Playing GM for the 2009-2010 Season

[Guest]

I must say after watching JR this is getting very interesting. I don't think Rutuu is going to be part of a trade. But I do think Kabs gets bought out and we make a deal or perhaps two deals before August.

At least JR gave us something to think and talk about.

[dangermouse-ch1]

I must say after watching JR this is getting very interesting. I don't think Rutuu is going to be part of a trade. But I do think Kabs gets bought out and we make a deal or perhaps two deals before August.

At least JR gave us something to think and talk about.

I think that was just said if his arbitration goes through and he gets awarded a one-year deal. Rutherford really doesn't like a player that doesn't do what he wants and he wouldn't be all too pleased that he would have to join the UFA bid-off next season and pay a fortune to keep him if he has a great season. So I could definitely see why it is probable he could be an expendable player if we have other needs or a good deal offered to us.

[rollinsox007]

I'm on my phone right now, so it is kind of hard to watch the video, but did JR say something that would tip us off that Rutuu's rights will be traded elsewhere? I'd be very disheartened by that as he brings a physical edge on one of our top lines that no one else has. Yes, and I know that Cole is physical, but not at Ru's level.

[caniac-97]

I'm on my phone right now, so it is kind of hard to watch the video, but did JR say something that would tip us off that Rutuu's rights will be traded elsewhere? I'd be very disheartened by that as he brings a physical edge on one of our top lines that no one else has. Yes, and I know that Cole is physical, but not at Ru's level.

no, said he would be signed and with the team. but superdave thinks and i would have to agree that if it is for one year then Ruutu is most like trade bait.

[rollinsox007]

Ah okay. Thanks for that. I knew years were the issue, but I didn't know the full details of what only signing him for a year would mean. I really hope something can be done as it seems Rutuu really does enjoy playing here, but a big pay day in the future will sway some one way they no one predicted.

[jfive]

We probably won't have to do that because we already have Corvo and Wallin as UFA's next year.

I think Corvo is an integral part of the PP though and should be resigned after this season. A veteran dman with an expiring contract can be the player to help the team get to the playoffs or he can be quite the bargaining chip come trade deadline time.

[tray-ch1]

So we are looking for a defenseman to pair with Pitkanen..I think these may be the guys we are looking at

Marc Methot

Rotislav Klesla

Mike Van Ryn

Ian White

Randy Jones

Christian Ehrhoff

Toni Lydman

Zbyněk Mich

[Guest]

I think that was just said if his arbitration goes through and he gets awarded a one-year deal. Rutherford really doesn't like a player that doesn't do what he wants and he wouldn't be all too pleased that he would have to join the UFA bid-off next season and pay a fortune to keep him if he has a great season. So I could definitely see why it is probable he could be an expendable player if we have other needs or a good deal offered to us.

I understand. I also agree JR may not be all that pleased if Ruutu doesn't sign before arbitration hearing.

But I think Ruutu stays either way. Just a feeling he is in our plans this year. If he was to be traded I think it would be near the February trade deadline and only if we found ourselves struggling.

I must say I think Superdave does make a good case for a trade.

[Guest]

I think that was just said if his arbitration goes through and he gets awarded a one-year deal. Rutherford really doesn't like a player that doesn't do what he wants and he wouldn't be all too pleased that he would have to join the UFA bid-off next season and pay a fortune to keep him if he has a great season. So I could definitely see why it is probable he could be an expendable player if we have other needs or a good deal offered to us.

I understand. I also agree JR may not be all that pleased if Ruutu doesn't sign before arbitration hearing.

But I think Ruutu stays either way. Just a feeling he is in our plans this year. If he was to be traded I think it would be near the February trade deadline and only if we found ourselves struggling.

I must say I think Superdave does make a good case for a trade.

[fallen_apostle]

Well, if we are moving Ruutu, there's something that can be done. I think a deal with the Rangers might work out.

