FUNHL News and Notes

- Philadelphia vs Tampa's 1-3-1

I get it, everybody hates the trap, it's boring, and kills the fun in the game. But Philly's response to seeing the Bolts passively lineup in the neutral zone was far worse - they simply stayed in their own zone and refused to move the puck up the ice. The trap is as old as hockey, it's not illegal, and even the highest scoring teams use it on occasion, so the decision by the Flyers to try and embarrass the Bolts into attacking by making a boring defensive scheme even more boring - the hockey equivalent of pouting like a four year old, justifiably causes concern.

Just the Flyers being the typically dickish Flyers I guess.

The 'solution' is two-fold;

1. After 10 sec of dicking around in their own zone call a delay of game on the Flyers. Teams with the puck don't get to dictate the defense the other team uses. A second violation earns a bench minor on top of the delay of game.

2. If you really want the trap to disappear invent an 'illegal defense' penalty. But good luck with that. The NBA has experimented with illegal zone defenses to mixed and controversial results, and however you feel about the trap, it is nothing new or outrageous to retreat into the neutral and defense zones when you don't have the puck.

- Ovechkin's numbers have been in modest decline the last two years, but I'd argue he's a much more complete player now. As a rookie he could fly the zone and cherrypick whenever he wanted because they weren't competitive if he didn't. Now the team is a Cup favourite and Ovie is playing all 200ft of the rink. Bad for his stats, but better for his Cup chances.

- Tim Connolly is hurt again. Moving on.

- Uh oh, Mike Green is back on IR this time with a knee injury. I said previously that he needed a healthy year to guarantee another contract with the Caps, and I'm betting now he won't get one. I also don't think he'll finish the season as a Great White FP.

- Some pundits are getting down on the Mike Richards experience in LA, pointing to his lack of goal production as a sign of the apocalypse. The truth is you just need to look at Kopitar's numbers to see the benefit a back alley knife fighter like Richards brings. By checking the other teams top unit Kopitar now gets butter minutes against softer opposition, and the result is more production from Kopitar, especially at home where the home team gets last change. Richards is the Kesler to Kopitar's Hank Sedin.

- Who would make a better FP, Kopitar or Getzlaf?

- Kane or Giroux?

- I was sceptical that it could happen, but Ollie Jokinen as the Flames heavy lifting 2nd line center is working out. It's the first line center job (Morisson hurt/sucking, Stajan sucking, Backland hurt) that has been an utter disaster.

- I asked Kent Wilson (uber Flames blogger) three questions on last weeks Lowetide radio program;

1. How is the Flames 'slow motion' rebuild working out vs the Oilers 'scorched Earth rebuild'?
2. What do the underlying advanced stats say about Jokinen as the 2nd line center?
3. How has John Wisebrod influenced Feaster in the aquisitions if Byron, Horak, and Butler?

His answers;
1. He doesn't think the Flames are rebuilding yet (I disagree)
2. Jokinen's stats indicate his new role is working out well.
3. Doesn't know.

Go to Oilers Nation Radio and check out the Kent Wilson segment (segment #5) for Nov 5th for the full discussion.

- I think Feaster has already started the rebuild for several reasons;

1. The Regehr/Kotalik trade that brought back Butler and Byron gives the Flames two young pieces and a tonne of capspace, but it is not the type of trade you make when you are 'going for it'.

2. Feaster hired John Wisebrod away from the Bruins. Bringing in fresh eyes to oversee scouting and talent procurement was a definite necessity. The Flames have had a HORRIBLE farm and talent development system (from Kobasew in 2001 to Tim Erizon in 2010, Phaneuf is the only potential All-star, and Backland the only first rounder actually on the team), and all rebuilds start with the farm.

3.Feaster's first draft was a polar opposite to Darryl Sutter's. Can you see Sutter drafting an undersized Swiss scoring forward in the first round? How about Sutter selecting a pint sized (5'6") scoring machine like Gaudreau in the 4th? Never would have happened. Sutter liked coke-machine shaped (Pelech, Nemisz, Chucko) kids with scar tissue on their knuckles, and was allergic to taking guys who might actually be top line forwards (Backland being the exception - but lets be honest, how well has he actually turned out?)

4. Hagman on waivers, rather than Pierre Luc Letourneau-Leblond. Why? Because Hagman clears more capspace than PL3.

5. The Kyle Turris chase.

So as I said, the 'rebuild/retool' is already on.

- I think Feaster could take runs at everyone from Parise to Weber as the year goes on, but I actually think he'll find a way to end up with Spezza.

- Iginla will not be traded. He loves it in Calgary and mgt loves him, and he has a NMC. As much as the fans may want to think Iggy 'deserves a chance elsewhere', it isn't going to happen (it's also a backhanded way of saying 'I'd prefer to have some high draft picks'). He may never win a Cup, but I think he'll die with his boots on as a Flame.

- The Tim Erixon fiasco could turn out to be one of those rare deals that blow up completely....in our favour. Erixon is a real nice package defenseman in that he has size, speed, and both offensive and defensive ability. He reminded me of Wade Redden when I saw him play for Sweden (the Senator's verison of WR, not the AHL version). But he punked the Flames by stalling on a deal, and then asking to be moved at the last minute. Fine. F%#$ you Tim Erixon, but fine. In the trade to the Rangers Calgary got 2 2nd rnd picks, and Roman Horak. At the time of the deal I said 'two 2nds for a late first isn't a bad deal on paper, but Roman Who'?. Turns out that the 2 2nd rnd picks are Markus Granlund (another skill scoring forward - NICE!) and Tyler Wortherspoon (a project defensive defenseman, but late in the 2nd round is exactly when you should draft them *cough* Matt Pelech *cough*). But it's Horak who's already proved he may make the trade lopsided. Ticketed for the AHL to play with former linemate Ryan Howse (they were in Chilliwack together) Horak was no doubt a player already heavily scouted by the Flames. Now he's made the team (did not see that coming, I thought Byron might be closer), while Erixon finds himself out of the regular lineup in New York. Horak looked like a mercy pick up for the Abbottsford Flames to me at the time, but he's already better than Matt Stajan.

- Of the remaining big ticket signings in Nashville, I think Suter stays and they deal Weber. I also think the haul for Weber will be substantial, and may include a much needed scoring forward.

- The Bluejackets are just a mess. Whatever pain Flames fans feel at the moment, spare a thought for the lowly Jackets. They are currently trapped in that special region of hell where Freddy Brathwaite is your goaltender and Theo Fleury has to score 2pts every night by himself for the team to win. If the GM and coach are gassed, look for Nash to ask out.

- Says here the Bolts don't go past the first round without finding a #1 goalie younger than Gump Worsley to rely on.

- The injury to Enstrom's collar-bone pretty much seals all the hopes of making the playoffs that Winnipeg fans might have had into a ferro-concrete box, and then buries that box deep below the Earth's mantle.

- Which young core do you like better:

Colorado: Duchene, Stastny, Landeskog, E.Johnson, Varlamov,

Edmonton: Hall, Eberle, The Nuge, Paajarvi, Dubnyk

Islanders: Tavares, Okposo, Strome, De Haan, Montoya

Despite not having two first overall picks, I think the Av's have the best group of the three.

- If Jagr had played the last three seasons in the NHL he'd have well over 700 goals now. Watching him split the Toronto D in full flight to score on a breakaway was like stepping into a time machine, except the uniform was all wrong and there wasn't a mullet.



Not one, but two 'fear my wingspan' snipes to the top shelf. Pure concentrated Boneronium.