Don't Blame Mrs. Nylander, Edmonton

Oiler blogger David Staples has some interesting info under the sub-heading "THE INSIDER STUFF: NYLANDER'S WIFE REALLY DIDN'T HATE THE THOUGHT OF EDMONTON," but rather than quote it here, you really should check it out over at Staples' blog, The Cult of Hockey. Trust me.

Friday Roundup/Caps 5, Oil 4 (SO)

[AP Recap - Game Summary - Super Stats - WashingtonCaps.com Recap]

Well that'll help Olie Kolzig's career shootout numbers.

And while I'm still trying to figure out what was the least likely occurrence from Thursday night - the Caps (two wins in their previous 18 shootouts) beating Edmonton (11-2 in shootouts on the season entering last night's game), Kolzig stopping a dozen straight shooters (he was 1-7 in shootouts and had stopped only 15 of 31 attempts since the beginning of last season prior to last night), or Matt Bradley scoring a shootout goal (it was his third career attempt and first success) - I do know this: the Caps are up to 11th place in the Conference and trail Southeast Division-leading Atlanta by only four points (with two games in hand). Baby steps, to be sure, but steps nonetheless.

Some thoughts on the game:

• 20, 22, 22, 23 - the ages of the Caps four goal scorers.
  
• Whatever Bruce Boudreau said to his team after a crappy first period worked, as the Caps fired 17 shots on goal in the second, four of which beat Oiler netminder Dwayne Roloson.
• The fourth line (Quintin Laing, Dave Steckel and Bradley) had a great shift to start the first period and another very early in the third.
• How is it that not a single one of Edmonton's 12 shootout shooters attempted the move on which all three Red Wings scored against Kolzig just a few weeks back? Gotta be poor scouting/coaching, no?
  
• Tom Poti's secondary assist on Alex Ovechkin's goal was a fantastic homerun pass to Boyd Gordon. See? Secondary assists aren't all worthless (Ales Hemsky's on Dustin Penner's second period goal was another great example of this).
• Jeff Schultz's primary assist on Robert Nilsson's goal was less impressive.
  
• Any coach whose team doesn't aggressively pressure the puck when the Caps are on the power play should be fired on the spot for either negligence in game preparation or sheer stupidity.
• Matt Pettinger played with a greater sense of urgency and did some good things out there (he had a team-high four hits), but the fact of that matter is that he has just five points on the season in 42 games and has just two points since October. Welcome to Suckville, Matt. Population: you.
• Mike Green was all over the scoresheet with a goal, three shots, four hits, three giveaways, two takeaways and five blocked shots in 31:13 of ice time. He now has six goals in his last seven games, which is wholly ridiculous for a blueliner.
• If Boudreau had any hair when he came to Washington, he wouldn't have any left by now after coaching Alex Semin for two months (Glen Hanlon must have had an orange rug).
  
• Tomas Fleischmann continued his solid (but now snake-bitten) play, and Boyd Gordon - the night's first star - had a couple of helpers. Still, I don't see either as long-term solutions on the second line.
• Nicklas Backstrom has now played in 46 games this season, equalling his single-(regular) season high in games played back in Sweden. He's showing no signs of hitting a wall, but he's entering uncharted waters, so it's something to keep in the back of our minds.
• If you blinked, you missed Steve Eminger's shifts.
• I don't care what he did in regulation and overtime, if an NHL goalie goes 12-for-12 in a shootout, he deserves one of the game's three stars.
  

Two points, a bit more confidence, and no new injuries - overall, a successful night by nearly any measure. Next up: the Kitties on Saturday night.

Oh, and since all three scored last night, you get the yard sign:


Elsewhere 'Round the Rinks:

On this date back in 1999, Peter Bondra became the second player in team history to score 300 goals for the Caps.... "With the parity in the East, they should be pushing for the playoffs and they are not." Huh?... J-God had a pair of goals in OHL action last night.... If you missed Rick Nash's goal from last night, do make sure to check it out. It was effing phenomenal (excuse my French).