They've got the 1st line winger we need (Zherdev)

They're trying to move one of their overpaid defensemen (Redden or Rozival)

They've expressed interest in Babchuk

If we could work a combination of Eaves, Babchuk, Ruutu, or Kaberle for Zherdev and Redden/Rozival so that the salary's work out for both teams, I'd be ok with that.

Frog you're losing your touch. You watch hockey, so you already know how much these players stink (minus Rozy, maybe). Redden? Zherdev? Yuck. Two players who don't bring it 100% enough of the time. Eaves, Babs, and Ruutu are too good for them.

Please JR, no.

[just-joe]

So we are looking for a defenseman to pair with Pitkanen..I think these may be the guys we are looking at

Marc Methot

Rotislav Klesla

Mike Van Ryn

Ian White

Randy Jones

Christian Ehrhoff

Toni Lydman

Zbyněk Mich

[just-joe]

Frog you're losing your touch. You watch hockey, so you already know how much these players stink (minus Rozy, maybe). Redden? Zherdev? Yuck. Two players who don't bring it 100% enough of the time. Eaves, Babs, and Ruutu are too good for them.

Please JR, no.

You also have to consider that Zherdev would present the same type of contract issues that Babchuk has. The KHL will always be an option if he doesn't like it here and he has already worked his way out of one small-market team (Columbus).

[JLP]

I understand. I also agree JR may not be all that pleased if Ruutu doesn't sign before arbitration hearing.

But I think Ruutu stays either way. Just a feeling he is in our plans this year. If he was to be traded I think it would be near the February trade deadline and only if we found ourselves struggling.

I must say I think Superdave does make a good case for a trade.

I'm with you on this, OBX'er. Ruutu fits in well here, and I think JR will use him to the deadline, even if that means he can get less for him in return in Feb/Mar. Unless some big package like Frog suggested comes together for a Dman and a forward, which seems unlikely, I think we will have Ruutu next year. I'm hoping they will be able to settle on a 2 year deal.

[super_dave_1]

I'm with you on this, OBX'er. Ruutu fits in well here, and I think JR will use him to the deadline, even if that means he can get less for him in return in Feb/Mar. Unless some big package like Frog suggested comes together for a Dman and a forward, which seems unlikely, I think we will have Ruutu next year. I'm hoping they will be able to settle on a 2 year deal.

If Ruutu ends up with a one year deal, the only way it makes sense for J.R. to trade him at the deadline is if we are sellers (not playoff bound). If Ruutu is having a bad year, he isn't going to have much trade value and it will mostly be a dumping of salary which will not help much that late in the season. If Ruutu is having a good year he will be too important of a part at that time to trade unless we are sellers at the deadline. Would J.R. take a key component off the team and take a chance with chemistry if we were playoff bound? It's easy to say if he's that good that J.R. should see the season out with him, but J.R. will get a return on Ruutu without the bidding war next summer. Ruutu would be the biggest tradeable asset that we would have and some teams would jump at the one year deal.

My opinion for what it's worth. Ruutu's maximum trade value is before the season.

[dangermouse-ch1]

So we are looking for a defenseman to pair with Pitkanen..I think these may be the guys we are looking at

Marc Methot

Rotislav Klesla

Mike Van Ryn

Ian White

Randy Jones

Christian Ehrhoff

Toni Lydman

Zbyněk Mich

[IceFrog999]

Frog you're losing your touch. You watch hockey, so you already know how much these players stink (minus Rozy, maybe). Redden? Zherdev? Yuck. Two players who don't bring it 100% enough of the time. Eaves, Babs, and Ruutu are too good for them.

Please JR, no.

Zherdev's about as close to a 1st line winger as is available at the moment. He's certainly no Gaborik, Frolov, etc., but he's young and he can score at even-strength. Think of him as a younger, better Samsonov. And while inconsistency is an issue, it's no more an issue than the rest of our team.

Rozival and Redden have to be added to the deal, because I believe Sather has come out and said he's only moving Zherdev if he can include one of those two with him. And once you add their contracts, some finagling has to be done with what's going back to accept their contracts. Sort of a "We'll take your trash if you take ours" kind of deal. We'll take Rozival if you take Kaberle.

