Kessel Saga Reaches New Impass

Greetings from the off-season!

Just a quick word to say that the NHL Regular Season is about 3 weeks away, and Bruins action will be heating up in the next little while. So expect some new posts at Black, White and Gold. Because otherwise the off-season is a bit of a slog.

To whit: The only thing more boring than the latest Phoenix Coyotes tales of woe, or possibly the newest high drama in the NHLPA, is the contract status for Bruins' winger Phil Kessel.

The Bruins have about $1.7 million left in the coffers under the NHL salary-cap rules, and Kessel seems to be demanding about $4 to $5 million per season. Which is shocking to me. Now, I'm not that good at math, but I think that means the Bruins will not be able to re-sign Kessel without moving other players to do so.

Complicating things, the latest update is that Kessel has stated (through his agent) that he will no longer negotiate with the B's.

On the other side, GM Peter Chiarelli has stated that the Bruins will match any contract that another NHL club offers Kessel. Perhaps the thinking in the Bruins' camp is to simply wait and let the other clubs (rather than Kessel himself) determine Kessel's worth. Because honestly, is Kessel worth $5 million dollars a season? That would put him on-par with Marc Savard and Patrice Bergeron, and frankly, neither his numbers nor his two-way game is on par with these players.

So why is any of this news? It's not really.

But this saga maintains it's status on various sports sites because one of the teams most-interested in Kessel are the Maple Leafs. As Alex Mogilny once proved, even the hemorrhoids of NHL players are front page news for the voracious fans in Toronto.

What is most-likely to happen with Kessel? Probably that the Bruins will match any contract offer, and Kessel will spend his last year with the Bruins.

Realistically, of course, another club could offer him a contract so exaggerated that the Bruins have no choice but to let him walk away. I mean, if someone offers Kessel a $7.5 million contract, are the Bruins going to match this, and put Kessel on-par with Chara's contract? Not likely.

The ideal, obviously, would be for the Bruins to match any contract offers, and then begin shopping Kessel. While I may balk at him receiving $5 per year, I think he's a strong winger with tremendous potential, and if he doesn't want to negotiate with the Bruins, perhaps he can yield a high return via trade.

If nothing else, it would end the debate about his contract that's been ongoing for at least a year. Something hockey fans - even those few in Phoenix - would embrace.

bruins trade aaron ward, sign derek morris

Sometimes the wheeling and dealing behind the scenes of NHL clubs make little sense to outsiders such as you and me.

Yesterday the Bruins traded Aaron Ward back to Carolina (where he won a cup), for Patrick Eaves and a late-round draft pick. The Bruins then put Eaves on unconditional waivers, seemingly with no intention of having him join the club.

All of the above seemed to be an effort to clear some space under the salary cap, and left the blogosphere (read: normal humans who do not work for the Bruins) suspecting this salary dump was to enable GM Chiarelli to re-sign Phil Kessel.

Hang on to your hat: the blogosphere got something wrong.

The Bruins went out this morning (or, late last night if your sleep-patterns match my own) and signed free-agent defender Derek Morris.

Morris, as you may remember, was one of the names being thrown around at last year's trade deadline as a potential pick-up for a team looking to bolster their back line with an offensive-defenseman. He ended up signing with the Rangers, because apparently, at some point every NHL player has to.

Now Morris, the former first-round draft pick (Flames in '96), comes to the Bruins on a one-year deal.

The reality is that Morris has a truly great first pass out of the zone, he's solid on the powerplay, offering a right-handed shot and enough playmaking to play pivot from the blue line with the man advantage. So there are skills there, for sure.

On the other hand, without Aaron Ward, the Bruins are far more suspect defensively. Partnered with Zdeno Chara last season, Ward was responsible for making sure Chara looked Norris-worthy, covering up for defensive gaffs by the Bruins captain.

Ward blocked shots, dished out hits, and played with a nasty streak that inspired a similar attitude in other Bruins. He played injured for nearly two seasons, but unfortunately, that meant that with his salary ($2.5 million) and age, he became a player on the bubble as the Bruins moved forward under salary cap constraints.

