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Canada Day: Oilers Trade their Captain!

Yes, Jason Smith has been traded to Philadelphia. That’s the bad news folks. Good news is we finally get that puck-moving defenseman in Joni Pitkanen. Also included in the trade was Geoff Sanderson (who is apparently happy to be here. At least someone is!), a veteran forward whom I’m not sure is of any help for the Oilers, and a 3rd round pick in 2009. Even better news, joining Smith in Philly is pylon Joffrey Lupul. I’ll make sure the door hits your useless and lazy ass on the way out! Good riddance!!

Thank god there was a big trade cause the early returns on signings were not promising! Dick Tarnstrom and Denis Grebeshkov signed one year deals. Good I guess, but that’s our only free agent signings so far. That is pathetic. Are we not ponying up the dough or is it that they do not want to play in Edmonton (which I think might be more the case)? How do you fight that? Make trades.

Other news: stupid money being thrown at tier 2 players again. Briere getting an 8 year deal worth $6.5 mill a year (10 mill in the first year) from Philly. He has one good year (95 pts) and he’s getting this kind of money?? Geesh. Everyone keeps saying Philly is now a contender? Yeah right. With Buffalo losing a couple big players, Ottawa owns the East now. Sorry, Philly….you might make the playoffs but contenders you are not! Is Bobby Clarke still in charge over there cause seriously….you guys are making the same mistakes as in the past. You’re throwing too much money at a guy again, but also the length of the deal is ridiculous.

Rumours are flying that Ryan Smyth is being offered a 7 year deal from Colorado worth $7 mill a year. If that is accurate, holy hell. $7 mill for someone who has hit 70 or more points only ONCE! Yes, once in his entire career. His leadership or intangibles aren’t worth that much!

Rafalski ends up in Detroit, Anaheim overpays for Schneider since Niedermeyer is probably retiring (what an retard), Blake in Toronto, Gomez is a Ranger, and other minor signings.

I’m still wondering what the point of the strike was? More overpays again!

Update: Gomez and Drury end up in Rangerland. Gomez gets 7.3 per year for 7 years and Drury gets 7 mill for 5 years. These are two guys who had 60 and 69 pts respectively. Briere’s deal that averages 6.5 is looking like a freakin’ steal right now. Sure it’s front loaded with 10 mill his first year, but it averages out beautifully. And he had 95 pts last year…..35 more than Gomez who is getting $7.3/yr.

Update: Ryan Smyth ends up in Colorado for $6.25 mill/yr for 5 years. A little more reasonable BUT once again, only got 70 pts once and yet is only just under Briere’s average of $6.5 and he got 95 pts last year. Strange! Another overpay!

Update: Oilers have apparently signed Michael Nylander. No details of the contract yet, but I don’t mind this move. He had 83 pts last year, but was on a line with Jagr so his numbers are inflated a bit. But not a bad move on a day where money was being thrown around like it was candy and the Oil couldn’t reel in any of the big guys! And Sykora has signed in Pittsburgh. How sad, I did enjoy ogling him!

Update: I think the Oilers need a winger (damn, we’re deep at centre now with the signing of Nylander. Hemmer needs a winger for his line). I’ll throw this out there….why not Bertuzzi? I’d love to see the Oilers go after him. He showed in the playoffs that he still has game (if healthy) and he’d probably be getable for a decent price. (Update: Bert has signed in Anaheim, damn)

Update: Capitals have signed Michael Nylander. I have no idea what the hell happened here. It’s almost 5 mill a year for 4 years. For that price, I don’t mind the Oilers missing out on this one. He’s 34 yrs old….too old for that kind of money. So now what do the Oilers do?

Here is the link of the free agent signings…..not much left out there for the Oilers. Thus far, our only free agent signing is Dick (I’m not counting Grebeshkov). ONE PLAYER SO FAR….nice!

Saw this on Edm Journal, “Lowe said he called Smyth’s agent (Don Meehan) first thing Sunday morning to put in Edmonton’s bid. Lowe never received a call back.” All I have to say, fuck you Smyth. You refused to sign a deal for damn good money in Edm so the Oilers had to trade you, and you wouldn’t even have the decency to call back? I’m happy to get the chance to boo your money-grubbing ass 4 times this year. I hope to see you in the playoffs too so I can boo some more. Ass!!

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Make Room for the Moose!

The Moose is in the Hall of Fame. No surprise there. Surprising is who will be joining him this year as far as I’m concerned. All first year selections as well (Scott Stevens, Ron Francis and Al MacInnis). I was hoping Glenn Anderson would finally make his way into the Hall after being snubbed the past couple years, but once again, he is snubbed. Al MacInnis gets into the Hall? On his first attempt even? Hell, I’d pick Larionov ahead of him. Actually, I’d pick Anderson and Larionov ahead of Stevens.

Anyways, I’ll bash the selection committee another time. Let’s all celebrate Mark Messier’s selection into the Hall of Fame. As my favorite player, I couldn’t be happier to see him in the Hall. Keep those elbows up Mess!!!

