Gainey Still Shopping

[Drivefor25]

:hlogo: Canadiens GM Bob Gainey hasn't given up on upgrading his team through free agency. Gainey confirming to CJAD's Abe Hefter that although the Habs lost out on the Brendan Shanahan sweepstakes, he believes there's talent remaining out there that could help the Canadiens, up front. Gainey, at the Martin Lapointe Arena to watch the prospects take to the ice, says it became pretty clear that unrestricted free agent economics would prevent the Canadiens from signing more than one player. And with plenty of wiggle room left within the salary cap, there's money to spend -- for the right player, added the GM.

Now that we know Bob is still shopping, I just wanna know for who and when he'll drop the bomb. As each day goes by the Marquee free agency window closes and players of the likes of Samsonov, Sykora, GAGNE eventually sign on with other teams and the habs are left sitting an wondering why them and not us?

I'll tell you why, lack of agression, both on and off the ice. We are not agressive in pursuing anyone of substancial caliber. How many all-stars do we have on our team???? Koivu, Kovalev, Souray's bionic wrists.

I was almost certain Shanahan was gonna sign, but instead he elected to go with the Rangers stating that he was looking forward to a new "challenge". New York a challenge??? There is nothing more challenging than playing right here in the media sespool of Montreal, where you can go from hero to zero back to hero in one hockey game, now if you ask me thats a challenge, but i digress from why I am leaving this post.

The Habs need to do something big and soon. Gagne wants out of Philly, the down side is that he is restricted, otherwise you know he would have signed elsewhere. I suggest a trade, Aeibischer, Bulis and a 2nd round draft pic for Gagne straight up, if Clarke doesn't like that offer toss in Zednik and keep the draft pick.

Now if I am not mistaken Samsonov and Peca are UFA's, Hello Bobby???? One thing to say,

Samsonov - Koivu - Kovalev = at least a 40- 50 goal scorer ( likely Kovy Or Sammy as Koivu is a set up man ) as for Peca, place him on a line with Perezhoginadn Pleanec.

Another thing I just noticed is on the Habs active roster there are 6 centermen, 5 Right wingers, 1 left winger and 7 defencemen??? Is it just me or do we need to do something about that.

Look I know I sound like i'm complaining but I just don't want the habs to a) have the most cap room at the beginning of the season and have no proven goal scorer and b ) have one of our biggest rivals aquire a player we have been pursuing or mentioned wanting... i.e. Sykora, Gagne, Samsonov.

Thanks fro reading and remember THE DRIVE FOR 25 IS ALIVE!!!!!

Edited July 12, 2006 by Drivefor25

[Mr. Nasty]

:hlogo: Canadiens GM Bob Gainey hasn't given up on upgrading his team through free agency. Gainey confirming to CJAD's Abe Hefter that although the Habs lost out on the Brendan Shanahan sweepstakes, he believes there's talent remaining out there that could help the Canadiens, up front. Gainey, at the Martin Lapointe Arena to watch the prospects take to the ice, says it became pretty clear that unrestricted free agent economics would prevent the Canadiens from signing more than one player. And with plenty of wiggle room left within the salary cap, there's money to spend -- for the right player, added the GM.

Now that we know Bob is still shopping, I just wanna know for who and when he'll drop the bomb. As each day goes by the Marquee free agency window closes and players of the likes of Samsonov, Sykora, GAGNE eventually sign on with other teams and the habs are left sitting an wondering why them and not us?

I'll tell you why, lack of agression, both on and off the ice. We are not agressive in pursuing anyone of substancial caliber. How many all-stars do we have on our team???? Koivu, Kovalev, Souray's bionic wrists.

I was almost certain Shanahan was gonna sign, but instead he elected to go with the Rangers stating that he was looking forward to a new "challenge". New York a challenge??? There is nothing more challenging than playing right here in the media sespool of Montreal, where you can go from hero to zero back to hero in one hockey game, now if you ask me thats a challenge, but i digress from why I am leaving this post.

The Habs need to do something big and soon. Gagne wants out of Philly, the down side is that he is restricted, otherwise you know he would have signed elsewhere. I suggest a trade, Aeibischer, Bulis and a 2nd round draft pic for Gagne straight up, if Clarke doesn't like that offer toss in Zednik and keep the draft pick.

