Here we go, the run up to July 1st is on and the first domino came crashing down yesterday as the Calgary Flames traded for the rights of defenseman Dennis Wideman and promptly signed him to a five year $26 million deal with a full “no-movement” clause.
Yup… crazy season is here. On a day when NHLPA Executive Director Donald Fehr gave hockey fans a little hope that the season could start on time… another example gets sent about how some NHL owners/GM’s need to be saved from themselves.
Don’t get me wrong, Wideman is a serviceable defenseman, but, he hit the lotto with this deal, and with every winner comes a potential loser. This deal may indicate the end of Jay Bouwmeester’s time in Calgary, despite Jay Feaster’s protestations to the contrary.
Here’s the very interesting part… according to some extensive research done by Buffalo News sports reporter John Vogl, there’s only a 20% chance that Wideman’s production will improve in this contract with Calgary.
That’s right… 20%... to be exact 20.72%
Vogl gathered data on 251 skaters who have signed multiyear contracts with a new team since 2006-07. Not only did he find that number, he also found that 47.41% of these signings saw the signed player's production
decrease, 31.87% saw their production remain steady.
Talk about your crapshoots… A player signed during this upcoming silly season has a 50/50 chance of doing worse in this new contract with a new team.
You can read part one of the article
here. Part two is
here. It is well worth the time to read and frankly... it should be required reading for all parties involved in "crazy season."
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Last night we wrapped up our fourth season of SlapShot Radio, I’d like to send out a few thank you’s…
To all of the guests from this past season... Michael “Doc” Emrick, Alice Cooper, Bob Miller, Jeff Marek, Craig Button, Darren Pang, Jeremy Roenick, Mike Lange, Bill Clement, John Wiedeman, John Manasso, Daryl Reaugh, Greg Wysynski, Adam Proteau, Jeff Paterson, Craig Custance, Rick Peckham, Rebecca King, Joe Yerdon, Aaron Sims, Eklund, Aaron Portzline, John Bartlett, Howard Berger, Paul Hamilton, Jack Michaels, Jason Farris, Rob Ray, John Branch, Scott Burnside, Dan Wood, Chris Kerber, Bill Davidge, John Boruk, Les Larson, Mark Appleby, Kevin Callahan, Gord Wilson, David Pollack, Jim Diamond, Steve Lepore, Peter McNab, Dmitry Chesnokov, Andy Strickland, Dr. Art Caplin, Paul Woods, Bob Heethuis, Willy Daunic, Rich Hammond, Shalom Auslander, Jim Fox, Matt McConnell, Matt Loughlin, Darcy Norman, Thomas Hoffarth, Roger Mussa, Stu Grimson, Tom Callahan… the insight and fun brought by this great group of professionals in unrivaled, thanks to each and every one of you.
To our producers over this season… Crazy Charlie Saunier, Jeremy “Shooter” Bennefield and Austin Huff… You made us sound great!
To our advertisers… without your support we are nowhere. Special thanks to Hermitage Family and Cosmetic Dentistry… go check them out at
NoPainJane.com Jane and Tim and the crew have been with SlapShot Radio since day one, and without their support we would not be on the air… if you are looking for a great dentist, you can’t go wrong by seeing Dr. Jane Bacon.
To the staff at 102.5 the Game… Tincy Crouse, Jeff Kolb, Troy Hanson, Jeremy Bennefield and everyone at Cromwell Group, thanks for welcoming us to our new home. You guys have simply been great to work with and we look forward to a long and fruitful relationship.
To my on air partner… Pete Weber, thanks for your encyclopaedic knowledge, your wacky sense of humor, your professionalism and most importantly, your friendship… it is truly an honor to work with such an amazing professional, but it is even more of an honor to call you a friend.
To my partner in business and in life, you do all of the thankless tasks… keeping the website current and fresh, promoting the show, organizing the events and road trips, taking/publishing pictures from games and events, keeping the show grounded, connected, and real. We would be nowhere without you… Thanks!
SlapShot Radio is a labor of love… we love doing the show and are looking forward to some very exciting things to come in our fifth season… and especially our road trip to DC!
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Predators Notes
- Development Camp continues today, on-ice work is scheduled for 9am..
- Shea Weber is Nashville’s representative on the NHLPA negotiating committee.
- As the July 1 deadline draws closer, the tension is ratcheting up in Pred Nation regarding the status of Ryan Suter. More discussion between Preds GM David Poile and Suter’s agent Neil Sheehy is supposed to happen this week, but the expectation is that Suter will hit the open market. If you think Wideman’s deal was crazy…
- Is anyone else thinking that Jiri Hudler could be a good UFA pickup for Nashville?
- The Metro Sports Authority meets tomorrow to address the new Bridgestone Arena lease deal. It is expected to be approved.
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ROAD TRIP!!!!!
SlapShot Radio has circled the date... February 9th at the Verizon Center in DC for our next SlapShot Radio Road Trip... we are working out details and will forward as we get them. Keep an eye on the SlapShot Radio page on Facebook for details.
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Random Notes
- The Buffalo Sabres have announced that Hall of fame announcer Rick Jeanneret has decided to return to the broadcast booth for the full set of 82 games this upcoming season. Last year he only called 57 games, taking vacations and spending more time with family, but cited “sitting around the house” as a reason to return to the full slate.
- Who is Justin Schultz and why should I care??? OK, he is a decent prospect, a second rounder from 2008, done OK in college hockey, but does he really deserve this kind of attention? If this keeps up I am sure we will see him with Jim Grey on NBC Sports Network announcing his decision.
- Looks like Alexander Semin will not be returning to Washington…
- The first set of CBA meetings begin Friday, a second set is scheduled for July 5-6, assuming that they don’t hammer out an agreement in the first set…
- A temporary cap ceiling of $70.2 million has been agreed upon between the NHL and the NHLPA. That means the cap floor will be $55 million… $16 million over the original cap ceiling in the current CBA.
- The St. Louis Blues have extended the contract of head coach (and Adams winner) Ken Hitchcock through 2014. Good move…
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You are invited to follow me on Twitter. Search for @PredPAPaul… Not only will I be updating when I get news or updates, but we are having a bit of fun by getting your input on Gnash introductions, weigh in on Twitter and who knows, we may use your introduction for the best mascot in the NHL at the next Preds game!
Also... make sure to "like" SlapShot Radio on Facebook... here's the
link.
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On the next
SlapShot Radio
Last night's show is posted to our podcast page... We are now on summer hiatus and will return in late September.
Click
here to download or listen to any of our previous season’s podcasts.
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