Hartley Miller's Slap-Shots July 14th Edition

By Hartley Miller

July should be a month for a hockey break; however with the NHL free agent frenzy and a few blockbuster trades that is certainly not the case.

With the player shuffles around the league, fans can see if their favorite team has improved, or regressed. In reality, for every team that goes up the ladder in the standings another tumbles down the snake.

The Boston Bruins should be better with two prominent additions, but it may be premature to print playoff tickets. Ex Cougar Zdeno Chara has improved considerably, especially since washing cars at a local dealership in Prince George. He is the biggest player in the league at 6-foot-9, 260 pounds.  Chara's 5-year, $37.5 million-dollar contract and Marc Savard’s 4-year, 20-million dollar deal were both announced on July 1st (the first day of free agency).  Is the NHL really trying to have us believe these massive contracts were all done in just a matter of hours?  Nevertheless, the Bruins, wanted the fans to forgive (notice how I didn't say forget) them for the Joe Thornton deal.

On the other hand, Colorado has regressed. A year after losing Peter Forsberg to free agency, the Avalanche's all star defenceman, Rob Blake, left the club, and signed a two-year, $12 million deal with the LA Kings. Additionally, with the questionable trade of Alex Tanguay to Calgary for Jordan Leopold it's almost certain the Avs are going downhill. As well, I doubt Colorado fans are doing cartwheels over the signing of free agent forward Tyler Arnason (1 yr $950,000).  This is the same Arnason who was a healthy scratch for each of the Ottawa Senators playoff games.

Then, there's the Anaheim Ducks who upgraded after acquiring Chris Pronger from Edmonton, but I still don't understand why Ducks GM Bryan Burke didn't pursue Chara, who for only slightly more money would not have cost the Ducks five young players (Joffrey Lupul, Ladislav Smid and three high draft picks).

How about the rubik's cube of the NHL, the Vancouver Canucks?  They certainly improved in goal.
Canuck fans sure better hope that Roberto Luongo is a saviour because Vancouver has gone "south" in other areas. Behind the bench, no one has yet convinced me that Alain Vigneault is an upgrade over Marc Crawford. On the blue line, Willie Mitchell is in, and Ed Jovanovski is out. Mitchell is a different kind of player and will be very useful in his own end, but he is no Jovo. Bryan Allen, Keith Carney, and the team's leading scorer on defence, Nolan Baumgartner, are also gone, and it’s doubtful that their replacements will fill the void. 

Up front, Todd Bertuzzi has left, and Anson Carter is expected to sign elsewhere. That leaves a huge hole on right wing that needs to be filled. Former PG Cougar Captain Tyler Bouck is a journeyman, and one would hope Canuck fans aren't expecting Bouck or players like him to fill those vacant roles. Newly acquired centre Marc Chouinard is known as a face off specialist and anything but a scorer.

Will Vancouver be a better defensive team? Perhaps! But will they be a better team ? Based on what I've seen as a result of the summer moves so far, I would suggest not. But it's okay for the Canuck fans to think differently. It's not the first time they have been led down the garden path...

From the quote rack:

"I tuned in to see the finals between France and Italy---instead, I saw "Beavis and Butt-head"

Contributor Bill Littlejohn of South Lake Tahoe, CA, on the World Cup.

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"Who would've guessed that FIFA stands for France and Italy, Flopping and Arguing?"

Dwight Perry of the Seattle Times

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"He did put on his football helmet when he heard a rumor that Phil Mickelson was about to tee off on the hole behind him."

Toronto comedian Frenchie McFarlane on Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger,
after he made an appearance at Mario Lemieux's celebrity golf tournament in Pittsburgh following
that motorcycle accident.

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“Kobe Bryant is reportedly about to launch an advice column in the Los Angeles Times. Just what we needed, huh guys? Somebody to tell us the best place to buy a $4-million diamond for the Mrs.”

Jim Armstrong of the Denver Post 

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“Shaquille O'Neal should get his own Sirius Satellite channel, and call it Radio Shaq.”

Bud Geracie, in the San Jose Mercury News

And in case you missed it……..

The head to head results this year in interleague play show the American League winning 61 per cent of the time with a 154-98 record against the NL.

And how was your week?

Hartley Miller is the sports director for radio stations 94X and the Wolf@97fm. He also writes for the
PG Free Press. Hartley's e-mail address is hmiller@94xfm.com

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