Red & Black Hockey
Next entry: Canes not making any progress with UFAs
Previous entry: Chairman Mo gets three more years
Seidenberg not in Canes future
by David Lee on 06/22/09 at 07:20 PM ET
Comments (7)
Today the news came that defenseman Dennis Seidenberg, scheduled to become an UFA on July 1, will most likely not be back in Raleigh this fall. According to the News & Observer, the Canes won’t be willing to pay him what he thinks he’s worth. Jim Rutherford had this to say:
“Based on my conversation with his agent, and where they think he’s at, he’s a long way out of our reach.
The 27-year-old German has spent the last two and a half seasons with Carolina after coming over when the Hurricanes traded Kevyn Adams to the Hamilton ... Kansas City... Phoenix Coyotes in January of 2007. He put up career bests in goals, assists, points, games played. He also managed to stay, for the most part, injury free.
This, coupled with another possible exiting blueliner, means that Carolina’s defense will have a different look next season, and they’re probably gonna have to break tradition and become a buyer in the free agent market.
There have already been rumors that Frantisek Kaberle, who was grossly overpaid at $2.2M, and who has one year remaining at that rate, wants out. As the rumor goes, he wants to go to the KHL. Of at least, the folks at Avangard Omsk want him. That headline translates to “Avangard is negotiating with two NHL players”. The other being Michael Nylander. A spokesman for Avangard Omsk, when asked about the existing NHL contracts that Kaberle and Nylander are under, said
Поверьте, если мы им занимаемся, значит, вариант перехода есть. Пока работаем над этим.
... which translates roughly to “Don’t worry about it. We’ve got it figured out”
To put it bluntly, I’d be happy to see Kaberle go. He may have scored the Cup winning goal in 2006, and he may have provided a few warm and cuddly memories, but I’ve grown very tired of him in the past couple of years. Watching Kaberle play has almost made me miss Avi Tanabe.
I’ve never been one of Seidenberg’s biggest fans. Honestly, I’m a little bit confused by the following that he has.
The point is, if Kaberle isn’t back and Seids isn’t renewed, Carolina will have five NHL defenseman under contract for next season. This includes Tim Conboy, who will be more likely to find himself playing in the New York State Penal League than as a regular in the NHL. Anton Babchuk, who will become a free agent is most accurately described as mercurial. He did some really good things in the regular season, but did his best impression of Erik Cole in the postseason. Even if he is re-signed (and my guess is that he’ll pursue other options), he’s a third pairing guy on a good day.
Carolina has some young guys like Casey Borer, Bryan Rodney and Brett Carson in the system. All are RFAs and none are good enough to become NHL regulars just yet. Carolina will have no choice but to acquire a defenseman via trade or free agency. It’s already been made clear that Carolina’s need is a defensive defenseman. Preferably one who can play in the second pairing.
It sure would be sweet if the Canes put a serious bid on Rob “The Piece” Scuderi when he becomes an UFA on July 1. It’s a foregone conclusion that the Pens are going to let him walk. Of course he’ll have loads of suitors and he’ll be seeing a payday much bigger than his 2008-09 salary of $725K. He’d be an ideal candidate, but I don’t think Jimmy Rutherford is about to join a bidding war on him. A more likely scenario will be a draft day trade or a lower profile FA. Maybe the old man will prove me wrong.
Sometime this week, I’ll do some homework about the free agent defensemen.
Filed in: | Red and Black Hockey | Permalink
Tags: Carolina+Hurricanes, Dennis+Seidenberg, Frantisek+Kaberle, free+agency., Rob+Scuderi,
Comments
i thought u meant the bulldogs… nevermind i got the joke
Posted by Oilers Rock from Edmonton, Alberta on 06/22/09 at 07:26 PM ET
I don’t think it’s a foregone conclusion that Scuderi will walk. He may end up doing that, and most rational Pens fans can’t blame him. But he has mentioned a few times prior to the playoffs how special it is to play in Pittsburgh and how former players regret leaving the team (cough, Ryan Malone, cough).
But they are running out of cap space, like most competitive teams in the league.
Posted by DigitalGypsy66 on 06/22/09 at 09:33 PM ET
Seidenberg is worth at least 1.5, I could see a team like the Rangers or Flyers dishing close to 3 for him…not saying he’s worth that much but I’ve seen worse play for more. If the Canes can’t deal with it then he should walk.
Posted by stoneman from vegas on 06/23/09 at 01:53 AM ET
i was disappointed with cole lack of production last year. otherwise he is a solid two way player
Posted by Oilers Rock from Edmonton, Alberta on 06/23/09 at 02:28 AM ET
Moratorium on strike-thru jokes, please? “Har har, I meant to say something else, but I didn’t really mean it! STRIKE-THRU!”
Posted by JG on 06/23/09 at 09:41 AM ET
Just wanted to type in my support for strike thru jokes. They are hilarious and clever, and anyone who says different is an idiot.
Posted by Godie Howe's it going on 06/24/09 at 05:15 PM ET
Add a Comment
Please limit embedded image or media size to 575 pixels wide.
Add your own avatar by joining Kukla's Korner, or logging in and uploading one in your member control panel.
Captchas bug you? Join KK or log in and you won't have to bother.
Commenting is not available in this weblog entry.
Most Recent Blog Posts
Canes use special teams to beat Sabres
The ride is over for Ryan Murphy
Carolina to carry nine defenseman to start the season—Nash cut
About Red & Black Hockey
David Lee is a restaurant manager with an unused degree in political science. He can be found at Carolina Hurricanes games, Scrabble tournaments and indie-rock shows. Sometimes, all in the same day.
David has contributed to CBC.ca for their Stanley Cup playoff coverage in 2006 and to the New York Times Slapshot blog for theirs in 2008. Red and Black Hockey was founded in July of 2005.
When learning from experts it’s best to learn personally from them, or from their blog. We can provide that with poker lessons blog, your home to learn poker personally.
Do you get shocked from the luck in the game of poker? Stop getting shocked and start being a Poker Shoker
either way u guys are gonna suck next year
Posted by evilpens from melon arena on 06/22/09 at 07:23 PM ET