Hawks close to acquiring defenseman?
Posted by TimS on Tue, 02/02/2010 - 01:49
Are the Blackhawks stepping up their efforts to acquire a defenseman for the stretch run?
There were plenty of rumors Monday pointing in that direction.
There were eyebrows raised in Pittsburgh on Monday night when defenseman Jay McKee was a healthy scratch against Buffalo. Could McKee be headed to the Hawks?
The 32-year-old McKee is a 6-foot-3, 210-pound physical, stay-at-home defenseman who interested the Hawks last summer before he signed as a free agent with the Penguins for only $800,000 after being bought out by St. Louis.
A number of veteran defensemen are believed to be available, including Carolina's Aaron Ward, Toronto's Garnet Exelby and the Kings' Sean O'Donnell – all of whom have expiring contracts like McKee.
I agree with Pipe Dream. There is NO WAY The Hawks can afford to move Buff back to D. He scares the living hell out of me being placed at the point on the PP. The only reason he's there is because he has a heavy shot...and sometimes he puts it on net! The only other reason he 'skates' on a line higher than 4th is because of his size and the team's overall lack of. When he takes the body and when he plants his big frame in front of the net, when he feels like playing, he's an asset. When he doesn't he's useless.
It's well known that it takes longer for a defenseman to mature. That being said, the Hawks can't afford to wait for Barker. He will never be faster. He doesn't play physically on a consistent basis. His $3MM salary has got to go. Jordan Hendry can fill his role admirably. How about Nik Hjalmarsson. That's a solid young defenseman! Let's go Stan; make a move but don't screw up this team's chemistry. Their window to win the cup is this year. Let's go Hawks!
Rather than these slow retreads, I like the idea of Joe Corvo or Mezaros...puck movers.
and it is pretty darn an imaginary story as far as I am concerned.
A Tampa exec maybe praying they can find a some suckers to take that contract and leave them with new NHL proven talent.
When he was not doing the job in his own defensive zone, no matter how well he carries outside of that defensive zone, he was repeatedly benched or sent to the pressbox.
Puck mover, shuck hover, Andrj Meszaros makes 4 MILLION A YEAR UNTIL 2014 !!!!!!!!!!!!! No incentive to improve his game, you think?
You take on this contract and you basically are saying one of three other defenseman, Campbell (no trade clause) must go, that Hjalmarsson CANNOT be resigned and you also bid adieu to Brent Seabrook in a year.
COME ON, FANBOYS!!!!!
Start using your head when you read these profound wild lies that are put out there in hopes of these opposing clubs getting their hands on hawk excess in large magnitudes!
Corvo is a in the last year of his contract, makes 2,625,000 and this week, the Hurricanes defenseman was taken to an area hospital after suffering a cut to his right calf on a collision along the boards against Washington.
I remember Tim wanted the Oak Park native to be traded for about three seasons ago, but I don't know if this a little over six foot defender has the ilk that strikes terror in the hearts of men can be the reaction force it is hinted the 'hawks may be looking for.
He will be an excellent playmate for Madden Versteeg, and Kane, as he was arrested in November 2002 in Boston after he grabbed a 34-year-old woman's buttocks in a restaurant.
Restaurant staff told him to leave, but Corvo returned, punched the woman and then kicked her when she fell to the ground, police said. Corvo was given a three-year suspended sentence after he pleaded guilty to assault.
If available for just a little wouldn't the 38 year old O'Donnell, a former NHL captain be a little BIT better fit?
He can move the puck for someone else
None of the defenseman names I've heard gets me too excited in terms of assisting this year's team with their goal of winning the Cup. Actually, all of the names listed would be potential healthy scratches for any playoff game. They all seem to have many of the same attributes that get Barker into trouble.....questionable decision making, maddeningly erratic offensively, too slow, not aggressive enough or some combination of all of these and a few other bad things too. Maybe the Hawks lose some salary but there has to be a better way. Plus Hendry hasn't been embarrassing himself out there by any stretch so there's no reason to panic and just make a deal so you can say you made one.
I still think the Kovy talks will rekindle once Atlanta gives up on asking for half a roster in return. They'd be stoopid to do nothing and watch him disappear for free in July and if they get say two Hawks players that have reasonable contracts and upside (insert any two of the rumored names you want) they'd be silly not to make the deal. Atlanta then gets a couple of legitimate NHL starters, the Hawks get a rent-a-scoring machine for the playoff run along with dumping at least 5-6 million a year in salary for next year, and both teams are happy.
There are a couple of other teams out there that make sense for the Hawks that are probably looking to deal too. Montreal and Toronto come immediately to mind. And after the past couple of days who knows what Sutter is thinking up in Calgary.
