I hope he'll be good, between him and Nelson and kabanov, if they pan out to their projections, I think we will have a great team in3 years
- Danformo

I will settle for One of the 3 to be really good...

I like the idea of Mayfield and Reinhart on our back line in a couple of years.. or one of the other beasts to beat them out of the spot.

Why? He is barely 20 yrs old. Let the kid develop. We all know he didn't belong in the NHL last year. He'll be fine.
- Vukota

I think u are right.. I just was hoping for a sniper.

Broduer situation seems fishy to me... He has waaay too much respect in Jersey to be persona non grata there... There is usually more going on in these situations.

Maybe Devs are going after Lou after all?? maybe know they will not have enough after signing Parise... etc. Bottom line is I think they talked to marty and said.. hey we can't pay you what u deserve and this is your last contract...etc.

no shot they left him just hanging like this.. none.

Broduer situation seems fishy to me... He has waaay too much respect in Jersey to be persona non grata there... There is usually more going on in these situations.

Maybe Devs are going after Lou after all?? maybe know they will not have enough after signing Parise... etc. Bottom line is I think they talked to marty and said.. hey we can't pay you what u deserve and this is your last contract...etc.

no shot they left him just hanging like this.. none.
- niteislander

Maybe they just know that Marty has 2 or so years left (realistically) & Roberto has 5 or 6.... Uncle Lou has never been shy about letting anyone walk.. He also has never been shy about doing what is best for the franchise first.

XxNYIxX

Maybe they just know that Marty has 2 or so years left (realistically) & Roberto has 5 or 6.... Uncle Lou has never been shy about letting anyone walk.. He also has never been shy about doing what is best for the franchise first.

XxNYIxX
- XxNYIxX

agreed... and I think having Marty hire an agent and say he is testing free agency makes it seem like he is making the decision not Lou ...

PA is gone by the way.. I know u like the guy but there is no shot they are keeping him at this point.

agreed... and I think having Marty hire an agent and say he is testing free agency makes it seem like he is making the decision not Lou ...

PA is gone by the way.. I know u like the guy but there is no shot they are keeping him at this point.
- niteislander

Unless they sign him

XxNYIxX

From ESPN pierre Lebrun...


I present four regular-season point totals: 69 points, 67 points, 59 points and 57 points.

Now four names, in no particular order: Rick Nash, Zach Parise, Bobby Ryan and P.A. Parenteau.

What might surprise the casual fan is which player generated which point total: Parise with 69 points this season, Parenteau with 67 points, Nash with 59 points and Ryan with 57 points.

OK, I get it. Point totals are only a partial measure of a player’s ability. No question. And it’s clear Parise and Nash stand above in overall talent, with Ryan just a level below.

But Parenteau is an underrated player, one that has flown under the radar because he plied his trade on Long Island. You might argue he boosted his point total only because he played with John Tavares and Matt Moulson. But you could also argue Parenteau’s playmaking abilities helped Tavares and Moulson find the back of the net.

Finally, I get to my point. While you can see the reasoning in what the Columbus Blue Jackets are doing with Nash -- waiting until Parise signs, so that all those teams that struck out on him come scrambling to the Jackets with a re-energized offer for Nash -- it’s not that simple.

It might happen with some teams, but not all.

As pointed out last weekend, Bobby Ryan is another option and one that carries a better contract. Anaheim should get plenty of traction on him once Parise signs.

But even with Ryan, you have to give up good assets to get him.

There sits Parenteau on Sunday as an unrestricted free agent, available without having to give up any assets. Judging from the conversations I’ve had with a few teams over the past week, I think he’s a player that’s going to generate more interest than most people believe.
- brodydog29

Here's the difference: Parise, Nash and Ryan have been consistently good players over the length of their careers. Parenteau has had one outstanding season. My guess is that Montreal will sign him for stupid money, because of his surname- the same reason THEY sign anyone, especially a coach. Truth is, I'd rather see Tavares out there with Ullstrom and Okposo- neither Parenteau nor Moulson are diggers, and Tavares needs one, desperately. Ullstrom would provide that service. If John Tavares is the one working the corners, you're wasting his talent.

