| Roloson, mates in good frame of mind | Sunday 8/3, 4:41 PM CT |
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Count Dwayne Roloson as one of the many Oilers who are excited about the way the off-season has played out thus far, according to the Edmonton Sun. "It's all excitement, everyone's excited for the upcoming season. They're looking forward to the run-and-gun style we played towards the end of the year," said Roloson.
Our View: The Oilers finished the year on a 14-5-1 run and have added Erik Cole, Gilbert Burle and Lubomir Visnovsky this off-season. As for Roloson, he figures to battle Mathieu Garon for looks in net with Garon the favorite for about 50 starts. |
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| Cloutier loses grievance | Sunday 8/3, 4:37 PM CT |
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Dan Cloutier lost his grievance against the Kings and will remain a free agent, according to the Los Angeles Daily News. Cloutier was seeking to have the buyout of his contract reversed.
Our View: Cloutier hasn't been fantasy relevant since before the strike as he has posted only 18 victories the past four years. |
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| Sundin still in holding pattern | Sunday 8/3, 4:34 PM CT |
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Mats Sundin still hasn't officially decided whether or not to continue his career, but one overlooked aspect of his game that will be lost if he retires is his ability in the faceoff circle, according to the Boston Globe.
Our View: Sundin led the league last year with 945 faces off wins, 68 more than runner up Bobby Holik. If Rod Brind'Amour hadn't been injured he would have led the league (he finished with 851), and nine of the top-10 draws came from the Eastern Conference (only the Sharks Joe Thornton was from the West). |
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| Smolinksi still a free agent | Sunday 8/3, 4:26 PM CT |
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Bryan Smolinski continues to be an unsigned free agent, and even at 36years old he still believes he can be a full-time skater at the NHL level, according to the Boston Globe.
Our View: Smolinksi skated on the Habs fourth line in the playoffs centering Steve Begin and Tom Kostopoulos, and the trio was very successful. Smolinski should sign with someone soon, though he is no longer fantasy relevant. |
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| Sakters to use warm skate blades | Sunday 8/3, 4:18 PM CT |
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Marc Savard will be one of about 100 NHL skaters who will test the Thermablade Elite II skate blade in the coming weeks, according to the Boston Globe. Why is that noteworthy? Why because the blades will be heated to 41 degrees to hopefully reduce friction and vibration.
Our View: What if everyone uses the blades and the rink turns into a tank? The league will await feedback on the summer trials before rendering a decision, but with the ice problems around the league, using heated blades doesn't seem to make a lot of sense. |
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| Goalies equipment to shrink | Sunday 8/3, 4:15 PM CT |
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The NHL will limit the size of goalies knee pads and clavicle protectors in the coming season, according to the Boston Globe. "A lot of goaltenders wear extraneous flaps," said Glenn Healy, the director of public affairs for the NHL Players' Association.
Our View: Basically, the league wants goalies wearing enough to protect themselves, but not so much that they can just pull up a recliner and stop every shot. It's not a major change, but a few more goals might be scored through the five-hole. |
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| Robidas continues to grow on ice | Sunday 8/3, 4:11 PM CT |
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Stephane Robidas took on a greater role in the Stars offense last year when Sergei Zubov was injured, and he hopes to repeat his solid work in the coming season, according to the Dallas Morning News.
Our View: Zubov is expected to return to the number on defense pairing with Robidas sliding into the second pairing with Nicklas Grossman. He will likely also continue to receive power-play time as Philippe Boucher has fallen behind Robidas in importance. |
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