Daily Awards

• Hart: Rick Nash (2G, including the game-winner with :22 left in the third, +2, 10 SOG)
  
• Ross: Shawn Horcoff, Ales Hemsky, Niklas Hagman, Rick Nash (3 points each)
  
• Norris: Dennis Wideman (2A, +2, 3 SOG)
  
• Vezina: Martin Gerber (W, 36 saves on 37 shots against)
  
• Richard: Mike Modano, Rick Nash, Shawn Horcoff, Dan Cleary, Antoine Vermette (2 G each)
  
• Calder: Peter Mueller (G, A, 8 SOG)
  
• Aiken: Cam Ward (L, 5 goals allowed on 32 shots against)
  

Thursday Roundup/Gamenight: Oil @ Caps

[AP Preview - WashingtonCaps.com Preview]

When George McPhee stepped to the podium late last June to make the Caps' first selection in the 2007 NHL Entry Draft (fifth overall), many an expert thought he'd be calling the name of London Knights pivot Sam Gagner. McPhee didn't take Gagner, however (though it sounded like he might, up to and after the last second), he took Karl Alzner who, by all accounts, is having a terrific year (one that includes captaining Canada to a World Junior Championship gold and tallying 21 points and a plus-13 rating in 34 games for the WHL Calgary Hitmen), leaving young Sammy on the board to be snatched up with the next pick by Thursday night's visitors to the Verizon Center, the Edmonton Oilers (who, incidentally, haven't won in D.C. since January 26, 1997, a span that has included five Caps wins).

And while Alzner racks up the accolades and achievements, Gagner is making a name for himself as well in the best League in the world. In 44 NHL games, Dave's son has 3 goals, 13 assists and a minus-12 rating. Unfortunately for Gagner, seven of those points came in his first eight NHL games - he has scored just two goals and registered seven assists in his last 37 games and is pointless since December 13 (a span of 12 games). Perhaps Kevin Lowe is regretting the decision to keep Sam in Edmonton this year rather than sending him back to London. Maybe not. One thing is for certain, however - it's not the only decision that Lowe has made in the past year that has had people scratching their heads (for a fun stroll down memory lane, check out all our coverage of The Nylander Saga - some of our best work of last year, if I do say so myself).

But for all the criticism - justifiable and otherwise - Lowe's Oilers are a hot streak away from being right back in the thick of the playoff hunt in the West, thanks in large part to a breakout season from Shawn Horcoff (who is a hat trick away from tying his career high in goals), the sheer offensive wizardry of Ales Hemsky (who also starred in one of my favorite YouTube clips ever), and the revelation that has been Mathieu Garon (14-10-1, 2.37, .918 for a guy whose career numbers entering this season were 60-56-9-3, 2.87, .903).

Of course, you don't find yourself near the bottom of the Conference standings without your fair share of disappointments. Take, for example, Jarret Stoll. After averaging better than .80 points per game and a plus-three rating in the first two post-lockout ssasons, Stoll is disappointing both on and off the ice this year, with only 21 points in 46 games, a minus-12 rating, and one Alexei Yashin (it should be noted, however, that Stoll has been better of late... on the ice, at least). Free agents Dustin Penner (who also has stepped his game up in recent weeks) and Sheldon Souray have combined for 37 points in 68 man-games, and have done so at a cap hit of $9.65 million for the year (not to mention the first, second and third round picks in the 2008 draft that the Oilers will be providing Anaheim with as compensation for signing Penner). Dwayne Roloson - one of only three NHL goaltenders older than Olie Kolzig - is 7-12-3, 3.12, .901. Steve Staios is minus-13. Geoff Sanderson has two goals. You get the point.

On the season, the Oilers are near the very bottom of the League in goals per game, goals against average (though theirs is a fifth of a goal per game better than the Caps'), shots per game and power play percentage and have lost their last four road games. In other words, this is a very winnable game for the Caps, who have to keep winning the games they should win - which is probably exactly how the Oilers are thinking about this game as well. Let's just hope the Caps can finish things off in regulation - Edmonton has a League-high 12 wins in games that have been tied after sixty minutes, including an 11-2 record in shootouts.

