Obviously this is HUGE news for Buffalo fans and I wouldn’t be surprised if everybody had a vocal opinion: Brian Campbell is gone to San Jose in exchange for Bernier and a first round draft pick.
Bye Bye, Soupy.
I can’t say I’m sorry to see him go, though. We’ve been struggling for defense since the lockout and as exciting as Soupy is (“a great open ice hitter”, “a terrific offensive defenseman” according to VS), he just can’t cut the mustard when it comes to playing defensive defense. That said, I also don’t have any issues with him as a player as long as he’s playing for somebody else. I believe he was sincere when he said he will miss Buffalo, the team and the fans. I think it’s fine that he was looking for a longer deal than 3 years and I’m glad that Darcy didn’t go for it. Soupy, I don’t plan on booing you on road trips, but I’m not going to cheer for you either Buddy.
Big bear
He’s iron tough.
Big bear
He’s got a chest like a rug.
Big bear
He don’t take no guff,
He’s big bear.
~Southern Culture on the Skids – Big Bear
On the flip side, I’m happy with what we got back. Bringing in Big Bear addresses a big concern, namely that we play better when we’re aggressive and playing a physical game. I like the idea of another capable forward with soft hands that can stand in front of the net and dig into the corners. Bernier plays a tight physical game and I’m excited to see where it goes.
I am concerned that we now have another defensive hole to fill and a depleted corps in Roch-cha-cha. The bright spot of this deal, at least in my eyes, is the 1st round pick we grabbed here. I like the way the club drafts even if we don’t typically do well in the first round. Right now we’re out of warm bodies and the quicker we can restock with quality talent, the better. This year’s crop of incoming kids is the best in years and chock full of quality talent. Even if this pick doesn’t turn out perfect, it’s worth a shot.
Now that the trade deadline has passed and the final announcements are starting to trickle in, I’ll comment on a few of them.
- Toronto seems to have made a couple worthy moves, although nothing earth shattering. For dumping a couple grinders Fletcher gathered up a tidy pile of draft picks. They’re still up against 5 guys with NTC’s and sizable salaries, but the rebuilding effort seems to be under way. Cliff Fletcher did a wise thing by coming out and saying he knew he couldn’t get anything big, so the game was draft picks only. Although Leafs Nation is fucking nuts, I think even they can be happy with the results.
- The Pens trading Esposito, Armstrong, Christensen and a 1st round pick for Hossa and Dupuis is just silly. It does make Pitt a serious problem in the East, but why bother paying that much for Hossa as a rental? Yes, I said a rental! With Hockey Jesus, Malkin, Hossa and Gill on the roster, they’re going to be seriously pushing the salary cap. Does a Crosby/Malkin/Hossa line become extremely dangerous? HELL YES. Do they instantly become the favorites in the East? I think that’s a tough one because…
- The Caps have stocked up today in a somewhat subtle way. All season what they’ve really needed is dependable goal tending and stealing Huet from the Habs certainly gets them that. I’m certainly shocked that the price was only a 2nd round pick 2 years from now given his recent performances. Add Federov to the mix, another dependable goal-getter to back up OV and Washington just got a lot stronger. Both of these teams have started to worry me.
- In the West, I’m confused by Dallas sacrificing so much to grab Richards. Not that he isn’t worth it, but I thought the Stars were particularly solid this year. And Holmqvist? I guess a little competition for Turco could be ok, but I’m a little lost.
- What the hell are The Wild trying to do, field a team in the NFL? You’ve already got Boogaard and Fedoruk. Why the hell do you need Chris Simon too?! This has got to be a direct response to the beating they took last year at the hands of the Ducks.
- With Forsberg and Foote going to the Avs again and McCarty going back to Detroit I feel like I’m caught in a time warp. It’s sometimes painful to watch teams try to regain prior glory by going back to old reliable and this is certainly the case with Colorado. I predict falling flat on their faces.
- Finally, the (apparently) only minor trade I much care about, the Devs ditched Janssen for Salvador. **shrug** At least Salvador may serve a purpose.