Now if I am not mistaken Samsonov and Peca are UFA's, Hello Bobby???? One thing to say,

Samsonov - Koivu - Kovalev = at least a 40- 50 goal scorer ( likely Kovy Or Sammy as Koivu is a set up man ) as for Peca, place him on a line with Perezhoginadn Pleanec.

Another thing I just noticed is on the Habs active roster there are 6 centermen, 5 Right wingers, 1 left winger and 7 defencemen??? Is it just me or do we need to do something about that.

Look I know I sound like i'm complaining but I just don't want the habs to a) have the most cap room at the beginning of the season and have no proven goal scorer and b ) have one of our biggest rivals aquire a player we have been pursuing or mentioned wanting... i.e. Sykora, Gagne, Samsonov.

Thanks fro reading and remember THE DRIVE FOR 25 IS ALIVE!!!!!

Firstly, I do not blame Gainey for not being agressive enough with Shanahan. He offered him 1 million more than the Rangers.

Secondly, Bulis is not with the team anymore. He is an unrestricted free agent.

I too am anxious for him to sign someone but only Samsonov is an upgrade over any of the young players IMO. Sykora wouldn't hurt but he is far from a marquee addition. BG will not make an offer sheet for Gagne... also I don't think a back-up goalie and a 3rd line player will be enough for Clarke to trade Gagne...if he does put him on the market expect many teams offering quality for him.

[habsfan88]

I agree. Samsonov-Koivu-Kovalev would be deadly.

[BTH]

place him on a line with Perezhoginadn

who?

[MAK]

bg also said there's a roster spot left for a prospect and it's AK46 spot to lose..he's a left winger and he's ready for prime time hockey.

unless latendresse blows everybody away, he'll be back in drummondville

[smon]

Gagne has never said he wants out of Philly. In fact, he's gone on the record as saying that if Montreal ever makes him a RFA offer sheet, he hopes Philly will match.

[Drivefor25]

No doubt that Gagne said " if Montreal ever makes him a RFA offer sheet, he hopes Philly will match." However with the ammount of cap room we have right now, 11 million if I am not mistaken we could possibly make him an offer that Boby Clarke could not match. I am not sure of where the flyers lie in cap room but I know it's not much. Also if the habs trade Aby it adds another 1.9 mil to our cap room. I think Gagne would come here and thrive here, it's just a matter of making the deal sweet enoough. I say offer him a 1 year 5 million dollar contract loaded with production bonuses.

[The Chicoutimi Cucumber]

I wish people would stop talking about Gagne!!! BOB GAINEY IS TOO CLASSY A GUY TO VIOLATE THE LONG-ESTABLISHED UNWRITTEN RULE AGAINST PURSUING OTHER TEAMS' RESTRICTED FREE AGENTS. The end.

[TruthMonger]

No doubt that Gagne said " if Montreal ever makes him a RFA offer sheet, he hopes Philly will match." However with the ammount of cap room we have right now, 11 million if I am not mistaken we could possibly make him an offer that Boby Clarke could not match. I am not sure of where the flyers lie in cap room but I know it's not much. Also if the habs trade Aby it adds another 1.9 mil to our cap room. I think Gagne would come here and thrive here, it's just a matter of making the deal sweet enoough. I say offer him a 1 year 5 million dollar contract loaded with production bonuses.

We have 11 million in cap room if we decide not to sign Ryder, Aebischer, or Perezhogin and decide not to replace them either. Realistically, unless we trade Aebi or Zed, we have at most 6 million in room. So you would suggest overpaying Gagne at $6 million so that Philly can't match, even though it'll cost us four 1st rounders and any future flexibility we may have?

[Drivefor25]

We have 11 million in cap room if we decide not to sign Ryder, Aebischer, or Perezhogin and decide not to replace them either. Realistically, unless we trade Aebi or Zed, we have at most 6 million in room. So you would suggest overpaying Gagne at $6 million so that Philly can't match, even though it'll cost us four 1st rounders and any future flexibility we may have?

I'm not saying that at all, if you'll notice I said I might be mistaken. Thanks for pointing out what's left in cap room.