Derek Morris is simply not a replacement for Ward's presence in the defensive zone, and frankly none of the remaining Bruins defenders are stay-at-home types who can pick up the slack. This absence will remain an issue for the Bruins as the season approaches, and getting a legitimate defensive-defenseman will become more pressing if the Bruins wish to build on last season's achievements.

...Arguably more pressing than re-signing Phil Kessel.

bruins sign steve begin, re-up bitz, recchi, boychuk

Two years ago the Bruins made major headlines during the Free Agency period by signing Zdeno Chara and Marc Savard.

At the time, the Bruins club had been eviscerated by a dismal managerial gamble going into the lock-out year (ie: allowing pretty much everyone to walk away on the ill-conceived belief that suitable replacements could be found cheaply and easily in a salary-capped NHL), and the team were left searching for an identity after missing the playoffs in successive seasons. Hence, the signing of two big, splashy players who could both contribute right away and establish the character for the club.

Since that time, the Bruins have largely tried to improve their fortunes by successfully stewarding their younger players, and bolstering them with veteran talent (largely playing specific roles).

The Bruins decided to allow Stephane Yelle to leave via free agency, and in his place comes former-Hab Steve Begin. I make no bones about my dislike of Begin, who once blindsided Savard with a cross check 20 metres away from the play that ended Savard's season, but he is the kind of player the team can use in a variety of situations. He adds grit, some PK ability (which I guess is why he differs from fan-fave Shawn Thornton), and had his best season under Coach Julien in Montreal. Frankly, he's the kind of player that most would rather have as a team-mate than an opponent. Hopefully he stays out of the box and doesn't hurt the team from the inside out.

In other news, the B's also re-upped Mark Recchi, who proved his value throughout the playoffs, chipping in timely goals and leading by example. I am a big fan of Recchi, who, while he has aged, has been rejuvenated by his recent tenures in youth-heavy Pittsburgh and Boston, and provides some guidance for the aforementioned younger players to follow. Welcome back, Mark.

Additionally, the Bruins re-upped Byron Bitz to a multi-year contract (which is very good news, especially in light of Steve Montador leaving via Free Agency), and also came to terms with prospect Johnny Boychuk. I don't know much about Boychuk, but he is one of those players that Bruins faithful have been hearing about for a few years - named the AHL's Defenseman of the Year last season - but remains in the minors. Is this his year to play with the Bigs?

Finally, it looks as though PJ Axelsson will explore the Free Agent market after all, but true to his classiness as a person and a player, will keep the Bruins in consideration as he searches for a potential fit for his services.

bruins free agents, salary cap and next year's plans

This weekend's NHL Draft (taking place just a few minutes away from my house, in fact) has brought a spotlight on the Bruins' players who are not locked to long-term contracts.

In particular, a rumour was circling yesterday involving Phil Kessel, who becomes a Restricted Free Agent as of July 1st, that would see him go to Toronto for Tomas Kaberle. The deal seems to have broken down due to nobody really understanding whether it was Kessel and draft picks for Kaberle, or Kaberle and draft picks for Kessel.

Ridiculous.

This reminds me of how, a few years ago, the Bruins announced they had signed Jonas Hoglund only to have the deal annulled due to a faulty fax machine, or how Ray Shero agreed to become GM only to then change it up and sign with Pittsburgh while the Bruins were organizing the press conference to announce his arrival (on the other side of that, while Shero has the Cup, I think Chiarelli has done the better work as GM).

Regardless, what this all suggests is that the Bruins will probably try to move Kessel rather than ink him to a long-term deal. The money that Kessel will probably demand on the open market (somewhere around $5 million, when he's probably at a stage of his development that should garner $2.75 - $3.5 million) was better spent by the B's on David Krejci - who, while less explosive than Kessel, is a more consistent player in both ends of the ice and is at a different stage of development.

Kessel reminds me of a young Marian Hossa, who entered the league as a legitimate offensive threat but would disappear for long stretches of games. While Kessel had a far better season than last year, and has shown a tremendous amount of character in both his professional and personal life, he does seem to be one of those players that simply needs more experience to fully bloom into a well-rounded NHL player. I have no doubt it will come, but the reality of today's NHL is that the Bruins only have a certain amount of time and cap room to wait for Kessel to become the player he can be.

