NHL News & Notes

It’s early August, which usually means that it’s vacation time for most of the NHL. But this year, the pace has been fast, with moves continuing in the last week. Here’s what’s been happening:

Blackhawks sign Marty Turco, fail to re-sign Anti Niemi

For the first time since 2004 with Nikolai Khabibulin, the defending Stanley Cup Champions won’t defend their title with their same starting goalie. The Blackhawks went to arbitration with Anti Niemi, the breakout star of the 2010 playoffs, and it was decided that he would make 2.75 million dollars, if the two sides were to agree. But, with the team in salary cap limbo, the Blackhawks decided to go with a cheaper option in longtime Stars goalie Marty Turco, and let Anti Niemi go. The question now becomes where Niemi will go. One possible landing spot could be the finals runner up, the Philadelphia Flyers. They haven’t shored up their shaky goaltending situation, and Niemi would go a long way in helping. At 28 years old, Niemi is in his prime and could change the dynamic of either conference, depending on where he decides to go.

Red Wings sign Mike Modano, ending 20 year run with Dallas

Mike Modano will be heading to Detroit in the upcoming year to play with the Red Wings, following a long line of players who have left their main team for a shot at glory with the always-competitive Red Wings. Modano’s signing won’t make a major impact on the race in the West, but it ends Modano’s era in Dallas, where he was one of the original members of the team that left Minnesota to go to Texas. Personally, he was one of the only remaining players in which I couldn’t remember his team without him. Only Nicklas Lidstrom remains, with the retirement of Joe Sakic a year ago.

Ilya Kovalchuk negotiations get ugly

The battle between the New Jersey Devils and the NHL over the Ilya Kovalchuk contract continues to ensue, and it’s only getting uglier. For those who haven’t heard, the NHL rejected Kovalchuk’s contract, since they felt that it circumvented the salary cap and collective bargaining agreement. The contract is for 17 years and 102 million dollars, but 95 of the 102 million came in the first 10 years of the contract, in a front-loaded deal. The NHL, and most fans, are claiming that the Devils structured this deal so that the salary cap hit each year would be for only 6 million dollars, and that Kovalchuk will likely retire after the first 10 years, absolving the Devils of the final 42 million dollars on the salary cap. By doing this, Kovalchuk would only be giving up 7 million dollars, though. It’s a cunning and, frankly, dishonest move by the Devils, but it isn’t against the written contract that the NHL agreed to, so they’ve appealed the decision. In the next few days, the case will go in front of an arbitrator, and a decision will be made. If the arbitrator rules in favor of the NHL, Kovalchuk will again be a free agent and the Devils could be penalized. We’ll wait and see.

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Erik Johnson’s contract sets the standard for defensemen

Erik Johnson, one of the best young defensemen in the NHL, signed a 2 year, 5.2 million dollar extension with the St. Louis Blues this week. This might not seem like a huge deal, but it may set a precedent for upcoming negotiations with top young defensemen like Jack Johnson, Drew Doughty, Marc Staal and Duncan Keith. 2.6 million dollars per year for a top-flight young defenseman is very reasonable, and it will help cap-conscious teams re-sign their young stars. This contract may drive down Staal in particular’s asking price, since the two of them are most easily comparable. In the same way that Zdeno Chara’s contract in 2006 set the precedent for big future contracts for veteran defensemen, this contract could do the same for younger players.

Rangers acquire C Todd White for F Donald Brashear and Patrick Rissmiller

My favorite team, the New York Rangers, made a minor move, but a good one this week. They turned lemons into lemonade by trading two busts, Rissmiller and Brashear, for veteran center Todd White, who had an injury-plagued 09-10 season but had 73 points the year before that. The move was more or less a wash salary cap wise, since White only has one remaining year on his contract. Brashear was particularly hated by Rangers fans, failing in New York after taking cheapshots at players for years. He won’t be missed. White will be given a chance to make the team in training camp, proven that he is healthy. If not, he’ll go to the AHL, and his salary won’t hurt the cap. It’s an all-upside, zero-downside move for Sather, and a good one.

By Jeremy Rothschild
Jeremy is the co-founder and head writer of Storps.com, as well as a featured columnist for MVPGotham.com and Prohockey-fans.com.

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