Sacco hire was awful because he's a BU guy. why is Boychuk still around? or McQuaid? Kelly as a $3, 3rd line wing? i like him but no thanks. and why is PC letting this play out while holding Krug and Smith by the balls? Those 2 are in such a crappy place- RFA w/ no arbitration rights. Bruins can (hopefully won't) essentially just make them sign a short term minimum wage deal while risking alienating them for the future. I like the idea of a bridge deal for both of them because its still too early to see what they can be, to me anyway. I think Smith can become a legitimate top 6 F, not as sold on Krug.
I didn't know Sacco was BU, that's pretty cool. Lots of teams waiting on moves, logjam starts somewhere, probably have to wait a few more weeks to see the rest of the shoes drop. PC waiting on the cap teams to finish their summer. RFAs holding out, KHayes, Alfie, etc. still have to sign. Smith doesn't have leverage, Krug does. Krug doesn't have a choice either, he could be fighting for a spot in the Swiss league in a year if he's not careful so I don't blame him for holding out on pesos. Should have been traded for picks already. I prefer Smith long term, not sure if he's top 6 stuff, but I think he's going to be solid for a long time.
cool like hemorrhoids. I believe that he has real value to the Bruins but he limits them at the same time. He should be used as a PP specialist. It would be nice if he could log more 5 on 5 time but he is where he's at and they gotta deal w/ it. His overall game has improved but still uncomfortable in the D zone. Hopefully he adapts as he ages like a Dan Boyle or Rafalski did. I would bet that the majority of people that look at Geoff Ward as a PP loss are the same ones that were blaming Geoff Ward when the PP wasn't clicking (Cup run specifically) and would also point to Chara's PPG last season making him a Norris candidate. The answer to all of the above questions is Torey Krug. Not some end all be all, but Cload allowing Krug to skate w/ the puck before dishing and then joining the rush has helped the PP tremendously. The usual D to D to D to D to D (in all 3 zones on the PP no less) wasn't cutting it. Allowed the Chara to camp out in front of the net and pick up garbage all day. Chara was weak last year, the Norris finalist wasn't deserved. ya its tough to gauge where he could end up but he's smart and fast. Best case is Hossa like game. Cart officially in front of horse. I think he's the second best hockey-playing wing the Bruins have behind Eriksson. Marchand doesn't play enough hockey and BigFat is too big and fat. Soderberg would be an interesting top 6 W addition but I think he's a C and thats it.
I hadn't really thought about Krug's utilization as it relates to Chara until you put that. If they can wipe out a number of 5 on 5, non defensive shifts (without a strong matchup for Boston) for Chara, they may be able to extend his shelf life similar to what Detroit did for Chelios. I'm still wondering if Soderberg is at his ceiling or if he can progress. He's not going to get much better defensively or with his skating, but maybe he can find ways to create a little more in the offensive zone. I like his game more than I probably should.
This is important stuff, and I feel all hockey fans should know this: http://www.sbnation.com/nhl/2014/8/4/5968697/nhl-team-hate-maps-boston-bruins
I get why NY, Florida and Washington hate the Bruins... but Louisiana, New Mexico, and Nevada? haytrs be hatin. I wonder if they hate all Boston sports teams or just the Broonz specifically. Canada has clearly lost their collective hoser minds. middle America only believes in hating the Hawks and Wings I guess. and wtf did the Sens do to Wyoming? and where's Alaka and Hawaii?
Chara's cap hit actually decreases at the end of his deal Im told........ can anyone verify this? its news to me. "For years of the contract up to and including the age of 40, the cap hit is calculated by dividing the total salary for those years by the number of years up to and including the 40-year-old season. For years of the contract ages 41 and beyond, the cap hit in each year is equal to the actual salary paid for that season. Example: Zdeno Chara signed a seven-year, $45.5-million deal starting in 2011 (age 34) and running through 2018 (age 41). Because he earns a $4 million salary at age 41, his 2017-18 cap hit is $4 million. For all other seasons, his cap hit is $6,916,667, with his $41.5 million in remaining salary divided over six years."
Sometimes cap hits lower depending on payment schedule on a deal, like bonus money but that only happens on mid season trades. Boston is not getting around the AAV on Chara, but depending on the contract structure, a team may have a lower hit. I don't think it matters for Chara either way though.
that would be something. some good pee and poop jokes if they do. they got the colors brown and gold because those were the owner's grocery store's awning colors. I really like the Milt Schmidt #15 black unis above.
will someone please explain this to me? This is some sort of a graph that explains how good Bergeron is defensively Im told. My neanderthal head can't really figure it out.
that chart is a little complicated. having to post the numeric values almost negates the color-coordination. i'm sure there is a more effective way to present that data in a more concise data-viz. i'm trying to disregard the "black numbers" and work out the color combs to see if it registers. i may have to study it a bit more... after a couple more lines.
KrAYchee extends for 6 more in Beantown... http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nhl-p...ree-on-6-year-blockbuster-deal-232717781.html
Yep. The numbers support what Lennie has been force feeding us. The number 1.0 means even shot differential, less than 1 (spoken < 1 among some NJ fans) is gude. Shots against go down significantly when he's on the ice. They should use yellow vs red (broonz vs Habs colors). The more yellow the more gooder. In this case, look at red as bad and blue as good. What I'm not sure of is whether or not this is a shot attempt or sog graphic. Another thing, is this 5 on 5 or all shots or sogs total? Where's it from? One other number to look at (really look at it before fluffing Patrice anymore Sully) is the left side feisty, gritty, grindy, wing guy. I'll have to look again but I remember reading last spring (before the Det series) that Marchand was better than 80% to Patrice's left 5 on 5. Smith was on the right about 2/3s of the time at ES if I recall. If this chart is just even strength, 80% can be used to make nearly as strong a case for the little diving cheater. The graphic makes a strong case for Marchand carrying Bergeron as much as the opposite, especially when looking at the huge difference on the right side vs left with Patrice and without him. If Sully is digging the Bergeron, they better not be barking to dump Marchand anytime soon. I have a real good feeling the numbers won't look so delicious if they're split. I have no idea about the defensive pair rotations with Clode and how those shift Bergeron's numbers, he doesn't have the defined pattern with d-pairs throughout a game some coaches do like Hitchcock or Q for example. I'm suspecting Toews' numbers would be more influenced more positively by the defensemen than Bergeron's.
Where's that from anyway? I'm curious if it's sogs or shot attempts and what situations they were from.