The Rangers just added a lot of good, young prospects to their team, so it might be possible to have them add a prospect/pick to even it up.

EDIT: Not to mention, Rozival's contract actually works out better for us. He makes a lot this year, but 3 million the next and 2 million the year after. And he's a Top 4 defenseman, though not an ideal one.

[lewberts]

If Healty ends up staying in Ottawa, then they might be willing to give up Jason Smith for next to nothing (they have to get rid of someone and have a log-jam at the blueline). I think this might be the bargain deal that JR is talking about.

[fallen_apostle]

Zherdev's about as close to a 1st line winger as is available at the moment. He's certainly no Gaborik, Frolov, etc., but he's young and he can score at even-strength. Think of him as a younger, better Samsonov. And while inconsistency is an issue, it's no more an issue than the rest of our team.

Rozival and Redden have to be added to the deal, because I believe Sather has come out and said he's only moving Zherdev if he can include one of those two with him. And once you add their contracts, some finagling has to be done with what's going back to accept their contracts. Sort of a "We'll take your trash if you take ours" kind of deal. We'll take Rozival if you take Kaberle.

The Rangers just added a lot of good, young prospects to their team, so it might be possible to have them add a prospect/pick to even it up.

EDIT: Not to mention, Rozival's contract actually works out better for us. He makes a lot this year, but 3 million the next and 2 million the year after. And he's a Top 4 defenseman, though not an ideal one.

Well that all makes sense. I could stomach Rozy, but Zherdev I just don't know. Not only is he inconsistent, but he's moody. I really think we have a good character team right now, so why ruin it? Locker room unity is just as important as on-ice play.

Honestly though I don't want to lose Ruutu. I think he is of incredible value to this team. He can score, but so much more worthwhile is his physical play. We need his total package in the lineup, rather than get rid of him and just add some frilly scorer.

[happycamper]

Frog you're losing your touch. You watch hockey, so you already know how much these players stink (minus Rozy, maybe). Redden? Zherdev? Yuck. Two players who don't bring it 100% enough of the time. Eaves, Babs, and Ruutu are too good for them.

Please JR, no.

Nah, he got it from some ridiculous trade proposals from the Rangers fans on another board.

[IceFrog999]

Nah, he got it from some ridiculous trade proposals from the Rangers fans on another board.

And it's ridiculous because? It fills our needs and theirs. And please, don't assume everything comes from HF. I've got a Ranger fan as a roommate and we've been trying to work out something between the two of us ever since Sather showed interest in Babs. Says getting Babchuk is about the only thing Sather can do to regain any amount of faith he has in him.

[happycamper]

Who said anything about hf?

And its rediculous to me because if they're dead weight high $ contracts for the Rags, what makes you think they wouldnt be dead weight high $ contracts that would handcuff the canes? Babs is your guy and we all know it, but if the Rags were so hot after him why hasnt the deal been done? JR has put him out there on a platter for all the GMs to take. He's basically gone on record saying that he'd take a bag of pucks for Babs and his latest insult was that he'd be happy to settle for some prospects back in trade, sounds like he hasnt had any offers for NHL level players to trade him for.

[Guest]

If Ruutu ends up with a one year deal, the only way it makes sense for J.R. to trade him at the deadline is if we are sellers (not playoff bound). If Ruutu is having a bad year, he isn't going to have much trade value and it will mostly be a dumping of salary which will not help much that late in the season. If Ruutu is having a good year he will be too important of a part at that time to trade unless we are sellers at the deadline. Would J.R. take a key component off the team and take a chance with chemistry if we were playoff bound? It's easy to say if he's that good that J.R. should see the season out with him, but J.R. will get a return on Ruutu without the bidding war next summer. Ruutu would be the biggest tradeable asset that we would have and some teams would jump at the one year deal.

My opinion for what it's worth. Ruutu's maximum trade value is before the season.

