We are now halfway through the 2007-08 NHL regular season, and as of this morning, it's fairly easy to identify, oh, about two dozen clubs that could use significant roster help.
These are clubs that require more than an extra defenseman or a faceoff specialist. Check the standings. Bottom-feeders like Washington and Tampa in the East, and Edmonton and Los Angeles in the West, are in need of major talent infusions, and have had three months to address their needs. But they've done next to nothing.
Washington dumped its coach, Glen Hanlon, and brought in Bruce Boudreau. Tampa basically fired (waived) netminder Marc Denis. The Oilers and Kings? They continue to wilt away, their fans clamoring for moves that just never materialize.
It has now become painfully evident that one of the major consequences - or casualties - of the New NHL is that it is nearly impossible to fix rosters on the fly. The team that comes out of training camp is pretty much the team that will take the ice for the next six-plus months, save for a few dramatic moves around the trade deadline (Feb. 26 this season) that now is mostly an exercise in also-rans harvesting draft picks for players destined to become unrestricted free agents.
The days of the Bruins going out and pulling off a midseason blockbuster - as they did around the 1992 Olympics, swapping Craig Janney and Stephane Quintal for Adam Oates - are gone. Two years later, at the March deadline, they swapped Joe Juneau for Al "The Planet" Iafrate. A move like that around the trade deadline now would have one of those players, no doubt on the verge of becoming a UFA, dealt for a pair of prospects in the AHL and maybe a first-round pick.
The two main reasons for roster stagnation:
The new CBA, now in its third year, does not allow clubs to share salaries of traded players. In other words, if the Bruins could find someone interested in taking Glen Murray, due some $6 million over the next season and a half, they could not offer to keep even a dollar of his salary on their books. When a player gets moved, his contract travels with him in whole.
There has been a dramatic increase in the number of no-trade/no-move deals around the league. The Bruins right now have Zdeno Chara ($7.5 million a year), Marc Savard ($5 million), and Marco Sturm ($3.5 million) all on no-move deals. P.J. Axelsson's contract allows him to be traded, but only to a limited number of clubs (Sturm's deal, depending on whether the Bruins make the playoffs, eventually could read the same). Look around the other 29 rosters, and you'll find pricey no-trade contracts. By and large, the highest-paid players just can't be dealt.
All of which means, for better or worse, that the day of the blockbuster deal has gone the way of wooden sticks. In terms of moving players, which also can mean salvaging seasons, today's NHL is a lot like the NFL. Fans in Cincinnati don't sit around thinking in early November that the Bengals might come up with a key wideout or a No. 2 running back. In-season deals amount to cutting the kicker after a bad Sunday and auditioning three walk-ons for his job on Monday morning.
It has always been true, no matter what the sport, that a team's success rests with its best players. The new economics of the NHL make that even more the case.
Look no further than the Bruins roster. True, general manager Peter Chiarelli has some financial elbow room to shop the market now that Manny Fernandez (knee surgery) is on injured reserve for the remainder of the season. But if Chiarelli wanted to make a $4 million or $5 million commitment to someone, the truth is, that kind of talent was taken off the board soon after free agency kicked in July 1, 2007.
Chiarelli no doubt will be offered a chance to spend the money, but the offers will be for players in that price range whose performances are worth about 23 cents on the dollar (read: roster white elephants).
Half a season gone by, the only swap even close to impact status was the Dec. 14 Anaheim-St. Louis exchange that had the Ducks send Andy McDonald to the Blues for Doug Weight. Two pretty good players, both earning $3.5 million, and the results thus far have been lackluster, in part because of
Chiarelli has made two repairs to his Bruins thus far, acquiring Alex Auld to help Tim Thomas guard the net, followed by last week's move that sent Brandon Bochenski to Anaheim for defenseman Shane Hnidy. Hardly big moves, but Auld provided valuable relief when Thomas was injured last month, and Hnidy looks as if he can provide competent third-pairing minutes on the back line.
None of that is too exciting. But it is today's NHL, a league that has tossed a cold bucket of water on the hot stove of trade talks and dreams.
Decline and fall of Samsonov
Ex-Bruin Sergei Samsonov, placed on waivers last weekend by the Blackhawks after going without a goal in 23 games, was demoted to Rockford (AHL) Wednesday after all other 29 NHL clubs passed up the chance to take him on recall waivers. On the books this season at $3.5 million, the Magical Muscovite would have cost a club about $800,000 - roughly 50 percent of his remaining wages.
