Brian Rafalski retires

Post #1 » by **ajaX82** » Tue May 24, 2011 3:02 am

In a surprising turn of events, Ralfy is done. I thank him for his hard work and excellent play these last few years. A class act for sure. The guy apparently played with no ACL in one of knees the entire playoffs as well, which is crazy

time for Kindl full time now, which is nice. Jakob is an offensive defensemen too, so truthfully I don't expect a major dropoff there. I'm also a huge Kindl fan, so I'm stoked. This does free up 6 million to play with as well and hopefully we can get a big defensmen.

Rodya · Post #2 » by **Rodya** » Wed May 25, 2011 10:00 pm

This pretty much mirrors my sentiments on his retirement and the potential cap-space his retirement creates. I noted in the off-season thread that I would like to add one of Ed Jovanovski or Joni Pitkanen and a minor defensive addition in either Adamn Foote, Steve Staios, or simply use the money to re-sign Erickson and Salei.

Rodya · Post #3 » by **Rodya** » Thu May 26, 2011 3:25 am

Just to add, I wouldn't be surprised if Rafalski came back after next season.

Post #4 » by **ajaX82** » Thu May 26, 2011 4:57 am

Rodya wrote:This pretty much mirrors my sentiments on his retirement and the potential cap-space his retirement creates. I noted in the off-season thread that I would like to add one of Ed Jovanovski or Joni Pitkanen and a minor defensive addition in either Adamn Foote, Steve Staios, or simply use the money to re-sign Erickson and Salei.

Its not a great crop of FA d-men sadly. I would personally like to see Kevin Bieksa signed. And no to re-signing Salei and Ericsson. I hate those two

Rodya · Post #5 » by **Rodya** » Thu May 26, 2011 6:46 am

Yeah, Ericsson has the IQ of a 2x4. Definitely wouldn't want him re-signed for the same amount as his previous contract of $1.25 million per. Salei on the other hand, $500k doesn't seem too bad for a veteran reserve.

Post #6 » by **ajaX82** » Thu May 26, 2011 9:27 pm

Rodya wrote:Yeah, Ericsson has the IQ of a 2x4. Definitely wouldn't want him re-signed for the same amount as his previous contract of $1.25 million per. Salei on the other hand, $500k doesn't seem too bad for a veteran reserve.

Jesus same amount? Homie wants a big raise, thats part of the problem. I believe we offered him a 2 million per year extension, which he turned down. Jon thinks he is worth some cash, and I would prefer it isn't us

Rodya · Post #7 » by **Rodya** » Fri May 27, 2011 1:12 am

^ Yeah, I'd rather just let him walk than spend that much cash on a career third-liner.

Post #8 » by **Mr Swagtastic** » Fri Jun 3, 2011 5:11 pm

What a great career arguably one of the top US born D-Men to ever lace up a pair. You guys should be honored to have him wear the Red, Blue and White for your National team. The guy gave 3 great franchises a class act of a player. Never once bitched and moaned about the petty stuff and just played the game the right way. I would hope either the National or NJ Devil retire his number of have a day to honor his career.

I doubt that we get Kevin Bieksa this offseason The Canucks look very poised on keeping him if they win the cup I don't see why he would leave unless 1) The severely underpay him or 2) We over pay him

Post #9 » by **ajaX82** » Sat Jun 4, 2011 3:36 am

xbl_sucks wrote:I doubt that we get Kevin Bieksa this offseason The Canucks look very poised on keeping him if they win the cup I don't see why he would leave unless 1) The severely underpay him or 2) We over pay him

That's too bad, because it isn't a great FA pool and I like Bieksa. He seems like just the player we would like and need to add

Rodya · Post #10 » by **Rodya** » Mon Jun 6, 2011 3:56 pm

I don't really understand why you guys are so enamored with him? He's just an above average defenseman. He's 30 years old, meaning what you've seen is what you'll get it. I like the guy, but he'll likely being commanding between $3.75-4.00 million per year. I just don't think he's worth that kind of money. Let the Oilers, Montreal, or Vancouver overspend for him.