[beliveau1]

Subtract 2-3 million automatically from your figure of 11 million remaining - smart managers are leaving wiggle room built in to their expenditures.

Then subtract what it's going to cost to sign the players still outstanding.

And you can't absolutely count on losing salary due to a trade - there has to be a buyer out there for the product you want to unload!

So there isn't a ton of cash left to spend foolishly just because fans are demanding a trade, or suggesting Gainey hasn't been aggressive enough.

Who knows what Gainey offered to entice players to Montreal, and who knows why they really went elsewhere.

Too much rampant unfounded speculation is going on.

And if offering more for Shanahan than what he actually signed for isn't enough...... well then I'm not exactly sure what aggresive should be defined as? No matter what you may have to offer them, the player is the one who has to choose to sign on the dotted line.!

[Drivefor25]

Subtract 2-3 million automatically from your figure of 11 million remaining - smart managers are leaving wiggle room built in to their expenditures.

Then subtract what it's going to cost to sign the players still outstanding.

And you can't absolutely count on losing salary due to a trade - there has to be a buyer out there for the product you want to unload!

So there isn't a ton of cash left to spend foolishly just because fans are demanding a trade, or suggesting Gainey hasn't been aggressive enough.

Who knows what Gainey offered to entice players to Montreal, and who knows why they really went elsewhere.

Too much rampant unfounded speculation is going on.

And if offering more for Shanahan than what he actually signed for isn't enough...... well then I'm not exactly sure what aggresive should be defined as? No matter what you may have to offer them, the player is the one who has to choose to sign on the dotted line.!

You are very right in what you are saying, however I feel that with the depth we have in Hamilton, wiggle room may not be necessary. But you are very right in what you say!

[beliveau1]

You are very right in what you are saying, however I feel that with the depth we have in Hamilton, wiggle room may not be necessary. But you are very right in what you say!

Wiggle room is left for trades at the deadline - teams who were maxed out last year learned a valuable lesson at the deadline when they tried to pick up a player to help put them over the top. With that space you can potentially grab a player who might contribute to a playoff run? Or if injuries demand that a trade be made as you can't replace the opening through your farm system, no matter how good it might be.

Reality is that the farm team has limited potential to replace certain valuable players. Thus the wisdom in leaving space at the top end of the cap?

[smon]

Well if you guys read Spector's, you'll notice that he recently posted an article from Philly...

It noted that Bob Clarke and Bob Gainey are very close friends. Clarke gave Gainey his first job in the NHL as a head coach for Minnesota. There's no way he'll screw him over.

And I believe there's in the latest Radio Canada article that's going around where he says that signing RFA's is "no way to get a player".

So stop this already, none of Gagne or Gomez or whoever is going to get an RFA offer sheet from Montreal.

[TheMaxDaddy]

Trade Ryder even up for Gagne. Solve two teams RFA problems at once.

Gagne is more established, but Ryder is younger (and cheaper for cap challenged philly).

[KoZed]

Trade Ryder even up for Gagne. Solve two teams RFA problems at once.

Gagne is more established, but Ryder is younger (and cheaper for cap challenged philly).

Both players dont compare. Gagne is head-and-shoulders above Ryder in almost every aspects. And Ryder's not younger. Both are 1998 draftees. Same age (26/27 yrs old).

Philly would never go for that deal.

Well if you guys read Spector's, you'll notice that he recently posted an article from Philly...

It noted that Bob Clarke and Bob Gainey are very close friends. Clarke gave Gainey his first job in the NHL as a head coach for Minnesota. There's no way he'll screw him over.

And I believe there's in the latest Radio Canada article that's going around where he says that signing RFA's is "no way to get a player".

So stop this already, none of Gagne or Gomez or whoever is going to get an RFA offer sheet from Montreal.

Gagné was in town (Quebec City) last week (lot of NHLers return here during the summer). From what I heard, he's just starting negociations with Philly. Its moving slowly, but that's how it goes and getting offer sheets from other teams isnt even a consideration at this point. He wants to get a deal with Philly and that's it.

[St-Patrick]

Trade Ryder even up for Gagne. Solve two teams RFA problems at once.

Gagne is more established, but Ryder is younger (and cheaper for cap challenged philly).

I WISH :king: