Kadri Back Tracks On Salary Demand
Reports abound that Restricted Free Agent (RFA), Nazem Kadri is looking for a five to eight year deal at $5 million dollars per year. But the 22 year old has denied making such demands. Maybe reality has set in or maybe someone has told the kid he's not dealing from a position of strength. Kadri had a good year last season scoring 18 goals to go along with 26 assists. This included two hat tricks: one on February 28 against the Islanders and one on March 30 against Ottawa.
After the 3 goal outburst against the Senators, Kadri had one goal and four assists in the last 12 regular season games. In the seven game playoff against the Bruins, he had a goal and three assists. Thus, since the hat trick on March 30, Kadri had two goals and seven assists in 19 games. The numbers simply do not add up for an eight year contract at $5 million dollars a year.
There is no question that Kadri has the offensive skills that arguably could make him the team's first line center. However, he is not there yet and has not proven it over the course of an 82 game schedule. I'm also still concerned about his size. While not afraid to body check, he seems to get knocked off the puck rather easily. That could be a problem for a number one center.
Some have said that the recent contract Adam Henrique signed with the New Jersey Devils has strengthened Kadri's bargaining position. Henrique signed a six year deal worth $24 million dollars, or an average $4 million dollars a year for six years. The 23 year old center scored 16 goals and had 35 points in 74 games played in the 2011-12 season. That year, he had five goals and eight assists in 24 playoff games played. Three of his goals were game winners during the Devils run to the Stanley Cup Finals. Last season, Henrique fell off scoring 11 goals and 5 assists in 42 games played.
While they may be nearly the same age and play the same position, I don't believe Henrique's contract should have a bearing on what the Leafs do with Kadri. This isn't an issue where Kadri can go to arbitration and use Henrique's deal as a benchmark. The Leafs cap situation is totally different than the Devils as they still also have to re-sign Cody Franson and will have to decide what they will do in 2014-15 with Phil Kessel and Dion Phaneuf who will both be looking for a raise.
If Kadri truly loves being a Maple Leaf and he believes this team can be a contender for awhile, he needs to accept a bridge contract similar to what P.K.Subban signed with the Montreal Canadiens. Subban stands to make a considerable amount of money after this season and with the salary cap going up next year, the Canadiens would be crazy not to give Subban a sizable increase equal to that of a Norris Trophy candidate. The same could be true for Kadri. Sign a one or two year deal at $2.5 million dollars a year and work your way up to that number one center spot. At the end of the bridge deal, Kadri would be in line for big dollars at the age of 24. That makes sense for the Maple Leafs and it makes sense for him.
It's one thing to be confident in one's abilities but it's another to be stupid. As mentioned, Kadri is not dealing from a position of strength. It is highly unlikely that another team would give him an offer sheet that would force Dave Nonis' hand. That being said, the Leafs have all the cards here and maybe that's what has sunk in to Kadri and Company.
Hal Finally Wakes Up!!
It's been reported that earlier this week, Hal Steinbrenner called a meeting down in his office in Tampa to discuss the sad state of his team's farm system. Present at the meeting was his brother, Hammerin' Hank, Randy Levine, General Manager Brian Cashman, Director of Amateur Scouting Damon Oppenheimer, Director of International Scouting Donny Rowland and Senior VP of Baseball Operations Mark Newman. Steinbrenner is now concerned about the fact that there is no one on the horizon who will be able to step in and make the big club next year when Hal wants to get the payroll down to $189 million dollars. For that, Cashman and Company need to be held accountable.
Whether Steinbrenner will clean house remains to be seen but the fact remains that Brian Cashman has had control of baseball operations since 2005 after he whined to George Steinbrenner that he was tired of being undercut by members of The Boss' Tampa Mafia. With total control, the Yankee farm system has produced only Brett Gardner as an everyday player. You want to look at pitching prospects?? Other than Ivan Nova and David Robertson, the rest have been suspect at best. It is clear that Phil Hughes is probably on his way out of the Bronx. Joba Chamberlain? He's good as gone. Remember the Killer B's? Dellin Betances might be a good reliever, Manuel Banuelos is coming off Tommy John surgery and Andrew Brackman is playing basketball in Europe. Nice job, Cash!
