Wikipedia's quick synopsis of the 1990 film Total Recall ends,
"(main character Douglas) Quaid conquers the corruption and restores
Mars to a viable community." Add "of his own mind" to "conquers" and
replace "Quaid" and "Mars" with any of the following NHL general
managers and their respective clubs, and you now have a plot summary
for how some of their most recent free agency signings have transpired.
Before a certain automaker was forced to make a major recall, these GMs were trying to redo a few of the moves they made over the summer, and in most cases were able to do so.
July 1 - New York Rangers sign Donald Brashear;
Edmonton Oilers sign Nikolai Khabibulin
The first day of the free agent frenzy is just that--a frenzy--so inevitably a couple mistakes will be made amongst the chaos. Is it any surprise that the tenants of the world's most famous arena set the precedent with one of the year's most terrible signings?
After being eliminated by the Washington Capitals, the team's focus shifted to reshuffling the on-ice personnel. Among those up for unrestrited free agency was Blair Betts, a penalty-killing staple of the post-lockout Blueshirts.
Instead of giving the defensive specialist the less than $1 million he more than deserved, Glen Sather decided to bring in Donald Brashear, who had previously drawn the ire of the entire fanbase with a recent high hit on Betts, not to mention the fight with Brendan Shanahan and subsequent sucker punch of Aaron Ward.
Now, Betts is doing his usual tireless forechecking, shot-blocking and face-off-winning for only $550,000, while Brashear has collected just one point in his average 6:15 of ice time per game--at two-and-a-half times the cost.
Before a certain automaker was forced to make a major recall, these GMs were trying to redo a few of the moves they made over the summer, and in most cases were able to do so.
July 1 - New York Rangers sign Donald Brashear;
Edmonton Oilers sign Nikolai Khabibulin
The first day of the free agent frenzy is just that--a frenzy--so inevitably a couple mistakes will be made amongst the chaos. Is it any surprise that the tenants of the world's most famous arena set the precedent with one of the year's most terrible signings?
After being eliminated by the Washington Capitals, the team's focus shifted to reshuffling the on-ice personnel. Among those up for unrestrited free agency was Blair Betts, a penalty-killing staple of the post-lockout Blueshirts.
Instead of giving the defensive specialist the less than $1 million he more than deserved, Glen Sather decided to bring in Donald Brashear, who had previously drawn the ire of the entire fanbase with a recent high hit on Betts, not to mention the fight with Brendan Shanahan and subsequent sucker punch of Aaron Ward.
Now, Betts is doing his usual tireless forechecking, shot-blocking and face-off-winning for only $550,000, while Brashear has collected just one point in his average 6:15 of ice time per game--at two-and-a-half times the cost.
The departure of the man behind him and the injury to Roloson's replacement has left Jeff Deslauriers prematurely thrown into the fire. |
Not to be outdone by a club that once looked like the Eastern version
of their squad, the Oilers had their own decision to make regarding
their goaltending. Would they retain the veteran Dwayne Roloson, who
was coming off his best season in Edmonton (28 wins, .915 SV%) or
replace him with a younger free agent?
Steve Tambellini chose to walk the latter path, signing Nikoali Khabibulin to a four-year contract averaging a $3.75 million cap hit. The Bulin Wall has crumbled this year, winning only seven of the 18 games he has played in before succumbing to a herniated disk in his back that has likely wiped out the rest of his season.
Meanwhile, Rollie the goalie has been worth much more than his $2.5 million salary, stabilizing a young hockey team while Rick DiPietro rehabbed from his own long-term injury. His 19 wins and .909/2.82 kept a team that was supposed to have a throwaway, rebuilding year in the playoff hunt the first half of 2009-10.
July 9 - New York Rangers sign Ales Kotalik
It just wouldn't be an offseason without more than one questionable signing on Broadway, and I say that as a fan of the franchise. After a deadline trade from his team for over a half dozen years to Edmonton didn't quite pan out, Kotalik found himself without a club. After losing Nikolai Zherdev to a contract holdout and ultimately the KHL, the Rangers found themselves short an enigmatic European winger. It was match made in heaven that turned into hockey hell.
The Czech started off well enough, with 12 points in 14 October games. Then, just as the team itself started to derail, so did his production. The next month saw Kotalik score only half as many points, then his offense started to become as cold as the weather, with only two goals and as many assists in December and January combined. That's four points in 19 contests.
Steve Tambellini chose to walk the latter path, signing Nikoali Khabibulin to a four-year contract averaging a $3.75 million cap hit. The Bulin Wall has crumbled this year, winning only seven of the 18 games he has played in before succumbing to a herniated disk in his back that has likely wiped out the rest of his season.
