Fleury extended 3 additional years at a reported 7 million

Fleury extended 3 additional years at a reported 7 million
- nastyflyergirl

that's...interesting. not sure why i would want to pay a soon to be 34 YO goalie $7M AAV.

Arbitrator: someone actually offered you an NHL contract?

Leier: uh yes, but..

Arbitrator: Get the (frank) out of here and stop wasting my time. Next!

Hextall: Have fun in Lehigh, Taylor
- BiggE

Now that’s funny!!😂

that's...interesting. not sure why i would want to pay a soon to be 34 YO goalie $7M AAV.
- jra173

I doubt it's going to hurt them, and he was a huge reason they were so successful this season.

that's...interesting. not sure why i would want to pay a soon to be 34 YO goalie $7M AAV.
- jra173

He's pretty good, $7m isn't bad considering how much space they have, and they don't really have anyone else.

that's...interesting. not sure why i would want to pay a soon to be 34 YO goalie $7M AAV.
- jra173

That's a pretty fair number considering his play. The only concern is that he stays healthy.

Tying up 21M US in a 34 YO goalie will MAF's track record would be a terrible idea everywhere except Las Vegas.

He is the face of that franchise right now and he's getting paid like it.

Chances are, though, his play will fall off or he'll get hurt or some combo of these things.

Phillies reportedly upping their offer for Machado.😍

Not worried about re-signing him. I'm sure the Orioles have allowed teams to inquire what he wants in his next deal.

Tying up 21M US in a 34 YO goalie will MAF's track record would be a terrible idea everywhere except Las Vegas.

He is the face of that franchise right now and he's getting paid like it.

Chances are, though, his play will fall off or he'll get hurt or some combo of these things.
- johndewar

I'm sure they expect him to be out at some point. IIRC correctly, Vegas used 4 other goalies when Fluery got hurt last year. They have cap room and he was a very important part of their season and the run to the finals.

that's...interesting. not sure why i would want to pay a soon to be 34 YO goalie $7M AAV.
- jra173

hearing he is 34 makes me feel real old.

hearing he is 34 makes me feel real old.
- nastyflyergirl

I feel bad for you NFG!😁
I think I have most all of you covered. I'll be 63 on Monday. Gotta tell you. I played in the checking league until I was 40. 63 isn't as much fun as I was led to believe it would be.

https://www.nbcsports.com...-flyers-ron-hextall-covet

I feel bad for you NFG!😁
I think I have most all of you covered. I'll be 63 on Monday. Gotta tell you. I played in the checking league until I was 40. 63 isn't as much fun as I was led to believe it would be.
- jaws1955

I feel bad for you NFG!😁
I think I have most all of you covered. I'll be 63 on Monday. Gotta tell you. I played in the checking league until I was 40. 63 isn't as much fun as I was led to believe it would be.
- jaws1955

Same age as you
I assumed it would suck being 63 so I havent been disappointed

Same age as you
I assumed it would suck being 63 so I havent been disappointed
- flyhoc

That's the secret to life: assume the worst; you'll never be disappointed but you'll frequently be pleasantly surprised

Same age as you
I assumed it would suck being 63 so I havent been disappointed
- flyhoc

Man you folks are old!

My birthday is in a few weeks and Ill be 45..yay young..or younger!

Just for fun on a lazy summer Friday:

Way too early Western Conference predictions

15. Vancouver: The Canucks have some nice pieces -- watch Bo Horvat and Brock Boeser sometime. They are really good, young players -- but this is still a pretty bad team. The Sedins were visibly well past their prime last year, and they were still the most effective forwards after Horvat and Boeser. Handing out four-year deals to bottom-six forwards doesn't help anyone, either

14. Chicago: Don't let anybody fool you: This is a bad, bad hockey team. Brandon Manning might be in their Top 4/5 on defense next season. Let that sink in for a second. This team is going to get absolutely caved in defensively, no one knows for sure if Corey Crawford is going to be back, and if he isn't, it's gonna be Cam Ward in net. Again: This team is gonna get absolutely caved in defensively next season

13. Vegas: I admit it: I wasn't a believer last year. Was proven wrong. They had a great season. But I wasn't the only one who was amazed by that roster -- even the GM didn't think they were going to be much. While Statsny was a nice get, I just don't see how losing Perron and Neal doesn't hurt more, and I just don't see Marc-Andre Fleury doing it again -- I look at the roster, and I just cannot see a playoff team