One name jumps out at me more then all the others listed and that's Aaron Ward of Carolina. Always plays real strong in playoffs, has Stanley Cups to his credit with Detroit and I believe Carolina. After watching him Saturday against the Hawks, he still moves well, has a nice hard shot from the point, is very intelligent it appears and plays with a big-time edge. Doubtful he would be too expensive to obtain too. Maybe a mid-level draft pick or a prospect.
As for the log-jam of forwards once Bolland gets back, I really wonder what Bowman plans on doing. Someone is going to have to sit out of this group or possibily a more advanced deal other then the McKee's, Exelby's, Wallin's and Ward's will take place. Time will tell. One thing is curious from this end and that is what teams will Kaberle of Toronto list as teams he's willing to go to. If he's available, trading let's say Versteeg or Barker plus a high draft pick should be considered.
In closing, welcome home Timmy. Look forward to seeing you tomorrow night AND winning the pool.
BK
I'm not sure that any of those 3 interest me. While I can't say I know tons about the way they play I have seen enough of them to know that I'm not sure they're better than anything we don't already have in house.
Hendry has shown himself to be very good at making the smart simple play, he's pretty good at making the first pass out of his own zone, and he's a pretty solid skater. Now, he's not the most physical player in the world but he also doesn't make a habit out of taking stupid penalties.
Exelby seems slow and has a tendency to perceive physicality for taking dumb penalties instead of playing the body clean and hard.
O'Donnel is getting up there in years and McKee doesn't seem any better than the guys we already have.
If Hawks management is looking to package Barker with a pick, I think it makes more sense to package Barker with a pick for someone who still has something left in the tank.
What about Hal Gill?
Hal Gill? 2.5 mil a year? lol you must be joking.. I mean, he's one of the slowest def in the league, leading in top 10 nhl turnovers, combine with a bad +/-. Who would like to add this to their team.. He's doing a fine job on the PK unit, but on the other aspects of the game, he's totally bad.
Just heard Bolland was skating between Sharp and Hossa in practice today and Ladd left practice early. Could be a ding as easily as a trade, but you never know with all the rumors flying around lately.
Ladd's a glue guy. Ken Chevyldayoff (sic?) spoke highly of the need for and value of glue guys in the last Hawkscast. I would hate to see them move Ladd... I really hope Bowman handles this expertly and we don't see a guy like XLB or some other castoff as the "final piece to this year's puzzle." Make a spash, Scotty! You've got the chips, now turn them into a cup and a perrennial cup-contender!! What I fear is we'll see some trades that cause us to say: WHAT? Maybe that's just the pessimist in me...
I know he's a RFA, but I really hope they don't move Ladd.
"injured."
Man, the options being discussed here don't inspire much. The only guy here to me worth a try is Nick Boynton. He's mean, nasty and sticks up for his mates. He reminds me a lot of Matt Walker in that sense. He's also a +16 for his career so it seems he is responsible as well. Many on the Ducks board liked him too.
But i like Paul The Fossil's thinking too. Let's use a few of our young assets to a get a young, hungry, tough d-man. The retread angle should be avoided if possible.
sucks.
Are you going on the 14th? I will be in my spot in C3.
I'll be there. I'll come and find you. Dean
Not sure I'm seeing the logic of these possible pickups -- they all seem to be defensemen who have been waived or are riding the bench, in most cases by teams way worse than the Hawks. Why would a team that's going for the Cup want to waste ice time on a D who can't even play for a lesser team? Makes no sense.
Now packaging Barker and a draft pick and one of the Hawks' surplus of young-ish forwards for a genuinely _good_ defenseman, somebody currently being played in an NHL team's top two pairs, that would make a ton of sense. And it seems entirely plausible -- if I'm the GM of a non-playoff team then something like the deal just described would be very rational at this point.
Agree 100%. These slow skating thugs may be "tough" but also take a ton of stupid penalties that never show up in a players value. I still can't understand why Jordan Hendry can't see more ice time. He seems like just as good an option as Jay McKee.
When you have Keith, Seabrook, Campbell and Hjalm playing almost 50 minutes a game what is the incremental value of a guy like Niedermayer vs. what you will have to pay to get him.
Any move I make has to free up cap space for next year and help us win this year which will be really tough. I just wish we could land a #1 goalie for the playoff run and beyond. Hawks would be hands down Cup favorites if they had a real #1 goalie with a .920 save % facing the 20 shots a game the Hawks D gives up.
