Thoughts on Cammalleri, Johansen, and analytics

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Update: for some reason the keeper league article stopped working. I fixed it, it works now, same with the Veto article that it links to.

Breaking – the Sens have extended Clarke MacArthur for five years at just over $4.5 million AAV. I’ll have more thoughts on this in tonight’s ramblings

The Leafs have created an analytics department, hiring ExtraSkater.com creator Daryl Metcalf and blogger Cam Charron. Thoughts on that later tonight. – Dobber

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Mike Cammalleri joining the New Jersey Devils could help the team become more explosive offensively and how they utilize him could make for some interesting fantasy scenarios. Cammalleri would have been on pace for close to 35 goals if he played the entire season last year on a bad Calgary team and the Devils will have options where to use him.

This recent piece from The Hockey News suggests that Lou Lamoriello can envision a line featuring Cammalleri, Jaromir Jagr, and Travis Zajac, with Cammalleri moving to the left wing, but will leave it up to the coach.  

And he can dream about playing with Jaromir Jagr. Lamoriello calls the idea a "coaching decision," but he can see Cammalleri sliding to the left wing to suit up with Jagr and Travis Zajac.

If that happens then Zajac is going to the benefactor of those two snipers and should see his assist totals rise. Both Jagr and Cammalleri have the capability for 30-goal campaigns, which means Zajac has a real shot at a 65-point season if everyone stays relatively healthy.

Of course they could always split Jagr and Cammalleri up, giving them a nice scoring punch on their top two lines.

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Buffalo will be hosting the next two scouting combines. It's fitting considering the Sabres figure to picking very high in both of those drafts.

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I agree with Dobber's take from yesterday where Michael Leighton is concerned. Leighton shouldn't steal Antti Raanta's job but the Blackhawks dealt with goaltending injuries for much of last season, so adding a veteran never hurts, especially at that position.

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Negotiations between Ryan Johansen and the Columbus Blue Jackets are reportedly non-existent at the moment. This is another tough one between the player and team as far as a long-term deal goes. Given his play last year one with 33 goals one would think Johansen is in line for a significant raise, but from the Blue Jackets perspective you could see why they might be hesitant based on his previous two seasons where he was average at best.

Still, the Blue Jackets have struggled to develop top tier talent other than Rick Nash over the years and Johansen has showed flashes that he could be a franchise player. Sometimes locking a guy like that up is important for the fan base when it comes to marketing and generating revenue, and simply showing you are invested in winning.

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Here is an in-depth look from SB Nation at this ridiculous goal from Tomas Tatar last year against the Dallas Stars.

It's a really solid breakdown of each part of the play.

Brendan Dillon was the farthest back and had support from a guy on either side; this made Dillon think it would be a good idea to catch Tatar with a hip-check crossing the blue line. This is the kind of play that leads to a possession change 90% of the time, a brutal hit 9% of the time, and what Tatar did the rest of the time.

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With all the analytics hirings this summer Andrew Berkshire takes a look at how the NHL is finally giving proponents of 'fancy stats' credit.

The best thing about this entire evolution is how inspiring it is for fans of the game who want to have real say in what their teams do on the ice. For those with passion for hockey (or any sport), the drive to learn more about the game, and the ability to communicate ideas effectively, the potential impact of those ideas cannot be underestimated.

I think advanced stats are going to be great for the game and sports overall in the future. They don't necessarily tell the whole story, but more information and education on how to evaluate players should help teams improve if used correctly.

I do have a theory, though, on why there is such a big backlash from some traditionalists and fans on the subject. For many, sports is a break and an escape from work or everyday life. Some may feel those trying to reduce everything to figures and graphs may take the enjoyment out of the game. But the truth is, no matter how much information you have, it's always going to be impossible to accurately predict the forecast for a player's potential or how many wins a team should have. Sports are always going to remain unpredictable and entertaining. It's what has kept them compelling for so long.

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The Toronto Maple Leafs signed first-round pick William Nylander to an entry-level deal Monday. I'd be shocked if he made the team this year. He'd need to have an extraordinary camp for that to happen and probably add some bulk, too, but anything is possible given his skill set. Heading to the Marlies or staying in Sweden is probably more likely for Nylander at the moment.

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Steve Mason is back skating after suffering a broken finger. Mason has been excellent since arriving in Philadelphia after a handful of shaky seasons in Columbus following a stellar rookie campaign. However, I'd be cautious where Mason is concerned as a No. 1 fantasy goalie next year. It takes a little more than one strong campaign after four rough ones to earn back trust.

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DobberProspects’ Brendan Ross with his latest summer ramblings takes a look at the possibility of Islanders’ Josh Ho-Sang becoming the best player from the 2014 draft, Sonny Milano’s decision to opt out of Boston College for Plymouth (OHL) and standouts from the Ivan Hlinka Memorial Tournament (2015 NHL Draft prospects).

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Dobber taking the ALS Ice Bucket challenge – and he nominates DobberProspects managing editor Brendan Ross, former Dobber Nation host (and current FAN590 morning host) Andrew Walker, and DobberHockey reader Mike “the Beard Guy” Taylor from Walk Off The Earth:

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Michael Amato is an Associate Editor for DobberHockey and a News Editor for theScore. You can follow him on Twitter at @amato_mike