I have been questioning the future of this team for the last three years. Next year it is possible that the Yankees may need a third baseman, shortstop, first baseman, catcher and three starting pitchers. And they will probably need a set-up man if Robertson get elevated to be the guy to replace the great Mariano Rivera as the closer. In other words, the New York Yankees could be terrible and possibly worse than the Mets.
The Yankees are the richest franchise in all of sports. They should have the best scouting team that money can buy. They should be able to mine international talent. Instead, the Dodgers get Yasel Puig and the A's get Yoenis Cespedes. And let's not forget Yu Darvish. I'm sick of the argument that the Yankees have had a tough time getting good young players because they pick so low in the draft. Well, how do the St. Louis Cardinals and the Tampa Bay Rays do it? Both of those teams continue to bring in good young players while still being top teams in their respective leagues. They are doing something right.
I'm glad that Hal has finally woke up and realized that his team is in trouble. In my view, it's about three years too late. However, you have to start somewhere and I am somewhat hopeful that changes will take place. Time will tell and for those of us who follow this team, Hal needs to do something soon or we may be looking at a decade of terrible baseball in The House That The Boss Built.
Yanks Draw 1st Blood: Will It Matter??
Last night the New York Yankees drew first blood in their weekend series at Fenway Park with a 10-3 win over the first place Boston Red Sox. Once again Alfonso Soriano led the way with four RBI's, that included a 3-run homer, newly acquired Kevin Reynolds chipped in with a home run and 3 RBI's and Andy Pettitte gave the Yankees a strong pitching effort through 6 2/3 innings. A win over the Red Sox always puts some spring in the steps of Yankee fans. But in the big picture, does it really matter what the Yankees do this weekend?
The Yankee organization sells that a successful season only means winning the World Series. Based upon their definition, it would take an eternal optimist to believe that this team has the ability to win a World Series if indeed they were to make the playoffs. While the acquisition of Soriano and the return of Curtis Granderson and Alex Rodriguez have given their lineup a huge upgrade, this team still does not have what it takes to win a playoff series. Outside of Ivan Nova and Hiroki Kuroda, the starting rotation has been shaky at best. Eduardo Nunez is a liability at shortstop. Getting Derek Jeter back would be a huge help but one has to wonder how much the Captain has left in the tank.
Making the playoffs just to be knocked out in the wild card game or in the first round doesn't meet the organization's standard of success, but it would for this year's team. As a fan, this would be enough of a reason to look forward to an interesting seven weeks. (along with the daily ARod soap opera) However, whenever this season ends, winning this series and making the playoffs this year will mean nothing because the future looks bleak. With a self-imposed $189 million dollar cap, an aging shortstop and right fielder, a recovering Mark Teixiera, no left fielder and the uncertainty around ARod and 2014 looks like a train-wreck waiting to happen. The sad thing is I have no confidence that this organization can right the ship. So, let's enjoy the next seven weeks because unless something dramatic happens this may be the last playoff push we see in Yankeeland for awhile.
Tuesday’s Thoughts
While wondering if there is any team that can beat the Miami Heat in a best of 7 series, here is what's on my mind this morning:
* It's been a week since the Toronto Maple Leafs were knocked out of the Stanley Cup Playoffs and I still haven't gotten over it. The loss was extremely painful after having a 3 goal lead in the third period. In retrospect, I guess if someone would have told me in January that they would go seven games in the first round of the playoffs with the Bruins I guess I would have taken it. One has to wonder if they had faced Montreal in the first round if they would still be playing right now.
* The Leaf off season will be very interesting as GM Dave Nonis has some decisions to make. I was very encouraged by his end of the season press conference. His position on Tyler Bozak is right on the money: would like to keep him but at the right price. If Bozak goes I would love to see the Leafs give Joe Colborne a shot at the center spot between JVR and Phil Kessel. That is provided they don't make a trade. Getting another top 4 defenseman should also be a need though they don't grow on trees and would have to be acquired via trade. As I have stated before the future is bright for the Blue and White: the youngest team to make the playoffs.
* Speaking of interesting off seasons, the New York Knicks will have to figure out a way to get more help for Carmelo Anthony. The Knicks were terrible in providing secondary scoring in the Indiana series. The old folks home dressed in blue and orange needs to be adjusted in a big way. From everything I read, the Knicks don't have a lot of options due to being in cap space hell so it will be very interesting to see what they do going into next season.