I think he would be the best fit. Not a bad salary and is free (as long as no one else claims him). If we were then to trade Barker we wouldn't have to get a defenseman back to replace him. I'm not a big fan of Mckee or Exelby but I've liked what I have seen out of Boynton in the past.
I live near Pit and attend many games. Mckee is horrid, as is the Pens D as a whole. Every D they have has a major flaw. The last thing we need is a McKee type. He's a tad rugged if someone's already on the ground that he can catch. If there's any truth to this, for the Pens, there has to be more movemenet in trades than this. They need D desperately. Only Skoula is worse back there. For us, Mckee is a healthy scratch in every playoff game. Remember, playoffs of 2010 are not like those of 1974. Mckee can only be thought of in case we injure a bunch of guys. He's nowhere near the penalty killer Sopel is, so what does that tell you. Clearing the front of the net? When was the last time that you saw that done with the newer NHL rules? I will say this, Mckee, along with the rest of the tortoises mentioned, can cross check forwards and get you shorthanded.
According to CapGeek.com's Daily Tracker, Stan Bowman currently has enough cap space to add a contract with an annual value of just under $3 million.
This gives Bowman a good range of options, without having to shed salary.
Boynton has been waived by Anaheim, so he joins a list of value priced d-men that includes McKee (or Skoula depending who you believe), Exelby, Aaron Ward and Nik Wallin.
In the next two weeks, as backmarkers (Columbus, Edmonton, Toronto, Carolina) slide and if/when bubble teams falter, there may be more choices available. Bowman is smart to wait this out.
That guy is a two minute minor on skates.
As asked before;
If a d-man cannnot make a last place team's gameday roster consistently, and that team takes too many penalties, and lacks defense and speed; what makes you think a fast, first place team with a leaky goalie will want a slow d-man who takes too many penalties?
I agree with Swisscheese39. All this talk about pretty much an AHL player in Exelby is garbage. Blah Blah you hear all the improvements of his play. It's not hard to improve from being a goon defenceman to a bit better of a goon defenceman.
could not play as a number six in Toronto.
I don't care how tough anyone is IRF they can't skate and handle the puck like the hawk roster, there is no place for a downgrade to this level.
It killed me in the Toronto based for sharp rumor, with heaves coming out of my mouth, but look at the stupid one-sided hawk homer trade ideas that get aired here!
dave,didn't boynton play for boston? what does he bring to the table?i'd like to see them quit pussyfooting around and find someone already. really i wonder if they don't already have it with dustin byfuglien, move him back again, maybe he could be that guy that plays with a thorn in his ass back on defense.we're not the coaches or the gm. so i guess we'll sit back and wait and enjoy the ride!
Boynton is a Never Has Been.
was he was drafted before, and played a tad better than the over-hyped 1999 Hawk pick from,Steve McCarthy,star for Kootenay, who from the time of his pick on, was part of a hawk front office publicity con job about his virtually limitless potential as an offensiveman.
Every one from the hockey ignorant sports press down to the Hawk broadcast propagandists Tallon and Foley had annointed McCarthy the new great one, when it was clear he was not the answer.
I just used that time of chicago hockey as a lesson to what all must be aware of:
teams will go out of their way to get the press to sell their product with rose colored evaluations that mask the real truths as seen in the on-ice product.
Beware of any hype about guys in the system, former drafted early rounders until you see their play at the NHL club level.
Don't believe the hype!
Boyton didn't like the deal he was offered by the Washington caps and re-entered the draft the next year to get picked by the bruins. Always had good fantasy numbers but just never was a very goof NHL defenseman for the money he made....
Buff on D in the playoffs? Thorn in his @ss? Come on now. Have you seen his inability to skate backwards when the puck is turned over on the PP? A team with serious intentions on going for the cup does not compromise positions in house. They will go out and fill the needs they have a la last year. Buff belongs in front of the net.
Not liking what I am hearing about McKee...Honestly, I know nothing about him so I will defer to those in the know.
You have to figure Barker is gone but they should not trade him away for nothing. I would rather have Sopel than Barker which is saying something considering how awful he was last year. Barker has a lot of Buff in him where he picks his spots and chooses when he wants to show up. I did like his character and loyalty though when he stuck up for Sharp. But...bottom line is he is a liability and a turnover machine. The last thing we need is him providing chances for the opposition in the playoffs.
we are in deep trouble and have little chance winning any Cup.
I don't really think teams worry too much about helping teams in the other conference. If there's ever a chance it jumps up to bite them, that means both teams are in the finals. Most teams hope they have that "problem".
What language is that anyway?