12. San Jose: This might surprise some, but I seriously question this team's bottom six forwards and defense after Burns/Vlasic. Every year, there's a team that made the playoffs the year before that falls out. It's the way of all sports. When I look at San Jose's roster, I think we are going to see some legit slippage this season

11. Colorado: I really tried to figure out a way to put them higher because Landeskog-MacKinnon-Rantanen is a beast of a line. But it's kinda all they have that they can depend upon. Their defense won't be bad. It's about average. Their goaltending could/should be better than average. But I just wonder if they're gonna score enough to keep up with the teams above them...but if they do have enough offense, they could easily be a playoff team

10. Edmonton: Pretty much everything that could go wrong for this team went wrong last season -- with some of it totally predictable, like Milan Lucic's rapid decline and never, ever, ever, overpaying Kris Russell to be a Top 4 defender. However, Cam Talbot was a little snakebitten last season. He's a better goaltender than he showed, and I think he's going to play much better this season. Not sure 10th is enough to save anybody's job there, but it's where I have them for now -- and if they get off to a hot start, they might be a load to deal with all season. Confidence is key for this squad

9. Arizona: Don't laugh. Seriously. Don't laugh. They're better than you think. They really are. If things break right for them, they could get as high as No. 6 in this conference. I am not even joking

8. Minnesota: There's something not quite right about this team. On paper, and when you watch them play, you see talent. The goaltending is solid. Bruce Boudreau is certainly an accomplished coach. But you kinda wonder if the leadership core just isn't pulling this team together enough to overcome adversity like it should -- I won't be surprised if the Wild are better than this ranking. The talent is there to make this prediction look foolish. But I also won't be surprised if they miss the playoffs. Something's not quite right there

7. Los Angeles: First and foremost: I really don't love as many pieces of this roster as I should to have them ranked as a playoff team. This team is pretty slow, as well. But at the same time, as long as they have an in-prime Drew Doughty -- and he is -- they can hide just enough of their warts to push themselves into the playoffs. They have got to start injecting some youth into their lineup, though

6. Anaheim: This team probably needs to get faster in the forward ranks, but at the same time, if they are controlling the tempo and start grinding teams, they are still extremely dangerous. They have some youth that could possibly start pushing some familiar names way down the depth chart -- I truly wonder if Ryan Kesler plays this season, but I don't know that they need him as much as they once did

5. St. Louis: I want to like this team more, but then I remember Jake Allen is in net. Doug Armstrong has as deep a team as Nashville, especially with Ryan O'Reilly and better defensive wingers to offset Tyler Bozak, but Jake Allen is simply not mentally tough enough to take this team where it wants to go

4. Calgary: Woefully underachieved last season, including pulling the El Foldo down the stretch. They have hinted that Dougie Hamilton wasn't the right fit, so OK. They'd better hope that Noah Hanifin has another gear in his game, then, because Mark Giordano isn't getting younger. But at the same time, Gaudreau-Monahan-Neal should be pretty freaking dangerous, and Tkachuk-Backlund-Frolik is a sneaky-good second line.

3. Dallas: The coach, admittedly, is an unknown. It's definitely dangerous to predict a team will finish this highly when I haven't even seen how he is going to deploy the roster. But all things in a vacuum, the goaltending that has killed this team in years past might have some consistency with new backup Anton Khudobin. Benn-Seguin-Radulov is one of the most terrifying lines in the league, and Klingberg could/should be a Norris candidate. They should've been better than they were last season

2. Nashville: Wonder if they missed their best chance to win it all over the last two seasons, but extremely talented defense and Top 9 forwards means they should be around the top of the Central Division. You wonder, though, if Peter Laviolette's shelf life might be problematic...but at the same time, each time I have watched them over the last two years, I have seen buy-in. They just got beat by a better team in the playoffs last year

1. Winnipeg: Losing Statsny hurts because he played so well with Ehlers and Laine, but this is still the most talented team in the conference. There are days when I wonder if Mark Scheifele isn't the most dangerous center in the sport. We'll see if Connor Hellebucyk can do it again, but I think he can and will

Again: It's July. I'm going to be wrong about a lot of this. But it's all for fun

