Ongoing NHL thread - Part III

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Friedman thinks they might claim Higgins lol

 

[jstewismybastardson]

Friedman thinks they might claim Higgins lol

woah really? and be on the hook for 2.5 for next season?

 

[Bloody Brian Burke]

woah really? and be on the hook for 2.5 for next season?

Well, he said they were interested. Maybe it was more for a trade that never materialized.

But would you really put it past the Jackets at this point?

 

[jstewismybastardson]

i mean in the correct role maybe Higgins provides something but this season there was a whole lot of this

 

[forty_three]

i mean in the correct role maybe Higgins provides something

David Clarkson
Jack Johnson
Rene Bourque
David Savard
Gregory Campbell
Jared Boll

We're like a halfway house for guys like that.

 

[Bloody Brian Burke]

It's nearly been a year and I'm still fucking stunned that they took Clarkson off our hands.

He literally would've been a $5.5 mil healthy scratch every single game under Babcock. Fuck, Babcock probably doesn't even take the Leafs' million$ if he's still around.

I can't thank Jarmo enough for that one.

 

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If you could put Brendan Gallagher's heart in Rene Bourque's body, you would have a hell of a player.

 

[jstewismybastardson]

jesus Rene Bourque has played 23 games this year? i didnt know he was still in the league?

 

[Nasty_Magician]

 

[Bloody Brian Burke]

Sounds like it's for 3 years/$18 mil, which is Babcock territory.

 

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[QUOTE="Bloody Brian Burke, post: 7846613, member: 8136]

Sounds like it's for 3 years/$18 mil, which is Babcock territory.[/QUOTE]

 

[Johnnydollaz89]

that's gold. They are hands down the best Twitter account for teams.

 

[Bloody Brian Burke]

that's gold. They are hands down the best Twitter account for teams.

I agree. This one was my fave:

 

[Johnnydollaz89]

I agree. This one was my fave:

Good day for you.

 

[forty_three]

It's nearly been a year and I'm still fucking stunned that they took Clarkson off our hands.

He literally would've been a $5.5 mil healthy scratch every single game under Babcock. Fuck, Babcock probably doesn't even take the Leafs' million$ if he's still around.

I can't thank Jarmo enough for that one.

I know the team is all sunshine and lollipops and you can make the logic argument that paying a guy to play > paying a guy to not play. But the bottom line is they never would have been in the situation if Jarmo and JD weren't so crazy and gung ho to stand up and say "Look at us, we're at the big boy table! We singed a big Free Agent!" before he was cleared to play from a previous injury. That means they couldn't insure his contract because it was signed when he was "injured".

There is an element of bad luck with Horton's back problem, but the entire saga is just awful, awful business.

AND, the Yotes took Pronger to get to the floor. We could have sent them Horton and NOT HAD CLARKSON.

Horton and Prout for Connor Murphy, and this is a lot different team.

If you could put Brendan Gallagher's heart in Rene Bourque's body, you would have a hell of a player.

You put ANY heart in his body and you have a good player.

jesus Rene Bourque has played 23 games this year? i didnt know he was still in the league?

I know. I am painfully aware of it. And painfully aware that we gave away Wisniewski to get him.

Because Kevin Connauton was developing.


The guy we just waived today.




...

 

[Bloody Brian Burke]

AND, the Yotes took Pronger to get to the floor. We could have sent them Horton and NOT HAD CLARKSON

Yes, but Pronger only had 2 years left on his deal. Horton had 5.

Pronger was also insured.

 

[jstewismybastardson]

I know. I am painfully aware of it. And painfully aware that we gave away Wisniewski to get him.

Because Kevin Connauton was developing.


The guy we just waived today.




...

I think we might have a "Torts didnt like him" thing on Connauton too

There isn't a single Canucks defenceman that has a better CF% than Kevin Connauton (50.0).

 

[jstewismybastardson]

JWillis wants the Coil to pick Connauton up

I have this feeling the Canucks (Benning) would take him just to spite the Gillis regime and hope that he turns out ... because it was the Gillis regime that tried to make him into a forward before trading him for nothing (Derek Roy)




Kevin Connauton is a good defenceman; one would think too good of a defenceman not to be claimed off waivers. Unlike David Rundblad, he’s signed on the cheap and only for this season; unlike Brandon Gormley he’s delivered offensively in the NHL. He’s going to be a useful player for someone.


The question is whether that someone is going to be the Edmonton Oilers.


Before we get into why the Oilers might let a quality defenceman slip away, let’s establish that Connauton is in fact quality. He arrived in Columbus via the waiver wire, at a point where he was not a proven NHL defender. Since then, he’s played 81 games for the Blue Jackets, scoring 10 goals, recording 27 points and managing a plus-11 rating. With, it needs to be said again, the Blue Jackets.


Connauton’s underlying numbers are no less impressive.


His 0.93 points/hour number at five-on-five the last two years is extremely good. It’s the second-best total on the Columbus blue line over that span, it’s 50 percent better than Seth Jones’ number and it’s equal to Oscar Klefbom’s in Edmonton. Some of that is because of a high on-ice save percentage, but it’s abundantly clear that this is a player with good offensive instincts.


He’s also a player who seems to tilt the ice in a positive direction. With Connauton out there over the last two seasons, the Jackets are break-even in terms of unblocked shots for and against. That doesn’t sound too impressive, until one realizes that Connauton is the only defenceman in Columbus who hasn’t been on the ice for more Fenwick events against than for. It would be pretty shocking if that was just due to dumb luck.


Connauton can skate and he can move the puck. He’s 6’2” and 205 pounds. He has ties to the Edmonton area, being born there and playing with both Fort Saskatchewan and Spruce Grove at the AJHL level. Craig MacTavish coached him when both were with Vancouver’s AHL affiliate. He makes less than $700,000 and is a restricted free agent this summer.


Why isn’t this a complete no-brainer for the Oilers? Because Connauton is a left-shot defenceman.


Edmonton has Oscar Klefbom, Andrej Sekera, Darnell Nurse, Brandon Davidson on the roster already and Griffin Reinhart waiting in the minors. David Musil is at the AHL level, too and will be waiver-eligible next season.


I’d argue it makes sense anyway. There’s room on the roster for Connauton in the present, and down the road internal competition isn’t a bad thing. This is a player who has shown he can play in the NHL over a full season, someone who can help in the present. The Oilers should think hard about a claim, and if they choose to pass there are other teams out there who should do considerably more than think about it.

 

[jstewismybastardson]

Torts kept Dalton Prout over Connauton Im guessing Prout has more blocked shots lol

 

[BGDave]

This is my favorite part

Before we get into why the Oilers might let a quality defenceman slip away, let’s establish that Connauton is in fact quality. He arrived in Columbus via the waiver wire, at a point where he was not a proven NHL defender. Since then, he’s played 81 games for the Blue Jackets, scoring 10 goals, recording 27 points and managing a plus-11 rating. With, it needs to be said again, the Blue Jackets.

Some teams just should not talk smack. And you, Edmonton-boyo, are one of them.

As a Leaf fan, I know this rule (and have the sieves to prove it).