I would much rather go hard after Andre Markov. He's an all-star caliber defenseman and not to forget, he had an injured plagued 2011 season, meaning he may be had for a bargain if the length of the contract is attractive...that's what she said.

Post #11 » by **Mr Swagtastic** » Mon Jun 6, 2011 6:37 pm

I tend to agree with Rodya a bit, I mean yes Bieksa is overrated a tad bit possibly playing for Vancouver but I think he's still a quality defensemen. I don't think we go after Andre Markov unless it's really cheap like in the 3.5-4.5 million range I just don't want to have him for 1-2 years and then he goes down again with a injury

Post #12 » by **ajaX82** » Mon Jun 6, 2011 7:30 pm

Bieksa isn't "the answer" or anything, but a real defensive guy, tough and physical, fits the bill. I don't think giving him 3.5 mill a season would be out of this world, but we may have to overpay to get him

As for Markov, yeah, I like him. He's a solid 45 points and some good play. But he is already 32 and has about 50 games combined the last 2 years due to injury. For a guy heading for his mid-30s, serious injuries are a serious concern to me. He can't help if he doesn't play.

We grab either for the right price and I am happy

Post #13 » by **Mr Swagtastic** » Mon Jun 6, 2011 7:51 pm

ajaX82 wrote:Bieksa isn't "the answer" or anything, but a real defensive guy, tough and physical, fits the bill. I don't think giving him 3.5 mill a season would be out of this world, but we may have to overpay to get him

As for Markov, yeah, I like him. He's a solid 45 points and some good play. But he is already 32 and has about 50 games combined the last 2 years due to injury. For a guy heading for his mid-30s, serious injuries are a serious concern to me. He can't help if he doesn't play.

We grab either for the right price and I am happy

Yeah that I could live with, I am not saying Bieska is a bad deal but he's going to get paid cause he's a physical d-man and teams love to overpay for them. I would be happy if we get either for around $3-$4 million per year. I wouldn't give Markov more then 3 years but Bieska I would give 4 years to I feel some teams will just throw out a long term deal out at him just for the sake of overpaying since this is a so-so defense man fa pool

Rodya · Post #14 » by **Rodya** » Tue Jun 7, 2011 1:46 am

xbl_sucks wrote:
ajaX82 wrote:Bieksa isn't "the answer" or anything, but a real defensive guy, tough and physical, fits the bill. I don't think giving him 3.5 mill a season would be out of this world, but we may have to overpay to get him

As for Markov, yeah, I like him. He's a solid 45 points and some good play. But he is already 32 and has about 50 games combined the last 2 years due to injury. For a guy heading for his mid-30s, serious injuries are a serious concern to me. He can't help if he doesn't play.

We grab either for the right price and I am happy

Yeah that I could live with, I am not saying Bieska is a bad deal but he's going to get paid cause he's a physical d-man and teams love to overpay for them. I would be happy if we get either for around $3-$4 million per year. I wouldn't give Markov more then 3 years but Bieska I would give 4 years to I feel some teams will just throw out a long term deal out at him just for the sake of overpaying since this is a so-so defense man fa pool

Markov's greatest asset is his ability to quarterback an offense from the blue line, alas Lidstrom. In our offense, I could see him averaging 50+ assists a season. Not to mention he's a pretty big guy - he hits and blocks shot on a regular basis. His injury history is a concern, but with proper scouting he could become the steal of this free-agency.

Regarding Bieska, he's not going to come cheap. He isn't going to re-sign for $3.5 million and may very well command north of $4.0 if and when the C'nucks win The Cup. Any team wanting his services will have to overpay in order to pull him from a very comfortable situation in Vancouver. And I agree with both of you, obviously would be happy to have either for the right price. But I feel this may be the worst possible time to go after Bieska, even if it's the only time.

Post #15 » by **ajaX82** » Tue Jun 7, 2011 2:25 am

The problem I have with Markov is that he is an offensive defensmen and that our two top guys, Kindl and Smith, are both offensive oriented defensmen. We need a banger. A mean, nasty mofo on the backline. I'm just not sure Markov fits that bill. Bieksa does better, but as you said, we gotta overpay for him.

