Just laughing at yours. I guess not every team can be as brilliant as the one whose big moves this summer were buying out Mike Ribeiro and replacing him with Sam Gagner.
- Snowblind

Thanks for Moulson plus this year's first and second rounders.




What a brilliant team.

He turned 25 ten days ago, so maybe you oughta look up the word pedantic.

But seriously, it's ridiculous to prefer Grabovski. Ridiculous.
- James_Tanner

Hey man, cool your jets , if you have an opinion fine but claiming Gagner is a far superior and suggesting that anyone who disagrees knows nothing about hockey is pretty immature. They are pretty similar numbers ppg but grabovski has better possesion, +/- , suggesting he s better defensibly. I prefer grabo but I could understand how someone would like Gagner.

Hey man, cool your jets , if you have an opinion fine but claiming Gagner is a far superior and suggesting that anyone who disagrees knows nothing about hockey is pretty immature. They are pretty similar numbers ppg but grabovski has better possesion, +/- , suggesting he s better defensibly. I prefer grabo but I could understand how someone would like Gagner.
- belcherbd

You must not read Tanner's comment section much. This blogger will kick your @$$ if you challenge him here.

BTW, Grabovski played on the Caps while Gagner played on the Oilers. If you think similar PPG or these two means equal talent, I think you should keep challenging Tanner until he really lights you up.

It makes sense because Gagner is a superior player and literally no one who knows what they are talking about thinks otherwise. When Strome needs to play on the Isles second line, Grabovski is going to be terrible when moved further down the lineup as he is fairly one dimensional. I like him, but I wouldn't have signed him if I was the Isles. Too long, too expensive...but really, it's the Kulemin deal that is so bad.
- James_Tanner

I have never heard anyone ever consider Sam Gagner to be superior to Mikhail Grabovski until this post. Do you follow the NHL much?

Thanks for Moulson plus this year's first and second rounders.




What a brilliant team.
- CaptainRivet

Good luck on trying to suck as much as possible in 2014-15.

You must not read Tanner's comment section much. This blogger will kick your @$$ if you challenge him here.

BTW, Grabovski played on the Caps while Gagner played on the Oilers. If you think similar PPG or these two means equal talent, I think you should keep challenging Tanner until he really lights you up.
- yzermaneely

58 games with caps and 25 with mtl the majority of those games played were with the leafs who have been marginally better the the oil , other than a bit of ovie the talent surrounding each player has been similar.

I have never heard anyone ever consider Sam Gagner to be superior to Mikhail Grabovski until this post. Do you follow the NHL much?
- Snowblind

Choice of a guy coming to the end of his prime years with 252 career points and a $5M cap hit vs. a guy at the beginning of his prime years with 295 career points and a $3.2M cap hit.

Difficult choice.

I have never heard anyone ever consider Sam Gagner to be superior to Mikhail Grabovski until this post. Do you follow the NHL much?
- Snowblind

Gagner > Grabovski

You must not read Tanner's comment section much. This blogger will kick your @$$ if you challenge him here.

BTW, Grabovski played on the Caps while Gagner played on the Oilers. If you think similar PPG or these two means equal talent, I think you should keep challenging Tanner until he really lights you up.
- yzermaneely

LISTEN, PAL,

haha just joking. I like a good argument, I am willing to and have changed my mind when someone makes a good point. I might get a little snippy with what I see as ridiculous posts, but mostly it's all in good humour.

However, that being said, Grabovski is 30 and signed for 5 million through age 35.
Gagner is 25 (!) and is signed for this year and next at 3 million.

Gagner is more talented and if he hasn't put it all together, well, he was rushed to the NHL, spent six year with a terrible team and had like 17 coaches during that timie. Despite that, he is one broken jaw away from being the consensus break out player selection and has the kind of talent that can get you 8 points in a game. Plus he has a sweet work ethic and if he's not great on D, so what. Gagner's best season is for sure in the future.

