Free Agency – Day One

The Colorado Avalanche remained relatively quiet on day one. That is both a good thing and a bad. With rumors again surfacing that Smyth, Hannan and even Foote are up for trade, the fact that they are still here is good. Complain all you want about those deals, at least it isn’t a 12 year deal (see Hossa), that is just crazy.

At the same time, Avs fans are looking for management to do SOMETHING to help this team improve. So far they have signed a goalie and shown more than a hand full of guys the door. Not that that is a bad thing considering some of those guys were less than successful here. But of course Lappy being one of them is not sitting well with most of us. Even Ryan is upset!

So Lappy goes the Philly for about what he was making here in Colorado. Though he signs for three years, and that was probably the sticking point. Good luck Lappy!!!

To “replace” Lappy’s toughness, the Avs signed David Koci for $575K for one year. Just by comparing PIM, I would assume that is the plan. This is not what I had in mind for today. At least sign someone that can kill penalties…or skate… Maybe he is just going straight to Erie.

So far Arnason and Raycroft are still sitting by their phones…no surprise.

Goalies and Five-Holes
Dater reported today that Ty Conklin got 3 offers! But the Avs were not one of them. That’s fine by me, the Anderson signing looks ok. But really? Three offers? The decent, but affordable goalies were snatched up pretty quickly! Biron is still sitting out there. And no one picked up Belfour? Shocking! And Khabibulin ends up getting pretty good money, $15M / 4 years.

Let the Battle of the Avalanche Goalies Begin!
Craig Anderson has signed with the Avs. I don’t see Anderson as a clear starter for the Avs, though I’m sure management sees it differently. I believe the #1 position will be Anderson’s to lose. Not what I would call a real solid move for a true starter. But, he has been playing behind some pretty good goalies, so it may be his time. I’ve thought that Biron would be a solid signing, but I’m sure Anderson was cheaper. The other interesting battle will be for the #31. They both wear the same number, and have their entire NHL career. This is going to cost someone some money or pride…or both.

Speaking of cheap, after spending very little today, what can we infer that means? Well, good luck, do you have some Tarot cards to read? It could confirm the reports that the Avs are trimming salary. Or it could mean the Avs are leaving room for both Joe Sakic and Matt Duchene to be on the roster this season. I like the second option, frankly.


Non-Avs News

Is Marian Hossa a mercenary, or what? The Wings should be glad they lost out on him, the guy is just in it for the money.

The Rangers, in a rare moment of clarity, hosed the Habs and unloaded that Gomez contract. Correction! Spoke too soon. Gaborik for $7.5M a year??? Hahahahaha! What idiots!

Posted by: From the Point

Adrian Dater: Martin Biron or Ty Conklin, the Next Avalanche Starter

According to this Bleacher Report article:

The Denver Post's Colorado Avalanche beat writer Adrian Dater was interviewed on the June 22nd, 2009 edition of NHL Live! with E.J. Hradek and Deb Placey and he stated that he believes that either Martin Biron or Ty Conklin will become the next starter for the Avalanche.
Martin Biron was originally acquired by the Philadelphia Flyers for a second round pick in 2007 and has been the team's starter since. He was inconsistent throughout his Flyer career and the team has decided to move on by signing free agent goalie Ray Emery.
Subsequently, Biron is not expected to be retained and will hit the open market on July 1st.
Ty Conklin's NHL career looked all but over in the 2006 Stanley Cup Finals when he coughed up the puck behind the net to Carolina Hurricanes' captain Rod Brind'Amour with 31.1 seconds left, allowing him to score the game winning goal into an empty net.
Conklin returned to the NHL in the 2007-08 season following injuries to Marc-Andre Fleury and Dany Sabourin in Pittsburgh. He would hold the starting position until Fleury's return from injury.
Conklin then spent this past season sharing time with Chris Osgood in Detroit.
Of note, Conklin has played in both Winter Classics and has been in the Stanley Cup Finals three times, all losses.

As I stated here, I think Biron could work out well for the Colorado Avalanche.

Posted by: From the Point

Could Martin Biron be an Avalanche?

Don Brennan at the Ottawa Sun is 'reporting' that there are some rumors that the Philadelphia Flyers are interested in Ray Emery. This could be good news for the Colorado Avalanche. If the Flyers are ready to part ways with Martin Biron, the Avs should move in that direction. Biron will be an unrestricted free agent this year.

Biron is coming off a 2 year deal at 3.5 M. Seems to me that price maybe depressed by two factors, the fact that the Flyers are willing to let him go and the apparent reluctance of GM's across the league to pay out too much salary with the fears of the salary cap being reduced. But at the same time Biron may benefit from the same situation that Theodore did this last off season. A shortage of quality goalies at reasonable prices on the free agent market. So it's kinda hard to predict what kind of salary Biron may command.

I think Biron is a pretty good, affordable goalie. Statistically he fared well this year, certainly better than Jose Theodore or Peter Budaj, the Avs goalies for the past 3 seasons.
Another reason I like Biron is that he can't be accused of being the product of a dominantly defensive team system. The Avs can keep Budaj as an affordable backup.

Certainly Biron will not come as cheap as this seasons line up of goalies. And the Avs are facing some cap challenges. But some how they are going to have to find a way to pay a decent goalie. Of course the defense is going to have to improve in front of the goalie. But to a degree, I believe that a step up in goal tending can elevate this defense to a more respectable level, and in return, produce better goal tending. Or maybe I'm just dreaming.

Posted by: From the Point