JayBo=Flame

The Flames announced tonight they have signed coveted free agent defensemen Jay Bouwmeester to a 5 year contract worth 6.6 million dollars a season. This comes after the Flames acquired Bouwmeester's rights on the weekend from the Panthers to have exclusive negotiation rights with him and boy did it pay off!

WOW!! What a signing by GM Sutter. I'm unbelievably pumped about this, the Flames have arguably the best defense in the league with a top 3 of JayBo, Reggie and Phaneuf. This signing completely makes up for losing Cammalleri and here is why. Our PP I think will be better with two bombs coming from the point with Phaneuf and Bouwmeester, so teams wont be able to pressure Phaneuf all the time like they did last year. The 40 goals we will lose from Cammalleri will be made up by a committee of players. You can pencil in Iggy for 40 goals after last seasons off year, we have Jokinen for a full season so he should be good for 25-30 goals, while guys like Bourque, Moss and Boyd are only going to get better. Finally Bouwmeester can be penciled in for about 15 goals as well so I dont think we lack any offense at all. Most of all though, our defense with Bouwmeester and coach Sutter will be better, which I have stated so many times was our downfall last season. Bouwmeester makes guys like Phaneuf and Kipper both better while Bouwmeester, Phaneuf and Regehr as a trio will make young guys like Giordano, Pelech, Pardy and Negrin transition and development a whole lot better and easier.

So heading into the free agent frenzy tomorrow which Sutter has stated he wants nothing to do with, the Flames now have roughly 3.5-4 million in cap space. Personally I think they should just sit on it and let the season play out, fill in the holes with guys like Dustin Boyd and Kyle Greentree, see how they do as the season goes on and make moves if needed after Christmas and closer to the deadline. From reports and the newspaper it looks like Bertuzzi would like to come back to Calgary even going as far as phoning GM Sutter himself. Bertuzzi has said he is willing to sign a 1 year contract so if he is willing to play for about 1-1.5 million then I dont have a problem at all. I think there still could be some moves made via trades or waivers and I think guys like Primeau and maybe Sarich could be candidates to be moved.

JayBo

Today the Flames acquired the negotiation rights to Jay Bouwmeester from the Florida Panthers for the negotiation rights to Jordan Leopold and a 3rd round draft pick in today's draft. The Flames have until July 1st to sign Bouwmeester or else he will become a free agent and any team will be able to sing him.

Wow, what a move by GM Sutter, if he is able to sing Bouwmeester the Flames will arguably have the best blueline in the western conference maybe even the league. If this signing does happen we can all but say good-bye to Cammalleri, Aucoin and possibly Bertuzzi, The Flames wont have much cap space throughout the year to add bits and pieces so GM Sutter might have to have a few more moves before the off-season is done. I love this move if we are able to sign JayBo, he is the best free agent in my mind and at only 25 years old he is just entering into his prime. I'm not worried about the loss of offense from Cammalleri and Bertuzzi at all, you have to remember that Iggy and Langkow didn't have their best seasons last year and still managed to score 30+ and 20+ goals respectively, Bourque was injured for the last half of the season and still managed 25 goals while guys like Boyd and Moss are only going to get better. Keep in mind Jokinen will be around for the whole season so you can pencil him in for 25-30 goals as well. From there and added offense from Bouwmeester the Flames will have no trouble scoring goals while keeping the puck out of their own net, their downfall last season. Bringing Jokinen up also brings up the possibility that he could be moved in order to give the Flames some cap space if they are able to sign Bouwmeester. I wouldn't be against this happening as long as we got a cheaper top-6 forward in return. Jokinen is in the last year of his contract and Sutter has always wanted a big top line center like him so I dont like the chances of him moving. Other possibilities of moving could be Sarich or Langkow, wouldn't like to see either of those guys go but I think Sarich would make more sense. The Flames did move Jim Vandermeer to Phoenix later today, re-acquiring Brandon Prust, so that was most certainly a salary dump. Another good move by GM Sutter, even though I like Vandermeer and his toughness alot, something has to go to get another asset and it is too bad it had to be Vandermeer.

There are still lots of things to be determined yet and one of them is the Flames still have to sign Bouwmeester, personally I like their chances but who knows after Bouwmeester has said he wants to test the open market. All we can do is wait!

23rd Overall: Tim Erixon

The Flames were scheduled to pick 20th overall but traded that pick to the Devils in exchange for the 23rd pick and 84th pick. With the 23rd overall pick the Flames selected Swedish defensemen Tim Erixon.

I really dont know much about this kid at all, I am glad the Flames selected a defensemen though. Erixon was originally born in New York, he has good size at 6 foot 2 and 1990 pounds and played in the Swedish Elite league last year for Skelleftea.

Scouting Report:

NHL Central Scouting's E.J. McGuire: "Tim Erixon brings to his Swedish Elite League club team, the same kind of elite hockey skills that perhaps his dad, Jan Erixon, did for over 500 games in the NHL. A smart defenseman who can either lead a rush or support the rush from behind, he was on display at the World Junior Championship in helping bring his team to the final game."