Meanwhile, Rollie the goalie has been worth much more than his $2.5 million salary, stabilizing a young hockey team while Rick DiPietro rehabbed from his own long-term injury. His 19 wins and .909/2.82 kept a team that was supposed to have a throwaway, rebuilding year in the playoff hunt the first half of 2009-10.
July 9 - New York Rangers sign Ales Kotalik
It just wouldn't be an offseason without more than one questionable signing on Broadway, and I say that as a fan of the franchise. After a deadline trade from his team for over a half dozen years to Edmonton didn't quite pan out, Kotalik found himself without a club. After losing Nikolai Zherdev to a contract holdout and ultimately the KHL, the Rangers found themselves short an enigmatic European winger. It was match made in heaven that turned into hockey hell.
The Czech started off well enough, with 12 points in 14 October games. Then, just as the team itself started to derail, so did his production. The next month saw Kotalik score only half as many points, then his offense started to become as cold as the weather, with only two goals and as many assists in December and January combined. That's four points in 19 contests.
Rangers bench boss John Tortorella gives Ales Kotalik directions to Calgary. |
The wort part of the acquisition wasn't even the deteriorating numbers,
however, as for a reason only few know, New York not only gave the
former Sabre a three-year, $9 million pact that included a limited
no-movement clause! The only thing more surprising than that is that
Sather was able to flip that contract over to Calgary for their own
failed experiment.
The on-again, off-again GM was once again able to clean up a mess, though it was once again of his own making.
In the end, Kotalik's tenure as a Blueshirt was a short one that can best be described by the image to the left.
August 28 - Vancouver Canucks sign Mathieu Schneider
After eleven years, the Canucks' first round draft pick back in 1994 headed southeast, leaving a gaping hole on the blueline, mostly in terms of leadership. Enter the 40-year-old Mathieu Schneider, who may not have the shutdown capability of Mathias Ohlund, but certainly seemed capable of boosting the offense from the back end.
Seventeen games and only five points later (with just two coming with the man advantage), it was clear that things weren't exactly unfolding according to plan. The New Yorker was tired of watching games from the box, so after being healthy scratched for the fourth time, he left the team.
Eventually both sides agreed it was simply best for everyone if they parted ways. The only problem was, no one was willing to take on a player at his age making nearly $2 million in base salary. After his former client cleared waivers, Mike Gillis had no choice but to assign him to the club's AHL affiliate in Manitoba.
Only now the headache was turning into a migraine, as such a move would put the Moose over the A's limit of five veterans per roster. Once that issue was taken care of, Schneider's fortunes appeared to turn, as he became an offensive contributor and mentor for the parent club's prospects...only to go down with a freak knee injury in practice only eight games into his first stint in the minors in two decades.
However the one-time Cup champion's season ends, he may just be glad that he's still playing pro hockey, while Vancouver can take comfort in the fact that the mutual mistake will be all but forgotten by then.
The on-again, off-again GM was once again able to clean up a mess, though it was once again of his own making.
In the end, Kotalik's tenure as a Blueshirt was a short one that can best be described by the image to the left.
August 28 - Vancouver Canucks sign Mathieu Schneider
After eleven years, the Canucks' first round draft pick back in 1994 headed southeast, leaving a gaping hole on the blueline, mostly in terms of leadership. Enter the 40-year-old Mathieu Schneider, who may not have the shutdown capability of Mathias Ohlund, but certainly seemed capable of boosting the offense from the back end.
Seventeen games and only five points later (with just two coming with the man advantage), it was clear that things weren't exactly unfolding according to plan. The New Yorker was tired of watching games from the box, so after being healthy scratched for the fourth time, he left the team.
Eventually both sides agreed it was simply best for everyone if they parted ways. The only problem was, no one was willing to take on a player at his age making nearly $2 million in base salary. After his former client cleared waivers, Mike Gillis had no choice but to assign him to the club's AHL affiliate in Manitoba.
Only now the headache was turning into a migraine, as such a move would put the Moose over the A's limit of five veterans per roster. Once that issue was taken care of, Schneider's fortunes appeared to turn, as he became an offensive contributor and mentor for the parent club's prospects...only to go down with a freak knee injury in practice only eight games into his first stint in the minors in two decades.
However the one-time Cup champion's season ends, he may just be glad that he's still playing pro hockey, while Vancouver can take comfort in the fact that the mutual mistake will be all but forgotten by then.
