eva unit zero

I will be at the Michigan/LSSU game tonight. Also...posting from my new lappy!

I would have addressed Datsyuk, but Dats is a more skilled goal scorer who thinks pass first, while Havlat is more of a shoot-first guy without significantly different goal scoring output. That and you already stated you felt Dats belonged on your list not because of his actual output but because if he took more of a shoot-first attitude, he'd be a 50-goal scorer. It's like I said in the 'greatest goal scorer' thread, when looking at a guy's goal scoring numbers you have to take into account how his playmaking abilities factor in; i.e. a 30-goal scorer with 50 assists is probably a better goal scorer than a 30-goal scorer with 30 assists, but because his playmaking makes more of a difference the goal numbers are similar. I'm not going to address the underlying problem of ranking the best players by who has scored a few highlight goals, because I have better things to do.

Because his value is high right now, but his cost is increasing rapidly and they might look to capitalize on it now and get cheaper pieces that could serve as complementary pieces in a rebuilding process rather than get long-term prospects or picks next year or maybe less if his 08-09 season is disappointing in any fashion. Because even though Shaq is not what he was, with his size and skill he is still a matchup problem for any team but Chicago, as the only player who has consistently been able to cover Shaq in single coverage the past few years is Ben Wallace. Having Shaq on the Suns forces the opponent to either double Shaq and let the quick offense run by Nash have a man advantage, or to put Shaq in single coverage and completely concede the post. Marion was a small price to pay if it works out as expected. Because they couldn't afford to keep him, and those four prospects together are more likely to help in the long-term than Santana by himself. For a team with money problems and no hopes of contending in the immediate future, dropping a single high-priced player for several high-caliber prospects who can help a great deal a few years down the line is a good move. If Atlanta doesn't expect to be able to retain Hossa, and their chances of making/winning playoffs looks slim, They will likely deal Hossa for a blue chip prospect or two. If they expect to not sign Hossa, and have a great shot at the playoffs, they will deal Hossa for roster players who can help right away. If they feel trading one first line center will get them several solid players and prospects to aid in the rebuilding process alongside guys liek Weiss, Norton, and Bouwmeester...they'll do it. Because Bert at last check had been one of the most physically dominant players in the league, and that was the only thing the Wings really lacked up front. The price was cheap; all the Wings gave up was a projected depth forward and a couple picks.

To address the point about Havlat... In his BEST season, he was exactly a pont per game in 2003-04. That would tie Olli Jokinen for 21st place if he did it this season. Not exactly 'top ten' material. As far as his goal scoring prowess, he scored a career-high 31 goals in 68 games that same season, pace for 37 goals on 82 games. Only in his injury shortened 2005-06 campaign, where he scored 9 goals in 18 games, did he best that pace, and even then only slightly. Many other guys, Crosby included, have bested Havlat's career mark multiple times. Crosby has scored 36 and 39 goals in his first two seasons, and was on pace for 36 again this season. Whether you think much of his goal scoring abilities or not...Crosby is a better goal scorer than Havlat. This is the third season in his career Nash has been scoring at 40+ goal pace...but he is one of the most one-dimensional players in the league in that he is not only a defensive liability, but he also is a poor passer. Goals, sure, he's one of the better scorers. But overal offensive top players does not include Nash.

Hamilton did not sell 14,000 season tickets. Hamilton sold ZERO season tickets. A partial deposit is NOT a sold ticket, no matter what the Anti-Nashville slappies will say. Also...Bettman vetoed nothing. Since there was never a binding agreement, due to Balsillie's refusal to put his money where his mouth is, there was never anything for Bettman to veto. It's easy to say 'Hockey would be better if Nashville had moved to Hamilton, but Bettman prevented that' except that there was no realistic chance of it happening as Balsillie wasn't willing to put down a single cent without a guarantee he could move the Preds IMMEDIATELY. The league's bylaws do not allow for that scenario when a team is purchased. Therefore, no sale to Balsillie was possible. As far as expansion is concerned, you clearly do not understand how expansion works. It isn't "We're going to add teams in these cities, let's go find us some owners" it's "We're going to add this many teams, and owners are interested in putting a team in these cities. Let's figure out which are the best fit." Only two northern markets have been rejected for expansion in Bettman's tenure; Hamilton and Portland, both of which had arena plans that relied entirely on arenas that were older, smaller arenas with worse sight lines, few (if any) luxury boxes, and third-party ownership with unfavorable leases. Had the Hamilton expansion bid involved a new arena, there would be a Hamilton team looking at its ten-year anniversary soon. And finally...Bettman has been in office 15 years. Since you clearly are slow at math, 15 is LESS than 20, not more.