* Credit to Iman Shumpert for telling it like it is by saying that the Knicks didn't get the job done and as a result the season was not a success. As New York's youngest player, if Shumpert can improve his offensive game he may be a much better number 2 scoring threat than J.R.Smith.
* The NBA cannot be happy with a Final Four consisting of San Antonio, Memphis, Indiana and Miami. Hardly big market teams. Ratings should be awful.
* The Toronto Raptors kicked Bryan Colangelo up to the executive offices and out of his General Manager's position. Isn't this what Maple Leafs Sports & Entertainment did with Brian Burke??
* It's really stupid how there is this allegiance on the part of some Canadians toward the Ottawa Senators because they are the only Canadian based team left in the playoffs. Like none of the other teams have Canadian born players. It's as bad as the morons in Boston chanting "USA, USA" when the Bruins were playing the Maple Leafs.
* Here's hoping the Penguins dispatch of Ottawa in short order.
* Would love to see a Chicago-Los Angeles Western Conference finals.
* Here's hoping that Norv Turner is true to his word and the Browns give Brandon Weeden an honest shot at being the number one QB for the Cleveland Browns.
* Had to laugh at all of the flutter about the Browns signing QB Brian Hoyer. Really???
* Last night's come from behind victory over the Baltimore Orioles may have been the biggest win for the New York Yankees so far this year. Travis Hafner had two big RBI's, including the game-tying 9th inning home run. Vernon Wells drove in the winning run in the 10th inning after Ichiro led the inning off with a double. Hafner plated his second RBI driving in Wells to give the Yanks a big insurance run.
* For the first time all year the Yankees have me excited about this season as some of the Baby Bombers are starting to play. David Adams has been a breath of fresh air as he has been contributing offensively including his first home run of the season last night off of Freddy Garcia. Austin Romine has been swinging the bat well and the Yanks have been getting a contribution from Preston Claiborne. It's great to see some young blood and gives you reason for some hope for better days long term.
* Kudos to Yankee Manager Joe Girardi who has done a remarkable job with a patchwork lineup. Of course, it also helps having a pitching staff that as of Monday morning was second in the American League in ERA.
* The Buffalo Bills made a good move in promoting Doug Whaley to be their general manager. Everything seems to indicate that Whaley is the type of young mind the Bills have been in need of. As many of you know, I am not a Bills fan but this could be a good move.
* As far as the other professional sports team in Buffalo, the Sabres' big announcement is that they signed John Scott to a one year contract. Whoopie!!!!!
* And finally, prayers go out to the people of Oklahoma in dealing with one of the worst natural disasters in this country's history.
Tuesday’s Thoughts
While wondering if Hal Steinbrenner recognized all of the empty seats Sunday night at Yankee Stadium during the Yankee-Oriole game, here is what's on my mind this morning:
* James Reimer stole the show last night leading the Toronto Maple Leafs to a 2-0 victory over the slumping New Jersey Devils at the Air Canada Centre. Reimer stopped 31 shots and made two huge saves in the third period prompting the normally sedate ACC crowd to go wild giving the young backstop a standing ovation. If there is any doubt that this kid is a number one goalie then it should be put to bed after last night's performance as Reimer was the sole reason why the Leafs managed to get a victory. So much for Roberto Luongo and Mikka Kiprusoff.
* Can we finally put to bed the constant criticism of Phil Kessel? If you've watched Leaf games this year, it is easy to see that the 25 year-old sniper has changed his game and has bought into Coach Randy Carlyle's style of play. While he will never be an overly physical player, Kessel has been more defensively responsible. By the way, he leads the team in points with 16 goals and 27 assists.
* The New York Yankees have managed to weather the storm as they are 6-5 heading into a three game series against the Arizona Diamondbacks. Big start tonight for Ivan Nova as this kid has shown the potential to be a solid big league pitcher but has taken a huge step back starting at the midway point last season. The Yanks have to be concerned about this coupled with the early season ineffectiveness of Phil Hughes.
* By the way, have I said before that I hate Interleague play?
