Goldie Says: Speaking of Colorado, I checked out their (off-ice only) prospects development camp today. I briefly spoke with Calvin Pickard, Kent Patterson and Kieran Millan, then listened in on Duncan Siemens and Stefan Elliott chatting with the media as well. Peter Mueller has been working out hard with zero symptoms. He'll likely be ready to go at [...]
Have you ever lived in another person’s shadow? Being constantly outshone by another is a maddening experience that can tear away at the fabric of your soul. This is because, more often than not, it is someone you genuinely like or at the very least respect who is keeping you down. Whether it is your best friend or a family member who is keeping you out of the spotlight, you cannot help but start feeling like this person is not someone you love but rather your mortal enemy. This can put a heavy strain on the relationship but even more than that it can shatter your feelings of self-worth. Consider then the plight of Brad Richards; doomed to live in the shadow of friend and former teammate Vincent Lecavalier.
Fantasy Impact: The Anaheim Ducks have acquired forward Andrew Cogliano from the Oilers for a second-round draft pick (2013).
For the past couple of seasons, I’ve written a few columns breaking down each of the Western Conference team’s top-six from the bottom-six. So for the next couple of weeks, I’ll go back to the well once again and give you better insight of each of the Western Conference teams for the upcoming season.
Tough and surprising news for Dustin Jeffrey owners - he signed a two-way deal for this season, with it becoming a one-way deal next year. The guy is NHL ready. He has proven that he belongs...but this opens the door for an AHL demotion. Meanwhile, Pascal Dupuis, who isn't fit to tie Jeffrey's skates, [...]
Goldie Says: To better evaluate Semyon Varlamov's fantasy value for this season, please read Paving Varlamov's Path. I go in-depth on the steps he and the Avs must take to eliminate his injury issues. Also, my info on Jordan Pearce in School of Block today is kinda a wash as Joey MacDonald agreed to a new two-year deal this morning. He was signed [...]
During the first five days of free agency, the goalie storyline centered around new opportunities for Mike Smith, Jose Theodore and Semyon Varlamov. But over the last five days, the storyline has focused on the shifting situations of many top-flight prospects, including some that poolies have been harvesting for months, maybe even years.
Sean Kelly wins the Oakley’s shades and now he needs to contact me in order to get them! Florida acquires prospect defenseman Keith Seabrook in a minor swap. The offensive rearguard had big WHL seasons, but has yet to translate that into the AHL. The Panthers acquired three players yesterday, I noted Shirokov [...]
The absolute pinnacle of "drafting against the grain" is General Manager Doug Wilson of the San Jose Sharks. San Jose's strategy since the 2000 draft has been abundantly clear and abundantly strange. In the nine years between 2000 and 2008, San Jose drafted 12 goalies exclusively in the middle rounds or later. The earliest pick was Tyler Sexsmith in 2007 who was drafted early in the fourth round. To make matters even more strange, four of the 12 goalies were Germans playing in the Bundesliga. Thomas Greiss, a German, taken early in the fourth round in 2004, is the only goalie yet to pan out and it appears the Sharks have abandoned the practise and haven't taken a goaltender since 2008. Patterns like this are interesting and fun to follow, but other teams have patterns that have worked out better than San Jose's and it's worth examining what they were up to in the most recent drafts.
Fantasy Impact: The Winnipeg Jets have acquired power forward Eric Fehr from the Washington Capitals for Danick Paquette and a fourth-round draft pick.