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With the salary cap being projected between $48 – 50 million, I can’t help but question the point of the strike. In two short years, the cap will rise about ten million. Yeah, revenue is going up because teams are increasing ticket prices by 20% (hello Oilers last year. It’s going up about 7% this upcoming season) so you get a inflated sense of real revenue. More people are not going to games, more people are not spending money on hockey…..you have the same or maybe fewer spending more person than before. You have empty arenas in many of the American teams. You have the Canadian teams carrying this league yet they are shit on by the NHL at every opportunity. It’s all about this so-called American market.

Free agency starts on Sunday and we’ll see once again players being paid way too much. Teams like Edmonton are once again back to struggling to compete. We have a team who will never spend the cap, and this has been argued many times. Whether they won’t or can’t, I don’t know. I do know they made money last year during the Cup run, but once again, people forget they didn’t get to keep all of it. It’s this wonderful thing called revenue-sharing. Our Cup run, let’s estimate it at $10 million, did not go all to the Oilers. A portion went to support the shit teams in Nashville, Atlanta and Columbus.

So bring on the greedy players and the stupid owners who will shell out money to every Tom, Dick and Harry (hello Rangers, hello Philly, hello basically all American teams…..).

T minus 4 days until free agency…..4 days until the Oilers come up short again and again. I can’t see them making a splash. Part of me does not want them overpaying, and other part wants them to get in there. I guess it depends who they’re throwing money at? We’ll see.

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Pull the Trigger

Okay Kevin, now is the time to pull the trigger. Make a deal, do something…anything. The draft is few hours away, and deals are already floating around. The Maple Leaves, yes them, actually made a fantastic deal. They snagged Toskala from SJ for three draft picks…hello, don’t we have draft picks? Not that I don’t love Roli, but he’s going to be useless within two years so why not grab a youngster?? Anyways, here’s hoping the Oilers manage to pull something off!!! And if you’re not going to pull the trigger on a trade, then turn the gun on yourself KLowe!

UPDATE: No big deals from draft day for our Oilers. The only news: passing on Cherepanov and Esposito not once, but twice. They ended up with the Rangers and Penquins respectively at picks 17 and 20. Yes, the two best prospects in this draft were passed repeatedly….and ended up in two big markets. I’m shocked the Oilers would pass on them….I don’t care what the risks were but with the talent of these players, in particularly Cherepanov, how can you pass??

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Blow it out your ear Donald

Well it’s over, the Ducks won. I personally hate all ducks, Donald included. What went wrong? The Senators did not play all that great. Simple. They didn’t choke. They just didn’t play the way they did in the first three rounds. Was that in reaction to the magical play of the Ducks? NO! This was a series that was not won by the Ducks, but lost by the Sens. They just didn’t seem to have anything left in the tank (it was a long season for them, moreso than the Ducks considering the mountain they had to climb earlier in the season).

So screw you Chrissy, screw you Niedermeyer, and yup, screw you Selanne. I hope you all get a good case of herpes. The gift that keeps on giving!!!

Let’s get back to our beloved Oilers. The draft is several weeks away, free agency is right after that and the next month will be huge for our team. Who will they sign (if anyone) and who will they trade for? How much will the EIG put up for the payroll (hell, what will the cap be this fall)? Lots of questions.

Memo to Kevin Lowe: last chance buddy. Get things done please. That means one offensive stud on defense and a huge talent up front. Minimum requirements…..plus probably another defenseman (defensive) and possible second line forward.

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Rumble in the Jungle – The Finals Begin….

The Stanley Cup finals begin on Monday. Yes, it’s been almost a week since the Wings-Ducks series was over. Yes, the NHL is on their knees to American television coverage. They want games on Saturday but this Saturday, there is some dumbass ice show in Anaheim so the league basically pushed the series back days to accommodate NBC who will be showing games 3-7 (baring of course any horse races).

The Stanley Cup is coming home. Yes, I am predicting an Ottawa Senators victory. I am 13-1 in my playoff predictions, and yes that also means I’m brilliant. It also means I’m cheering for Comrie over Pronger. I’m not really cheering for baby Mike, cause he’s not an integral part of the Sens team. Yes, his name will be on the Cup but big freakin’ deal. It’s better to have his name than Chrissy’s name on the Cup. Priorities folks….

So yes Ottawa will win the Cup. Sure, I am biased against the Mighty Dicks but I truly believe Ottawa is a better team. Anyone who will pick the Dicks will say they have more than one line of scoring. But Ottawa has been getting scoring throughout their lineup and sure, they’ve depended heavily on the Heatley-Alfredsson-Spezza line but that’s a helleva line. There is no stopping them. Plus Emery is heads above Giguere, who is a total headcase. It’ll be easy to get him off his game. In addition, he really hasn’t been spectacular. His team in front of him has been carrying him. So Ottawa’s top line and goalie will win this series in 5 games. Yes I’m staying with Ottawa and 5 games. I’ve called Sens in 5 each round and that shall not change!

GO SENS!! All of Canada is behind you (okay Toronto isn’t but who gives a shit about them? They’re just a bunch of self-indulgent arrogant pansies who won’t support Canada’s team. Fuck em).

GO SENS!!

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Ch-ch-choking NO LONGER!!!