So, what happened to the 1998 Rookie of the Year? Prevailing wisdom has it that Sammy, only 29 years old, never regained his touch after undergoing wrist surgery in 2002-03 while still a Bruin. But he picked up 40 points in 58 games the next season, and he was a sometimes spectacular performer for the Oilers in the '06 playoffs. His hands were working well enough to bring him 15 points in 24 postseason games and help the Oilers force a Game 7 in the finals vs. Carolina.
Among the most dedicated and hardest workers when he arrived on Causeway Street in October 1997, he is now dogged by rumors that he has lost his drive to play at an elite level, and he has always shown a penchant for overhandling the puck and turning it over in his offensive zone.
Samsonov was the No. 8 overall pick in the '97 draft, the same lottery that had clubs agonizing over where to take Dan Cleary, the talented but undisciplined winger from Belleville. Once considered a possible No. 1 pick (that was a fella named Joe Thornton), Cleary dropped to No. 13 (Chicago), one slot behind Marian Hossa (ouch). Cleary was a bust in stints with Chicago, Edmonton, and even Phoenix, and ultimately was left with only an invite to Detroit's camp in September 2005.
Now in his third year with the Wings, Cleary is considered a vital cog in their success, and there are rumblings around town that the Wings soon will tie him up long term rather than risk losing him as a free agent in July. Meanwhile, Samsonov plays out the string as a Rockford IceHog, with no deal in place after this season.
Outdoor idea has Bruins in a winter wondering land
OK, after the boffo success with Tuesday's game in suburban Buffalo, where will the NHL land its next outdoor extravaganza? The Lords of the Boards haven't committed to anyone yet, but the Flyers already have their hand raised to face the Penguins at Penn State's Beaver Stadium (seating capacity: 107,000). If they were to pack the place, that would be a 50 percent increase over the gate at Ralph Wilson Stadium.
Meanwhile, count Bruins vice president Cam Neely among those who were impressed with the show in the snow at Orchard Park.
"Seeing the puck slow down in the snow when guys tried to make passes . . . boy, that really brings back memories," said Neely.
An essential part of making the event such a success, Neely felt, was having enough surrounding acreage for fans to tailgate prior to the game. In Orchard Park, parking lots opened at 8 a.m, some 5 1/2 hours prior to faceoff, and young fans spent hours playing football games and street hockey.
"Peter and I were talking about that," said Neely, referring to Bruins general manager Peter Chiarelli. "Having all that room is key - just for the street hockey, and all that atmosphere. I thought it was great."
Charlie Jacobs, executive son in charge on Causeway Street, told the Globe last week that Fenway Park, Harvard Stadium, and Gillette Stadium would be desirable venues for an outdoor game.
And even though there are no stands, Jacobs said he felt Boston Common would be another possibility.
Imagine the league weighing the option of 107,000-seat Beaver Stadium vs. a First Night-like mob standing on tiptoes and hanging from trees on the Common. Better to play it on a barge in the Charles River and have the locals line up on both banks.
Etc.
Carolina has holes in net
Ex-Bruin netminder John Grahame, briefly slotted as the No. 1 stopper here in the Hub of Hockey, last week cleared waivers in Raleigh. Grahame, making $1.4 million this year, had given up 33 goals in his last seven starts for the Hurricanes. No. 1 stopper and '06 Conn Smythe winner Cam Ward also has become highly beatable, all in all making it one busy year for first-year netminding coach Tom Barrasso. With Grahame gone, and not likely to surface anywhere else this season, the frustrated Hurricanes called up journeyman Michael Leighton, once a Chicago fifth-round draft pick. Leighton won his debut, 4-3, over the Thrashers Friday night, and could be in net here Tuesday when Carolina comes to town.
Kelly gets around
Former Boston attorney Paul Kelly, named just weeks ago as the new executive director of the NHL Players Association, made the trip to Orchard Park for the outdoor game New Year's Day. "Our guys loved it, and we'd do it again, for sure," Kelly wrote from Prague via e-mail. Kelly, who lives in Needham, will return from Prague today after taking in the final rounds of the World Junior Championships. And right from the Small World Dept.: When Kelly was contacted by a search firm that was rounding up candidates for the PA opening, the head of the search was none other than Dave Poulin. The ex-Bruin pivot is now managing director and partner of Chicago-based Reilly Partners.
