The Official NHL Thread

[The-Leak (aka) kingwell (bka) JULES]

Quote:
Nick Kypreos
Told Charielli and Burke are expected to talk next week. Rumblings are Bost may be willing to make a soft deal to unload Savard's contract


Quote:
Bob Mckenzie
IF Marc Savard goes to TOR, and there is a chance it may happen, Kaberle won't be part of it. It would be a "softer" trade.


Quote:
Bob McKenzie
Unless PIT does something to dramatically alter landscape, Hamhuis also intends to go to UFA. Hamhuis's preference may be Western Conf.


Quote:
TSNBobMcKenzie
PHI was told from the get go by Nabokov that he plans on going to July 1 UFA as he will have multiple options including the KHL.

[The-Leak (aka) kingwell (bka) JULES]

More excited for Free Agency frenzy tomorrow than Canada Day.

Gonna be on twitter all day ballin' outta control, lol.

[Mo Z. Dizzle]

Reports suggest that Gonchar has agreed on a contract with the Senators:

OTTAWA - The Ottawa Senators made a splash early in free agency, signing veteran defenseman Sergei Gonchar(notes)  to a US$16.5-million, three-year deal.

Gonchar spent the last five years playing for the Pittsburgh Penguins and won the Stanley Cup in 2009.

His agent J.P. Barry had extensive talks with the Penguins but couldn't come to terms on a new deal.

The 36-year-old Gonchar is considered one of the league's top offensive defenseman.

He had 11 goals and 50 points in 62 games last season.

http://sports.yahoo.com/nhl/news;_ylt=AgaomALjhsAPejXZC1OhZzJ7vLYF?slug=capress-hkn_senators_gonchar-3824957

[Lunatic]

Versteeg to Leafs last night in a trade

Gonchar to Senators
Mezsaros to Flyers in a trade
Biron to Rangers
Tanguay to Flames
St. Louis TB extension
Colby Armstrong to Leafs
Defenseman Sean O'Donnell to Flyers

[ToOoOoN!!!]

thx for making this one a sticky 

[MontrealCity's Most]

They made my thread sticky! Thanks!!! 3 years in the making!!!

[ToOoOoN!!!]

They made my thread sticky! Thanks!!! 3 years in the making!!!

hockey rules!


 they gave lattendresse 5 millions for 2 years  he's making some moulaaaaaaaaaa lol

[MontrealCity's Most]

good for him he deserves it

[The-Leak (aka) kingwell (bka) JULES]

They made my thread sticky! Thanks!!! 3 years in the making!!!

I pmed K.Dub and asked him to cuz I was tired of searching for it everytime it fell off first page, lol.

[The-Leak (aka) kingwell (bka) JULES]

http://capgeek.com/?contract_listing=latest&max_contracts=100

Scroll down to Latest Contracts, all of them listed.

[MontrealCity's Most]

They made my thread sticky! Thanks!!! 3 years in the making!!!

I pmed K.Dub and asked him to cuz I was tired of searching for it everytime it fell off first page, lol.

props for that

[The-Leak (aka) kingwell (bka) JULES]

It was a nice Canada Day gift!

[MontrealCity's Most]

It was a nice Canada Day gift!

olol speak on it

[The-Leak (aka) kingwell (bka) JULES]

Markus Naslund's number will be retired in Vancouver.  Time for a tribute video!

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/FAC7pZYNOL8" target="_blank" class="new_win">http://www.youtube.com/v/FAC7pZYNOL8</a>

[The-Leak (aka) kingwell (bka) JULES]

NEWARK, N.J. -- Ilya Kovalchuk is staying with the New Jersey Devils.

Kovalchuk's agent and the team announced on Monday that the high-scoring left wing has agreed to a multi-year contract, ending weeks of speculation where the league's leading goal scorer since 2001 would be skating next season. Terms of the deal were not immediately available.

"This was a long arduous process that has taken frankly a little longer than I thought," agent Jay Grossman said in a telephone interview with The Associated Press. "But you know what, nothing is worth anything unless you work for it. I can tell you he is very happy to be with the New Jersey Devils."

The Los Angeles Kings, New York Islanders, Devils and SKA St. Petersburg of Russia's Kontinental Hockey League talked with Kovalchuk after free agency started on July 1.

The final decision came down to the Kings and the three-time Stanley Cup champion Devils, who haven't won a title since 2003.

Grossman refused to say that Kovalchuk decided to stay because he felt the Devils had a better chance to win the Cup again.

"This was so far complex that I don't want to get into those questions," Grossman said. "Obviously his goal is to win the Stanley Cup. If he didn't think there was an opportunity to do that, then he would not have gone there."

Devils president and general manager Lou Lamoriello, and coach John MacLean didn't immediately return telephone messages seeking comment.

The Devils' only major loss in free agency was defenceman Paul Martin, who went to the Atlantic Division-rival Pittsburgh Penguins.

The 27-year-old Kovalchuk was traded to the Devils by Atlanta in February after rejecting a US$101 million, 12-year extension offered by the Thrashers.

Kovalchuk had 41 goals and 44 assists last season when he earned $7.5 million. He posted only 10 goals and 17 assists with the Devils.

Top-line forward Zach Parise believes that Kovalchuk will be much more comfortable with the Devils next season when he is with them for the entire year.

"It'll make a big difference," Parise told the AP. "You are throwing someone in mid-season when sometimes it is tough when you are comfortable with certain situations."

When the trade with the Thrashers was completed, Lamoriello believed his team finally had the goal scorer it needed to make a run at a fourth Cup championship in 15 seasons.

It didn't work out that way. Kovalchuk had two goals in the post-season when the Devils were eliminated by the Philadelphia Flyers in five games in the opening round. It was New Jersey's third straight exit in the first round.

The latest followed a regular season in which the Devils won the Atlantic Division and earned the No. 2 season in the Eastern Conference playoffs.

"Just the way the seasons have ended the last three or four years, there has been a lot of disappointment out there," Parise said. "Lou looks like he's really striving to make changes and get things going in the right direction, because we have not been performing the past few years when it counts."

The Devils have been very active since the playoffs ended. MacLean was named to replace Jacques Lemaire, who retired. The team reacquired veteran centre Jason Arnott in a trade and signed defencemen Henrik Tallinder and Anton Volchenkov and goaltender Johan Hedberg in free agency.

The No. 1 overall pick in the 2001 NHL draft, Kovalchuk has scored 338 career goals -- the most in the NHL in that period. He has only been to the playoffs twice in eight NHL seasons, winning only one game.

Kovalchuk was acquired from the Thrashers along with defenceman Anssi Salmela for forward Niclas Bergfors, defenceman Johnny Oduya, prospect Patrice Cormier, a first-rounder and a swap of second-round picks.