Welcome to the inaugural edition of Mike’s Mailbag, a segment that will hopefully turn into a weekly staple here at the Tampa Bay Lightning section of HockeyBuzz. Each week, I’ll take your questions submitted to me on Twitter (@BTB_MikeStuart) with the hashtag #MM, via PM or on the message boards and answer them in a blog post. As this is the first edition, the mailbag is a little light.
@Chris_Bogas - If u were GM of the lightning who would u want in return for Malone?
This question was sent in after last night’s blog regarding the Ryan Malone trade rumors. Had you asked me this question at the trade deadline last season, the answer would have been simple. As Lightning GM, I would have been looking for defense, defense and more defense. The name that kept popping up was Paul Martin. However, after adding Sami Salo and Matt Carle over the off-season, the Lightning’s need for defensive help isn’t as great anymore. So, if I were Lightning GM right now, I would look at trading Malone for a prospect with size, who could potentially develop into a second line winger, and a pick. Of course, Malone’s value depends greatly on the desperation of potential trading partners so a better time to trade him is certainly around the trade deadline.
@IanEsplen - How much coverage is the lockout getting in TB? Do people really care in the southern USA?
Well, if it’s any indication, today’s top sports story on the Times webpage is about Gary Bettman and Donald Fehr. The notion that the media gives hockey zero attention down in Florida is a little bit of an exaggeration. Are we as hockey crazy as the media up in a city like New York or Toronto or Montreal? No. That said, we do care about the game and are looking forward to getting back on the ice. The Lightning, specifically, have managed to stay in the news with Jeff Vinik, Guy Boucher and Steve Yzerman getting out into the community to support local initiatives. The culture of hockey in Tampa is actually really great right now. There’s community involvement in Tampa that is really something special to be a part of as a writer; covering great initiatives is something that brings me a lot of joy. Even here at HockeyBuzz, in the last month or so, you’ve seen that the Lightning fan base is there and is passionate about the game.
Velleman – Who is to blame for the lockout?
Here’s an issue I’ve tried my best to stay away from during my time here at HockeyBuzz. Personally, I’m on the owners’ side of things. I’ve looked at the numbers, studied the economics and come to the conclusion that the NHL, as is, just isn’t a stable business right now. Changes are needed. At the end of the day, fans harp on Gary Bettman for not caring about the game. However, Bettman’s livelihood relies on the game of hockey. What does Don Fehr’s livelihood depend on? His reputation. He isn’t just going to give up to get the game back on the ice. Personally, I don’t like the way Fehr has conducted negotiations here. I understand where the players are coming from, I understand where the owners are coming from, and I don’t believe that either side wants to lose the season. However, I can’t say the same thing about Fehr. I don’t believe that he cares whether a season is lost or not.
Kurtis – What’s the Lightning’s cap situation looking like?
Right now, the Lightning have a hair over $63M committed in cap space for the 2012-13 season. With a salary cap of $70M under the current CBA, that is a perfect number. It leaves the Lightning with a little bit of room to move things around throughout the season and at the deadline. However, if the new CBA changes things up and we move to a $59M cap as has been reported, the Lightning could be in some trouble without any special clauses thrown in. This sort of ties in with my Ryan Malone blog from last night. Would the Bolts be willing to trade Malone to get under the cap? It’s a relatively easy move to make as Malone’s contract is really attractive to teams that need to get to the floor.
@Chris_Bogas - If the lightning had the first overall pick in 2013 who should they pick and why?
Seth Jones. The Lightning have Stamkos and Lecavalier locked in for the foreseeable future up front. Adding another young stud on the blue line would only help the Lightning in their quest for a Stanley Cup. Imagine a future top-six including Brewer, Hedman, Carle and Jones. That top-four would be good enough to compete with anybody in the league. Then, even further in the future, imagine Barberio and Koekkoek up as well. To me, the choice is clear.
Thanks to all who submitted questions and please send in your questions for next week's edition of Mike's Mailbag! As always, thanks for reading.
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