve and Zach Hamill, but that is a minor adjustment in the grand scheme of things. What has become clear by tracking and reporting on the B's prospects this year is that they need some high-end talent on defense, the wing and even in net. Funny, but Cam Fowler/Brandon Gormley/Eric Gudbranson, Taylor Hall/Nino Niederreiter/Emerson Etem and Jack Campbell/Calvin Pickard/Max Clermont would all fit the bill for them.
The way things are sitting today, the Bruins have a very good chance of addressing multiple needs in the coming draft on paper, but even with some big names, the jury will be out until they can prove themselves at the NHL level.
UPDATE: Watched the game and Colborne looked very good early, scoring a beautiful backhand goal just 90 seconds into it. He took his big frame to the front of the net, pounced on a rebound and flipped it up and over the goalie for the 1-0 lead. The first few shifts he was involved and moving his feet, but as the game wore on, I saw some of the old criticisms of Colborne surface: too much coasting, not enough jam along the boards, invisible over stretches of the game. There is no questioning his talent. On one play in the second period, he used his speed to gain position on the outside, beating the defender and then used his big frame to shield the puck. Although he didn't have much of an angle, he tried to bank the puck into the net off the defender who had scrambled to get back into the play. It didn't work, but it showed the kind of advanced offensive game Colborne possesses.
A night later, he had a goal and an assist in a 4-2 victory to complete the sweep in North Dakota. One report said that Colborne was given his team's "hardhat" award for the hardest-working player in the two-game series. Encouraging, sure. And, it underscores that sometimes, what may look like someone not putting forth an effort from the stands or on television ends up not being the case. Obviously the DU folks were pretty happy with Colborne's play.
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