But all of the mentioned players benefit from their linemate's presence. If you think Z or Dats, or Crosby, Malkin, etc. would definitely be as dominant offensively if you replaced their elite linemate with a Mikael Samuelsson or another secondary scoring forward who is not capable of elite-level offense, if they played the same kind of minutes, well...

He's so fast, he causes an illusionary double that's almost as effective as the real thing?

If we're judging by raw talent, then Alexei Kovalev belongs in the top five. I personally judge the best offensive threats by who actually creates the most offense. Alfredsson was the best in PPG on the line in 2005-06. Spezza held the honer last year. In fact, this is the third year running where Spezza's PPG has been better than Heatley's on the same line. Alfredsson has beaten Heatley and Spezza each twice, and Heatley bested Alfredsson once and Spezza not at all. In fact, 2006-07 is only the second time (2001-02 the first) in his six year career that Heatley has outproduced Alfredsson on a per-game basis. Combine with Alfredsson's superior durability, and it's not hard to call Alfie the better offensive player. Heatley has outproduced Spezza only twice in their careers, with Spezza taking the last three seasons. If anyone on that line is riding his linemates' coattails the past few years, it's Heatley.

The best way to look at a list like this is the following; what players have the top-end skill to create opportunites for goal scoring, and the ability to finish those kind of plays off? It's not just about points, but all of the best players in this respect will obviously be among the scoring leaders. So I'm going to start by listing those with 1.00 or better points per game, as well as any other player who has been mentioned along with their rank in PPG. 1) Daniel Alfredsson, Ottawa 1.46 2) Jason Spezza, Ottawa 1.39 3) Sidney Crosby, Pittsburgh 1.37 4) Dany Heatley, Ottawa 1.37 5) Henrik Zetterberg, Detroit 1.35 6) Alexander Ovechkin, Washington 1.33 7) Evgeni Malkin, Pittsburgh 1.30 8) Vincent Lecavalier, Tampa Bay 1.30 9) Jarome Iginla, Calgary 1.21 10) Ilya Kovalchuk, Atlanta 1.18 11) Joe Thornton, San Jose 1.18 12) Martin St.Louis, Tampa Bay 1.18 13) Pavel Datsyuk, Detroit 1.15 14) Marc Savard, Boston 1.13 15) Mike Ribeiro, Dallas 1.12 16) Marian Gaborik, Minnesota 1.12 17) Mike Richards, Philadelphia 1.11 18) Paul Stastny, Colorado 1.07 19) Ryan Getzlaf, Anaheim 1.03 20) Mats Sundin, Toronto 1.02 21) Olli Jokinen, Florida 1.00 49) Marian Hossa, Atlanta .89 65) Rick Nash, Columbus .82 83) Martin Havlat, Chicago .78 Now that we've established who doesn't even belong in this conversation based on this season's performance (Hossa, Havlat and Nash, for those of you who missed it) we can concentrate on the 20 guys who DO belong. The toughest task will be gauging how much of a player's individual success comes from those he plays with. You have to assume that Malkin, Spezza, Heatley, Datsyuk, and St. Louis benefit from the presence of their team's go to guy. However, you have to also assume that the go-to guys on those teams-Crosby, Alfredsson, Zetterberg, and Lecavalier-benefit as well. We will award PPG penalties to represent what an elite linemate brings as follows: A penalty of -.12 PPG will be applied for every linemate you have on the list. This applies twice only for Alfredsson/Spezza/Heatley as they are the only complete line represented. This is done to represent the positive effect of playing with an elite offensive player instead of a simply 'good' one, thus the relatively minor point value for the penalty. This works out to about ten extra points on the season that a player will score with another elite talent playing with him. This results in the following top-21 ranking. Of this top-21 list, there are seven players who were not mentioned on any posted list. I have them in bold. I have also separated the list into five tiers of guys who are similar skill levels where the rankings might not be perfecty accurate when done this way. Also included is the player's 82-game point value at the adjusted PPG. 1) Alexander Ovechkin, Washington 1.33, 109pt 2) Sidney Crosby, Pittsburgh 1.25, 103pt 3) Henrik Zetterberg, Detroit 1.23, 101pt 4) Daniel Alfredsson, Ottawa 1.22, 100pt 5) Jarome Iginla, Calgary 1.21, 99pt 6) Ilya Kovalchuk, Atlanta 1.18, 97pt 7) Evgeni Malkin, Pittsburgh 1.18, 97pt 8) Vincent Lecavalier, Tampa Bay 1.18, 97pt 9) Joe Thornton, San Jose 1.18, 97pt 10) Jason Spezza, Ottawa 1.15, 94pt 11) Marc Savard, Boston 1.13, 93pt 12) Dany Heatley, Ottawa 1.13, 93pt 13) Mike Ribeiro, Dallas 1.12, 92pt 14) Marian Gaborik, Minnesota 1.12, 92pt 15) Mike Richards, Philadelphia 1.11, 91pt 16) Paul Stastny, Colorado 1.07, 88pt 17) Martin St.Louis, Tampa Bay 1.06, 87pt 18) Ryan Getzlaf, Anaheim 1.03, 84pt 19) Pavel Datsyuk, Detroit 1.03, 84pt 20) Mats Sundin, Toronto 1.02, 84pt 21) Olli Jokinen, Florida 1.00, 82pt The thing I found most interesting? Heatley was ranked as the top offensive weapon for Ottawa on every list except one, despite the fact that he is third on his line in points and assists (total and per game) and second in goals (total and per game). If he's better offensively than his linemates, shouldn't he be outscoring them? The same comment could be applied to Datsyuk, who ended up ranked higher than the more prolific Zetterberg frequently. Also baffling was the complete omission of Spezza, who currently sits second in the league in points per game behind only Alfredsson. Interesting fact: No players from a team with multiple representatives did not play regularly with the other representative(s) from their team. Helpful actually, since I don't have to then try and apply separate modifiers for those who don't. Some may bash this cold statistical representation..but ultimately who creates the most offense is a tangible figure and I think ten extra points on a full season from playing with an elite linemate is fairly accurate. EDIT: A more comprehensive list using a greater sampling of players might abandon the -.12 penalty for a penalty of 10% of your linemates' production, which could cause some shifting in where certain players end up. For example, Zetterberg would be closer to Crosby as Malkin's PPG is significantly higher than Datsyuk's, while Holmstrom and Sykora are both at .73 PPG. Alfredsson, Heatley, and Spezza would drop further under such a system, as all three score better than 1.20 PPG and would thusly impose a greater difference than the arbitrary .12 I used earlier.

I see three possible combinations that would serve our needs and be realistic. Unfortunately, none of them inclue Hossa. They are all potential situations with teams that look to be missing the playoffs, and would cost no core roster players. Obviously, without knowing the NHL GMs involved, I cannot definitively state the trade value the involved players has, simply what I think might be a fair trade given the needs of the team in question. Pavel Kubina, Maple Leafs and Mike Comrie, Islanders This deal provides us with a big, physical, two-way defenseman with a big shot. It also adds a guy who is a proven goal scorer and capable setup man to our second unit. Kubina's contract is an albatross and Toronto would love to dump it off. Comrie is a UFA at season's end. Both players could potentially be retained depending on other contracts and cap movement. This deal would likely cost the most to swing, bnut would have the best long-term potential results. Possible trade cost: Emmerton/McGrath, Helm/Andersson, Quincey, Meech/Lebda, a high-round pick and a mid-round pick to acquire both players. Sergei Fedorov and Adam Foote, Blue Jackets A single deal to acquire both players would shore up our secondary scoring, give us that PP point man, add physicality on the blueline, and vastly improve the team defensively. Both players are in the final year of their contract, and their UFA status is likely to offset the division rival tag and allow Detroit to acquire them without giving up significant assets. Possible trade cost: Emmerton/McGrath, Meech/Lebda, and two mid-round picks to acquire both players. Mike Cammalleri and Brad Stuart, Kings Another single-team deal, it gives us a versatile scoring forward who is young and capable of playing all forward positions. It also gives us a decent defenseman who can play competently in both ends, albeit Stuart is more of a depth acquisition than Foote or Kubina. Stuart is a UFA after this season, and Cammalleri after next season, so that brings down the trade cost somewhat. This deal has better long-term potential than Fedorov/Foote, but is not as much of a 'now' addition and would also likely cost the most. Possible trade cost: Hudler, Emmerton/McGrath, Quincey, and 1-2 high-round picks to acquire both players. If it can be fit under the cap with a contract for Comrie and Kubina's $5, that is what I would do. If not, I would make the swap for Feds and Foote. If the second deal can't happen due to Columbus playoff aspirations, I would explore the third possibility.