Having said that, Chiarelli has stated he'll match any offer put forward for Kessel, but given the team's salary cap concerns, I would expect that Kessel will be moved shortly thereafter, regardless of how much they want to retain Kessel.

When the season ended, the B's had several important pieces remaining unsigned - including the aforementioned Krejci and Kessel, but most importantly, Vezina Trophy winning goalie, Tim Thomas. The Bruins made the right move and ensured Thomas will remain with the club for the next four years by inking him to a $20 million contract. Props to Chiarelli for getting this deal done.

This means that backup Manny Fernandez will be allowed to walk (or, more reasonably, hobble) into free agency, and that Tuuka Rask will probably be brought up for NHL seasoning. It should make for an interesting and emotionally explosive goaltending tandem. Hopefully, the Bruins have maintained their stick sponsors through next season.

Matt Hunwick and Byron Bitz are also RFAs this year, and both are young enough and played well enough in the playoffs to warrant contracts. I expect the Bruins will find a way to bring both these guys into the fold. These two are the Bruins' primary concerns after Kessel as they represent high quality prospects with tremendous size and desire to get dirty.

Coming up on Unrestricted Free Agency are defensive stalwarts PJ Axelsson and Stephane Yelle, and ironically, the less-defensively-sound Steve Montador. I believe Axelsson is the longest-serving Bruin but I doubt the B's will be able to retain him with the other players they have to bring under contract. In fact, I would be surprised if, after money is allocated to Bitz and Hunwick, the Bruins have any budget room for another big-ticket UFA, so I suspect they'll all be set free (including Shane Hnidy and the handsome Mark Recchi).

If the Bruins lose / set free Hnidy and Montador, but are able to bring Hunwick under contract, that will mean that he and Mark Stuart will see increased responsibilities next season. I would suspect that Chiarelli will also try to bring in another veteran with a mean streak, as that would retain the identity of the team and offer some mentorship to younger defenders without over-burdening Chara with yet another responsibility.

Prospects Wacey Rabbit, Carl Soderberg and Martin St. Pierre are also Restricted Free Agents with Soderberg being the priority signing. Should those kids all come on board they could serve with the Big Club in limited roles, potentially replacing Yelle and, through group-effort, Axelsson.

I sort of feel like the Bruins can reel in Hunwick and Bitz, give them a bigger role, and try to sign Kessel in order to deal him for other young guns. If they can do the above, and let the other UFAs they have coming up walk away, then they will experience a drop in team depth, but they could get lucky and have some kids fill in admirably (it happened this year with nearly every young kid on the team, with Krejci, Wheeler and Stuart having wonderful years), and still be a very competitive team next year, while building toward the seasons that follow.

On that score, the bigger concern for the future is what to do at the end of next season when Wheeler, Lucic, Mark Stuart and Marc Savard all come up as Free Agents. Ugh. Headacheville.

chara, thomas and julien win top awards

It may not be the Stanley Cup, but Bruins' Zdeno Chara, Tim Thomas and Claude Julien all won top honours in their respective categories tonight at the NHL Awards in Las Vegas.

Chara walked away with the Norris, Thomas the Vezina, and Claude Julien won the Jack Adams Award.

Julien was presented the Adams by Pat Burns, whose career path aligns with Julien's: coaching in the same cities (the same junior team, then Montreal, Boston, New Jersey) and now winning a Jack Adams award as well. Let's hope there's a Cup in Julien's near future too.

Thomas' speech was pretty incredible. He was emotional and said he has spent more time worrying about just getting his name on a roster than the Cup, and was humbled to be included in the names of his heroes. Very cool.

Overall a great night for the B's.

bruins - season wrap up - award nominations

Well, enough time has passed since the Bruins were eliminated in overtime of Game Seven against the Hurricanes (themselves ousted by the Penguins, en route to the Finals and the Cup) to get a sense of the Bruins' season.