Ottawa Senators, meet the Stanley Cup Finals finally. FINALLY!!! Have we not all been waiting for this moment? Hell yes, and for at least a decade. The team that choked and curled into a ball in the corner has finally put it together and made the Stanley Cup finals. This team is no longer as soft as a….I won’t finish this analogy because you know where I’m going with that.

The Magnificent Three (see above) have led this team throughout the playoffs and were held off the scoreboard only once during the playoffs thus far (game four). They scored all the goals today with no goal bigger than the overtime winner from Daniel Alfredsson. Yes, Alfredsson (who wore the goat horns last year, deservedly so) is also the leading candidate for the Conn Smyth trophy this year; he’s been spectacular.

Yes, your Ottawa Senators have eliminated the Buffalo Sabres. Yes, they are going to the finals. Yes, this is a team that you can believe in. Gone are the days of Yashin (enjoying him in the Island? hahaha I’m loving he’s your problem now). Gone are the days of losing to Toronto (when did they make the playoffs last??) and being pushed around. This is the team to beat. I predicted they’d win in 5 over Buffalo, and what happened? They won in 5.

Congratulations to the Ottawa Senators for keeping hockey alive in Canada. Without them, no one would be watching the CBC!!!!

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Sen-arific!!

Ottawa just took a 3 games to 0 in their series with Buffalo last night. Let’s take a look at the overtime winner in game two!

The Sens are one game away from going to the STANLEY CUP FINAL!! Three years in a row with a Canadian team baby…time to finish it off!!

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Is It Over Yet???

Is anyone else bored? I am trying to get all jazzed up for the third round but I can’t. I’m completely behind the Ottawa Senators but it isn’t the same as my obsessive and compulsive love of the Oilers. Although I have the hate of a thousand suns burning against the rest of the teams….

Well Toronto’s worst nightmare is getting closer and closer to becoming a reality….Ottawa winning the Stanley Cup. I truly believe this is their year and this is finally a team that you can completely believe in. What a difference a couple years make (remember the Yashin years? What a team of pussies they were!!). Even Daniel Alfredsson is playing like…..hell he’s playing like he’s Canadian. Damn impressive.

How am I doing with my predictions? I rocked the second round, went 4-0. Hells yeah baby, I’m killing. Overall, my predictions are at 11-1 (damn Wild are my only blemish, bastards). I can’t remember a playoffs in which no upsets occured. These were really the top four teams during the year.

Ottawa Senators vs Buffalo Sabres

Buffalo has looked awful in the playoffs, barely taking out the Isles and Rangers, while Ottawa has dominated their opponents. The season series is Sens 5-3, and remember many of their victories against Buffalo came when Ottawa was in a tailspin and Buffalo was killing their opposition. However, the Sens came out and won those games when they couldn’t beat their own dogs. So I’m thinking the Sens are taking this one, and while it will be close but it’s not going to be as close as you think. Sens are on a roll, while the Sabres stumbled into the third round. Ottawa in 5.

Mighty Ducks of Anaheim vs Detroit Red Wings

If Pronger’s duckies get into the final, the Oilers get another first round draft pick next year. I’m okay with that. Just don’t win the bloody thing (won’t happen folks). Well Detroit escaped another upset this year, and has made it to the conference final. Shocking. But I think Anaheim will squeek through to the finals (Detroit’s only chance is if Hasek has the series of his life). Duckies in 7.

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I’ll Make Him an Offer He Can’t Refuse!

Daryl Katz, the drugstore billionaire and yes, of the Rexall chain of drugstores, has made an offer of $145 million, according to the Edmonton Journal, to buy the Edmonton Oilers. This local boy, who is on the Forbes richest list, wants the Edmonton Oilers and that they will remain in Edmonton.

Is anyone else loving this idea? Hometown boy buys local hockey team? Hells yeah. Or hometown billionaire buys local team? Sounds good does it not? But will the EIG sell? The offer was made several days ago and the owners are now mulling it over. I think this sounds awesome and correct me if I’m wrong, this will be great for the Edmonton Oilers. Finally an owner (only one compared to the 30 we have now) who can and will spend money.

This is good, right????

Update: The offer has been turned down. However, this bit was very interesting:

“When Nichols was asked if that means the matter is closed, he replied: “I would say, at that price, at this point in time, that’s probably correct.”


So this could be a negotiating tactic. No one ever takes the first offer. OR maybe not…..

“It’s a question of, philosophically, what serves the community best?” Nichols said. “Is a larger group of networks better able to sell Oilers tickets and product than one person?”

So having over 30 owners is better than 1? Seriously dude….I call bullshit on that one. Yes having one owner, a local boy who is a billionaire is obviously not as good as 30 owners, which not one is a billionaire. Ahuh, good one Cal.

“And, I guess, the same applies to the building.”

He was referring to the much-discussed possibility of a new downtown arena, whose price tag has been estimated as high as $500 million. Nichols is a member of a committee struck by Mayor Stephen Mandel to study the feasibility of such a facility.

If they really want us to believe whatever they are doing is in the best interest of the team, I suggest don’t lie and say 30 owners is better than 1. You totally lost me there.

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