Trade deficit
Some 10 days past the official Holiday Roster Freeze, there haven't been any big deals struck among the Original 30 (with apologies here to Mssrs. Shane Hnidy and Brandon "The Big" Bochenski). Rumors in and out of the break had the Blue Jackets and Blueshirts ready to swap, with the Rangers keen on acquiring Czech winger David Vyborny. But no dice. Rumors have it that the Jackets wanted another forward, Brandon Dubinsky, in the swap, but the Rangers would prefer to part with Petr Prucha.
Who was watching
Three of the top 11 markets in the US that tuned into Tuesday's "Winter Classic" were in New England. In order, the top cities were: Buffalo (38.2), Pittsburgh (17.7), Minneapolis (5.11), Denver (3.77), Providence (3.57), Las Vegas (3.56), St. Louis (3.35), Boston (3.26), Sacramento (2.96), Richmond (2.85), and Hartford (2.85). Of the four US cities in the NHL's Original Six, Boston was the only one to make the top 11. No New York. No Detroit. No Chicago.
Ty has been winning
Former University of New Hampshire goalie Ty Conklin has turned into a mainstay for the Penguins now that Marc-Andre Fleury has been sidelined long term with an ankle injury. Conklin, in net for the outdoor win over the Sabres, is 7-0-0 since taking over the job Dec. 20, including yesterday's shutout of the Panthers. Two of those wins were against the Bruins. The former Wildcat (Class of '01) will be 32 in March, and may finally have regular work after stints in Edmonton, Columbus, and Buffalo. Fleury had only spotty success this season with the Penguins, and Conklin is succeeding, in part, because of his strong puck-handling skills. "It's like having another defenseman," said ex-Bruin backliner Sergei Gonchar.
Loose pucks
The Bruins picked up a sixth-round draft pick in the swap Wednesday that netted them Hnidy from the Ducks. But they also took on approximately another $850,000 in salary. Bochenski's deal, worth $600,000, expires at the end of this season. Hnidy now makes $755,000 and is guaranteed another $760,000 next season. But if he proves to be a serviceable No. 5-6 blue liner, it was worth the swap. Bochenski, explaining his plight this season to the Los Angeles Daily News: "Maybe the way it was handled wasn't the best. I didn't get a chance to play and work into it. They tell me one thing, tell me another thing the next year - it was a tough situation. I am back to where I've always been [with weight], and I feel good right now." . . . Vesa Toskala is injured. Andrew Raycroft's game has gone soft. The remedy in Toronto? Hand the No. 1 goalie job to ex-BC Eagle Scott Clemmensen. At least for now. The 6-foot-3-inch Clemmensen, now 30, went into the weekend 1-1 in two starts . . . No telling how soon Teppo Numminen will be back on the Sabres' backline. Still recovering from September heart surgery to repair a valve, the 39-year-old Finn began to skate again Dec. 13. NBC reported on New Year's Day that he could be back in 10 days. Numminen: "I don't think so." . . . Daniel Briere, now with an eight-year, $52 million deal in Philly, as of last week was a lackluster 9-10 -19, and a minus-7, in even-strength scoring. "It's been frustrating," he told the Courier-Post. Especially considering he led the league last year in even-strength scoring: 23-42 -65, and a plus-17, with the Sabres. But good news appears on the way. Simon Gagne, sidelined two months with a concussion, should be back this week, and he'll likely play on a line with Briere and Scott Hartnell. Gagne last week made a change in contact lenses, which he believes is helping him overcome lingering vision issues . . . A pair of ex-University of Vermont standouts, Patrick Sharp (Chicago) and Eric Perrin (Atlanta), are at the top of the charts for shorthanded scoring. Sharp is first with 9 points, Perrin second with 7 . . . Consider yourself one true hockeyphile if you knew that Bruce Boudreau, now the Capitals coach, appeared in the epic flick "Slap Shot." He was among the proud members of the Hyannisport Presidents, and the cameo role paid him $1,300.
Kevin Paul Dupont can be reached at dupont@globe.com; material from personal interviews, wire services, other beat writers, and league and team sources was used in this report.