Which is to say, I've pulled out of the several-day funk.

And I'll begin by addressing those Bruins nominated for awards this year.

First, Bruins coach Claude Julien was named The Sporting News' coach of the year, and is nominated for the NHL's Jack Adams award for coaching excellence. He led the club to the top of the Eastern Conference in the regular season (with a record of 53-19-10), and amassed 116 points, marking the first time the club has broken 100 points since 2003-2004.

The B's went out in the second round, and I think Julien was out-foxed a bit by Paul Maurice. However, I don't think the team played particularly well for their coach in games two or four and he certainly cannot be blamed for the exit from the Playoffs. He's a good guy, well liked and respected, and given his history of sometimes getting a raw deal despite maintaining winning records, I would be pleased if he won the Jack Adams award.

Tim Thomas was always solid, and often brilliant, in nets this year. He posted up a record of 36-11-7 with a smoking 2.10 Goals Against Average in the regular season, and went 7-4 with a 1.85 GAA (which seems crazy low to me) in the playoffs. He won the Roger Crozier Saving Grace award (which I'd never heard of) for Best Save Percentage, and (with Manny Fernandez) won the Jennings Trophy for lowest GAA in the NHL. He has also been nominated for the Vezina, which would be a phenomenal achievement for Thomas, given his journeyman rise to the NHL. Most importantly, he has been re-signed to a multiyear deal, allowing him to continue to achieve while prospect Tuuka Rask develops (more on Manny Fernandez in a subsequent post).

Finally, Zdeno Chara was nominated for a Norris Trophy, the (second-most) coveted prize for defenders. The Bruins captain had 19 goals and was a ridiculous plus -23 in a season where he was a dominant force, game in, game out. Chara's previous two seasons with the club had him, at times, looking for an identity on the ice - questioning whether he should he be offensive, or be looking to keep it simple - ultimately having defensive lapses in the middle ground. But this year, Chara really seemed to find a comfortable groove doing almost everything right. He played a much simpler game that allowed his mean-streak to shine through, and I think the good people of the Bruins' nation have come to embrace him (by linking arms). Chara is also a finalist for the Mark Messier Leadership Award, which goes to the player with active community involvement.

These awards will all be handed out on Thursday, I believe, but regardless of the outcome, it is important to recognize these Bruins players for their nominations and growth as a team this season. Next, addressing free agencies!

bruins eliminated in game seven, overtime

The Bruins came back from a 3 - 1 series deficit, and fought back in tonight's game to force overtime after being down 2-1 , but ultimately, their season is over. The Hurricanes won in OT tonight, 3-2.

The Bruins had chances to win this game, as did the Hurricanes (including a goal-line-and-post roller that Aaron Ward fished away at the last moment), and despite my obvious preference for a Bruins win, I enjoyed this game immensely. The play was fast, chippy, with some stellar goaltending and big hits. Lucic was incredible, Bergeron was unlike any Bergeron I've seen play before, Thomas stood on his head, and Chara was dominant force. Ultimately, it was not enough though, and the B's will clean out their lockers.

I'll write more about the Bruins' season in the next few days - it has been a remarkable year - and I don't have the capacity to do a roundup right now.

The strange thing is that while I am very disappointed, I guess I've been somewhat aware that the Bruins could be put out for awhile (that's what being down 3 - 1 in a Series will do, I guess), so I'm not as frustrated or as upset as I was after, say, Game Four when the B's just didn't show up. I would very much have liked the B's to continue on, but I've understood what odds they were facing for about a week now, and thought they did an amazing job battle back against those odds.

Still - I think this Bruins club opened a lot of eyes in this year's Playoffs. My goal for the team this year was to make the Second Round (thus improving on their accomplishments from last year). To win the First Round in a sweep of Montreal was awesome, and to push the Second Round to a Game Seven overtime is an incredible development for a team that missed three Playoffs in a row, just prior to the last two. This also means that next year, I will expect them to make the Conference Finals.

And planning for that should begin tomorrow. No pressure.

My congrats to a Bruins club that entertained me all year. My condolences on a loss in a game you probably deserved to win.