--
hopefully all as usual b.s. ,a 3 player trade with 2 going that way for a player that age,hopefully the 2 we're sending are 2fans that play in a c league somewhere. no way cap or not would i waste 2 young assets with alot of upside on an aging player, how about moving buff back, would he be okay back there,it's a thought.i know they'll deal with the cap stuff accordingly, but if there going to trade youngins' hopefully its for someone that they could potentially re-sign in the offseason with some creative moving around of money. excelby is alittle youngerbut same with him a low end pick or a couplre of beer league players would be good enough. glad to see bolland back! who sits? looks like kovy possibly staying in hotlanta, why? 10million reasons?think stan will go out of the box and suprise everyone? wallin, don't know much about him,scotty like him? would he be his type of player when he was coach of the wings? lot of thoughts here! good day gentlemen!
Posted by sthsnc72 on Tue, 02/02/2010 - 08:04
* reply
hillbillyish huh!
so Pgh can't take much salary back unless they're moving it in a different deal. The 'guins are up against the cap about the same the 'Hawks are at present. So does that mean the 'Hawks would be sending back similar salary? I would think so.
hopefully all as usual b.s. ,a 3 player trade with 2 going that way for a player that age,hopefully the 2 we're sending are 2fans that play in a c league somewhere. no way cap or not would i waste 2 young assets with alot of upside on an aging player, how about moving buff back, would he be okay back there,it's a thought.i know they'll deal with the cap stuff accordingly, but if there going to trade youngins' hopefully its for someone that they could potentially re-sign in the offseason with some creative moving around of money. excelby is alittle youngerbut same with him a low end pick or a couplre of beer league players would be good enough. glad to see bolland back! who sits? looks like kovy possibly staying in hotlanta, why? 10million reasons?think stan will go out of the box and suprise everyone? wallin, don't know much about him,scotty like him? would he be his type of player when he was coach of the wings? lot of thoughts here! good day gentlemen!
It was reported on a local Pittsburgh site around 8:00 p.m. Monday that speculation was rampant that McKee was heading to Chicago in a three player deal
take it for whats its worth: http://insidepittsburghsports.com/story/fedotenko-a-liability-defensivel...
the fan reporter who mentions the deal says nothing more than what you mentioned above.
As I stated a little farther down the blog, this move doesn't sit right for me on the Pens side, unless they are making some bigger better defenseman trade elsewhere.
Mckee blocks a lot of shots, is smart and can answer physically.
I just see the Pens help the hawks with a guy who knows Malkin Crosby in practice so well....
They are finally healthy on D and I too cant see them making this deal but for the reason of them knowing what its like to be depleted back there!
Gonchar is constantly nicked up and Orpik and Eaton are injury prone!
I dont see a deal
Wiz, I agree. Why would the pens help a team that they have the potential of playing in the finals? I wouldn't help the pens that's for sure. Unless we are intending on trading Barker back I don't see them doing it.
Pitt seems like an odd dance partner for the above reasons, except they are in the East, so that somewhat mitigates the whole "see you down the line" worries.
But look at the pattern: legitimate rumors in the last four days that the Hawks are talking about McKee, O'Donnell, Wallin.
Physical, veteran, stay at home defensemen.
I have to believe Barker is going the other way.
I'd be shocked if he's still in uniform after the trade deadline. He does have upside but as everyone knows the Hawks have to cut salary and it's clear they favor Hjalmarsson over him. I'm hoping we can do a little better than the rumored names like McKee or O'donnel. Still holding out hope that Niedermayer is open to being moved to Chicago.
must come from fanboys in LA who one side everything!
The tough ex-NHL Captain ODonnell is, I believe, 38.
Barker has a future, with his upside and value undetermined and still a work in progress.
I think you can do better for him and a rental like ODonnell shouldn't be this expensive.
Wallin fits as a next year replacement because he can be signed for a lot less and fits the scheme but to the dismay of many here doesn't spit out fire and have concrete fists of the days past.
Sometime toughness comes in the form of rugged, fearless too.
If and when the Hawk giant cap launches start, I think the hawks will be looking towards acquistitions at lower cap levels with upside guys and vets who want one last chance to get their name on Lord Stanley's silver.
Tim, I know you were spot on 8 months ago with honing in on mckee to fit in the hawk scheme.
I just wonder if the Pittsburgh brass (who openly questioned the hawk big three signings of Toews Kane and Keith) are interested in giving a western contender backline back-up, no matter how healthy they are NOW. The Cup trek requires more that six defensemen usually, and maybe just maybe Mckee needs a little maintinence time right now and was given some to get mior issues healed, and is not the cue he is being shopped? (Especially not to a contender!)
The penguins are finally healthy on D and have 7 in number, might be a non issue Tim.