Hours before the first of four meetings between the Devils and Sabres, I decided I should make my first post in over a month regarding some quick hits from the weekend:
According to a thefourthperiod.com report citing the Ottawa Sun, the Buffalo Sabres are looking to ship out Ales Kotalik before he becomes an Unrestricted Free Agent over the summer. While Canadians typically know hockey a heck of a lot better than Americans, I’m going to agree with David Pagnotta on this one with a big “huh?”
Kotalik has been an integral part of the Sabres’ offense. Right now, he sits second on the team in points, behind only the leading goal scorer in the NHL, Thomas Vanek.
While the report suggests that the Sabres might be anxious that Kotalik’s asking price could be too high, Maxim Afinogenov and Tim Connolly are also coming off the books next summer as well, so there will be added cap space.
Out of the three potential UFAs, Kotalik seems to be the more valuable of the bunch.
Connolly, who has not played more than 70 games in a season since his first two with the Sabres, went from being a player with immense scoring potential to an injury prone question mark. A brutal hit sustained at the end of the 2005-2006 season gave him a concussion and caused him to miss the final games of the season and the playoffs. Since then, injuries have plagued the center as he only played fifty games in the past 2 seasons, and played just his first this past weekend.
Afinogenov, on the other hand, while still delivering goals in a flashy Eastern European manner, still irks the fans time and time again. His puck handling abilities are without question solid, but sometimes he is way too flashy for his own good and it leads to turnovers. This past season, he was subject to trade speculation, as well as over the summer, primarily around the NHL Draft when rumors had him being shopped to Florida for their former center, Olli Jokinen.
The decision may come down to simply who has the better season between Kotalik and Connolly. If he can stay healthy and regain his old scoring touch, Connolly could make an argument to be retained. But if Kotalik could reach his current projected point total of over 60 points, it could be difficult for the Sabres to say no. Either way, I feel Aginogenov will not be wearing the blue and gold by the end of the regular season.
The Ottawa Sun also is reporting the New Jersey Devils are interested in re-signing John Madden during the season to avoid any problems before he becomes an UFA in the summer.
Two seasons ago, sentiment among some Devils fans was that Madden was not worth the $3 million he signed for because of his lack of offensive production and seemingly dimished reliability as one of the best back checking centers in hockey.
Today, Madden is held within the highest regard in the franchise. He is back to being reliable at shutting down the oppositions’ top lines and scorers along with his line mate, Jay Pandolfo, who had his contract extended over this past summer.
Even if he requests a raise of a million dollars or so, the price tag of roughly $4 million is well worth knowing that one line will be able to contain the likes of Crosby, Ovechkin, St. Louis, etc.
Even at 35, Madden is still a consistant player; averaging 80 games played a season since the 2000-2001 campaign. Just this past season, he scored 20 goals for the second time in his career and is on pace for 24 this season.
I can say, with almost not doubt in my mind, Madden will be back on the Devils next season.
No comments:
Post a Comment