THOUGHTS ON HOSSA, JAGR AND MORE

Okay Pens fans, you have every right to be upset about Marion Hossa’s decision to take less money than the Penguins offered to suit up with the Wings next season. It sure looks like he just wants to bounce around leaping from one contender to another until he guesses right and lands on a championship team. Next year when the Wings get bumped from the 2nd round he’ll be looking elsewhere and we’ll do this all over again. True it would have been nice to see what a full season of the Hossa/Crosby connection would have accomplished, but he’ll do just fine playing with a number of highly skilled players on the Wings roster. His personal stats won’t suffer in Detroit so he will again be a top free agent next year, the bidding war will kick in and insane offers will land in his lap once more. Only next time I don’t see the Pens making an offer to him, as the bad taste from this year will still be in the mouths of the Penguin brass. The Penguins will be just fine in the long run without him as they did the right thing by locking up Malkin, Fleury and keeping the young core intact. Besides, picking up Satan (who can really finish when he plays with talent around him) will most likely bring close to the same production they would have got from Hossa.

If Jaromir Jagr really wanted to keep playing in the NHL he would have signed any one of a number of offers that came his way. True he was looking for a 2 year deal that would keep him collecting coin in the $5 - $6 million per season range, but at this stage in his career that just wasn’t going to happen. If he would have taken a 1year deal worth $2 - $4 million he could have finished his career in the NHL. Obviously, he wanted more in his paycheck and he got what he wanted in Russia. I find it funny that hockey fans feel robbed of “super talent” with Jagr’s move to Russia. When was the last time Jagr and his “super talent” led the league in anything? Realistically there was no way any team was going to pour the kind of money Jagr was looking for in a player whose skill is declining in the twilight of his playing career. Just look at the fact that Jeremy Roenick and Owen Nolan still find a home every year in the NHL. This happens because they know what they are worth and accept what comes their way. Don’t feel bad for Jagr folks, he found the coin he was seeking and we still have the memories of when he was worth that much.

Dan Boyle may have been upset with how things went down in his departure from Tampa Bay, but he will be on a much better team and will at least make the postseason next year. He should be happy that he is no longer with the circus that is the Lightning. Speaking of the circus, I didn’t think another team could match the sideshow atmosphere that the Islanders have displayed in resent years, but the Lightning actually pulled it off. Sure Boyle may be over-shadowed by the likes of Lidstrom, Phaneuf, Pronger, Campbell, etc. in the west, but it should bring out his “A” game and put him in the running for the Norris trophy which would not have a chance of happening if he stayed in Tampa.

Now, is it just me or does it seem like we are starting to see that same separation of teams who can spend money from the ones that can’t that we saw before the lockout? I can’t quite figure this one out because the separation seems to be there but the teams involved have changed a bit. No longer is this separation between big and small market teams. Which leads me to believe that it could be due to a couple of factors. One being that the cap ceiling keeps rising every year to levels we saw before the lockout, most NHL GM’s are flat out insane with how much money they throw around and some teams don’t mind hanging out in the cellar if it will increase their chances of getting in on the “Tavares Sweepstakes” next year. That last reason may be more realistic than any of us want to think possible, but how else do you explain the moves or non-moves made by teams like the Lightning, Maple Leafs, Panthers, Thrashers, Islanders, Sabres, Kings, Canucks and Blues? It’s not like Toronto, New York and Los Angeles are small markets by any stretch of the imagination, so what gives here? I’ll keep scratching my head as I get to the bottom of this, but it looks as though we will see a greater distance of points between playoff and non-playoff teams next season with the best of the worst filling out the last playoff spots. Which bodes well for a bubble team like Boston, as they should have an easier chance at making the postseason next year. All they have to do is focus on the teams ahead of them because there will be no one around them.

SOME OF US SAW THE HOSSA DEAL COMMING

Yesterday I wrote about how there will be some trades that would come from left field and catch us off guard, and “to most”, that trade was the Hossa to Penguins deal. I said “to most” because yours truly along with some Pens fans with big dreams saw this as a golden opportunity over month ago. Yes, we all got blasted when we made the bold statement on our blogs, message boards and rumor sites where we were laughed at and called silly. For my thoughts back in January just scroll a few posts down to CROSBY NEEDS HIS OWN KURRI and you will see how silly I was.

Now, in no way am I saying that the Pens didn’t give up a lot to get Hossa, but keep in mind when a chance to give the best playmaker in hockey a true sniper with speed riding shotgun, you do what ever it takes to do it. Sure there is no saying that Hossa will re-sign with the Pens and he may become a really expensive playoff rental, but they have the rest of the year figure it out and I just have the feeling that once Hossa and Crosby connect Hossa wouldn’t think of going anywhere else. Why would he? This is a win-win for both players and their production could easily hit the roof.

When you are talking about one of the most gifted players to ever play the game you have to surround them with the best possible players in order to get the best out of them. Remember how important Kurri was to Gretzky? Remember after Wayne went to the Kings how imperative it was for them to acquire Kurri? Remember the names involved in the 3-way trade between the Oilers, Flyers and Kings? Okay, I know you remember how important it was for the Rangers to get Kurri when they got Gretz and the names involved in getting that one done, right? Well then, what makes the Hossa deal any different? There is no questioning the dynamic that Kurri brought to Gretzky’s game and Hossa and Crosby are on the cusp of bringing us that same kind of brilliance.

I openly applaud the Penguins management for making this bold move and bringing the city of Pittsburgh a team that fans haven’t seen since the days of Mario, Francis and Jagr. If anyone is worried about screwing up the chemistry of the team, think about it. You are talking about a couple of truly gifted players who can play with anyone and now have a chance to take chemistry to a whole new level. They have some time left to click and when it happens, look out; this could be the best thing we’ve ever seen and the best thing for the game in decades.

CROSBY NEEDS HIS OWN KURRI

Watching Sidney Crosby play this year makes me think he is missing something. Not anything in his own game (he already possesses more than his fair share), but if you think about what made Wayne Gretzky “The Great One” a case can be made that it was the luxury of having Jari Kurri. Sid the kid needs his own Jari Kurri. That missing piece to the puzzle for the Pens could be the key to lofting Crosby to heights we haven’t seen in decades.

Imagine for a moment Sid playing along side a fast gifted scoring winger who seems to be in the right places at the right times (not that Sid couldn’t get him the puck no matter where he was). Imagine how Crosby’s creative genius could expand if he new he had someone riding shotgun who can put the puck in the net more often than not. Now picture in your mind a player who could bring that kind of dynamic, speed and talent to help Sid reach the outer limits. Who did you see? Is he reasonably available? Does he have a no trade clause?

I’ll tell you who I saw, Marian Hossa. He could possibly be available if the Thrashers fail to resign him and he has the speed dynamic and talent that would compliment Crosby’s and make them a lethal combination. Now imagine how much production the two of them could generate playing together and how dangerous the power play would be adding Malkin on the left side. Yes folks Sidney Crosby needs his own Jari Kurri and the planets are aligning to where there could be a chance for the Pens to get one for next year or even by the deadline this year.

Yes this is all imaginary and the Pens could have no interest in picking up Hossa and have someone else in mind or no one at all, but I can’t help but think this is a golden opportunity for them and one they should seriously consider. Hossa could be Crosby’s Kurri and just what he needs to actually reach the bar Gretzky set (or at least get within a sniff). If the Pens pass on Hossa, the need for a player of his caliber remains and the help Crosby needs becomes more apparent.

Well, I imagined Hossa. Who did you see? Let me know who you think should be riding shotgun to “The Kid” and what you would give up to get them.