* Watched the Masters on Sunday and found it very compelling as Adam Scott and Angel Cabrera battled it out heading into their two hole playoff. What was really annoying was Jim Nantz's melodramatic commentary. The guy is terrible and unfortunately he will remain the number one voice at CBS.
* Wonder if Gary Bettman was in charge of the Masters would we have a longest drive contest to see who would win if it ended in a tie?
* For the second game in a row, Montreal goaltender Carey Price was pulled from a game.
* Buffalo Sabres owner Terry Pegula is finally feeling some heat for his team's performance. When he took over the team, Pegula said in three years the team would win a Stanley Cup. Well this is year three and they will not make the playoffs. If Pegula wants to right this ship he needs to get rid of Darcy Reiger.
* I'm really tired of all of the NFL Mock Drafts. Let's just make the picks and get on with it.
* The New York Knicks will begin their playoff series with the Boston Celtics on Saturday and it will be interesting to see how Tyson Chandler and Kenyon Martin play. The Knicks need these two big men if they are to go far in the playoffs.
* Really enjoyed watching the 1973 Game 5 lost tape of the Knicks-Lakers game which marked the last time the Knicks won the NBA Championship. The game was truly different then and it brought back some great memories. It was also Wilt Chamberlain's last game.
* What are the odds Ryan Miller gets traded next season?
* In case anyone didn't notice, Jason Pominville scored two goals last night for the Minnesota Wild.
* And finally, let's keep the people of Boston in our prayers and hope that the scum responsible for this are caught and prosecuted to the full extent of the law.
Tuesday’s Thoughts
While wondering if Buffalo is Hockey Heaven what must Hockey Hell be like, here is what's on my mind this morning:
* The Toronto Maple Leafs survived two Rick Nash goals by getting two goals from Phil Kessel in defeating the NY Rangers 4-3 last night at the Air Canada Center. The victory gives the Leafs a six point lead over the Rangers and NY Islanders and a four point lead over the Ottawa Senators. The win ensures that the Leafs would maintain at least a four point lead over the 8th place Rangers if New York wins Wednesday at MSG in the return match against Toronto.
* It's really time for Toronto media and fans to stop the Phil Kessel and Dion Phaneuf bashing. Kessel has 38 points in 39 games with 12 goals and 26 assists. Kessel has been a playmaker this season and I'm not sure who the Leafs would get to replace him. As far as Phaneuf goes, this guy logs big minutes against the other team's top line. Once again who replaces him.
* The Leafs will have a tough decision to make at the end of the season as it relates to UFA Tyler Bozak. While I believe that Bozak is not a number 1 center, he is an excellent face-off man and has developed his offensive game. The big question, once again, who replaces him. Depending upon the price tag, I think it may make some sense to bring him back.
* The New York Yankees built off the great performance Sunday by CC Sabathia in spoiling the Cleveland Indians home opener with an 11-6 win. Robinson Cano finally broke out of his post-WBC slump going 3 for 4 with 2 home runs. Hiroki Kuroda battled back after a terrible first inning to get his first win of the season.
* The Toronto Blue Jays are struggling early which should come as no surprise to anyone. How often to we see pre-season World Series winners struggle.
* Kudos to Coach Rick Pitino and the Louisville Cardinals for winning the NCAA National Championship. The Cardinals were truly the best team in the tournament and I love the way they play defense. Of course that defensive philosophy has been the trademark of Pitino's coaching career.
* Sunday's road victory over Oklahoma City should hopefully answer the critics that the New York Knicks are for real. Since JR Smith has started to take the ball to the hoop, the Knicks have been very dynamic offensively and their defense has improved dramatically. Smith and Carmelo Anthony have been a Dynamic Duo offensively and Melo has been a force on the offensive backboard. It was also good to see Tyson Chandler back on his game.
* The Rutgers basketball situation is really a disgrace. Being a tough coach is one thing but being a sadistic tyrant is another. Can't see how Mike Rice gets another head coaching job. It's also interesting that we have heard absolutely nothing from any of the Rutgers players.
* Watched the Sabres-Devils game on Sunday night which was on the NBC Sports Network and realize that why I can't stand watching Sabre games is Rick "Pork Chop" Jenneret and Rob Ray. Without those two babbling, the game was enjoyable to watch.