Grabovski is a grinder kind of guy with great work ethic and decent offensive abilities, but they are unlikely to get any better, since he's 30. He may have good possession stats, but he's not a good checker and he isn't good on the D. He once puched out a fan and broke his hand at the Olympics. There are countless stories about him being a bad teammate and a jerk. He is a brutal defensive player and sulks if he isn't in his perceived role, making him unversatile and innefective in anything outside a second line centre role.

Also, he is a one dimensional player in the truest sense - not only does he provide zero defensive utility, but he is also a shoot first, puck hog centre and not a passer. His best season is almost assuredly in the past.

So, sure, if you just randomly select him to be a better fan of, I guess you can say he is better. Me, I'll stick with Sam Gagner and await his breakout season, which should begin in about a month or so.

One plays defense and the other doesn't. Gagner was better in 2013 while Grabovski has been the better player the other six years of their respective careers. There is a reason why neither the Oilers nor the Lightning could get anything substantial for him.

I have never heard anyone ever consider Sam Gagner to be superior to Mikhail Grabovski until this post. Do you follow the NHL much?
- Snowblind

I love this.

One plays defense and the other doesn't. Gagner was better in 2013 while Grabovski has been the better player the other six years of their respective careers. There is a reason why neither the Oilers nor the Lightning could get anything substantial for him.
- Snowblind

The Oilers got Purcell (also better than Grabovski) and TB got cap relief (as important today as getting a player). So, not sure what your point is.

Grabovski is also objectively bad at defense.

LISTEN, PAL,

haha just joking. I like a good argument, I am willing to and have changed my mind when someone makes a good point. I might get a little snippy with what I see as ridiculous posts, but mostly it's all in good humour.

However, that being said, Grabovski is 30 and signed for 5 million through age 35.
Gagner is 25 (!) and is signed for this year and next at 3 million.

Gagner is more talented and if he hasn't put it all together, well, he was rushed to the NHL, spent six year with a terrible team and had like 17 coaches during that timie. Despite that, he is one broken jaw away from being the consensus break out player selection and has the kind of talent that can get you 8 points in a game. Plus he has a sweet work ethic and if he's not great on D, so what. Gagner's best season is for sure in the future.

Grabovski is a grinder kind of guy with great work ethic and decent offensive abilities, but they are unlikely to get any better, since he's 30. He may have good possession stats, but he's not a good checker and he isn't good on the D. He once puched out a fan and broke his hand at the Olympics. There are countless stories about him being a bad teammate and a jerk. He is a brutal defensive player and sulks if he isn't in his perceived role, making him unversatile and innefective in anything outside a second line centre role.

Also, he is a one dimensional player in the truest sense - not only does he provide zero defensive utility, but he is also a shoot first, puck hog centre and not a passer. His best season is almost assuredly in the past.

So, sure, if you just randomly select him to be a better fan of, I guess you can say he is better. Me, I'll stick with Sam Gagner and await his breakout season, which should begin in about a month or so.
- James_Tanner

Gagner is one of the worst defespnsive players in the league. That is why he came so cheap. That is why the Oilers with zero depth at center nonetheless decided to cut ties with him. That is why the Lightning used him as a pawn and gave him away to create cap space to sign the players they really wanted. He did have that one great game though.

Gagner is one of the worst defespnsive players in the league. That is why he came so cheap. That is why the Oilers with zero depth at center nonetheless decided to cut ties with him. That is why the Lightning used him as a pawn and gave him away to create cap space to sign the players they really wanted. He did have that one great game though.
- Snowblind

Man, you are entitled to your opinion, but your reasoning is seriously flawed.

You can't look at a guy who got traded for cap space and infer he is a bad player or not valued highly. That is ridiculous. The fact is, Gagner is better than Grabovski and that is not my opinion; it's reality.

Man, you are entitled to your opinion, but your reasoning is seriously flawed.