Why The Oilers Will Win:

"As self-loathing Oilers fans (are there any other kinds, lately?), we believe the Edmonton Oilers will absolutely DESTROY the Washington Capitals in Thursday night's match-up. Why? Three words: Puppy Dog Eyes. After looking into the sad, sad faces of our young, floundering squad, the Caps hearts will be left broken and empty. We'll then go ahead and fill that void with goals, and plenty of them. Now who's crying? Nylander for one, but that's a whole other story. So stuff that in your pipes and smoke it you Washington fat cats, what with your smug Ovechkin having fanbase..." - Oilblobosphere

"[T]he Oilers already traded away their prize for finishing dead last this season so the Oilers don't have quite as much motivation to lose as the Caps." - The Real Deal Hockey

"Part of me wants to say karma after Nylander screwed Edmonton over and ended up in Washington. However, I actually like the Capitals and their very interactive owner. As a result I'll focus on where I think Edmonton has true advantages. First of all, both Oiler goaltenders have performed better than Kolzig this year. Garon especially is one of the hottest goalies in the league while Kolzig has struggled to regain his form. Edmonton has a better defensive core as well. The Caps have a couple of guys I'd love to see in the copper and blue (Green for one is outstanding) but 1-6 Edmonton has more depth. Up front there's no Ovechkin in the Oilers line-up, but a two-way forward group that includes Horcoff, Moreau and Pisani is a significant step ahead of the group in Washington. They should be much better at even strength and on the penalty kill, while Washington's forwards are more explosive and should be better on the power play. Finally, Edmonton has a veteran coach while the Caps are coached by an NHL rookie. - Oil Country, Ontario

Elsewhere 'Round the Rinks:

An article on Horn Guy.... Hey, guys, it's not too late for you all to chip in and get me a birthday present.... This YouTube clip is obviously old, but it's new to me and is worth checking out if only to see Alex Semin not only smile, but laugh as well (h/t SSM12 on the link).

Daily Awards

• Hart: Rick DiPietro (W, 37 saves on 38 shots against)
• Ross: Patrick Kane, Kimmo Timonen, Dustin Byfuglien (3 points each)
  
• Norris: Kimmo Timonen (G, 2A, +1, 2 SOG)
  
• Vezina: Rick DiPietro (W, 37 saves on 38 shots against)
  
• Richard: Patrick Kane, Bill Guerin, Daniel Briere (2G each)
  
• Calder: Patrick Kane (2G, A, +2, 3 SOG)
  
• Aiken: Marek Schwarz (L, 5 goals allowed on 13 shots against in 38:55 of work)
  

Misinformed And Misdirected Hostility

Since the story surfaced that Michael Nylander chose Washington over Edmonton (and more money), a handful of columnists have questioned Nylander's decision by taking cheap shots at our nation's capital. Yet another example from the Edmonton Sun's John Short in his column this morning:

The same Nylander who chose to live in Washington, probably the most violent city in North America, and insisted it was his right to take millions less for the privilege.

Nevermind the fact that Nylander may have chosen the Caps because they're an organization on the rise with a clear sense of direction or a team where the playmaking pivot would be able to set up one of the most exciting goal scorers the game has seen in a generation.

Nevermind the fact that Nylander, father of six, may have chosen D.C. because it is a city with which he is familiar, having played here before, or one that boasts both great history and cultural institutions. Or that travel between D.C. and Nylander's native Sweden is considerably easier from the East Coast.

Come to think of it, nevermind all the facts - including that D.C. isn't even the most violent U.S. city with an NHL team (sorry to drag you into this, St. Louis, Detroit and Atlanta). Short's claim - like those before his - is based on emotion and sour grapes, not actual numbers or reason.

And one data point that Short neglects to mention? Edmonton is the murder capital of Canada.

Given all of this, it's not difficult to see why Nylander may have passed up the privilege to play in the City of Champions. Save the cheap shots for someone more deserving - Nylander's agent, perhaps.

Update: Head over to OWO for more on the morons.

Is Kevin Lowe Trying To Get Fired?