* Nearly died from laughter when I read a letter to the Buffalo News sports page on Sunday advocating Rob Ray to be the next Sabres Head Coach.
* Did anyone else find Clark Kellogg's screaming at every commercial break annoying?? Seems like CBS asked all of their broadcast teams to try to imitate Dick Vitale. Unfortunately for CBS, there is only one Dickie V.
* And finally, how long will it take for the gasbags at GR550 to turn on Kevin Kolb??
Tuesday’s Thoughts
While wondering how long it will be until the New York dailies begin to put some heat on Brian Cashman, here is what's on my mind:
* The Yankees dropped an 8-2 decision yesterday at Yankee Stadium to the Boston Red Sox in the season opener for both clubs. CC Sabathia is a slow starter so I am not worried about his performance. What was interesting was the fact that there were a couple of times when Robinson Cano had a chance to come up with a big hit to pull the Yankees close before the game was blown open in the top of the ninth. There will be plenty of pressure on Cano, particularly in the months of April and May and the Yankees will get a good look at who will be the face of the franchise if they elect to re-sign him to what will be a 6 to 8 year deal.
* http://l2.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/KfwXrexIN1.GpriNFvWdsQ--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7cT04NQ--/http://media.zenfs.com/en/blogs/sptusmlbexperts/yankeescover040113.jpg
Maybe this should be the cover of the 2013 New York Yankee Yearbook.
* I usually enjoy listening to John Sterling and Suzyn Waldman but if Sterling performs like he did Monday afternoon I'm not sure how much I will be able to take of him this year. The nicknames for players was borderline annoying. He incessantly referred to Eduardo Nunez as "Nunie" and David Phelps was "Phelpsie". It didn't stop with Yankees as Red Sox catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia was referred to as "Salty". C'mon John give it a break.
* Couldn't help to think that there was more hope for Red Sox fans in their line up with outfielder Jackie Bradley Jr. (22 yrs old), Jose Iglesias at shortstop (23 years old) and Wil Middlebrooks at third base (24 years old). Throw in pitchers Jon Lester (29 yrs old), Clay Bucholz (28 years old) and Felix Doubront (25 years old) and you have something to be hopeful about. Wish I could say the same thing about the Yankees.
* Don't understand the Cleveland media's love affair with Jason Campbell. Saw this guy last year when Jay Cutler was injured and he was terrible. Might as well have been Caleb Hanie. He couldn't cut it with Washington or Oakland and I'm suppose to buy that he is going to vie for the starting job over Brandon Weeden?? Once again, just be honest. This should be the year that they decide if Weeden is the guy, if not you are looking for a franchise QB next year. Campbell is nothing more than a back up and if you think anything else you're drinking the Joe Banner Kool-Aid.
* Best of luck to Colt McCoy who was traded to the San Francisco 49ers. The kid is a gamer and he gave his all to this team including playing with a concussion against the Steelers. It was that situation where I lost all respect for Mike Holmgren.
* The Maple Leafs continue on their run to a playoff berth as they finished off a very successful week with a 4-0 win over the Ottawa Senators. Nazem Kadri has really turned into a star and I must admit I didn't see this coming. In spite of what Don Cherry and others had to say, the Leafs were right in keeping him in the AHL for as long as they did.
* With the trade deadline approaching, there is plenty of talk of the Leafs being interested in a veteran goaltender and according to Darren Dreger they have had conversations with Calgary about Miikka Kiprusoff. I'm not sure what the Flames would want for the veteran goalie but I don't think that the Leafs need him. I would much rather they try to get a veteran defense man who can help shoulder the load with Dion Phaneuf.
* I am tired of all of the criticism of Phaneuf, Phil Kessel and Brian Burke. Phaneuf has shown his ability to come up with some big goals this year and he logs an incredible amount of ice time against the other team's top line. Phil Kessel has improved his all around game tremendously this year and as Randy Carlyle said Monday morning, despite his low goal total he still has 34 points. As far as Brian Burke goes, enough already. If you can't admit that this is Burke's team that has captivated Leaf Nation then you are blind.
* By the way, what more can you say about Joffrey Lupul other than he is unbelievable.