I love it. People rip on Bettman all the time for not accepting a lowball offer from ESPN...and then turn around and say ESPN was bad for hockey even when they showed it. So, what's being said is "Bettman sucks, because he stuck up for hockey rather than keeping hockey on ESPN where it would be truly marginalized."

Of the 14 forwards, 7 defensemen, and two goaltenders: Cleary, Draper, Maltby, Drake, Downey, Ellis at forward. Rafalski, Chelios, Lebda, Meech on defense. Osgood in net. That's 11 of 23 players. Now let's compare with the Euros on the team. Zetterberg, Datsyuk, Holmstrom, Hudler, Filppula, Samuelsson, Franzen, Kopecky up front. Lidstrom, Kronwall, Lilja on defense. Hasek in net. 12 of 23 players, including five of the top six forwards, two of the top three defenseman, and one goalie who plays half the time. I would say Euros have been by far more responsible for the team's success. Not that the team wouldn't be served by getting a big, strong power forward in the top six...I just don't think you can say that it has to be a North American player to have a positive effect. This was true over a decade ago, when European players were still new to the league, and had grown up never expecting to compete for the Cup. But the majority of European players in the league right now have been scouted at young ages and drafted at 18, often highly, and come over within a couple years of being drafted. These are players who have grown up in Europe with their eventual goal of competing in the NHL, and for the Cup. No player decides he doesn't care about championships, so if their goal is the play NHL..they are dreaming of winning a Cup. Russian leagues pay just as much or more for Russian players...yet players who go to Russia over the NHL are rare, and often a result of a massive contract disparity coupled with being expendable and/or easily replaceable such as Markov, Yashin, Morozov. There is not a goalie in the league who is an upgrade over Osgood and is acquirable with less than a 5m cap hit. Not one. So if you want to upgrade over Osgood, you had better be prepared to wave bye-bye to one or more of Kronwall, Cleary, Datsyuk, and Zetterberg and replacing them with one or more of Ellis, Hartigan, Quincey, and McGrath. Do you SERIOUSLY think that upgrading over Osgood would make enough of a difference to offset that kind of loss of a key player? I don't. Hopefully Holland doesn't either.

My first reaction upon seeing Schneider's statement was "What an ass." Then I applied logical thinking and the result was that Schneider had to say that. Like it or not, he's a Duck. He's going to make a comment based on siding with his teammate Giguere's comments about how Homer was giving him the business because that's what teammates do. Schneider was particularly the right guy for the comment because he played with Homer the past few seasons and has had goals called back in similar situations.

I don't know if you want to call out two of the best clutch playoff performers of the past fifteen years for their lack of desire to win the Cup. Oh, and BTW...here is two separate examples of what Fedorov has said in regards to the Cup: "Everyone on the team wants to do this, to win the Cup, and you know why? Because it is going to be fun!" "We've been through it before, we've won it a couple times. It's something that gives you the most satisfaction, because the job is done and you become a world champion, a world-class team. Those kinds of words or phrases give you most satisfaction. To me, it's simple -- the job is done for the season and we can go and rest."

All I could think of when I watched that was "Parros must have that mustache for comic relief...because he looks f***in stupid." Then I watched it again and I saw that Downey probably had the upper hand, but it was a pretty weak fight.

Did anyone else notice thr factual errors in that article? Such as: "In 1995-96, Osgood shared the Jennings Trophy for fewest goals allowed with Mike Vernon. Two seasons later, when Detroit won its first Stanley Cup in 42 years, he spent most of the postseason riding the bench while his partner won the playoff MVP award." Because we all know 1996-97 is TWO seasons after 1995-96. Or this one: " Four years later -- two in New York and two in St. Louis -- Osgood signed with Detroit as a free agent following the lockout." Except that Osgood spent one full season in NYI, split the next one between NYI and STL, and one more full season in STL...for a total of THREE seasons. He was unsigned by an NHL team for the lockout year.

