Nichols' Notes
/Related: Nichols' Notes (June 28)
Related: Trade Watch: Jason Spezza Edition
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John Vogl with The Buffalo News lays out how Sabres GM Tim Murray has been putting his imprint on the franchise since being hired, which has included how his scouting staff rates the players it sees.
“I put a new rating system in when I got here,” Murray told The News.
“It basically started around the prospect game, and that’s February, and I put a lot of pressure on them on those numbers.
“I made them do a lot of talking, a lot of explaining why they wanted certain players, and that’s the way I think it should be. If you want a player you have to engage. You just can’t tell me he’s a good player. You have to tell me more. I want to hear more. They stepped up.
“They’re getting used to me. I’m getting used to them. This is the first step, I believe, in maybe having to give more information than they used to, maybe having to put more emphasis on different things than they used to. I think they’re all learning, and I think they did a good job.”
There's a complimentary quote at the end from Ottawa Senators GM Bryan Murray too, summing up how he saw the Sabres' running efficiently at the draft.
One of the best gifts you can give yourself in life is the continual chance to glean new perspectives, be they for better or worse. On people, situations, places, or whatever.
Good blog from The Trib's Rob Rossi on departed Pittsburgh Penguins winger James Neal.
The Tribune-Review's Josh Yohe spoke exclusively with phenom Connor McDavid, who is only a year away from being drafted by an NHL team. Here's just a taste...
Q: You're a kid from Toronto. Is playing for the Leafs the ideal situation for you?
A: I can honestly say that playing for the Leafs would be a dream come true. I mean, that would be crazy. It's crazy to even think about. It would definitely be a dream to wear the Leafs colors. But you don't know what's going to happen between now and then, so I really don't think about it that much. I'm sure I'll be happy playing in the NHL, no matter where I end up.
The Tennessean’s Josh Cooper reports the Nashville Predators are set to part ways with RFA Michael Del Zotto.
“Del Zotto is a good player. He’s a good offensive player. He couldn’t get ahead of Josi, Weber, Jones and Ellis in the offensive situations,” GM David Poile said Sunday. “We have all these balls in the air. We’ll see what happens.”
On the Kevin Klein for MDZ swap with the New York Rangers, Poile said “It was a good try. The disappointing part is Del Zotto is a good player, but right now he’s miscast.
Two key thoughts from Minnesota Wild GM Chuck Fletcher, via Chad Graff of The Pioneer Press, as free agency approaches. They relate to the possibility the team might be more likely to sign Thomas Vanek or Matt Niskanen to a shorter-term deal.
"Every time you go out and sign these long-term contracts you just have less flexibility, you have more long-term commitments and sometimes those long-term commitments can turn into liabilities and you start to box yourself in," Fletcher said. "To me, I'd almost rather be a little lean this year and maintain a little more flexibility than just pushing it right to the max."
Fletcher also said "It's kind of a feel thing. There's certain players you might value more than other players, and if you don't think the player is a perfect fit, maybe the best move is just to maybe move on. I don't think it's that deep a free-agent class where if we don't get No. 1 we should just blindly go after No 2 or 3. Let's be patient."
The latest from MLive's Ansar Khan suggests the Detroit Red Wings are willing to offer Matt Niskanen the seven-year contract he'll seek in free agency, but perhaps not for as much money as he might get elsewhere. Khan also indicates a source tells him Dan Boyle has displayed interest in the Red Wings. Anton Stralman also interests Detroit.
Edmonton Oilers captain Andrew Ference shared his thoughts with The Boston Herald's Steve Conroy on the transition from the Bruins to the Oilers, and how he has adapted his outspoken nature at times.
“I think it’s about taking pause sometimes,” said Ference. “If you slide in as captain and you’re successful right off the bat, it’s one thing. It’s another thing where you go from Boston with some seasoned guys, and you’re winning a lot, to a team of younger guys and you’re not winning a lot, you have to bite your tongue sometimes and remember what you were like at that point in your career; you’re still learning, you’re still building, you’re still trying to grasp certain concepts.
“I had to be more cognizant of remembering where I was when I was younger and not go off the handle at the wrong time. That was probably the biggest challenge in a losing season.”
Ference was also extremely complimentary of OIlers' assistant coach hire Craig Ramsay, who will run the defense.
“I’m real excited that he’s coming in. He’ll be great for a lot of our guys, just for the sense of calm that he brings with him. You saw it firsthand in Boston how influential he was on that back end leading up to the year we won the Cup. Switches like that go a long, long way.
Revealing thoughts from Vancouver Canucks GM Trevor Linden on the handling of the Ryan Kesler situation via Sun writer Iain MacIntyre, who writes:
Linden admitted Saturday there was a lively debate within the organization whether to play hardball with Kesler and tell him “see you at training camp” unless the 29-year-old centre with the NTC expanded his trade list beyond two teams.
“There certainly was that debate,” Linden said. “At the end of the day, I felt if we got the pieces we wanted that accomplished the goals that we had, we didn’t want to have a cloud hanging over us and drag this into other people. We have great people in that locker-room. We felt it would be very unfair to our coaching staff, our players and our fans to have this hang over us this summer.
“I thought it was really important for us to make these moves so we can go into July 1 and present a picture to (free agents) we want to talk to, like: ‘This is who we are, this is what we’ve done and this is the direction we’re going.’ It’s clear.”
The Province's Jason Botchford looks at the big dollars the Vancouver Canucks will have available in cap space when free agency opens Tuesday.
Might Ryan Miller be one of the additions to help this franchise?
“It could be,” GM Jim Benning said. “He could be the guy.
“We want to make the playoffs next year. Our goal is to make the playoffs every year and develop young players in a winning environment.
“That’s what we’re trying to accomplish.”
Benning had a number of thoughts on Miller and the importance of goaltending in that article.
The Gazette's Pat Hickey indicates Canadiens GM Marc Bergevin has spoken with camps of a number of UFAs, while talks also continue with P.K. Subban's agent on a new deal for the RFA. Not much new to report on Brian Gionta, Francis Bouillon or Mike Weaver.
When it comes to who might share the Calgary Flames' net with Karri Ramo, The Sun's Randy Sportak points out it's essentially a buyer's market this summer.
"I'm not set in stone there," GM Brad Treliving said of what direction he'd prefer to take. "That may be something you look for in free agency. That may be something that still comes in the trade market. We've done a lot of work and we'll see how it falls.
"It's an interesting market for goaltenders. You have to find goaltenders that you like, but there's options out there."
The Toronto Star's Kevin McGran indicates neither the Leafs nor James Reimer's agent would comment on reports he has asked to be traded. A friend of Reimer's told The Star he's looking for a "fresh start."
A source tells Ken Wiebe of The Winnipeg Sun that Jussi Jokinen is on the radar of the Jets. The Jets have made contact with Brian Boyle during the interview period.
The older we get, the more sons of former NHLers we see coming up through the ranks. The Toronto Sun's Terry Koshan had a blurb on William Nylander, who was drafted by the Leafs this weekend. That led into this...
Do scouting staffs find there is a difference between players who grew up in and around NHL dressing rooms and those who did not? “No question,” Calgary Flames director of amateur scouting Tod Button said. “You can see the mindset that they’ve been around professional players. They know the routine, what has to happen in the summer. It’s a good thing for them to be able to draw on their dad’s experiences, to ask advice. When they have been around the rink, watching players, they pick it up.” Is there more pressure on the sons of ex-NHLers? “Absolutely,” Button said. “They all to want to make their own names.
Helene St. James with The Free Press believes the Detroit Red Wings would love to add UFA Dan Boyle on a two-year deal in the ballpark of $5 million per season or so. He'd be a bridge player to help more of the team's prospects develop on D.
Matt Niskanen's likely prohibitive price is mentioned, along with the asset cost of someone like Keith Yandle or Tyler Myers. {C}
“It all sounds easy,” GM Ken Holland said. “There are 30 teams in the game. Ten years ago, there were eight or 10 teams in the game. Today’s there’s 30, because of the money game. Because of the cap. Our top priority is a d-man. For the most part, we’re happy with our forwards. We’re going to explore the market.”
MLive's Ansar Khan indicates the Red Wings will be one of the teams making a pitch for Christian Ehrhoff.
(Ehrhoff's news hadn't been out there when St. James' article came out, incidentally.)
Star Tribune scribe Michael Russo has updates regarding the Minnesota Wild on the Thomas Vanek and Matt Niskanen front, also noting the team's apparent interest in Jarome Iginla.
GM Chuck Fletcher offered some insight his mindset as free agency nears its open.
“We’ve tried to be aggressive if the move makes sense, but there’s times, too, where you need to take what’s there,” Fletcher said. “Sometimes you have to lay off the pitch. You can’t just swing at everything. This summer could be one of those summers where maybe you just accept what’s there and not try to overpursue or push something that may not make you better.”
For the full rundown of the Buffalo Sabres buying out the remainder of Christian Ehrhoff's contract, read John Vogl with The Buffalo News. He has some great quotes from GM Tim Murray.
"The fact that he quite frankly doesn’t want to be here makes it easy," Murray told The News. "I’ve said at the start that if you don’t want to be here we’ll make it happen. He’s made I believe $22 million in three years and feels that we’re not going in the right direction, but he really hasn’t had much part in the direction the team has gone. So time to move on."
Bob McKenzie, as usual, has quality info on his Twitter timeline.