Just for fun on a lazy summer Friday:

Way too early Western Conference predictions

15. Vancouver: The Canucks have some nice pieces -- watch Bo Horvat and Brock Boeser sometime. They are really good, young players -- but this is still a pretty bad team. The Sedins were visibly well past their prime last year, and they were still the most effective forwards after Horvat and Boeser. Handing out four-year deals to bottom-six forwards doesn't help anyone, either

14. Chicago: Don't let anybody fool you: This is a bad, bad hockey team. Brandon Manning might be in their Top 4/5 on defense next season. Let that sink in for a second. This team is going to get absolutely caved in defensively, no one knows for sure if Corey Crawford is going to be back, and if he isn't, it's gonna be Cam Ward in net. Again: This team is gonna get absolutely caved in defensively next season

13. Vegas: I admit it: I wasn't a believer last year. Was proven wrong. They had a great season. But I wasn't the only one who was amazed by that roster -- even the GM didn't think they were going to be much. While Statsny was a nice get, I just don't see how losing Perron and Neal doesn't hurt more, and I just don't see Marc-Andre Fleury doing it again -- I look at the roster, and I just cannot see a playoff team

12. San Jose: This might surprise some, but I seriously question this team's bottom six forwards and defense after Burns/Vlasic. Every year, there's a team that made the playoffs the year before that falls out. It's the way of all sports. When I look at San Jose's roster, I think we are going to see some legit slippage this season

11. Colorado: I really tried to figure out a way to put them higher because Landeskog-MacKinnon-Rantanen is a beast of a line. But it's kinda all they have that they can depend upon. Their defense won't be bad. It's about average. Their goaltending could/should be better than average. But I just wonder if they're gonna score enough to keep up with the teams above them...but if they do have enough offense, they could easily be a playoff team

10. Edmonton: Pretty much everything that could go wrong for this team went wrong last season -- with some of it totally predictable, like Milan Lucic's rapid decline and never, ever, ever, overpaying Kris Russell to be a Top 4 defender. However, Cam Talbot was a little snakebitten last season. He's a better goaltender than he showed, and I think he's going to play much better this season. Not sure 10th is enough to save anybody's job there, but it's where I have them for now -- and if they get off to a hot start, they might be a load to deal with all season. Confidence is key for this squad

9. Arizona: Don't laugh. Seriously. Don't laugh. They're better than you think. They really are. If things break right for them, they could get as high as No. 6 in this conference. I am not even joking

8. Minnesota: There's something not quite right about this team. On paper, and when you watch them play, you see talent. The goaltending is solid. Bruce Boudreau is certainly an accomplished coach. But you kinda wonder if the leadership core just isn't pulling this team together enough to overcome adversity like it should -- I won't be surprised if the Wild are better than this ranking. The talent is there to make this prediction look foolish. But I also won't be surprised if they miss the playoffs. Something's not quite right there

7. Los Angeles: First and foremost: I really don't love as many pieces of this roster as I should to have them ranked as a playoff team. This team is pretty slow, as well. But at the same time, as long as they have an in-prime Drew Doughty -- and he is -- they can hide just enough of their warts to push themselves into the playoffs. They have got to start injecting some youth into their lineup, though

6. Anaheim: This team probably needs to get faster in the forward ranks, but at the same time, if they are controlling the tempo and start grinding teams, they are still extremely dangerous. They have some youth that could possibly start pushing some familiar names way down the depth chart -- I truly wonder if Ryan Kesler plays this season, but I don't know that they need him as much as they once did

5. St. Louis: I want to like this team more, but then I remember Jake Allen is in net. Doug Armstrong has as deep a team as Nashville, especially with Ryan O'Reilly and better defensive wingers to offset Tyler Bozak, but Jake Allen is simply not mentally tough enough to take this team where it wants to go

4. Calgary: Woefully underachieved last season, including pulling the El Foldo down the stretch. They have hinted that Dougie Hamilton wasn't the right fit, so OK. They'd better hope that Noah Hanifin has another gear in his game, then, because Mark Giordano isn't getting younger. But at the same time, Gaudreau-Monahan-Neal should be pretty freaking dangerous, and Tkachuk-Backlund-Frolik is a sneaky-good second line.

