Yearly Archives: 2010

I do not hide the fact that I am a fan of the Vancouver Canucks. I (attempt to) remove my bias when helping with player evaluations in fantasy hockey, and to this point I have done a great job of separating my personal bias with how I build my fantasy teams. In my five keeper leagues (I used to be in more, but five is the most I can manage without over-committing myself), I only own one Canuck – Roberto Luongo. I own Luongo in two of the five leagues. I tend to avoid drafting and trading for Vancouver players because I do not want to be clouded by optimism. This has both helped (Steve Bernier) and hurt (Christian Ehrhoff) me over the past few years, but it is a principle that I don’t anticipate myself changing.

Why did Guy Boucher choose Tampa Bay over Columbus? Elliotte Freidman of CBC sums it up best: “Word is the biggest reason was time, as in he's got more of it in Tampa. When Steve Yzerman took over, he preached patience. “It's going to take some time” was his mantra, repeating it often and to everyone. It's the right path for that organization.” Boucher will have time to build and mold Tampa Bay’s on ice product to his exact specifications. His coaching philosophy is one centered on a consistently aggressive offensive attack. Pushing the puck up the ice is a significant part of that, and it places a huge emphasis on a defenseman’s ability to skate, make plays, and pass the puck quickly and accurately.

There are big fish in the NHL free agent pond every summer. In 2008, the Chicago Blackhawks made Brian Campbell a $7 million man. That same year, the Rangers shelled out $39 million for Wade Redden. The Bruins gave the one-dimensional Michael Ryder $4 million per for three years. In 2009, Chicago gave Marian Hossa a career contract worth over $5 million per season. The Rangers took a major risk when they gave Marian Gaborik $7.5 million per season.