I am worried about Nino's hands.. I brought this up after he played for a couple of months and got destroyed on these boards for it... (which is ironic b/c I am the koolaide guy..that when I do mention something negative I get abused for it too). yes Nino was only 18 and on a shtty line but I had seen him too many times with space and the puck.. and basically shot it directly into the goalie. If he is out there banging bodies that is a good thing b/c that is how he is going to have to score if his hands don't get better.. dirty goals. The reason he was playing and Dehaan and Donovan were not was b/c he was a forward and we had about 20 defenseman playing.
- niteislander

I think his hands are fine. His quick release in front was the first thing I noticed when I saw him play the rookie games against Boston, particularly how he got fast shots off even when passes were behind him or in his skates. If we're going to be concerned about anything, I think it's the skating. Bad acceleration and slow top speed right now, which really forces him to make decisions much quicker than he's able to at this level. Once the skating improves (and it has to improve considerably), I think we'll see the rest of his game come around. Don't forget, quite a few people questioned Tavares' ability to beat defenders one-on-one, and even other areas of his game. Once he improved his skating, everything else fell into place.

Also, virtually every scouting report from his draft year mentions his good hands right after his size, even if they question other areas of his game. He'd have to have a lot of people fooled over the years. I just wouldn't put too much stock in a season where he looked horribly confused on the ice more shifts than not. Obviously his confidence and current ability were not close to ready for prime time.

I think his hands are fine. His quick release in front was the first thing I noticed when I saw him play the rookie games against Boston, particularly how he got fast shots off even when passes were behind him or in his skates. If we're going to be concerned about anything, I think it's the skating. Bad acceleration and slow top speed right now, which really forces him to make decisions much quicker than he's able to at this level.
- UIF

Agreed...and a lot of that is the same problem Bailey had, right up until the second half of last year, which is why I am all for Nino staying in Bridgeport until he is ready for prime time- when you have to constantly THINK about what it is you're going to do, you hesitate, and when you're still trying to develop your skating to NHL caliber in the first place, hesitation is suicide. Bailey, of course, was a bit better skater, but was also an EXTREMELY slow decision maker- if I can actually see you thinking on the ice from the upper deck, you have no prayer of success in the NHL. Thank God he seems to be past that now....and that Okposo has finally learned that 150 MPH shots at the glass don't count on the scoreboard.

I will settle for One of the 3 to be really good...

I like the idea of Mayfield and Reinhart on our back line in a couple of years.. or one of the other beasts to beat them out of the spot.
- niteislander

I think that once de Haan gets past the injury bug, he's going to be a good one, as well- you could see in rookie camp a couple of years ago that he really knew how to play the position already, as compared to some of the others.

As for the forwards, I really like Ullstrom; you could tell from the moment he set foot on NHL ice that he just knew his job- knew why he was there. I have a feeling, for all the negatives about this Kabanov kid, that he's going to be the same deal as Ullstrom. There's no substitute for confidence in yourself, and Kabanov has it- remember how many people said Kovalchuk would be a dog, for the same attitude related reasons, and...put it this way....how would you like to see Tavares feeding HIM pucks on our power play? Kabanov and Ullstrom will probably be at least consistent third line NHL players, if not second- as I stated above, Ullstrom, as a banger, is probably already a good compliment to the first line on THIS team.

PS- I just hope Bailey steps up, or Strome proves to be ready, because I'd really like to see Nielsen on line three....I believe he can develop into a premier defensive center. Hopefully, his days of being a stop gap on line two will end soon.

I think u are right.. I just was hoping for a sniper.
- niteislander

We have a sniper- his name is Kyle Okposo. It will start to happen this year, especially if Parenteau leaves. Playing with Tavares, this kid will eventually pot 40+ at this level, IMHO.

We have a sniper- his name is Kyle Okposo. It will start to happen this year, especially if Parenteau leaves. Playing with Tavares, this kid will eventually pot 40+ at this level, IMHO.
- dcb1

He didn't score 40 in Jr. What makes you think that can happen?? Not saying it won't because I can see it , but maybe.