* The New York Knicks will try to make it 9 in a row when they take on the Miami Heat. You really have to give credit to Knicks coach Mike Woodson who has weathered the storm with so many players being felled by injuries. I am really impressed with the play of Kenyon Martin as he has really brought an old school defensive game to the Knicks which has become infectious for the whole team. Hopefully, he will be able to play along with Tyson Chandler against the Heat.
* JR Smith has really picked things up with his game on both ends of the floor. His drives to the basket make him a more effective player as opposed to just launching three bombs. I also hope that we continue to see more of Chris Copeland. This kid can play and hopefully he is out of Coach Woodson's doghouse.
* What a terrible injury to Louisville's sophomore guard Kevin Ware. Here's hoping that the kid has a good recovery.
* Speaking of Louisville, love the way they play defense. I don't see how this team doesn't win the NCAA Title this year. I really love Gorgui Dieng's game.
* Kudos to Niagara and Canisius for their outstanding hockey seasons this year as both teams represented Western New York well in the Frozen Four tournament. Here's hoping that both programs can build on this success and we can have WNY be a college hockey hotbed. With that said, can someone please tell me why the University of Buffalo doesn't have a Division I hockey team?
* If the Buffalo Sabres trade Ryan Miller who plays goal?? Jonas Enroth?? David Leggio?? Please!!! The Miller bashing is disgusting and would serve them right when he goes to a team that has an average defense and they win the Stanley Cup.
* Kevin Kolb because the new QB savior for the Buffalo Bills. Good luck with that.
* And finally, the World Series will be between the Los Angeles Angels and the Washington Nationals with the Nats winning in 6. And here's a tip, don't bet the mortgage on it.
It’s Time To End The Shoot Out
Kudos to Red Wings GM Ken Holland for raising the issue of dropping the ridiculous skills competition known as the NHL shootout. What other major sport uses a skills competition to decide the outcome of a team game. Just imagine NFL games decided by placekickers kicking field goals and the one who made it the furthest away from the goal posts wins the game. Or how about baseball having a home run derby to determine who wins a team game. It's totally a joke and another one of the outcomes of Gary Bettman's reign as Commissioner of the NHL.
Holland proposes that if a game is tied after the first 5 minutes of 4-on-4 overtime play, the two teams would play another 5 minutes 3-on-3. This proposal is much better than the current set-up but I want to take it two steps further. First, at the end of the first overtime, teams would change ends resulting in a longer line change which could certainly result in a goal being scored. Secondly, the team that wins in overtime gets two points the losing team gets zero. If after both periods of overtime the score is still tied then both teams would get a point.
What do you think?? Let me know at tonytalkssportsblog or on twitter @tonytalkssports
Leaf Nation Chill Out
After the Toronto Maple Leafs 5-2 loss last night against the Winnipeg Jets, members of Leaf Nation and the Toronto media were pressing the panic button big time. The Leafs have lost three games in a row for the first time this season and people are convinced that we are going to have a repeat of last year. Let's examine the three losses.
The first loss was at the hands of the Boston Bruins in Boston. The Leafs lost 4-2 with Boston's last goal being in the empty net. In watching the game, the Leafs never quit and in fact could have rolled over when Boston went up 3-1. I venture to guess that last year's team would of rolled up in a ball and died. When that game ended, I was proud of the effort that the Leafs put out that night.
Loss number 2 was against the Pittsburgh Penguins at the ACC. The Leafs came back from a 4-2 deficit to tie the game and send it into overtime. The Leafs traded chances with the Penguins in overtime and lost in the skills competition known as the shootout. The NHL is the only major sports league that determines wins and losses by a skills competition but that is for a post on another day. The Leafs got a point in a game that they twice battled back from a 2 goal deficit. Once again, I was happy with the effort.
Last night, loss number 3 was the worse loss the Leafs have suffered since they lost to the Canadiens at the ACC. The turning point was their inability to score on a 1:53 2 man-advantage. Bad line changes and terrible defensive zone coverage led to an embarassing loss against a team that is not better than Toronto.
So what does this all mean? Well, the way I see it we will find out a lot about this edition of the Leafs over the course of the next two games. In listening to Toronto radio today, the Leafs shouldn't show up tomorrow against the Penguins. But, the Leafs beat the Penguins in Pittsburgh and we saw what happened Saturday night. The Leafs can win tomorrow and they can win against the Jets on Saturday night.