Like I said you make a very good case for a trade. But I just don't think Rutuu will be part of trade. What winger would we trade

for a Dman? My guess is Eaves, Sammy or Walker. You would need to throw in a prospect or two to get good return even

from a team looking to dump salary.

[Guest]

If Ruutu ends up with a one year deal, the only way it makes sense for J.R. to trade him at the deadline is if we are sellers (not playoff bound). If Ruutu is having a bad year, he isn't going to have much trade value and it will mostly be a dumping of salary which will not help much that late in the season. If Ruutu is having a good year he will be too important of a part at that time to trade unless we are sellers at the deadline. Would J.R. take a key component off the team and take a chance with chemistry if we were playoff bound? It's easy to say if he's that good that J.R. should see the season out with him, but J.R. will get a return on Ruutu without the bidding war next summer. Ruutu would be the biggest tradeable asset that we would have and some teams would jump at the one year deal.

My opinion for what it's worth. Ruutu's maximum trade value is before the season.

Like I said you make a very good case for a trade. But I just don't think Rutuu will be part of trade. What winger would we trade

for a Dman? My guess is Eaves, Sammy or Walker. You would need to throw in a prospect or two to get good return even

from a team looking to dump salary.

[IceFrog999]

Who said anything about hf?

And its rediculous to me because if they're dead weight high $ contracts for the Rags, what makes you think they wouldnt be dead weight high $ contracts that would handcuff the canes? Babs is your guy and we all know it, but if the Rags were so hot after him why hasnt the deal been done? JR has put him out there on a platter for all the GMs to take. He's basically gone on record saying that he'd take a bag of pucks for Babs and his latest insult was that he'd be happy to settle for some prospects back in trade, sounds like he hasnt had any offers for NHL level players to trade him for.

You know very well HF comes from your previous insinuations.

They're dead weight, high $ contracts on the Rags, because the amount they're being paid doesn't match with the production on the ice. Doesn't mean they're terrible players, just that the Rags paid way too much for what they were getting. And while Redden would still be a dead weight contract (Seriously, what was Sather thinking?), Rozival's contract is simply combining the dead weight we already have into one contract. Kabs is dead weight, Babchuk is dead weight, and Eaves is...well, let's just say he's not doing much on the 4th line. That's 4.6 right there. Rozival's a Top 4 defenseman, a year removed from 13 goals and a few years removed from being a +35. Easily acquired without giving up a pick/prospect, something this team can't afford to do.

As for Babchuk, either JR or his agent are weighing options. In fact, his agent said as much in a recent interview (and yes, this I took from HF):

"We are working with several teams" - he said - "we are still in negotiation stages and it is not like we have July 1st deadline, we taking our time to do what's best for Anton"

http://www.sovsport.ru/gazeta/article-item/338336''>http://www.sovsport.ru/gazeta/article-item/338336' target="_blank">http://www.sovsport.ru/gazeta/article-item/338336[/post]

[super_dave_1]

Like I said you make a very good case for a trade. But I just don't think Rutuu will be part of trade. What winger would we trade

for a Dman? My guess is Eaves, Sammy or Walker. You would need to throw in a prospect or two to get good return even

from a team looking to dump salary.

We'll have to wait and see. My scenario would be different if Ruutu does a multi-year.

According to http://www.nhlscap.com/no_trade.htm' target="_blank">nhlscap.com[/post], the following players have NTC's.

Frantisek Kaberle, CAR - NTC

Eric Staal, CAR - NTC [starting July 1, 2010]

Scott Walker, CAR - NTC

Niclas Wallin, CAR - NTC

Ray Whitney, CAR - NMC

Please keep this in mind with your trade proposals. That would leave Walker out and only Eaves and Samsonov in your reasoning. What top line winger or top 4 d-man would those bring as part of a trade without giving away a major prospect or 2? J.R. is going to hang onto those prospects that can play in a year or two because they will be CHEAP. That's why I keep coming back to Ruutu if he ends up with a one year deal.

I say send Kabs, Babs, Conboy, a bag of pucks, and a 5 dollar foot long to Chicago for Patrick Sharpe. (sarcasm alert)