Here is an article from hockeysfuture.com about Erixon.

2009 NHL Draft

Well with the 1st round completed here is a summary of what went on.

- With the first overall pick the Isles select...John Tavares. Great pick in my mind, this guy can score goals like no other, the fans wanted him and on the Long Island they need something to rejuvenate that team. He is going to be a superstar for years to come and exciting to watch. The Lightning and Avalanche then followed suite by selecting Victor Hedman and Matt Duchene 2nd and 3rd overall respectably. Tavares and Hedman should both jump right into the league next season.

- The Flyers acquired D Chris Pronger from the Ducks for LW Joffrey Lupul, D Luca Sbisa and two 1st round draft picks. Only other deals made throughout the night were swapping of picks which was very, very surprising with all the talk ending in.

- 17 of 30 picks were Canadian, way to go Canada!

- The Canadian teams selected as following, 7th Toronto- C Nazem Kadri, 9th Ottawa- D Jared Cowan, 10th Edmonton- LW Magnus Paajarvi-Svenson, 18th Montreal- C Louis Leblanc, 22nd Vancouver- RW Jordan Schroeder, and finally after swapping picks with the Devils 23rd Calgary- D Tim Erixon. Every team seems to have gotten themselves a very nice player, with the steal and maybe the best pick(unfortunately) the Canucks grabbed Schroeder and the pick with the most pressure is no doubtingly Louis Leblanc of the Canadiens.

- Finally Congrats to my buddy Dylan Olsen on being selected 28th overall to the Chicago Blackhawks!!

Mock Draft 2009

With the draft tomorrow, here is my annual Mock Draft.

1. NEW YORK ISLANDERS- John Tavares, C, London (OHL)
2. TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING- Victor Hedman, D, MoDo (Swe.)
3. COLORADO AVALANCHE- Matt Duchene, C, Brampton (OHL)
4. ATLANTA THRASHERS- Evander Kane, C, Vancouver (WHL)
5. LOS ANGELES KINGS- Magnus Paajarvi-Svenson, LW, Timra (Swe.)
6. PHOENIX COYOTES- Jared Cowan, D, Spokane (WHL)
7. TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS- Brayden Schenn, C, Brandon (WHL)
8. DALLAS STARS- Oliver Ekman-Larsson, D, Leksand (Swe.)
9. OTTAWA SENATORS- Nazem Kadri, C, London (OHL)
10. EDMONTON OILERS- Zach Kassian, RW, Peterbrough (OHL)
11. NASHVILLE PREDATORS- Jordan Schroeder, RW, Minnesota (WCHA)
12. MINNESOTA WILD- Scott Glennie, C, Brandon (WHL)
13. BUFFALO SABRES- Dmitri Kulikov, D, Drummondville (QMJHL)
14. FLORIDA PANTHERS- John Moore, D, Chicago (USHL)
15. ANAHEIM DUCKS- Carter Ashton, LW, Lethbridge (WHL)
16. COLUMBUS BLUE JACKETS- Ryan Ellis, D, Windsor (OHL)
17. ST.LOUIS BLUES- David Rundblad, D, Skelleftea (Swe.)
18. MONTREAL CANADIENS- Drew Shore, C, USA (U18)
19. NEW YORK RANGERS- Zach Budish, RW, Edina (USHS)
20. CALGARY FLAMES- Dylan Olsen, D, Camrose (AJHL)
21. PHILADELPHIA FLYERS- Tim Erixon, D, Skelleftea (USHS)
22. VANCOUVER CANUCKS- Simon Despres, D, Saint John (QMJHL)
23. NEW JERSEY DEVILS- Jacob Josefson, C, Djurgarden
24. WASHINGTON CAPITALS- Louis Leblanc, C, Omaha (USHL)
25. BOSTON BRUINS- Calvin De Haan, D, Oshawa (OHL)
26. NEW YORK ISLANDERS(SJ-OTT)- Stefan Elliot, D, Saskatoon (WHL)
27. CAROLINA HURRICANES- Nick Leddy, D, Eden Prairie (USHS)
28. CHICAGO BLACKHAWKS- Seth Helgeson, D, Sioux City (USHL)
29. DETROIT RED WINGS- Carl Klingberg, LW, Vastra Frolunda (Swe.)
30. PITTSBURGH PENGUINS- Landon Ferraro, RW, Red Deer (WHL)

Some Predictions:

- I think Brian Burke will move the Leafs up to either select John Tavares or Brayden Schenn, Schenn more likely than Tavares, I cant truly see Schenn still being available at 7th to fall right into the Leafs hands.
- I think the Kings will make a strong push for Dany Heatley, possibly giving up the 5th overall pick to give the Senators 2 picks in the top 10.
- I think Montreal will make a very strong push for Vinny Lecavalier, even though the 'experts' dont think it will happen, I think the pressure from the home town crowd and the possibility of the Lightning having a shot at Tavares could bring Vinny to Montreal.
- Finally, even with all the Flames cap troubles, I still like their chances of landing negotiating rights to Jay Bouwmeester. It would take some salary going the other way but I think it is worth it if your not giving up the core (Iggy, Langkow, Phaneuf, Reggie and Kipper).

