Some news from today… Atlanta has signed Freddy Meyer IV to a two-way deal. Florida has inked tough guy Andrew Peters to a contract. Real hockey news, come out, come out, wherever you are!

Billy Sweatt is expected to sign today.

Step 1: Buy the 2010-11 DobberHockey Pool Guide. Step 2: Read It. Step 3: Win Your Pool. Seems simple enough, no?

For those of you expecting Mikael Backlund to turn into a top line scorer… I’d love to see some reasons. I am not saying he won’t, but his production in the AHL last season was far from impressive (32 points in 54 games). He was good with Kelowna in 2008-09 (especially during the postseason).

99 times out of 100, a player who doesn’t put up at least a PPG at the AHL level won’t ever do it at the NHL level. Points-per-game is usually the most important statistic when projecting future production.

The guide has been updated as of August 18^th. Still waiting on a few more dominos to fall… lots of talent on the UFA market, not even counting anyone with the name Ilya.

I am hoping to get back to my 'Angus Audits Your Team' series in the fall. Busy right now with a new job. I'll let all of you who have sent me your teams when I'm starting back up so you can update me as to any trades or draft picks you have made over the past little while.

My Top 10 Keeper League Forward Prospects list will be up soon. Any guesses/predictions? A few Oilers, one Russian, and a Southeast Division prospect all made the grade.

The Islanders have signed Rob Hisey to a one-year, two-way contract. Hisey won't be making the team, but camp will be awfully fun to watch. He possesses unbelievable hands. (check the video below). A shootout lineup featuring Hisey and Schremp would attract more than a few fans…

The Islanders also signed Andy Hilbert to a one-year, two-way contract. Hilbert is the classic 'tweener' player. Too good for the AHL, but unable to stick at the NHL level in anything more than a depth role. He was pointless in four games with the Wild last season.

Chicago signed Fernando Pisani to a one-year contract. Their lines appear to be set…

Brouwer/Toews/Kane, Stalberg/Sharp/Hossa, Kopecky/Bolland/Skille, Bickell/Dowell/Pisani

I have seen some preview for the seedings in both the East and West… I'll post mine in a bit. Obviously there are some players out there who have the ability to shift a team up or down a few spots depending on where they end up.

I'm heading up to Castlegar, BC next week to run the dry land training for a summer hockey camp. I am very excited! I'll be around at night to post the ramblings and weigh in with my thoughts. Any Castlegar natives on DobberHockey?

Really liking the looks of San Jose's third line – Jamie McGinn, Logan Couture, and Torrey Mitchell. I have made this point a few times, but Couture will see more offensive minutes than the standard "third line center." Don't write him off because of where he sits on the depth chart. He'll play a regular shift with San Jose's second power play group.

I was lucky enough to go on a few road trips last year following the Canucks. I went to LA/Anaheim in October, and I went to Phoenix in December and had a blast there watching the Coyotes and Canucks battle. I'm trying to plan another trip for next season… noticed a very interesting stretch in January – the 11^th on Long Island, the 13^th in the Big Apple, and the 14^th in Washington.

I'm a huge country music fan so Nashville is on my radar as well. Where have been your favourite places to see your home team play on the road?

One possible explanation for Henrik Sedin's offensive outburst last season – zone starts. He saw over 100 more faceoffs in the offensive zone last season than he did in 2008-09. Ryan Kesler saw the bulk of the defensive zone faceoffs.

With Manny Malhotra signed as well, expect the Sedins to see their fair share of offensive zone faceoffs, and not many defensive zone faceoffs. This keeps them fresher for offensive situations, and it also gives them more of an opportunity to produce.

Manny Malhotra was interviewed yesterday and he said that both Mike Gillis and Alain Vigneault have informed him that they anticipate he'll be playing a lot of wing. Don't worry if you own Cody Hodgson – he'll see regular minutes if he has a good camp. I can see a setup where Malhotra takes the draws and then shifts to the wing.

Tampa Bay signing Bergenheim was a very smart move. He'll form a nice third line duo with Dominic Moore.

Hisey…

More Hisey…