Hurricanes sign Tom Kostopoulos

[tray-ch1]

Good. Our type - play with heart in every shift and work very hard. Nice guy, i liked this signing. Not a great player on world but if play with Jussi or eventually Bayda, i see good chemistry.

But this mean, we will trade Eaves or Walker ( Scotty has NTC, i think )...

[eggy21]

I think this makes Eaves expendable in any trade we are looking for.

[caniacgirl]

But this mean, we will trade Eaves or Walker ( Scotty has NTC, i think )...

Yes he does. This seems a rather expensive replacement for Bayda (if in fact, he doesn't return) so I would assume we're looking to drop some salary at some point and like eggy said I see Eaves being the odd man out (in terms of forwards).

[dangermouse-ch1]

Yes he does. This seems a rather expensive replacement for Bayda (if in fact, he doesn't return) so I would assume we're looking to drop some salary at some point and like eggy said I see Eaves being the odd man out (in terms of forwards).

I think this signing pretty much solidifies that Bayda is gone. Eaves will likely be in the trade with some draft picks / prospects for a defenseman which will hopefully also open an offensive spot to bring in Boychuk/Bowman/Sutter.

[jacobb0222]

Wow! Interesting, definitely didn't see that coming. Not a earth-shattering sign but I like it and I think it improves our team. Don't expect more than a gritty fourth-liner who can play 3rd occasionally. I do think this is an upgrade from Bayda since he has a little more size and will throw his body around (167 hits!). Plus he can kill penalties.

I remember everyone in Montreal complaining when Gainey signed "Krusty the clown" but I think they all warmed up to him fairly quickly.

Quick Scouting Report from Sportsnet:

Assets: Likes to play a north-south game and is strong along the wall. Defensively responsible, he's also a great leader in the room.

Flaws: Has limited scoring ability at the NHL level, and doesn't do enough in other areas to see regular playing time in the big league.

Career Potential: 4th line winger.

[jacobb0222]

Maybe to help prove my point a little- someone on TSN wrote this just now:

"WHY DIDN'T BOB GAINEY KEEP THIS GUY? He even wore the "A" last year. I'm content with Bob's other acquisitions but to let this guy go made no sense."

[dangermouse-ch1]

Wow! Interesting, definitely didn't see that coming. Not a earth-shattering sign but I like it and I think it improves our team. Don't expect more than a gritty fourth-liner who can play 3rd occasionally. I do think this is an upgrade from Bayda since he has a little more size and will throw his body around (167 hits!). Plus he can kill penalties.

I remember everyone in Montreal complaining when Gainey signed "Krusty the clown" but I think they all warmed up to him fairly quickly.

Quick Scouting Report from Sportsnet:

Assets: Likes to play a north-south game and is strong along the wall. Defensively responsible, he's also a great leader in the room.

Flaws: Has limited scoring ability at the NHL level, and doesn't do enough in other areas to see regular playing time in the big league.

Career Potential: 4th line winger.

Someone at the Canes front office said he doesn't know the whole scoop but he has heard many a murmur after this signing came out that it was part of something much bigger. Maybe another O'Sullivan/Williams/Cole switcharoo kind of trade will be coming our way in the next day or 2. We might just want to keep a lookout over the next few days to see a trade happen.

[legend-1]

All I can think of right now is thats a pain in the duff to remember how to type.

[TSA]

He was brought in for penalty killing.

RALEIGH, NC

[Caniacal_Avaholic]

I've always loved this dude's name. It's like a costly metropolis.

Sounds like a trade's on the way. Looking forward to seeing what goes down.

[Caniac617]

He was brought in for penalty killing.

RALEIGH, NC

[Caniacal_Avaholic]

I've been reading on HFBoards, and it sounds like this dude is as hard-working a player as you're going to find. Montreal fans nicknamed him "Non-Stopoulos."

