Monday 1 July 2013

Exciting Draft Day And Trades







Draft day 2013 is beyond us now. So I guess it's time to have a look at the happenings of the day!

First off what a draft day. Brodeurs picking Brodeurs. 6 foor 4 inch Seth Jones comes up a little short in the 1st. Some trades also happened like Nino "coolest name in the league" Niederreiter being traded for Cal "also the coolest name in the league" Clutterbuck. How can you go wrong? Unless your Dave Bolland... Traded to my beloved Leafs as punishment for scoring the game winning Stanley Cup goal. Don't teams normally make statues for hero's? No... just no...  according to Kris Versteeg, Andrew Ladd and Dustin Byfuglien.

Lets start with me being right. In my last post Craziest Week In NHL History? I mentioned a man named John Tortorella. I also mentioned how he was trading down from Henrik Lundqvist to Cory Schneider. Yes well blame Gillis all you want(he deserves it) but I'm willing to bet Tortorella's all over this one. I called it days before it was announced that Cory Schneider was on the block and days later he is in New Jersey auditioning for that gaping hole that Martin Brodeur's going to leave when he decides to retire.

While we are on the subject of Brodeur lets have a look at a rare occurrence.
 
 
 
 
The Devils swing a trade to acquire the 208th (seventh round) pick of the 2013 draft and give Martin Brodeur the honor of drafting his own son into the NHL. While it's not a guarantee he will make it, having arguably the best goaltender ever as your father can certainly help you grow quicker than projections with input from good ol' dad.  If I'm Anthony Brodeur I'm picking on dad for not using his pull to make me a first round pick. All in theory but could you imagine the Prudential Center's hometown New Jersey Devils selecting a Brodeur in the first round on tv. Ridiculous would be the word to describe the crowds. While scouts are far from high on the kid I hope he gets a crack one day. Almost like Brent Gretzky versus Wayne Gretzky in stat comparison.
 
 
Clutterbuck for Niederreiter is the classic prospect goes sour story. Niederreiter is a very talented player and at 20 years old Garth Snow made a bold move in shipping him to Minnesota. The Wild on the other hand add a former 5th overall pick to their stable that already includes some impressive names like Charlie Coyle and Matthew Dumba. 
 
The Isles get tougher and get a guy who has played with Tavares before and therefore should have instant chemistry in a perfect world. Clutterbuck's role is unlikely to change as he'll be expected to lay the body as often as he likes(and enjoyes to) and may even get some reps with Tavares and Moulson. I like the move from both ends to be honest, however I do think Snow could have pulled a little more out of Minnesota.
 
Future superstar Seth Jones saw his stock drop to fourth as teams loaded up on offense. Don't read too much into this one. The big story here is Ryan Suter bolts to Minnesota and David Poile who nearly had his heart ripped out twice in one offseason (see Shea Weber offer sheet) now has another franchise defenseman to play in front of Pekka Rinne. Barry Trotz is also loving life at the moment. Can it go any more storybook for the Preds? What's next a Stanley Cup to spite Suter?
 
Dave Bolland wins his second Stanley Cup. Scores the dramatic game winner in game 6. Gets traded one week later to the Toronto Maple Leafs. Also Bryan Bickell within an hour of the trade signed a 4 year $16 million contract. If there is any solace to find it's that 1. He will get a more prominent role in Toronto. 2. He's close to home. 3. He didn't get screwed by being shipped to Atlanta like Byfuglien and Ladd or a train wreck Toronto team like Versteeg who later got traded to another train wreck in Philly and then another in Florida. It's like the Vince quote from the movie Fast Five... What? After you messed things up in Chicago? I free fell through every hell hole in the league.
 
For Toronto this trade gives Randy Carlyle the grit he loves and another player of his liking, Much like the signing of Jay Mcclement who is looking like a steal. It also may signal a new opportunity for Mikhail Grabovski who spent much of the lockout shortened season in the checking role dog house. If Grabovski gets a chance to play a more offensive role (See Tyler Bozak's spot on the top line) He will certainly chase it with everything he's got trying to cling to that opportunity. If he fails to grasp a bigger role it's likely going to be a change of scenery for Grabo.
 
 
There is still so much to come in a league ripe for action. July 5th marks the opening of NHL Free Agency. The buyout period ends in a couple days and the buyouts will be made official. Teams are still searching for all sorts of help in every area. Edmonton looking hard for help on the blue line. Philly wants a goaltender. Toronto and virtually every team except Colorado is looking for a centre. There are a host of compliance buyouts that have yet to be decided on let alone be announced and by the sound of things a lot of GM's are dangling some game changers due to salary cap constraints.


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