stevkrause

He'll still be in the locker room with the team in his new role and I would guess very visible around the rink... Anyone want to set the over under on how much weight he gains once the retirement becomes official? Ozzie strikes me as the kinda guy that is going to kinda enjoy the retired life and without hockey, fitness not being a top priority... not that that's a bad thing, the guy's earned it and I don't think he'll Keith Tckachuk it and gain 100lbs, but I wouldn't be surprised at all if Ozzie put on 20lbs...

Team gets a set cap, no ceiling, no basement, just every team has a set cap they HAVE to spend, then you write a bunch of random salaries equaling the total cap on pieces of paper, throw them into a hat and all your players draw their salary for the year... repeat the process each season new CBA - done. When do I get my check?

I think it was going to be Ozzie or Conklin the minute Vokoun and Theodore were signed... I don't think Holland even pursued anyone else, nor should he have with what else is out there, today will be Ozzie's day and Conks signing will be announced by Friday, that's my prediction...

I can see the reasoning, also with the fact that Ozzie is a soft spoken guy and never really seemed to be a "spotlight on me" kinda guy, so it makes sense in that respect, but it's still odd to me for such a storied career to end in such a fashion...

I can just see the stats now - Record on the road: 15GP 10W 3L 2SOL 2.12GAA .919SV% Record at home(JLA): 10GP 0W 10L 0SOL 9.88GAA .231 SV%

If this report is true, I'd have to imagine that's what it is - he's always been a relatively soft spoken guy and maybe he just didn't want all the attention, still seems like too small of a way for a guy to go out who had such a great career though... on any note, if this report is true, I'm VERY happy he's staying in the organization - if nothing else, the obvious impact he has had on Howard alone is reason to keep him around the locker room...

This is odd to me that they're doing a conference call and not a presser for this...

I still think this is to announce he's coming back, I think the contract details were so minute that he just "negotiated" the deal himself, and didn't even talk to his agent about it, which is why the agent didn't know: Holland: How do you feel Ozzie, honestly? Ozzie: Rehab went well and I feel rejuvenated and really think I can help this team Holland: 1 year deal, this amount is what we're offering, should I fax this to your agent? Ozzie: No need, money's not an issue, I just want to play, give me it, I'll sign it right here and, scene.

It's a media conf call (http://www.kuklaskorner.com), not a press conference... I think the complete opposite, I think they're announcing he's coming back for a year, if it were an actual presser, I would think retirement too, but a conf call usually means a contract signing... love it or hate it, it is what it is

I'm calling it now - that conference call with Osgood tomorrow is to announce he's coming back for one more year...

The perceived indecision is actually calculated, responsible decision making. He made pitches to a few free agents to fill the holes, without overpaying in a weak FA class, when plan A didn't work, he went with plans B and C - The same is now happening with the goalies... there is no rush, because teams have already filled their holes and with what's left, any of the goalies he chooses are basically going to be the same thing and fill the same roll. So far, I think we've had a fantastic off-season and I still see a trade taking place before the season begins.

If the two-face angle is what he's going for, then it works, but I think it's too drastic from one side to the next and doesn't flow very well... art looks good though... And to who said the inside looks bad, that's normal, the padding just isn't in yet...

Wait, Kovalev is still available

There's about a <1% chance of us trading with Columbus, for a litany of reasons... Back to the REAL topic. This really hurts Columbus, who was probably the most improved team in the off-season with their additions, they're probably going to need to trade (this will not happen with Detroit) to fill this hole, as there aren't really any viable options left out there in FA, although they could take a gamble on a guy like Kovalev... which may fit there... EDIT - There's also still Prospal, Miettinen and Frolov, so I guess it's just a matter if they're willing to take a gamble on any of these guys, they could still fill this hole via FA I suppose

Grigorenko's rights for Weber's rights, straight up!

I agree... if something with Doughty or Weber fell through with negotiations, those are guys you make a major play for if it presents itself, but I don't see him pursuing a trade at D at this point... With that said, I wouldn't say only Kindl is expendable... if a player like Weber became an option, Ericsson, Stuart and maybe even to a lesser degree, Kronwall, become potential trade-able assets, just due to the rarity of the talent level you get back in Weber... This is all hypothetical anyway though, and I don't see anything materializing of all of this, so it's probably a moo point anyway (It's like a cow's opinion. It just doesn't matter. It's moo.)

haha, ok.

Hasek's SECOND groin injury (just like this is Osgood's SECOND significant groin injury) occurred in 03-04, you know, when he came back and caused the drama with CuJo? Missed most of 04, then 05, no hockey, 06 with Ottawa (the year with Ottawa was rehab in my mind AND he tweaked the groin again there too) = 3 years. You do remember that there was hockey after 2002, right? and that he was a part of the team AGAIN from 2006-2008, right? or does that not register?

If it had been the Panthers that traded for Lebda, along with the moves they made, it would have been the royal flush of "What, huh, what?!!?" off-seasons...

That is my biggest concern about him as well... people seem to ignore the fact that groin injuries are no joke, even the Hasek defense doesn't work, because it took him 3 failed seasons and tons of rehab before he was back and even then, he was 80% of what he had been... needing those 3 years to heal doesn't help us THIS season... I'll pull for him like crazy if he's brought back and HOPE for the best, but it will scare the crap out of me too...

:beerbuddy:

I'll see your Kopecky and Jovanovski and raise you a 4yr/14m Scottie Upshall contract

That is correct, although DiPietro will probably be out for the season by week 2 anyway As I've said all along, I'm not in the Hudler hater majority and think he could still very well turn it around, he just seems like the most likely trade candidate and would fill a couple needs of NY

Osgood's numbers are good as well... and as I've already stated, if his health wasn't as big of a concern, I'd be all for bringing him back... that's a bad example, if anything it just proves my point... Hudler has 1 year on his deal, Nabby has one year on his deal, we need a backup, NY needs scoring and cap to hit the floor... it makes sense. Also, this isn't the NFL, trades in the NHL are a COMPLETELY different animal, so that's a poor comparison too... I have zero idea where you're going with this...