Hard in the Corner

Today, the New Jersey Devils dealt 45 point player Adam Henrique, depth forward Joseph Blandisi and a 2018 3rd round pick for Sami Vatanen and a conditional pick. The Ducks managed to not get worse in this trade and Devils got miles better. But what's more interesting, is that the Ducks reset the market on top pairing defensemen. After Oilers' GM Chiarelli went completely mental and dealt a Top 5 left winger for a 2nd pairing defenseman in the Hall/Larsson trade, this deal is a breath of fresh air and really proves what a dolt Chiarelli is. It would be weird to see a team fire their GM as a result of two other teams trading assets, but this one really should be enough to do it. Sami Vatanen was available, and for a pretty low price. This is a guy that makes any team he is on, better. And he is a much better defenseman than Larsson, unquestionably. So then, why did Chiarelli sell so low on Taylor Hall, getting a worse asset back? Well, it's because he is terrible at ...

As an amateur troll - believe it or not, I don't make money with this mickey mouse blog - I spend a ton of my spare time on twitter and reading articles, listening to podcasts and wasting my life on message boards. It's starting to kill me. As time goes by, there are more and more protests about the racial inequality in the United States (and it exists everywhere). This morning I read an article on CBC  about the Houston Texans kneeling during the anthem to protest the owner calling them 'inmates.' An obviously insensitive remark, inflammatory and made all the more inappropriate when taken in the context of what this protest is about. Another example of an old white guy, that doesn't get it. Dear Comments Section, You are unthinkably stupid. I won't explain the protest to you again, because it has been forced down your throat enough. You know what it's about. And yet, here we are. Still posting your ignorance, still the racist remarks, still. If you a...

Oh yeah, Captains in the Atlantic, a maritime tale. I love the sound of that. So what I'm gonna do is power rank the captains of each team, starting in the NHL Atlantic division. What I'm looking at is my opinion on these fellas. How I feel about their on-ice and off-ice "leadership" or whatever. So let's do that... Oh yeah, teams without a Captain, I will select their most veteran 'A' and they will be ranked, ok.... The Best: Erik Karlsson of the Ottawa Senators This is an easy one. He is one of the best players in the game today, and one of the best defensemen of all time. While he seems to be injury prone, he has two Norris trophies to his name and single-handedly carries the Senators. Being the best player on your team is crucial, being the best ever (or one of) is icing. Henrik Zetterberg of the Detroit Red Wings Detroit sucks. They suck so bad. But they haven't always and Zetterberg has been a loyal guy. Now while that can cost you acc...

I have a theory, and that theory is that Lou Lamoriello is a terrible GM, and has been for some time. Now, I know that isn't radical, especially in Lou's advanced age (he's 74), but I have a suspicion that he has been bad for much longer than the popular opinion would suggest. So, I've taken time to look at his entire GM career. From building the Devils franchise to a consistent powerhouse, to not tendering a qualifying offer to Antoine Bibeau. What I have found is basically a guy who excelled in a very particular aspect of the job and had to, in order to make up for serious failings. Lou Lamoriello joined the Devils in 1987 after the NHL draft. Over the course of the next few years, a pattern would evolve. Firstly, you don't want Lamoriello anywhere near your draft. Of all 29 of his 1st round picks, only 10 have had any level of NHL success. The majority of those have spent minimal time with the Devils before being traded to another team. You see, here's th...