Nichols' Notes
/Really cool story in The Miami Herald from George Richards on goaltender Al Montoya, who was signed by the Florida Panthers to back-up Roberto Luongo. Montoya is the first Cuban-American to play in the NHL and he not only has a lot of family in the area, but he’s looking forward to helping to sell the game locally too.
“I was blessed with a gift and the Cuban people are a motivated bunch, a passionate bunch,” Montoya said. “I’m just lucky enough to where I have an arena to show off my American dream. It doesn’t matter where you come from or where you’ve been. Everyone can play hockey. Like I said, the Cuban people are very passionate. Once they figure out what the game is like, it’s tough to let go.”
A reflective Montoya has matured as a player and a person over the years.
“In my mind I should have been in the NHL from Day 1 and that was my mistake,” Montoya said. “The passion and compete level has always been there with me. I think I’ve really grown the past few years in the NHL. I feel very comfortable out there.”
Solid Q&A from MLive’s Mark Opfermann with Detroit Red Wings forward Justin Abdelkader.
Q: Mike Babcock created a little stir recently with his comment “if you don’t want to be coached, don’t come here” while discussing the free-agent market. Is that a true assessment of Babcock? (See Babcock's full comments in what was a stellar interview.)
A: “I think he’s such a knowledgeable coach, he gets the most out of his players. I think he wants his players to come in open minded and ready to play to his system. Use their own skill set, but fit into an overall system. I think that’s why we’ve been so successful over so many seasons. He’s been such a successful coach because he’s had everyone buy in to winning as a team. Maybe guys don’t win as many individual accolades, but as a team he has everyone playing a brand of hockey that’s winning hockey.”
Abdelkader also delves into his own development as a player under Babcock, personal goals for the coming season, the U.S. Olympic team and how he’d love to remain in Detroit for his whole career.
Via The National Post’s Sean Fitz-Gerald:
The Leafs are still willing to entertain discussion, but aside from a summertime free agent signing or two, the roster of players assembled now will very likely be the roster the team fields heading into training camp this fall.
“There’s still a couple little pieces there that we may have interest in,” Leafs GM Dave Nonis said. “But we’ll see. There’s a few players where we’ve kicked the tires, and we’ll see if there’s a fit. But by and large, what we have right now is what we’re going to start with.”
The Toronto Star’s Dave Feschuk examines how defenceman Cody Franson is seemingly getting another lukewarm welcome back from the Leafs.
2014-15 will be the third straight season to see Franson play on a one-year contract — which is to say it’ll be the third straight season the Maple Leafs don’t appear particularly enamoured with Franson’s talents but seem flummoxed to find a desirable alternative.
“Obviously security would be nice. . . . Obviously there is more risk playing on a one-year deal,” Franson said. “But those are the cards I’m dealt.”
(Scroll down a little further to see Franson's Monday morning interview with Sportsnet.)
A farewell column from a guy who's been one of the best sources of info over the years...
David Desharnais spoke with The Gazette’s Dave Stubbs Monday from the Golf Canada Foundation pro-am, at the Royal Montreal Golf Club.
The Canadiens have made a number of roster changes during the off-season, including losing captain Brian Gionta to free agency and trading away veteran defenceman Josh Gorges.
“It’s going to be different, for sure. The wheel is turning,” Desharnais said. “Everybody needs to step up and show more leadership, and that’s what we’re going to do.”
The Sun-Sentinel’s Harvey Filakov indicates Florida Panthers GM Dale Tallon is banking on Aaron Ekblad, the No. 1 overall pick from June’s draft, being in the opening night lineup against the Tampa Bay Lightning Oct. 9.
"This kid is totally committed,'' Tallon said. "He'll go back and do whatever it takes to come back here and earn a spot on our team."
The article details how impressive Ekblad was at the Panthers’ development camp, with a worthwhile note about the relationship between Ekblad and his agent/mentor, Hall of Famer Bobby Orr.
"He's called me, he's texted me 100 times about this right from when I was 14 years old,'' said Ekblad. "He's given me a lot of good advice, be passionate about the game, and things will fall into place."
Cody Franson and the Toronto Maple Leafs avoided arbitration by agreeing to a one-year deal Monday and the defenceman joined Sportsnet 590 to discuss all things Leafs.
