Plenty of options remain in NHL free agent pool
Hockey Betting Lines
07/27/2010 - Toronto, Canada (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Nearly a month after the doors to NHL free agency opened, the auction for the best up-for-grabs players has come to a screeching halt.
On the first day of the highly anticipated off-season extravaganza, owners opened up their checkbooks and dished out close to $230 million over 78 years for 33 new players ... just slightly above Ilya Kovalchuk's most recent offer.
While that might be an exaggeration in regard to Kovalchuk, the drop-off in player movement since then is not.
Since July 1, the biggest names who have found a new home are Matthew Lombardi and Pavel Kubina. Most of the other moves have been small in scale, and centered around depth players and minor-leaguers.
Although this isn't an unusual phenomenon, as the cream of the yearly crop is generally scooped up as quickly as possible, there are still several quality players looking for work.
Teams looking for a veteran presence have plenty to choose from with players such as Paul Kariya, Teemu Selanne, Mike Modano, Doug Weight and Bill Guerin all awaiting a phone call.
Although these players represent hockey of a previous era, they would still be able to contribute effectively to a team in need of leadership or playoff experience.
Next up are the "goal scorers".
Leading this list are Russian snipers Maxim Afinogenov followed by former Maple Leafs Alexei Ponikarovsky and Lee Stempniak.
Based on his stats from last season, it would appear Afinogenov is in for a big raise. The speedy winger notched 24 goals and 61 points for the Atlanta Thrashers after signing a one-year $800,000 deal a year ago.
Afinogenov is certainly worthy of a raise, but after slumbering through two injury-shortened seasons in Buffalo prior to signing with the Thrashers, leery GM's might be hesitant to fork over the dough for a player with a battered past.
Stempniak had the most goals of the bunch, with 28 a season ago, although half of those came in an 18-game span after the Phoenix Coyotes acquired him at the trade deadline.
Despite his outlandish production post-trade deadline, it's unlikely Stempniak will cash in big with just over a month to go before training camps open up.
The biggest detriment to Ponikarovsky's value is his playoff performance in Pittsburgh after the Penguins traded for him at the deadline.
He put up five points in 11 games, but was also a healthy scratch twice. That said, he's been a consistent 20-goal scorer since the lockout and could compliment any team looking for scoring depth.
Several other players such as Marty Turco, Raffi Torres, Andy Sutton and Willie Mitchell should garner attention as well, but likely at reduced rates.
With younger players cracking the big leagues on entry-level contracts and budding stars signing lifelong deals, the once abundant and exciting free agent period has become a victim of salary cap-era management.
While free agency will always remain an option for teams looking to add a few pieces to the puzzle, the impact it once had on the league and the players involved has vanished temporarily.
For how long is anybody's guess.
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FOOTBALL BETTING : Cassel Signs Contract
Kansas City, MO - Kansas City has not officially named Matt Cassel its starting quarterback, but there can be no doubt now.
NFL Betting
After praising his leadership and work ethic through spring workouts, the Chiefs announced Tuesday they had signed the 27-year-old Cassel to a multiyear contract. Terms were not disclosed, but he will almost certainly be one of the highest-paid members of the team.
"We are excited to be able to reach a long-term agreement for Matt Cassel to be a Kansas City Chief for many years to come," owner and board chairman Clark Hunt said in a statement. "His proven leadership on and off the field will be a tremendous asset to the organization."
Patriots made him their franchise player, meaning his salary for this season will be about $15 million.
New head coach Todd Haley, taking over for Herm Edwards after a 2-14 season, refused to name a starter at any position during offseason workouts. But it was obvious to everyone the team belonged to Cassel.
"I go out there each and every day with that focus that I'm the starter," Cassel said during a June minicamp. "Competition brings out the best in everybody."
The signing will come as welcome news to Cassel's new coaches and teammates. Amiable and hardworking, online football betting he appeared to win over everyone at minicamp.
"I think he's got some unique leadership qualities. I think his teammates like him and have respect for him. I think he's doing a pretty good job on the field, too," Haley said last month. "He's doing everything that I'm asking him, that our coaches are asking him to do. I don't have one single complaint how he's carrying himself."
After one workout, wide receiver Devard Darling declared Cassel "a breath of fresh air."
"He has a lot of swagger, a lot of confidence. It's good for us," said Darling. "We trust in him that he's going to go out there and lead us all the way."
nse to accommodate his specific abilities.
Trapped on the bench behind Heisman winners Carson Palmer and Matt Leinart at USC and then unable to unseat Super Bowl MVP Brady at New England, Cassel seemed destined to be a backup all his life. As Brady was helped off the field last September, Cassel seized the opportunity he'd been waiting for since high school.
In his only sustained action since his teens, he hit 349 of 555 passes for 3,949 yards at New England. He had 23 touchdown passes and 13 interceptions as the Patriots, who had gone unbeaten through the regular season the year before, finished 11-5 and out of the playoffs.
Chiefs general manager Scott Pioli, who had been Bill Belichick's assistant in New England, engineered the trade after the Patriots became convinced that Brady would recover fully from his knee operation.
"Since Matt arrived in Kansas City, he has embraced the team and the community," Pioli said. "His work ethic, his ability and competitive presence is what we expect from our players."
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