For those of you claiming Fedorov can't score... Fedorov is currently ranked 132nd in points per game among forwards. While he is a shadow of his former self offensively, that kind of offense makes him a top five forward. Fedorov's offense is not far fro mwhat he used to put up in the regular season; he's on pace for 48 points over 82 games; he would often score under 70 in his prime. He's still an elite defensive player, and provides secondary scoring and a shot from the point on the PP. If he can be had cheaply, there's no reason not to make the deal for Fedorov. A Fedorov deal would be much cheaper than acquiring a rental defenseman like Blake, and fits the Wings' needs better. Sergei Fedorov. Secondary scoring, shut-down defense, heavy slapshot. Oh, and he's always produced in the playoffs. If he can be had for a mid-level prospect and/or a mid-round pick...why not?

If Kubina can fit under the cap with the upcoming raises, what is the problem?

Kaberle is the one player the Leafs SHOULDN'T explore trading. He's their best defenseman and one of the best in the league, and he's not paid what he's worth. Compare with McCabe, Kubina, and Gill, who are all paid more than they are worth. If Kaberle is available, Holland should inquire. Because he would be the PERFECT acquisition.

I'm going to try and think of one active player for each team who, if possible, is no longer with that club. Ideally it will be a 'face of the franchise' type of player. Anaheim - Paul Kariya Atlanta - Ilya Kovalchuk Boston - Joe Thornton Buffalo - Dominik Hasek Calgary - Gary Roberts Chicago - Jeremy Roenick Colorado - Adam Foote Columbus - Rick Nash Dallas - Richard Matvichuk Detroit - Brendan Shanahan Edmonton - Ryan Smyth Florida - Roberto Luongo Los Angeles - Mattias Norstrom Minnesota - Manny Fernandez Montreal - Sheldon Souray Nashville - Tomas Vokoun New Jersey - Scott Niedermayer NY Islanders - Roman Hamrlik NY Rangers - Henrik Lundqvist Ottawa - Zdeno Chara Philadelphia - Rod Brind'Amour Pittsburgh - Mark Recchi St.Louis - Chris Pronger San Jose - Mike Rathje Tampa Bay - Pavel Kubina Toronto - Mats Sundin Vancouver - Ed Jovanovski Washington - Alexander Ovechkin

Kubina is probably the best defenseman who might be available. He's good offensively, capable defensively and physical. He has not played well for Toronto the past few years, but has been playing well this season and has performed well in the postseason. If we can get Kubina for the same kind of assets that would get us Blake (likely), and we can fit it under the cap (possible depending on Cleary, Flip, and Hank), why WOULDN'T we want to do it? That's the real question.

Setting up a goal has no direct relationship with one's ability to score goals. But that misses my point; that if you are using a player's percentage of his team's goals scored, you HAVE to consider how his playmaking affects the team's totals because otherwise a sniper who is also a very good playmaker will be hurt by the metric when compared to a player who has the same supporting cast and scoring ability but does not have the playmaking skills. If both players score 50 goals, but one has 100 assists and one has 25...then percentage of total team goals scored does NOT accurately represent the scorer's ability as a direct result of the playmaking skills or lack thereof.

At the beginning of the year he was on my first 'all-star' roster for the East. People tore into me big time for that one.

I want Kubina or Pitkanen. Kubina would be a great pickup and would do very well as a support player in Detroit's system. Pitkanen has all the tools to be an very solid blueliner, is very good with the puck, and is physical. If we can get Kubina for a reasonable trade and find a way to fit him under the cap for the next few seasons, that would be great. I would probably be more ready to give up a decent prospect for Pitkanen, as he is young and damn good. Kubina could probably be had fairly inexpensively; he's having a solid season for the first time since joining the Leafs, but the organization and fans are so sick of him they will likely look to move his 5m by the deadline for whatever they can get. I would hope that Meech/Quincey, McGrath/Emmerton, and a 3rd-4th round pick should be able to get either of those guys.

Fixed it.