News Catch Up

So I've been busy being fat and lazy recently so heres a catch up on whats going on. Firstly, the draft happened.The only huge news in terms of trades was Jokinen to the Coyotes for two players, Tanguay to the Habs for picks, Cammalleri to the Flames in a three way deal and R.J. Umberger to Columbus for picks. Unfortunately, since you can draft 18 year olds in the NHL, theres a very low chance of seeing most of the kids drafted in the first round actually play a game in the N for the next few years. In my opinion, this needs to change. Its hard to get excited about some kid who will play the next year in Juniors, the next two playing for some obscure minor league team then maybe get a shot at the bigs after all of that time getting pounded and worn down by a bunch of idiots with no shot. Yes the NHL is the best hockey league in the world and Yes talent development is very important but 18 is too young. Give these kids a chance to play college hockey and maybe even get a degree before they try to make it into the bigtime. People of the opposite train of thought will point to Pat Kane, Jon Toews, Bing Crosby, Geno and players like that as a counterpoint but even they struggle and sometimes look dwarfed not to mention that they are the exceptions that prove the rule. Up the minimum draft age to 20, let prospects struggle for a year or two and after its all over you will have higher caliber players not only at the professional level but at the subsequent levels.

The next order of business comes out of Tampa Bay. Its no surprise that they drafted Stamkos and the worst kept secret in the NHL finally rears its mulleted head. Thats correct, the new ownership has hired celebrity coach Barry Melrose. This is honestly the worst idea ever. Melrose is a twit. I never agree with what he has to say and to hear him play parrot to Don Cherry this past postseason was almost comical. If the Lightning organization thinks people will come to games just to see him (ok and Stamkos) they must be nuts. I highly doubt Melrose will be successful as a coach in the "new" NHL

Up next is Free Agent news. The Senators bought out Ray Emery. This was clearly the right thing to do. I'm interested to see where he will end up. Also, Marian Hossa will test the market. Good move for him, bad move for the Pens who will also lose Gary Roberts but keep Malkin if he has anyhting to say about it. That makes me sad, I've always liked Roberts and his physical style. He would be a perfect fit in a Sabres lineup lacking in physicality and veteran leadership. More free agent news comes out of the Mats Sundin camp. Both the Rangers and the Canadiens have received permission to talk with Sundin with more teams possibly on the way. Toronto fans say goodbye to your saving grace. Speaking of saves, the Leafs will also let Andrew Raycroft go after spending much of the season on the bench earning $2.2 million to do so. Also, its looking less and less likely that Brian Campbell will stay in San Jose as both the Senators and the Blackhawks are reportedly interested in him. I think he would be a great fit in Chicago if a deal with the Sharks does indeed fall through. That move, however, might cause problems for them in the long run as Campbell is not cheap and the Blackhawks must have signing Kane and Toews as their number one priorities.

Now its time for rumors from hockey's biggest idiot. Thats correct, the anonymous blogger himself: Eklund. You can just throw these out the window entirely but here goes:
•Sundin will be a Ranger. The certainty with which he can say these things is amazing. How does this guy sleep at night?
•Marian Gaborik in talks with the Sabres. This would be awesome if it were true but I doubt it will happen. That said, the Sabres need a "face" of the organization
•Emery to Tampa. This is another gem... not
•Marleau to a bunch of teams. Marleau is not going anywhere.

Oh yeah, one last thing: The Hockey Hall of Fame Inductees. Not terrible decisions but there were a few guys up there that should get in eventually like Claude Lemieux