You can't look at a guy who got traded for cap space and infer he is a bad player or not valued highly. That is ridiculous. The fact is, Gagner is better than Grabovski and that is not my opinion; it's reality.
- James_Tanner

Sure, guy, sure.

Gagner is one of the worst defespnsive players in the league. That is why he came so cheap. That is why the Oilers with zero depth at center nonetheless decided to cut ties with him. That is why the Lightning used him as a pawn and gave him away to create cap space to sign the players they really wanted. He did have that one great game though.
- Snowblind

What's your opinion of the Grabovski buyout?

What's your opinion of the Grabovski buyout?
- Tumbleweed

Seems to me it was clearing out cap space for David Clarkson in order to remake the team in Carlyle's image and get bigger.

Seems to me it was clearing out cap space for David Clarkson in order to remake the team in Carlyle's image and get bigger.
- Snowblind

I used your logic for a different take.

Grabovski is one of the worst defensive players in the league. That is why no none else wanted him. That is why the Leafs with zero depth at center nonetheless decided to cut ties with him. That is why the Caps used him for one year and let him walk away to create cap space to sign the players they really wanted. He does fall down a lot though.

I used your logic for a different take.

Grabovski is one of the worst defensive players in the league. That is why no none else wanted him. That is why the Leafs with zero depth at center nonetheless decided to cut ties with him. That is why the Caps used him for one year and let him walk away to create cap space to sign the players they really wanted. He does fall down a lot though.
- Tumbleweed

I have seen plenty written by Leafs fans lamenting the Grabovski buyout; I have yet to see a word about Oilers fans regretting Gagner's departure.

It makes sense because Gagner is a superior player and literally no one who knows what they are talking about thinks otherwise. When Strome needs to play on the Isles second line, Grabovski is going to be terrible when moved further down the lineup as he is fairly one dimensional. I like him, but I wouldn't have signed him if I was the Isles. Too long, too expensive...but really, it's the Kulemin deal that is so bad.
- James_Tanner

Came as a package deal... the 2nd line and 3rd line are interchangeable.

We now have 2 second lines...

Strome, Neilsen, Grabovski, Grabner, Lee, Kumi, Clutterbuck, Nelson and Bailey will all be fight for second and third line mintues.

One guy will get to play with Tavares, and Okposo.

One guy will get to play with Martin and Czikas... the rest will sort itself out.

I have seen plenty written by Leafs fans lamenting the Grabovski buyout; I have yet to see a word about Oilers fans regretting Gagner's departure.
- Snowblind

They are both poor defensively. Gagner clearly has more offensive upside to him at this point in their careers.

They are both poor defensively. Gagner clearly has more offensive upside to him at this point in their careers.
- Tumbleweed

Gagner is getting a little old to be banking on upside. At 25 years old with 7 seasons under his belt and no discernible upward trend in his play, at this point, he is what he is. I'll take a ball of energy like Grabovski over a soft dangler like Gagner as my 2nd line center any day of the week.

They are both poor defensively. Gagner clearly has more offensive upside to him at this point in their careers.
- Tumbleweed

I can agree with that but in no way does that make Gagner a far more superior player as jimmy here is claiming backed up by all his "facts". Like I said earlier I expect both to do well next season.

Choice of a guy coming to the end of his prime years with 252 career points and a $5M cap hit vs. a guy at the beginning of his prime years with 295 career points and a $3.2M cap hit.

Difficult choice.
- Tumbleweed

If you want to talk about value that's a different conversation, and if you want to compare salaries you should remember that grabovski signed his this year as a ufa and I believe Gagner was extended while still a RFA 2 years ago.

3.2 is what Gagner made last season, next year is 4 then 5 and 5
3 is what grabovski made last season, 4 this the 5,5,6.

All according to cap geek at least.
http://capgeek.com/player/178
http://capgeek.com/player/23

The Oilers got Purcell (also better than Grabovski) and TB got cap relief (as important today as getting a player). So, not sure what your point is.

Grabovski is also objectively bad at defense.
- James_Tanner

You're my favorite blogger