Not a great year to be finding d-men quite frankly. And other guys in mind?

Rodya · Post #16 » by **Rodya** » Tue Jun 7, 2011 5:38 am

Yeah, I feel like my support of Markov is counter to what I was saying all last and current offseason about the redundancy of the Lidstrom/Rafalski pairing and how we needed defensive oriented defensemen (as strange as that sounds). But, no matter how much I want a hard nosed hitter, I don't want the Wings locking themselves into a long-term/overpriced contract. You overpay for stars-level players, not relatively interchangeable talent.

I was thinking more about Markov's injury concerns. Maybe a one-year offer to rehab properly and compete on the top line of a championship contending squad would intrigue him. Again, he may want the immediate financial security of a multi-year offer, in which case he can stay in Montreal. I like the idea of having him and Lidstrom come off the books, giving us considerable flexibility next off-season.

Since there isn't much defensive talent worth dedicating large long-term contracts to this summer, it might be wise to look at older players interested in one-year contracts. A few names come to mind: McCabe, Hamerlik, Jovanovski, Kaberle. Most of these guys will obviously want multi-year contracts, but may be persuaded to take a lucrative one-year deal instead.

Btw, Holland needs to do his due diligence and look into Shea Weber. I would relinquish the rights of all of our restricted free-agents (oxymoron?) and offer him every dime we have. This guy will have a few Norris trophies before he's done. 6'4", 240lbs, 50+ points per season, and only 26. I'm sure Nashville will match any offer for him, but he's still worth the trouble.

Post #17 » by **Mr Swagtastic** » Tue Jun 7, 2011 7:33 pm

Rodya - I believe Shea Webber signed a extension with Nashville or said that he has no plans on leaving. I could be wrong but there is no way Nashville lets him walk unless were overpaying like at $7-$8+ million per year

Post #18 » by **ajaX82** » Tue Jun 7, 2011 8:21 pm

xbl_sucks wrote:Rodya - I believe Shea Webber signed a extension with Nashville or said that he has no plans on leaving. I could be wrong but there is no way Nashville lets him walk unless were overpaying like at $7-$8+ million per year

Weber hasn't signed an extension to my knowledge but has repeatedly said he would be staying in Nashville. As he is restricted, and assuming the crazy amount of money we would have to pay, we would be giving up a lot of picks. From what I can find, paying over 6.5 million per (which would happen) would cost 4 first rounders. ouch.

I would loooove to have Weber, but I just cannot see it happening

Rodya · Post #19 » by **Rodya** » Wed Jun 8, 2011 4:44 am

Yeah, I had no illusions that we had a real shot at signing him. Nonetheless, I still think Holland and company should pursue him religiously, even if we're only used by Shea's representatives as leverage. If we can't have him, let whoever does break the bank to.

Post #20 » by **Mr Swagtastic** » Fri Jun 24, 2011 4:32 pm

ajaX82 wrote:
xbl_sucks wrote:Rodya - I believe Shea Webber signed a extension with Nashville or said that he has no plans on leaving. I could be wrong but there is no way Nashville lets him walk unless were overpaying like at $7-$8+ million per year

Weber hasn't signed an extension to my knowledge but has repeatedly said he would be staying in Nashville. As he is restricted, and assuming the crazy amount of money we would have to pay, we would be giving up a lot of picks. From what I can find, paying over 6.5 million per (which would happen) would cost 4 first rounders. ouch.

I would loooove to have Weber, but I just cannot see it happening

4 1st rounders would be a joke to pay I would give that easily for him. He's a big bruising d-man with a cannon of a shot. I would say he's easily the best young d-man in the league if not 2nd to Drew Doughty of Kings. Plus he's what 25/26 it's not like he's 30, the 4 1st's would be really late as it is now and with Detroit's ownership I can see the team still being competitive, I would say they are up there easily as one the best teams to play for.