**Update- I got 6 of 30 picks correct doubling my score from last year.

Sutter & Sutter

Today the Calgary Flames announced the hiring of Brent Sutter to be their new head coach. They also hired Dave Lowry and Ryan McGill as the assistant coaches as well as Jamie McLennan as their new goalie coach. Brent, brother of Daryl(obviously) comes from the Devils after resigning in early June for family and personal reasons. He is the only guy with NHL experience in the group but with only 2 seasons as the Devils head coach. McGill comes from the Flames farm team, really trading places with Jim Playfair while Lowry comes from the Calgary Hitmen after 1 season behind the bench where he was snubbed for coach of the year and finally McLennan has been in the organization for the last couple of years and really just gets a promotion. This was simply the worst kept secret.

I love this move by GM Sutter, even with the lack of experience from the group, every single one of them probably would have gotten a coaching job in the league eventually. Brent in only 2 seasons has become one of the best coaches in the league and has the ability to turn this Flames team around. He has lost in the 1st round in both of his seasons but this year he was minutes away from the 2nd round and still made the playoffs without having Brodeur for 3/4 of the season. Coach Sutter will bring in systems, especially on the defensive side that the Flames were so lacking in the two seasons with Keenan. Systems and lack of communication has been the downfall for the Flames the last couple of seasons, players admitted it and Sutter will change it. McGill, Lowry and McLennan all lack experience but bring good credentials. McGill has been with the baby Flames for 3 maybe 4 seasons now and it is his time, simple as that. Lowry lead a Hitmen team last year in the WHL that at the start of the season was suppose to just compete for a playoff spot, not win their conference and end up 2 wins away from a WHL championship and a trip to the Memorial Cup. Lowry can get the best out of his players, whether that translates to the NHL is something to be seen but along with McLennan all the respect that the players in this organization have for these 2 guys, the transition shouldn't be a tough one.

All in all this is the time to make the huge change in the coaching staff, with or without experience, it has worked in other places(Blysma and Boudreau) and I'm not worried it wont work here. I have alot of confidence in this group, especially coach Sutter, I think and hope he is the key thing this team is missing to becoming a consistent elite team and competing for the Stanley Cup. I cannot wait until the season starts already!! Until then we still have the draft on Friday and free agent frenzy starting July 1st.

2009 Stanley Cup Champions

Congrats to the Stanley Cup champions, the Pittsburgh Penguins. Well deserved with Sid the Kid and Malkin leading the way. Congrats to Malkin on the Conns Smythe and to Marc-Andre Fleury for proving he can be a big game goaltender, he has worked hard and really, really deserved this. Dan Blysma did an amazing job coming in half way through the year, and leading this team from 6 points out of the playoffs to being crowned the champs. This is a scary team for years to come.

Where have I been???

Well, after roughly 3 months off from posting on this blog, I have finally found myself out the hole I have obviously been in because I have no excuse why I took such a long break from this thing, especially since the weather is FINALLY getting summer like in our beautiful city of Calgary. Where to being.....

- THE FLAMES FIRE KEENAN!!! Shocking isn't it? Well if you are reading this and just find out about it now, you were in a lot larger hole than I was. I will just say that I love the move and if it wasn't done, I would say us Flames fans would be in for another sort playoff run next season.

- Jimmy Playfair will never leave this organization. Playfair was named/demoted? to the head coach of the new Flames AHL team, the Abbostford Heat(what a stupid name!). Sutter says he still believes Nervous Jimmy can be a head coach in the NHL, but when will his time come, even more interesting will Playfair ever get out of our organization before he retires.

- Much more recent news, meaning yesterday, Brent Sutter has stepped down as the head coach of the New Jersey Devils for family and personal reasons. Should we start the count down to Sutter, Brent Sutter being the new head coach of the Flames? I think there is a strong possibility of this happening, I think he will be our new head coach but Sutter, Darryl Sutter will have to get permission from Lou Lamoriello to talk to his brother, as weird as that sounds. Brent will bring in systems, most importantly defensive systems to the team, something Keenan lacked and I feel was the downfall to the Flames season.

- Dany Heatley looks like he has played his last game as an Ottawa Senator. Heatley has asked GM Bryan Murray for a trade so it will be interesting how it plays out. Possible suitors for Heatley, I have heard the Penguins, Sharks and the Oilers. Could the Flames make a play for Heatley? I dont like the chances of it happening at all but it would take a player like a Jokinen or someone going to other way, which I wouldn't mind. Sutter wont give up the core to acquire Heatley.

- Finally, the Stars fired head coach Dave Tippett today, which in my mind is very dumb and mind boggling. I have a weird hunch that he will be the new coach of the Devils.

Anyways there is my 3 month updated post. I will be posting alot more with big things coming this month and into the summer for the NHL. The draft, free agent frenzy is always enjoyable but it all starts Friday, game 7 for the Stanley Cup. Go Penguins Go!