[dangermouse-ch1]

He had some good high-scoring seasons in the AHL and might also be considered a reclamation project. I'd guess since JR signed him to 3 years he knows he has at least some potential beyond the 4th line. Not to mention the most important aspect he could bring is a new lively character in the locker room at a cheap price which is good to shake things up a bit for the new season.

[Sutter16]

I've been reading on HFBoards, and it sounds like this dude is as hard-working a player as you're going to find. Montreal fans nicknamed him "Non-Stopoulos."

Hahaha that's an awesome nickname!

I really like this signing. What he brings to the ice seems perfect for our team, and it never hurts to have another character guy and a new face in the locker room. You have to think some trade is going down now....

[Sutter16]

I like the signing, Kostopoulos is a great 4th liner for us. Good for 20 points a year, plays bigger than his 6'0" frame with a lot of energy and kills penalties. Also seems to be a good character guy which is good for the locker room.

Most likely a trade (involving a forward) is coming. No way we go into next year with the current group of forwards, that would be too expensive. With Conboy most likely a 4th liner, people like Walker and Eaves could be the odd man out. Maybe an Eaves and Babchuk package for a defenseman is coming? We'll see....

[IceFrog999]

Clearly means Eaves is on the way out. 3rd/4th line player that kills penalties? LaRose could fit that possibility as well, but Eaves has more value around the league.

[caniacgirl]

I think this signing pretty much solidifies that Bayda is gone. Eaves will likely be in the trade with some draft picks / prospects for a defenseman which will hopefully also open an offensive spot to bring in Boychuk/Bowman/Sutter.

Yeah I think that's a very real possibility which is a shame because I really liked him and his attitude.

All I can think of right now is thats a pain in the duff to remember how to type.

It's definitely the hardest one we've had the past few seasons.

[TSA]

Clearly means Eaves is on the way out. 3rd/4th line player that kills penalties? LaRose could fit that possibility as well, but Eaves has more value around the league.

Nothing is clear except JR is obviously working on some deals and not standing pat with the current roster as some have thought.

[Caniacal_Avaholic]

Hahaha that's an awesome nickname!

I really like this signing. What he brings to the ice seems perfect for our team, and it never hurts to have another character guy and a new face in the locker room. You have to think some trade is going down now....

Yeah, I'm totally down with calling him that. It sounds like the only problem is that he's the worst fighter in the world, although he apparently backs down from no one.

[jacobb0222]

Nothing is clear except JR is obviously working on some deals and not standing pat with the current roster as some have thought.

Eaves and Babchuk on their way out hopefully. Anyone have a link to where it says we might be working on a trade?

[canesfan06]

I wasn't too excited about this after watching a few fights on youtube, but all of your comments make me feel a little better. He'll likely be a replacement for Bayda, and might be an upgrade there, I'm just glad to see some new news. This quiet time is killing me.

[JLP]

Yeah, Eaves suddenly became much more expendable. This guy fits as a Bayda replacement based on salary/strengths, but you've got to be thinking JR is looking to make room for a potential Rat to make the team. I wouldn't mind keeping him, but not looking good for that, especially with this guy signing a long term deal.

I think "this guy" is what I will call him rather than spell that name.

[caniac247]

When I saw the tweet come through, first thing I said was "a trade has to be in the works". I don't think we need another 3rd-4th line winger, we have plenty of those. Somebody has got to be on the way out with Babs.

[Sutter16]

When I saw the tweet come through, first thing I said was "a trade has to be in the works". I don't think we need another 3rd-4th line winger, we have plenty of those. Somebody has got to be on the way out with Babs.

I think we're all in agreement, Eaves and Babchuk for someone.

[TSA]

Seems to me that this would make a player like Conboy expendable. Eaves's contract is very reasonable and I still think he can play at a higher level we havent seen consistently yet. Of course Ive been an Eave's supporter all along but Conboy spent a chunk of last season and all of the playoffs in the press box. His one-way deal would be a waste of money if he did the same this year.

Just saying...