...burke got lucky with this one

Posted by bsalamon on 09/26/08 at 04:49 PM ET

This seemed to make more sense than Schneider to the Kings ever did and now this gets Atlanta away from salary floor issues.  I figured that Burke didn’t want to hand a guy off to a neighbor and rival and Atlanta offered the same salary dumping ground and cheap players in return.

Posted by HockeyJoe from Upstate New York on 09/26/08 at 04:56 PM ET

...Burke didn’t want to hand a guy off to a neighbor and rival and Atlanta offered the same salary dumping ground and cheap players in return.

Agreed, but the bottomline is still this...Burke had to give away one of the better puck-moving defensemen in the league for a #6 or #7 defenseman, a #12 or #13 forward and a prospect. Unless that prospect is a potential NHLer, Burke proved once again he’s a bonehead when it comes to managing an NHL roster and the Cap.

I wonder how Mathieu feels now about turning down Ken Holland’s respectable offer last summer in order to chase a big payday in LaLa Land. He made a few extra bucks but he missed out on a Stanley Cup ring last spring...and now he faces a season in a part of the country, and with a team, that’s pretty much out of gas.

Posted by OlderThanChelios from Grand Rapids on 09/26/08 at 06:29 PM ET

Well, Schneider wanted to go back to SoCal and I don’t think Detroit really missed him too much and were much better off without him.  Schneider was awfully sloppy at the end of his run in Detroit and they’re clearly better with Rafalski.

Posted by HockeyJoe from Upstate New York on 09/26/08 at 06:36 PM ET

I think we would all take Raffy over Schneider anyday.

Still...Kinda feel bad for Scheids.  As someone who just moved from the Atlanta area after 13 years there, California is a much much much better place to be.  IMO…

Posted by eyesris from Chestertown, MD on 09/26/08 at 07:03 PM ET

In just three years, Schneider goes from a Western Conference Finalist to a first-round ouster to a rebuilding team.

Posted by SYF from Las Vegas, NV on 09/26/08 at 11:26 PM ET

He still has Kovalchuck and Hossa to play with…

oh…

...right…

Posted by Osrt on 09/27/08 at 12:38 AM ET

Have fun shitting on Atlanta. You won’t be able to after October 10th.

Posted by blankspace6 on 09/27/08 at 01:45 AM ET

Have fun shitting on Atlanta. You won’t be able to after October 10th.

Why? Is the world going to end on that day?

I’d be P-Oed if it did end on the 10th. The 11th is my birthday. Maybe I should ask for my presents early this year.

Posted by OlderThanChelios from Grand Rapids on 09/27/08 at 11:01 AM ET

Hrm… Since they play the Caps on the 10th I think we will still be able to shit on them that day… and possibly the whole month of October. 

In fact, with Tampa seemingly on the upswing, I think the Thrashers continue to be at the bottom of the Southeast division. 

But hey, Phillips Area is pretty nice.

Posted by eyesris from Chestertown, MD on 09/27/08 at 11:57 AM ET

Although I predict the Caps to do well this season, goaltending will be their problem this year. Huet > Theodore > Kolzig. Theodore was shaky at best during the playoffs and I don’t expect an improved effort from him to start of this year.

Speaking of bad goaltending, Tampa has the worst in the division (and possibly the league) with Smith, Kolzig, and Ramo. Their offense should be huge, but unless their blueline and netminders step it up and outplay expectations, they’re likely to allow as many goals as they score.

Posted by blankspace6 on 09/27/08 at 02:01 PM ET

Burke proved once again he’s a bonehead when it comes to managing an NHL roster and the Cap.

He’s leaving Anaheim next year. It’s not like he really cares one way or the other what shape they’re in when he goes. All he wanted was enough room to sign Selanne. The prospect looks more like a career minor leaguer, Klee would have likely been Atlanta’s #7, and Larsen is no better than a #12 forward—on Atlanta’s roster, to boot.

It’s likely that Larsen is just a “placeholder” until Selanne gets signed. Then he’s probably going to be waived and sent to the AHL. The question is just: who does Burke dump next to get Selanne to sign?

As far as the whole thing about insulting Atlanta as a hockey market, it’s really pretty old. Yeah, the team really stunk last year and the only GM this team has ever had has never put together a solid defense. At the end of the day, though, it’s still hockey. It’s still in Atlanta. It’s fine with me, because I get to go to games all the time. And if they get good? What then? We won’t know how this season turns out until the puck drops, right? Alrighty then.

Posted by Alan from Atlanta on 09/27/08 at 04:45 PM ET

Speaking of bad goaltending, Tampa has the worst in the division (and possibly the league) with Smith, Kolzig, and Ramo.

I think Colorado’s duo has that troika beat. With Budaj and Raycroft in net, the Avs may have a legitimate shot at the #1 pick in the draft next spring...unless, of course, Forsberg comes back. Then they’ll probably miss that sweepstakes by a position or two. Now there’s something the Avs fan can look forward to.

Posted by OlderThanChelios from Grand Rapids on 09/27/08 at 05:16 PM ET