Hockey Trade Rumors

Since I moved to SC 3 yrs. ago, I’ve been out of the loop somewhat on the NHL since there is little to no coverage down here. I’ve tried like hell to follow my team this year and what little I’ve seen has made me sick to my stomach. Where can I begin?

The Staff— Why can’t anyone coach these guys? This team needs a drill seargent, not a coach. Stirling should’ve stuck with the kids in the AHL or ECHL. It seems that there are certain guys in the locker room getting more respect than the guy in charge on the bench. I don’t agree with that. We need a Ken Hitch***** kinda guy who doesn’t take crap from anybody. Whoever is running the PP/PK units should be tossed. The PP tries to run the same 2 plays constantly and are easy to defend. The PK just flat out sucks. There is no reason the opposition can get their PP set up and going within the first 15 seconds after WINNING the face off. No one attacks the puck. They just let them get set and hope the puck hits them for a block or hope DP is awake in goal. I give the coaching staff a D- overall. This Shaw guy seems to be trying to make the best of a crappy situation so I won’t fail him yet.

The Goalies— DP, the first goalie ever to be drafted at #1 overall… you hear that garbage every game you watch. If I could get Milbury’s vacated job I’d have his butt on a plane to anywhere that wants him. The boy needs to learn how to play like Billy Smith, not Denis Potvin. If he could make saves like Hasek, Turco, or Luongo, I wouldn’t care about his wandering. I’d gladly hand him to FLA to get Luongo back. I’m sure DP has the skills to be a puckhandling goalie like Brodeur, but it don’t help when you give up 2 or 3 softee goals a game. I’m sure his GAA would go down if he let the D-men do their job so he can do his. As for Snow, I like him, he’s a good guy, he works hard, tries hard when he’s allowed to play, doesn’t complain…but he should. I’d like to see him try to take DP’s spot as #1, might wake Rick up in the process. Dubie seems competent and should be considered as a reliable backup for now.

The Defense—(AKA Swiss Cheese) My God do they suck. Thank the Lord Ninnimaa is gone. He was worthless here. This team needs to re-do their D. Zhitnik has been OK, but never impressive. I’m not sure if I’d make him trade bait yet. Sopel has been a huge dissappointment to me. He was supposed to fill the PP QB position. He was progressing real well in VAN. Key word=was. I watch him commit at least 3 or 5 bad giveaways on any given day, and seems to always fan on the puck when he tries to clear the zone on the PK. Has he even scored a damn goal this season? Lukowich to me has been a waste of ice time for kids like Gervais who want to be in the NHL. I don’t care what his +/- was when he was on TB. All I know is if you play D and are not really much of a scorer, you do what you gotta do go get 2 points for the team as a whole. He blows goats. Along with Tomi Pettinen (Big guy, small game), and Joel Bouchard(This is what, the 12th team he’s been traded to?), they serve no real purpose. Martinek and Campoli have been the only bright spots on the blueline which is sad because they probably get the least minutes. Marty seems to be coming along good since his injury and Campoli has just been a good surprise with his offensive thinking. I’d keep both of them, and they don’t make much money either.

The Offense—If I win Powerball tomorrow, I will buy Yashin’s contract out personally and end his, the team’s, the fan’s, and my misery. I said from day 1 Giving him a 10 yr. $90M deal was a deal written by a crackhead. Or in this case an overstressed GM holding a blank paycheck with enough caffeine, nicotine, and sugar in his system to kill a horse that day. I’ve heard many things about trading some of these guys. There are certain guys I’d try like hell to keep. Blake, Bates, Asham, Hunter, (even Parrish)are all keepers. You can tell they want to win. My favorite surprise this year has been Eric Godard’s play as of late. For a guy who usually plays 1-3 shifts a game only to fight to be played somewhat regulary and some PK time he has been adjusting well and has shown some actual scoring instincts. I couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw him go from a stand still to full throttle down the ice after someone, I expected to see him skate like Yashin ( like skating on wet cement) but he showed some real speed in his stride. I honestly feel he will never put up numbers like Bertuzzi but can learn to play the role of big bad power foward. Kvasha needs to be dumped, he just doesn’t seem to care. Weinhandl had such a great year on Modo overseas last year it’s sad to see such a reversal. Maybe he needs to play with the Sedin twins or Forsberg to bring out his best. York ain’t a bad player and seems to be coming out of his year long slump, but he’s decent trade bait. Everyone knows Yash needs to go and he shouldn’t be wearing the “C” either. Your play, passion and drive earns you a Captaincy, not the size of your paycheck. I’d keep Miro only if the Isles can pick up a quick and skilled playmaker to play with him, otherwise I’d dump him as well. I feel a Brad Richards might be a decent fit. Or perhaps Olli wouldn’t mind coming back to the Island. I do feel the Sound Tigers are holding a not too distant bright future for us though. Guys like Bergenheim and Nokelainen bring a lot of hustle and heart in their game. Wyatt Smith has played OK given his limited role as well as Colley prior to breaking his own neck trying to steamroll someone. They do need to dump Yashin and get a credible 1st line center that can WIN a faceoff, especially when it’s in a do or die situation. Also, given the weakness on defense and the PK, maybe a solid 2-way guy or a strictly defensive foward.

I don’t know, I’m just trapped in an area indifferent to the NHL with no one to rant to. I love my team and this sport and it kills me to see them play this crappy with those jokers on Broadway having a banner year. I never thought I’d see an Islander/Ranger game when the Isles just don’t bother to show up. To see that constantly bothers me even more and speaks volumes about the character of this team. To only have 2 of the 5 guys on the ice playing to win, will never get you to the playoffs, let alone return the Cup back to the Island. It’s disgraceful to see the demise of this once proud franchise.