I'm not trying to pile on here, but what the hell is Kevin Lowe doing in/to Edmonton? Let's put it this way - if Lowe worked in the current Bush Administration, he'd have been awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by now. Here are a few of the Oiler GM's recent head-scratchers:

• Traded "heart and soul" Ryan Smyth to the Islanders at the trade deadline, sending OilerNation into a deep depression, only to admit just a few months later that had he known the salary cap was going to rise as much as it did and had he known the troubles he'd have luring free agents to Edmonton, he'd have given in to Smyth's ~$5.25 million demands (Smyth got $6.25m/year in Colorado). Regarding the former, everyone knew the cap was going to get a decent bump - take this report from back in February, for example, noting that a $4m increase was expected. Regarding the latter, Lowe is apparently just realizing "what Calgarians have known for years: no one wants to move to Edmonton." The trade itself was certainly defensible at the time. But the rationale given now raises an eyebrow.
• Failed to draft Karl Alzner, who, by many accounts, was the guy the Oilers were targeting (they were clearly high on him), despite the fact that Los Angeles, with the 4th pick, was looking to trade down. The Caps, of course, drafted Alzner 5th, leaving the Oilers to draft Sam Gagner at 6th.
• Traded captain Jason Smith and winger Joffrey Lupul to Philly for Joni Pitkanen and deadweight Geoff Sanderson. I'll give Lowe a bit of a pass on this one, given Pitkanen's upside and Lupul's horrendous 2006-07, though it's never a good thing when a trade "has [your] players fuming off the record" (though it is, presumably, better than when they're fuming on the record).
• Lost out on signing unrestricted free agent Michael Nylander (in case you hadn't heard) who took significantly less money to play in D.C.
• Traded a (likely very high) second-round pick in the impressively-deep 2008 draft to the Islanders for Allan Rourke - a guy who "will provide [the organization] with experience in Springfield (Edmonton's AHL affiliate)" - and the Isles' third-round pick in 2008.

Now, I'm admittedly an outsider looking in on the situation and have cherry-picked some less-than-favorable examples to make my point. But that point still remains - Kevin Lowe has made some questionable moves of late, and Edmonton Oiler fans deserve better.

Update: I just saw an explanation for the Rourke trade that makes sense, and that is that the Oilers needed to acquire that 3rd round pick - which had originally been there and was sent to the Island as part of the Marc-Andre Bergeron trade - in order to have the right picks so they can make an offer to a Restricted Free Agent. Maybe Lowe knows what he's doing after all.

Update: The Oilers have signed Sabres RFA Thomas Vanek to a 7-year/$50-million offer sheet. If the Sabres don't match, not only will the Oil be on the hook for $7+ million per year for the next seven years, but will have to compensate the Sabres with four first round picks as well.

Update: The Sabres match. Who's next up for Lowe? Zach Parise? Dustin Penner? What's Plan C?

Update: As of 1:30, here's the first graf of Lowe's Wikipedia entry:

Funny. (h/t to ExParrot)

More Nylander Details

Kevin Lowe's side of the story (at least a good chunk of it) appears in today's Edmonton Journal. You can't help but feel a bit for Lowe, and you can tell that Michael Nylander does too - I'm sure deals get announced all the time and go off without a hitch based on the "agreement to agree" that Lowe and Gillis reached. But it's pretty clear that that's all that was present here. Money quote?

"I know in today's game you also need a player's signature, and I said, 'well let's get the sheet signed (by Nylander),'" said Lowe.

According to Lowe, [Nylander's agent Mike] Gillis said his client was exhausted and asked if he could sign in the morning. Lowe agreed but says he never got a signed sheet back from the player. Instead, Nylander signed in Washington Monday afternoon.

Can this please end now?

UPDATE: There's a bit more here, including this:

Lowe said he called Caps GM George McPhee.

"He told me he got a call from the player and cited the Mike Vernon judgment that a player is not signed until he's signed."

Wha'choo Talkin' 'Bout, Gillis?

Back in June, the New York Post reported that Michael Nylander had fired his agent, Paul Theofanous, after having learned that Theofanous had agreed to a contract extension for his client with the Rangers... without having talked to said client. Now, by all indications, it seems a similar situation may have occurred with Nylander's new agent, Mike Gillis, and the Edmonton Oilers. Should we be surprised? Well, yeah. But maybe not by Gillis's actions.