3. Dallas: The coach, admittedly, is an unknown. It's definitely dangerous to predict a team will finish this highly when I haven't even seen how he is going to deploy the roster. But all things in a vacuum, the goaltending that has killed this team in years past might have some consistency with new backup Anton Khudobin. Benn-Seguin-Radulov is one of the most terrifying lines in the league, and Klingberg could/should be a Norris candidate. They should've been better than they were last season

2. Nashville: Wonder if they missed their best chance to win it all over the last two seasons, but extremely talented defense and Top 9 forwards means they should be around the top of the Central Division. You wonder, though, if Peter Laviolette's shelf life might be problematic...but at the same time, each time I have watched them over the last two years, I have seen buy-in. They just got beat by a better team in the playoffs last year

1. Winnipeg: Losing Statsny hurts because he played so well with Ehlers and Laine, but this is still the most talented team in the conference. There are days when I wonder if Mark Scheifele isn't the most dangerous center in the sport. We'll see if Connor Hellebucyk can do it again, but I think he can and will

Again: It's July. I'm going to be wrong about a lot of this. But it's all for fun
- AllInForFlyers

I'm so happy to see all the trading of assets finally catching up with Chicago. Brandon Manning having to play top 4 minutes.

I'm so happy to see all the trading of assets finally catching up with Chicago. Brandon Manning having to play top 4 minutes.
- hereticpride

They're gonna be awful, and what's amazing is that some of their fans don't see it coming

They're gonna be awful, and what's amazing is that some of their fans don't see it coming
- AllInForFlyers

I've also never been high on Corey Crawford. I think they've been able to hide him for years behind a strong defense and productive offense. Could get ugly for him real quick.

I've also never been high on Corey Crawford. I think they've been able to hide him for years behind a strong defense and productive offense. Could get ugly for him real quick.
- hereticpride

They won't do it, because they are paying Toews and Kane so much money. But they really should tear that thing down to the studs -- they have the Cups. They were good for eight straight years in the salary cap era -- that's pretty good.

But as you said, you can't keep robbing Peter to pay Paul. They should see this coming -- Nashville speed-bagged them in the playoffs, four straight, two seasons ago. That should've been the signal flare right there about what's coming.

But they didn't believe it, and last year happened. Some of their fans really don't think they are a bad team, think last year was an aberration.

Have a feeling they're gonna learn otherwise pretty quickly, come October

I feel bad for you NFG!😁
I think I have most all of you covered. I'll be 63 on Monday. Gotta tell you. I played in the checking league until I was 40. 63 isn't as much fun as I was led to believe it would be.
- jaws1955

Thanks for making me feel young, jaws!

Your analysis of the strengths and weaknesses, and likely roles of Martel and Willcox are spot on. Good writing, as usual.

Just for fun on a lazy summer Friday:

Way too early Western Conference predictions



3. Dallas: The coach, admittedly, is an unknown. It's definitely dangerous to predict a team will finish this highly when I haven't even seen how he is going to deploy the roster. But all things in a vacuum, the goaltending that has killed this team in years past might have some consistency with new backup Anton Khudobin. Benn-Seguin-Radulov is one of the most terrifying lines in the league, and Klingberg could/should be a Norris candidate. They should've been better than they were last season

2. Nashville: Wonder if they missed their best chance to win it all over the last two seasons, but extremely talented defense and Top 9 forwards means they should be around the top of the Central Division. You wonder, though, if Peter Laviolette's shelf life might be problematic...but at the same time, each time I have watched them over the last two years, I have seen buy-in. They just got beat by a better team in the playoffs last year

1. Winnipeg: Losing Statsny hurts because he played so well with Ehlers and Laine, but this is still the most talented team in the conference. There are days when I wonder if Mark Scheifele isn't the most dangerous center in the sport. We'll see if Connor Hellebucyk can do it again, but I think he can and will

Again: It's July. I'm going to be wrong about a lot of this. But it's all for fun
- AllInForFlyers

I think this changes a lot if Karlsson is wearing a green star.

Arbitrator: someone actually offered you an NHL contract?

Leier: uh yes, but..

Arbitrator: Get the (frank) out of here and stop wasting my time. Next!

Hextall: Have fun in Lehigh, Taylor
- BiggE

"And BTW, we think you are worth less than the qualifying offer."