GDT: Habs at Canes: The Battle of Quebec Edition

[drganon]

We'll always remember 2006 Cam, but its time to move on.

 

[sheriff bart]

Way to go out at home on a high note. I guess when you keep bringing a knife to a gun fight, you are going to get shot eventually.

 

[RodTheBawd]

Sucks if that was Ward's last start in Raleigh as a Cane. Kind of bothered me that there was a bit of booing by the crowd mixed in at the end. The team played their ***** off almost every night this season, give them respect for that.

 

[Anton Dubinchuk]

Sucks if that was Ward's last start in Raleigh as a Cane. Kind of bothered me that there was a bit of booing by the crowd mixed in at the end. The team played their ***** off almost every night this season, give them respect for that.

even worse if its the last game for the canes in raleigh...

 

[DaveG]

I mean, unless we're getting Ben Bishop or something, who's better then Ward that's going to be on the market this offseason? This is a pretty ****** year for UFA goalies, in what's usually a pretty ****** position for UFAs to begin with. Andersen's the only name out there and after the stunt he and his agent pulled, **** them both.

 

[VAcaniac]

The Habs are 18-33-3 since Dec 1 but we managed to lose to them twice. Why am I surprised.

 

[Anton Dubinchuk]

I mean, unless we're getting Ben Bishop or something, who's better then Ward that's going to be on the market this offseason? This is a pretty ****** year for UFA goalies, in what's usually a pretty ****** position for UFAs to begin with.

i think they will re-sign ward

i think his stats being way better than lacks will make francis re-sign, even though that doesnt make any sense, it typically does to the hurricanes franchise

 

[RodTheBawd]

I mean, unless we're getting Ben Bishop or something, who's better then Ward that's going to be on the market this offseason? This is a pretty ****** year for UFA goalies, in what's usually a pretty ****** position for UFAs to begin with. Andersen's the only name out there and after the stunt he and his agent pulled, **** them both.

Exactly. No sense in moving on just to move on.

 

[DaveG]

I mean, don't get me wrong, I don't think there's any way we can justify paying Ward even 2/3rds of what he makes now. But I have little doubt he'd resign here for something around the 3.5per/2-3 years type deal. He knows that he's not going to be in high demand on the open market, very few NHL teams that need a goalie right now, we're just unfortunate enough to be one of them. And while our pipeline looks decent it also looks REALLY long-term, so we need a stopgap for that time.

 

[sheriff bart]

I mean, don't get me wrong, I don't think there's any way we can justify paying Ward even 2/3rds of what he makes now. But I have little doubt he'd resign here for something around the 3.5per/2-3 years type deal. He knows that he's not going to be in high demand on the open market, very few NHL teams that need a goalie right now, we're just unfortunate enough to be one of them. And while our pipeline looks decent it also looks REALLY long-term, so we need a stopgap for that time.

If RF can't come up with a better option, I'd have to think $3M x 2 years or GTFO.

 

[A Star is Burns]

The other night when Francis was speaking during one of the intermissions, I got the impression they might explore other options and have Ward as a fall back plan. I think there could be a few options available out there that people aren't considering, but time will tell. I hope we don't re-sign him, but he's not the worst option in the world, and at least he should come at a much smaller price tag this time around. I just think it'd be good for both parties to move on ultimately.

 

[Hockeywatching]

Sucks if that was Ward's last start in Raleigh as a Cane. Kind of bothered me that there was a bit of booing by the crowd mixed in at the end. The team played their ***** off almost every night this season, give them respect for that.

When was there booing? I didn't hear any, sad if so.

 

[Finnish Jerk Train]

When was there booing? I didn't hear any, sad if so.

I didn't either.

 

[Ole Gil]

I'm kind of hoping RF can ditch Lack, resign Ward for backup money, and then go get a solid #1. Bishop would be amazing of course.

 

[Navin R Slavin]

I didn't hear any booing. A nice round of applause at the end for the season, despite the fact that they obviously didn't show up last night.

 

[RodTheBawd]

As they were skating out to acknowledge the crowd, it sounded (at least on TV) like subdued booing and hissing, gradually turning over to a quiet applause. I'm sure most of that was a result of the egg they just laid, but

 

[DaveG]

The other night when Francis was speaking during one of the intermissions, I got the impression they might explore other options and have Ward as a fall back plan. I think there could be a few options available out there that people aren't considering, but time will tell. I hope we don't re-sign him, but he's not the worst option in the world, and at least he should come at a much smaller price tag this time around. I just think it'd be good for both parties to move on ultimately.

