Wild trade Havlat

[spearchucker]

We've got the space for a defenseman signing, the FAs just aren't out there. Maybe through trade, but who do we really want to trade right now as we try to build up young players?

From what I have read we might not spend to the cap unless we can get a short term contract with someone, because they want to be able to sign the young players in the next few years and the FA market is better next year. We need the cap room to be able to sign a good FA.

I think our young defenseman will step up.

[OnAFly]

Makes sense. I heard the cap could go down next year with a new CBA. That would make things really interesting for teams who spend to the cap this year.

FA signings usually seem to wind up costing more than they are worth anyway. I would rather see players developed from drafts or prospect trades.

[Bear55]

I though I read somewhere that there is a much better free agent crop next off season so it might be wise to save some $$$. I also like the idea of giving some of the young D and forwards a chance to prove themselves, we aren't really cup contenders so we might as well let the kids play and see who is ready for the next level.

[RK]

I don't see how so many seem to be knocking this trade (not here, mind you, but elsewhere.) Maybe just Heatley haters, but when your team is dead last in shots on goal, and you trade a pass-first winger for one who shoots every chance he gets, it's a win in my book. Plus even though Heatley has a higher $ on his contract than Havlat, he has a year less remaining, and his cash cost goes down every year of the remainder, so when the prospects start landing here, there'll be more cash at hand (although of course his cap hit stays as it is...).

I'm actually pretty excited with how the Wild are shaping up this offseason. Heatly/Koivu/PMB is an actual, honest to goodness top NHL line. Think this will be great for Koivu too. As good as he is, hard to accomplish much with a couple plow horses on either side of you like he's had the last couple seasons. (Don't get me wrong, love Bruno, but he is what he is. Antti Miss-the-net-nen on the other hand...) Plus we have a second line that might actually shoot instead of just playing catch with the puck for 45 seconds.

Powe was a great pick-up too. Friend in Philly called me almost right away after the deal was done and said fans here will love the guy. Works his tail off, forechecks like mad, and can really fly.

D will be interesting. Going to be awfully young unless the sign a vet to put on the 3rd pair. But really sounds like several of the AHL guys are ready to make the jump so should be some good competition in camp.

Most of all, I'm just glad Fletcher didn't jump in and spend like a drunken sailor when FA opened. Thin FA class and lots of teams trying to get up to the cap floor made prices insane. No need to overpay for either marginal guys or veterans past their prime. Langenbrunner, Arnott to St. L for $2.5M each is nuts... Benoit freaking Pouliot got 1.1M from Boston for Pete's sake... FA class will be a lot better next year.

As an aside, this year's free agent prices make signing Koivu to an extension last summer look pretty smart. Tim Connolly got 4.5M from Toronto, and he had all of 42 points last season...

Anyhow... Season can start any time now...

[scsavre]

Rk, welcome, this hockey thread always seem to be 75% and 25% muskie, so good to have anothr muskie guy. I hear you on powe, I've heard the same good things. Do we still need to sign him for this upcoming year...I've heard some arbitration talks, not sure how that'd work.

We need staubitz on the 4th line. I kinda wish we could pick up a little more muscle on that 4th line, I feel bad for staubitz when he is stuck fighting the heavy weights out there. But we got too many guys to develop.

We still need another dman, id like to see our young guys step up but I just don't think it is enough. I really don't see anyone out there to sign tho. Anybody have any thought on geneway. The kid has skill and smarts. No body ever mentions him as even vying for a nhl spot. Maybe a surpirse player......look like we will go with what we got. However what we ot will never hold up in playoffs. One step at a time tho.

[OnAFly]

Genoway's size compared to what elese we have coming up in D is what's holding him back. Plus, he's the new guy and wasn't any sort of wave making signing. There are just better options right now for young D.

I think a lot of the Heatley bashing is from Canadians who are still bitter about him asking to be traded from a Canadian team. I haven't seen a really negative review of the trade by a Canadian writer, just lots of comments by angry Sens fans.

[Bear55]

Yep those Canadians can get bitter about their hockey, I think Heatley demanded a trade from Ottawa and also turned down a trade to Edmonton. I'm starting to wonder if the whole country thinks he is evil.

[spearchucker]

]I hear you on powe, I've heard the same good things. Do we still need to sign him for this upcoming year...I've heard some arbitration talks, not sure how that'd work.

Already signed him for 3 years 3.2 mil.