On what he has to do in order to get a long-term deal with the Leafs or anyone:
“Well, I think I just have to keep improving. Keep building on the previous seasons. Obviously last year we didn’t finish the way we wanted to. There’s always room for improvement. Obviously my plus-minus wasn’t what I wanted it to be last year and that’s something I’ll be looking to improve upon this year. Just keep trying to move forward and being progressive.”
On what was different for last season for him personally:
“The first year I was playing with Mark Fraser and he’s, as you know, a very defensive-minded type player and we clicked really well. Last year, when they traded Fras, we kind of played around with a bunch of different pairings and I eventually ended up with Gards. Me and Gards are both kind of offensive-minded type players are sometimes that can take a little bit to get figured out, but I think we were starting to get the hang of it pretty good toward the end.”
On if he’s been told where he fits in the grand scheme of the Leafs’ blueline:
“No, we haven’t had any of those type of discussions yet. But I’m just going to prepare back home in terms of training and make sure I come into camp in good shape, ready to go, and try to put myself in the best position possible.”
On how the Leafs can avoid being the kind of team that ended the season poorly:
“Last year we really felt the pressure. I mean, we started going on a small skid and eventually snowballed. It’s tough to keep everything out of the room sometimes. We feel the weight of the fans and all that kind of stuff when that goes on. So we were doing the best we could, but it wasn’t enough last year and we’ll be looking to build upon that and learn from those mistakes and more forward in a strong way.”
On if the culture in the room is good enough for this team:
“Yeah, I do. We’ve got a lot of good people in our room. Especially with some of the moves they’ve made over the course of this summer, I think that’s going to help us out. Having Matt Frattin and Leo Komarov back in our room, those guys were big pieces in our room and when they left, things changed obviously. Robidas is an older guy with a lot of experience and he’ll be good that way. Santorelli has some experience under his belt, so all those aspects are going to help us.”
George Sipple with The Detroit Free Press notes some Red Wings fans have become impatient with GM Ken Holland’s philosophy of bringing young players along so slowly, and are also perhaps questioning some of his decisions last summer and this off-season.
“Certainly when you’re a general manager and you make decisions, especially in this world today, we’re open for people to judge our decisions,” Holland said. “I’m OK with it. But I’m going to do what is in the best interest of the Red Wings. At the same time, I’m going to do what’s in the best interest of our young players. I’m not rushing young players.”
Also: “The expectations in Detroit that we’ve created is that we’re going to compete for a playoff spot,” Holland said. “We’re going to compete for a playoff run. Our goal is to try (to) win another Stanley Cup, and in order to get there, our young people need to be brought along properly. When I make the decisions that I make, I rely on guys like Kris Draper, like Kirk Maltby, like Mark Howe, like Mike Babcock, like Glenn Merkosky, Bruce Haralson, Ryan Martin. So, I’m relying on people that have been in the game 20, 30 years.”
Via Elliotte Friedman's appearance on Sportsnet 590 Monday morning:
The Post-Dispatch's Jeremy Rutherford has an excellent rundown of the Vladimir Sobotka arbitration situation with the St. Louis Blues. The forward signed a three-year, $12 million pact with Omsk of the KHL, but his agent told Rutherford that they had asked the Blues for a trade before a contract couldn't be reached with St. Louis.
The article notes the Blues wouldn't let Sobotka's camp gain leverage with the threat of his potentially playing in the KHL.
“We have to at least work in somewhat of the framework of the (collective bargaining agreement),” GM Doug Armstrong said. “If we work outside of that based on people leaving, then everyone will threaten to leave. It’s just bad business for us. We have to do things that are hard decisions and they’re difficult.”
Pretty fascinating account of how the situation unfolded.
Leon Draisaitl wants to make the Edmonton Oilers this season and The Journal’s Jason Gregor spoke with him about the dream, the journey and being away from home at such a young age. Great read.
In terms of this summer leading into camp, this was key:
Draisaitl lives, eats, sleeps and breathes hockey. He is on the ice with a skating instructor Monday and Wednesdays and does off-ice training five times a week. He wants to get stronger, but stayed in Edmonton to improve two areas of his game.
“My skating and my game away from the puck,” he said. “I know what I’m able to do with the puck and what I’m capable of offensively, but (making the Oilers) will come down to my play away from the puck, and I need to get quicker and play faster.”
Draisaitl currently weighs 215 pounds, but would like to be closer to 210 for training camp. The Oilers don’t have much skilled size among their top-six forwards, especially down the middle, and if he can improve his skating, he has a chance to fulfil his NHL dream.