Oh he'd be an idiot not to explore his options before locking up Ward IMHO. If he can get Bishop (or someone like him from another cap-strapped team) at the draft for something that won't give up the farm, you do it. If you can't, re-sign Ward after the draft but before July 1st. That said the only other name that would be out there on first glance is Howard, and I'd MUCH rather have Ward at 3-3.5 million then take on his contract.

The only other interesting name out there on the goalie front as a UFA is Reimer and I'd bet dollars to donuts that San Jose is re-signing him.

 

[Navin R Slavin]

As they were skating out to acknowledge the crowd, it sounded (at least on TV) like subdued booing and hissing, gradually turning over to a quiet applause. I'm sure most of that was a result of the egg they just laid, but

There was no booing and hissing.

 

[NotOpie]

I mean, unless we're getting Ben Bishop or something, who's better then Ward that's going to be on the market this offseason? This is a pretty ****** year for UFA goalies, in what's usually a pretty ****** position for UFAs to begin with. Andersen's the only name out there and after the stunt he and his agent pulled, **** them both.

Better than the Ward I saw last night???.....how about a random NCAA netminder?

Seriously, I think we're in a big time conundrum here. Despite the brain farts Cam has played fairly well since early December. But it's those **** ups that kill this team's momentum at critical times in critical games. I'd rather have a consistently mediocre goalie rather than one that shows flashes of brilliance only to gut me later in a game.....but that's just me.

I think you try and find a mid-range option, just like we did with Lack. Maybe that's Cam or maybe it's somebody else. I think paying through the nose for a Bishop is a bit scary too. Maybe you make a run at Reimer? Otherwise, I think you go the route of finding a solid back-up that's ready for a starting gig (Raanta, Berra, etc.). Concentrate on fixing the forwards. Remember some of the goals that lost us games also came from defensive breatkdowns by forwards. Upgrading the front end assumes that whomever you get is going to be solid on that side of the puck as well.

 

[Navin R Slavin]

Otherwise, I think you go the route of finding a solid back-up that's ready for a starting gig (Raanta, Berra, etc.). Concentrate on fixing the forwards. Remember some of the goals that lost us games also came from defensive breakdowns by forwards. Upgrading the front end assumes that whomever you get is going to be solid on that side of the puck as well.

Yep. If the team fix the forward situation, and plays all year like it played after December of this year, I think we're a solid wild card contender, almost regardless of who's in goal (so long as they're at least adequate, and I believe Cam is that).

 

[DaveG]

Bingo. I think if we can go from having games where Cam or Eddie lets in two go from tossups to almost certain wins would put us over the hump and in. We have to upgrade the forwards to do that. And upgrading that part of the team should, understandably, be where Francis spends most of his attention this offseason.

Thankfully I think we hit a goldmine in Aho so that's probably one less slot that needs to be filled. But there's still 4-5 very obvious holes up front (assuming we carry 13). Even if we use Nash to fill one we're still WAY below the cap floor and still WAY short on talent up front. Shy of getting Matthews I don't think that's going to resolve itself, so something will be done.

And as I said if we can add Bishop without breaking the bank, do it. Otherwise I think we'll just stay the course for a couple more years and see if 1 - Eddie proves himself worthy of the #1 eventually, and 2 - if Ned (or Booth, or Altshuller, or *insert 2016 draft pick or college UFA here*) proves to be the real deal.

As I said, Reimer is interesting, but I think he re-ups with San Jose before he even gets that far.

 

[tarheelhockey]

That was a real clunker. Didn't seem to generate any speed. Sloppy passes...ice looked terrible.

I overheard an arena worker saying the ice-making equipment was likely turned off already, since they needed to dig the pad out immediately and convert it for tonight's Monster Jam truck rally. So it's quite possible that by the end of the game it may have made an actual difference.

 

[Blueline Bomber]

Ward didn't play well last night, but I'd be more concerned about the rest of the team. Ward, at least, showed up in Boston. Much of the team hasn't been seen in a week.

They were BAD last night. There was no speed, no communication, and they played like the concept of a forecheck was a foreign one.

Oh, and if, on Saturday, a player attempts a blind backhand to the slot through 2 defenders, I think we should have them checked out for a brain injury. Because it was obviously not working last night, yet that seemed to be our entire offensive strategy.

 

[Novacane]

I think it's pretty human to come out flat after you were just eliminated from playoff contention. I guess that really happened before Boston but there at least they could play spoiler. This game was basically a throw away at the end of the season. It would have been nice for us as fans but I don't feel offended by the performance

 

[tarheelhockey]

Much of the team hasn't been seen in a week.

I mean, our top line right now is Norstrom - Staal - Brown. Or Skinner - Rask - Nash, depending how you look at it.

To me, the remarkable thing is that we haven't looked this way all season. We've gotten used to seeing this team play beyond their on-paper capacity.