By most accounts, Gillis (pictured here from back in his playing days) is the kind of agent that, um, gets top dollar for his clients - this is the guy, after all, who got Bobby Holik $9 million per year from the Rangers:

Despite a six-year career in the NHL, Gillis is no sentimentalist. His role as an agent is not the culmination of a boyhood fantasy or some thwarted dream of athletic glory. He's not in the profession to hobnob with his old pals from his playing days. He often counsels his clients on how to maximize their talents -- and paycheques -- at the NHL level.... He has traded barbs and epithets with the toughest GMs -- some of them former teammates or opponents. He states his goal succinctly: "Maximizing compensation is the first and foremost part of my job."

Sounds like a real sweetheart, doesn't he?

So when the Oilers offered more money than the Caps did to acquire Nylander's services, Gillis must have assumed that the deal was done, and allegedly he gave the Oilers indications to that end. But, in the player's mind, the deal clearly was not done, as there were factors other than money in play - imagine that.

Which brings us to where we are today - with one pissed off team, one shady agent (redundant, I know), and one player who is caught in the middle. Suddenly, Alex Ovechkin's decision to can his agent and hire his mother to do his negotiating doesn't seem like such a bad idea, does it?

Spanning The Blogosphere: The Latest On Nylander

Colby Cosh and Tyler Dellow - a couple of Edmonton chaps - have written a pair of must-reads on the Michael Nylander situation. Cosh recaps the entire saga (so far) here, and Dellow whips out the CBA here. Mirtle is on the story as well.

I tend to agree that a) there's no way the Caps are losing Nyls and b) the Oilers are better off without him - assuming he would have gotten a similar deal in Edmonton, Nylander in Washington makes much more sense for all parties involved, as Alex Ovechkin needs a top-notch set-up man. Raffi Torres? Less so.

Nylander To Caps Not A Done Deal?

The Oil not going down without a fight, reports the Ottawa Sun.

And away we go.

Update (10:57 pm): Just received a call back from the Oilers VP of Communications, Allan Watt. When asked to comment on the team's complaint filed to the NHL, Watt responded, "I don't have anything to say to bloggers." I quickly reminded him that we had spoken at length Monday morning. Said Watt,

Well that was a mistake on my part.

I'm guessing things are now a wee bit tense in Edmonton's front office.

Nylander To The Caps

Per Tarik

Confirmation from the team

As you know, I've been pimping the idea of Nylander's return for a couple of months now, so I'm elated by this news. Sure, the money is more than I had thought and the term is longer, but the fact remains that the Caps now have a legitimate first-line center, a veteran presence and a mentor all in one. Not bad.

And here's a thought - Alex Ovechkin scored 98 goals in his first two seasons with a converted winger as his pivot. Imagine what he'll do now.

Update: TSN.ca has the deal as 4-years/$19.5-million.

"Nylander To Edmonton" Not A Done Deal

I just spoke with Allan Watt, the Oilers VP of Communications, and he confirmed that the Michael Nylander deal has not been signed.

The deal is done when [GM] Kevin Lowe tells me it's done.

When asked what the impediments to an agreement were, Watt said, "It could be any number of things," including that Nylander was still listening to offers from other clubs.

Watt was unable to explain Bob Stauffer's (Team 1260) report that an agreement had been reached.

Update (3:02): A second radio station in Edmonton, 630 CHED, is now reporting that Nylander has agreed to 4 years with the Oilers. Salary was not disclosed. Streaming audio of their news/sports reports on the half hour available here. Hear it and weep.

Update (4:42): Nylander is a Cap. What a ride.

Report: Oilers Sign Nylander

Having lost out on the Scott Gomez sweeps, it is being reported that the Edmonton Oilers have signed Michael Nylander.

Obviously this is unwelcomed news for Caps fans, and may force the team to resort to Plan B (or C or D...) - Alexei Yashin. Stay tuned.

UPDATE (8:51 AM): Nothing concrete (and not to go all rumor-mongering on you), but I'm hearing that these reports are a bit premature.