The Leafs need to make some changes in my opinion. Jake Gardiner needs to be brought up immediately. As I have stated many times, Gardiner is a special talent. He has the ability to carry the puck out of the defensive zone, the ability to make the quick pass and will be a huge difference on a power play that needs help. The other change I would make is move Mikhail Grabovski on the first line with Phil Kessel and James van Reimsdyk. Tyler Bozak would go on the new third line with Nikolai Kulemin and either Jay McClement or Leo Komorov. The new second line would be Nazem Kadri with Clarke MacArthur and Matt Frattin. Randy Carlyle must also limit the amount of ice time that the fourth line receives.
The Leafs also need to spend less time trying to create fighting opportunities and more focus on taking the body creating an aggressive forecheck. The power play needs some changes. Along with Gardiner coming up, Carlyle needs to mix things up. Have Grabowski center JVR and Kessel with the 2nd unit being Kadri with MacArthur and Frattin. If MacArthur or Frattin don't go to the net then put McClement, Komorov or Kulemin out there to screen the goalie. You might want to consider moving Dion Phaneuf upfront with Franson and Gardiner at the point.
As far as the goalies go, it drives me nuts when Leaf fans start calling for Roberto Luongo. Last night, I would only fault Reimer on one of the 4 goals. Other than that, he was hung out to dry and the first Jets goal was a lucky deflection off the body of Nik Antropov. The Leafs can make the playoffs with Reimer and Ben Scrivens. If they don't make the playoffs, they will get a good draft pick in a deep draft. So Leaf Nation, take a deep breath!! If someone told you before the season that the Leafs would be in 6th place at the halfway point of the season would you have been surprised?? I think so.
Gotham Geezers
I nearly fell off my chair at work today when I saw on twitter that Brian Cashman was going to reach out to Chipper Jones to play third base. Jones' agent quickly indicated that his client had no desire to play baseball, even though it would be nice to put the Pinstripes on. But it didn't stop with Chipper. It has been reported that Cashman is now reaching out to Derek Lee and Scott Rolen. Maybe the Yankees figure if they can sign a few more geezers maybe they can get Social Security to pay for some of the salary.
If this doesn't illustrate the depth of mismanagement of this organization I don't know what does. Scott Rolen will only come if he gets guaranteed playing time. Derek Lee?? Really?? The Boss must be rolling over in his grave. Brian Cashman should be fired. He has totally screwed this season up. Some will say, "how could he predict the injuries to Granderson & Teixera." He couldn't but he could have had depth players ready to fill in if necessary. He had Jayson Nix, Juan Rivera, Matt Diaz, and now Ben Francisco which makes up the weakest Yankee bench in a long time.
If Hal Steinbrenner wants to believe that the Yankee farm system will provide cheap talent to keep this team winning then why not give Ronnier Mustelier a shot at third base. The kid can hit and I would rather have him there than the ancient Rolen. I would also rather see Zolio Almonte play over Matt Diaz and Juan Rivera. The Yankees would be no worse off going with these two kids for a month.
This is the perfect opportunity for the Yankee organization to come clean and say we need to rebuild for the future. Of course they believe that won't fly with a fan base that has been fed the corporate crap that the season is not a success unless they win a World Series. As a Yankee fan for 50 years, I can take a rebuilding season. I've suffered through many. But what I can't take is the propaganda which tries to make us believe that this team has a shot at winning their division and being world champions.
Get ready for the 2013 season for the Gotham Geezers!!
Eklund’s Hockey Buzz
Pro Football Talk
Post Archive
- December 2013 (2)
- September 2013 (1)
- August 2013 (3)
- July 2013 (1)
- May 2013 (4)
- April 2013 (6)
- March 2013 (8)
- February 2013 (14)
- January 2013 (20)
- December 2012 (17)
- November 2012 (14)
- July 2012 (6)
- May 2012 (2)
- April 2012 (19)
- March 2012 (20)
- February 2012 (22)
- January 2012 (25)
- December 2011 (22)
- November 2011 (26)
- October 2011 (29)
- September 2011 (25)
- August 2011 (28)
- July 2011 (31)
- June 2011 (29)
- May 2011 (30)
- April 2011 (24)
- March 2011 (36)
- February 2011 (13)