The Purse Strings Open; Chris Stewart Signs Two-year Deal

The Avalanche offseason news has been fairly lackluster and coupled with radio silence on contract negotations, hand wringing commenced over unsigned RFAs Peter Mueller and Chris Stewart which bled into rumor and speculation.

The primary contender was that Stan Kroenke was cheaping out on us all to focus on his soccer, NBA and NFL holdings. The Avalanche were the redheaded step child so to speak. This ignored the fact that the Avalanche still needed - and do still need - to hit the salary cap floor of $43.whatever million.

Well, now that the team is in his son's hands, the Stewart signing gets done. Coincidence? I think so. But don't let that stop you from feeling otherwise.

It's a two-year deal worth $6M which is some decent scratch. I think Stewart can consider his rookie season a success now, eh? I like the guy and I have no expectation of him regressing over the next couple seasons so I'm happy.

And since I'm happy, aren't you all happy? And if so, maybe we should all do a little dance.

Mueller? Mueller?

Why I'm Right and You're Wrong

With everybody chiming in on the Kovalchuk contract rejection saga, I felt compelled to crawl out of my cave and share a few thoughts.

First
I don't see how this drama can be framed in the light of "big market team vs small market team". Atlanta offered the same dollars to Kovalchuk and he passed. If the small market team was willing to pony up, doesn't that immediately quash the "small-market" complaints?

Second
Elite players will always get paid and often it will be at the expense of lower-tier talent. Is that the fault of the elite players? Only as much as they contribute to the supply-demand aspect of the market. So ask yourself this: Is it an elite player's fault that he's elite?

Third
Think the Devils ownership is upset at Lucky Lou for basically saying he felt dirty about the contract? Or did Lou know something we didn't at the time he said it?

Fourth
Quit blaming the league for rejecting the contract after the Devils held a presser. They were within their rights to deny it when they did and they had no part in scheduling the Devils conference. There's plenty to blame the league for so save your energy for the legit ones.

Fifth
I'm more than happy for teams to find a way to keep their squads together. But maybe teams need to think more Mike Richards and less Marian Hossa.

Sixth
I like Ilya Kovalchuk. He's got his faults but there's just something about him I'm drawn to. Maybe it was the finger point to Crosby which I personally found hilarious. Even after he single-handedly sunk Team Canada in the World Championships, I couldn't hate him. But now that I've heard his name so damn much, I'm starting to get sick of him.

Final
Why are we all getting worked up about exactly how a millionaire will have his contract structured to get his millions? I enjoy the discussions but don't look at it as tragedy, look at it as farce. It's more enjoyable that way.


*And the reason for the headline is a joke and the person who inspired it will know who they are.

Farewell Faithful Friends

As I sit here waiting for a Michael Jackson disc to burn before my roadtrip (what, you don't dance while driving?), I remembered one thing I wanted to do and that's bid farewell to some of our departed Avalanche players.

In a shocking development, it appears that the following players will be walking away from the Avs and - hopefully - to another team some time before October:
Marek Svatos
Brett Clark
Ruslan Salei
Stephane Yelle
Chris Durno
Darcy Tucker

Marek Svatos
It was all over for him once Pierre Turgeon was out of town. After a shocking 32 goal rookie season, Svatos ended up with just 62 goals over the next four seasons, including a dismal seven goal effort last season.

I have a soft spot for the little players in the game and will always miss seeing the solid checks Svatos could throw when necessary. It was rare to see Svatos get knocked down without seeing him get back up and lay a shoulder into somebody.

I hope he lands somewhere where he can find a similar fit as he had with Turgeon.

Brett Clark
Many feel that Brett Clark's only redemption is his shot blocking statistics. In light of that, they also felt his salary was a vast overpayment. Of course, it could very well be these same people that are looking to sign Anton Volchenkov at a UFA-inflated salary because...he blocks a lot of shots.

But the fact remains that Clark is a 2nd-pair defenseman at best who is prone to flopping as opposed to actually playing defense. I'm not sad to see him go though it does reduce the Saskatchewan connections for the Avalanche down to zero. At least until they re-sign Tyler Weiman (come on, it's totally gonna happen....)

I'm sure he'll find a team looking to fill out their depth chart and hopefully it's not at Jeff Finger money so he doesn't become a potential pariah.

Ruslan Salei
He was a beast right after the trade that brought him to the Avalanche but after his castration, his play really dropped off.

He is getting up there in age but I'd be surprised if some team didn't take a flyer on him as a depth defenseman. It might not be until injuries start piling up during the season though.

Stephane Yelle
Ol' Yeller had a short go-round this time with the team but it was great seeing him in an Avalanche jersey again. He may be old but he still had fire in his eyes when he was on the ice.

It might be time for Yelle to hang 'em up and join the Avalanche in a coaching or development capacity. One can hope anyways.

Chris Durno
Next.

Darcy Tucker
Bye.

Free Agent Frenzy - and My Dog - Await

We're less than 12 hours away from hockey Christmas and I can't help but be underwhelmed in anticipation. This year, it really feels like all that truly matters as far as splashes is where Ilya Kovalchuk will wind up.

Sure, Marty Turco and Evgeni Nabokov are out there and that's interesting, but they lack the panache of a name like Kovalchuk. I mean, is anybody really concerned about where Olli Jokinen might sign?

Our affable Adrian Dater has reported that the Avalanche will 100% not pursue Ilya as they continue to focus on building from within. And I'm ok with that.

At the same time, I agree with Jibs that the team is sorely lacking on the left wing. Peter Mueller looked great in the short time we spent with him and I've got a mad man crush on T.J. Galiardi, but that's not a left wing lineup that strikes fear into people.

Of course, you could look at the stats and determine that while Ilya scores a lot of goals, it all balances out in the end. Besides, the guy has only won one playoff game in his career so he must be pretty terrible.

But think of the wonders that a name like Kovalchuk could do for marketing this young squad. Or at least marketing potential. Whether the crew could pull it off or not is a whole different story. But you always pay for potential, right?

I'm happy to continue to let this squad build from within if that's what the organization chooses to do. And if by some stroke of magic it turns out that Kovalchuk joins the Avs, I'll be happy with that too.

Really, I've made this a win-win for myself and those are rare so you have to savor in them.

Tomorrow, when the frenzy opens, I will be headed down the ol' #7 and #4 and #13 highways as I weave my way back to my home town of Ponteix. See, I work for an amazing company and we've been given not only tomorrow - Canada Day - off but they tossed in Friday as well as a bonus.

And I figured what better time than a 4-day weekend to head back and visit my dog. I mean family. Family.

So while the first deals start to trickle in, I'll be cruising on the open roads. I should be arriving right around 3:00 ET which I presume is around the time Kovy signs. But of course, I'll have to play with the dog for a while first.

Hockey may be entertaining, but nothing beats man's best friend.

Avalanche Draft Joey Hishon with 17th Pick

So the Avalanche went off most people's boards, but not off the Avalanche scout boards - and selected Joey Hishon with the 17th pick in the 2010 entry draft.

It comes as a shock as some more "name" players were available and drafting a small center seems a bit redundant. Especially after letting Kelsey Tessier go during the summer.

However after reading a few articles on the guy, I'm feeling a little excited about this pick. Call me crazy but I'm going to trust the Avs scouts on this one.

But hey, how about a little size in the upcoming rounds tomorrow?