[bucketmouth64]

Wild got rid of some older players that were not producing. Miettenen gone, Havlat gone, Madden gone, Bruno gone, Barker gone. A lot of money was tied up with those players and Fletcher did a nice job replacing them and keeping payroll in check. I heard on radio Gillies signed a new contract, I believe it was a oneway, could be wrong, so he'll be on the club. I've also liked Robbie Earl. He has speed and plays hard. I hope Wellman steps it up, I liked his energy too. Yeo will know how to push the young players buttons to get the most out of them. Didn't get to any games last season, but I am looking forward to going to some next season.

[scsavre]

Spurheorn is tiny too. Im not a genoway fan or anything. Just thought he was really good for UND.

Gillies gets $600K on a way deal.

Yep, Heatley put Edmonton on his not to be traded list. They hate him. He is gonna have to claim being German in the next olympics, cause canada doesnt want him.

[OnAFly]

Haha, you might be right about him playing for Germany. I can't blame him for not wanting to stay in Ottowa. They had peaked. Edmonton, well they have good days ahead of them, so I don't know why he would have them on there unless it was a money issue.

Genoway was great for the Sioux no doubt, but the NHL is quite a leap. Maybe he'll develop into something, you never know, but getting in the lineup straight from the WCHA is a tall order. Give him time with the Aeros to get used to a bigger, more skilled group.

[RK]

Hiya -

Glad to see Gillies getting a one way contract. He earned it in the Calder Cup playoffs. Was afraid he was going to be another Shepard that got ruined by coming up to the NHL way before he was ready.

Spurgeon got to be one of my favorite players last season. Guy never ceased to amaze me. Comes up to the elbow of some of the guys he's playing against, but just seems to come out of the corner with the puck time after time. Guy that size spends the night getting chased around by monsters he's earning his money. As solid as he was as a rookie, he might turn into a very good puck moving D-man in a couple years.

I think Genoway is kind of in the same mold. A little under sized by conventional wisdom's standards, but with a lot of hockey sense and good decision making to make up for it. Who knows if he'll ever make the NHL, but nice to see him get a shot anyhow.

Heatley - the whole Ottawa thing was a fiasco. Word got out through his agent that he wanted out, and the Sens were screwed from there on in. What team is going to pay a premium for a player they know wants to be traded? They took what they could get for him, and got hosed. Between that and not wanting a trade to a bad Oilers team (their 06 cup run was an aberration in the midst of some very ordinary seasons, and most of the players that got them there - Pronger, Smyth, among others - were gone...) the Canadians really have it in for him.

All in all, between the Burns trade, Heatley, the last couple drafts... I'm just glad Fletcher has a plan for moving ahead with this club. They've been stuck in a rut for a while.

[10,000 Casts]

Supposadly Heatly wants to step it up and prove he is still an elite player.. even if he has the same numbers as last year he is still a huge improvement. nothing flashy but will get the puck in the net. Playing infront of good fans again should help him too.

Lots of good almost there talent in Houston, lets hope we keep the injuries to a min so we don't have to see them all the time..

Goaltending worries me! Can Backstrom and Harding stay healthy???

Quote:

Wild got rid of some older players that were not producing. Miettenen gone, Havlat gone, Madden gone, Bruno gone, Barker gone.

MY PRAYERS FROM LAST YEAR HAVE BEEN ANSWERED!!!!! My only prayer left is to bring Kassian up..

[spearchucker]

Goaltending worries me! Can Backstrom and Harding stay healthy???

Both are good goalies and it will help if our D doesn't sit around and watch them get run over.

[spearchucker]

Wild have signed their D man. Mike Lundin from Tampa Bay.

[OnAFly]

He sounds like a good signing. Any guy who can steadily play 20 minutes a game is a good guy to have around.

[Bear55]

Nice signing for the Wild! From what I am reading Lighting fans loved him, great defensive D man. Sounds like he didn't have a great playoffs but kind of like Heatley's playoff performances we just want to get there and worry about that later. He will take some time away from the youngsters but you know guys will get hurt and over a full season there are plenty of minutes to go around. I think we just got a little better today and if our new forwards pan out I really think we can make the playoffs this year. I liked our team going into last season, obviously that didn't pan out after Koivu got injured but I feel we are much improved over a year ago. Very excited for the season to start!

At the very least we will have a little depth on D and at 1 million for 1 year Lundin doesn't really cost us anything.

[scsavre]

I like it. He's a top 4 d man. Great sign at a mil. I think it is a steal when u look at what guys are going for. All it does is use up what's left from the barker $.

Fletcher is turning this progrman into something exciting. Apparently they realized that a half full building was a possibility, even in mn